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Medicaid reform in the ‘Beautiful Bill’

President Donald Trump recently signed H.R.1, aka the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” into law. The basis of the bill is an extension of the 2017 tax relief. Also included in the new law is the first substantial reform to the Medicaid health insurance entitlement. Despite claims that “the sky is falling,” the Medicaid reforms are actually a start at guaranteeing that the program will survive into the future and be available for the country’s most vulnerable people. Opponents decry the “cuts” to Medicaid. In reality, the new law actually reduces an INCREASE in spending from ...

The value in opening up to otherness

When I saw my youngest cousin last, she and her fiancé drove the conversation, sharing all the trips they’d taken, were soon going to take, and wanted to take at some point in the future. I couldn’t help thinking how much I’d changed. My younger self absolutely loved traveling, exploring new places, and experiencing different cultures. My current self, however, doesn’t like the new and unknown anymore, and instead has grown fond of revisiting a few places I’ve enjoyed visiting in the past. This June, right on the day of my husband’s and my anniversary, there was a direct ...

Muddled leadership loses to Ohio

Pennsylvania’s nickname of the Keystone State, as variously reported, originates with the deciding vote for independence by a Pennsylvania member of the Continental Congress or in the commonwealth’s central location among the 13 colonies. The state’s prominence continued through the 19th and 20th centuries when its oil, coal and manufacturing prowess were major economic forces. Today, with Pennsylvania situated in the nation’s most densely populated region, the commonwealth’s geography and resources continue to enhance its national role. Yet if modern Penn’s Woods is to ...

Capital investment is the keystone

Pennsylvania has always matched industrial muscle with financial clout, and nowhere is that union clearer than in Pittsburgh, where steel mills rose alongside powerhouse financial institutions like Mellon and PNC. Today the same dynamic is accelerating statewide and in my district. Surging global demand for LNG and coal, the explosion of energy-hungry data-center campuses, and renewed interest—both foreign and domestic—in legacy industries such as steel are all chasing reliable transport and logistics. That convergence of capital and commerce proves that when private financing is ...

Americans must not be afraid of our enemies

The klaxon sounds on the telephone. It is horrifying, startling. The purpose of the klaxon when it sounds on Israeli cellphones is to warn civilians that incoming ballistic missiles and drones are on their way from Iran or Yemen. “Anyone who has anxiety, will feel it throughout their bones, when they hear the klaxon sound on the phone.” “When we hear that sound, we grab a drink, go to the bathroom, and head for the saferoom. The kids know what to do. They know to head to the saferoom, even if they are in the park playing.” Schools in Israel are closed. Businesses are ...

Pushing public notices to government websites would be a terrible move

Legislation in the Pennsylvania Senate risks allowing local governments to operate in the shadows, leaving taxpayers unaware of decisions affecting their pocketbooks, their communities and their quality of life. State Senate Bill 194, sponsored by Sen. Doug Mastriano, R-Fayetteville, would ...