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• NCPA President John C. Goodman provided written testimony for a June 28 hearing on Health Savings Accounts by the House Ways & Means Committee.  Goodman told the committee how to improve incentives and create opportunities for the chronically ill.  Read the testimony at: http://www.ncpa.org/pub/speech/2006/20060628_HSA_House_Means.pdf

• NCPA Senior Fellow H. Sterling Burnett provided written testimony for a July 19 hearing on Climate Change science by the House Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations subcommittee.  Burnett told the committee that it should be careful when using the so-called “hockey stick” theory when deciding policy, because it is flawed and open to methodological and scientific questions.  Read the testimony at: http://www.ncpa.org/pub/speech/2006/20060719-sp.html.
• President Bush has signed into law pension-reform legislation that includes 401(k) reforms developed by the National Center for Policy Analysis and Brookings Institution.  NCPA/Brookings 401(k) reforms are perhaps the most important features in the bill, particularly for younger workers.  While these reforms will help ensure more Americans save and save adequately, there is more that can be done. 

• Five high-profile women from the worlds of public service and journalism shared the stage at the National Press Club to discuss “Modern Families, Outdated Laws.”  Co-hosted by the NCPA and the National Press Club Newsmakers Committee, this discussion highlighted outdated tax, labor and employee benefit laws, including health care and retirement policy, and the tough choices modern families face.  The discussion will coincide with the launching of the NCPA’s book, Leaving Women Behind: Modern Families, Outdated Laws. 
• In addition to Leaving Women Behind co-authors Kim Strassel and John Goodman, featured participants include: former Clinton White House Press Secretary Dee Dee Myers; Mommy Wars author and Washington Post columnist Leslie Morgan Steiner; Parade magazine columnist Lyric Wallwork Winik; and Karen Czarnecki, director of the 21st Century Workforce at the U.S. Department of Labor.

• NCPA Senior Fellow Devon Herrick has been elected to serve as chairman of the Health Economics Roundtable of the National Association of Business Economics (NABE).  Herrick has most recently served as secretary-treasurer of the Roundtable.

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• NCPA President John C. Goodman was featured in a two-part interview for UPI’s “Cost Rx” column on July 19 – 20.  Goodman shared his thoughts about the state and future of Health Savings Accounts.
• NCPA Board Chairman Pete du Pont’s July 25 commentary for the Wall Street Journal’s OpinionJournal.com notes that tax cuts are good for everyone, and the only ones to not understand that are Washington Democrats. 
• Goodman told the Gannett news service on July 21 that workers have not been prepared to adequately make retirement planning decisions.
• The July 2 edition of the Dallas Morning News noted an NCPA Brief Analysis by NCPA Senior Fellow H. Sterling Burnett that showed how a lack of economic freedom is hampering oil supply.
• NCPA Senior Fellow Devon Herrick told the July 18 edition of Dow Jones MarketWatch that because seniors have high health care spending, they especially need access to a Health Savings Account (HSA).
• NCPA Senior Policy Analyst Matt Moore told the July 16 Charlotte Observer the auto-enrollment into employer’s 401(k) plans came about because too few people were actually saving for retirement. This article also appeared July 16 in the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel and July 31 in the Herald News (Passaic County, NJ).
• Burnett told the July 24 edition of the Washington Times that Cuba's activities show that the quarter-century ban on offshore drilling is putting the U.S. at a strategic disadvantage at a time of increasingly scarce energy resources and record high oil and gas prices.
• Goodman and Herrick told the Las Vegas Review Journal on July 21 that much of Medicaid’s spending has been on optional populations and optional benefits.
• Goodman discussed the potential of HSAs for Medicare with the July 14 edition of Inside Consumer-Directed Health Care.
• On July 18 Herrick told Bankrate.com that young people with HSAs can build up significant balances for later in life when their health care needs rise.  His comments also appeared in Yahoo Finance and RedNova.com.
• Herrick also reviewed the new book Your Health Matters: What You Need to Know about U.S. Health Care for the August 2006 edition of Health Care News.
• Burnett told the July 20 edition of Too Much Information on XM Satellite Radio international economic politics is behind many environmental policies.
• Moore told The Times Union (Albany, NY) that policies to automatically enroll employees into their employer’s 401(k) plan are primarily for workers who are not doing the investing they should be doing. 
• Burnett told WILM-AM (Wilmington, DE) on July 19 that it’s time to end the ban on drilling in the Outer-Continental shelf.  He discussed the same topic on July 18 on BizRadio (Dallas, Houston). 
• Moore told Teresa Dixon Murray of the Cleveland Plain Dealer that workers can expect to lose a bigger chunk of their paycheck to support retirees unless reforms are made.  Murray’s article also ran July 16 in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
• Burnett wrote in the July 16 Washington Times that the Senate should follow the House’s lead and remove the ban on drilling in the Outer-Continental shelf.
• Kimberley Strassel, senior editorial writer for The Wall Street Journal and co-author of the new NCPA book, Leaving Women Behind: Modern Families, Outdated Laws, told the Dallas Morning News that Social Security needs to rethink its benefits for divorced women.  This article also appeared in the July 23 edition of the Seattle Times.
• Burnett discussed the Outer Continental shelf drilling debate on the July 14 edition of CNBC’s Street Signs.
• NCPA policy analyst Christy Black told KAHL-AM (San Antonio) on July 24 that the privatization of Texas’ welfare enrollment system needs to be given a chance to succeed and that it is a major improvement over the old system.  Black also appeared on the July 25 edition of the Darrel Ankarlo Show on KLIF-AM (Dallas).
• Burnett told Dallas National Public Radio affiliate KERA-FM on July 7 that now is the time to tap into the Outer-Continental Shelf for oil.
• Herrick told the July 26 Evansville Courier Press the HSAs are a good way to save on health care.
• Burnett told the July/August edition of American Enterprise that a windfall profits tax would have a negative effect on energy production and economic growth.
• Burnett told the July 1 edition of Environment and Climate News that there are significant flaws in state efforts to regulate mercury emissions from power plants.
• Herrick told the July 25 edition of HealthDecisions.org that interstate competition in the health care market was a good idea.
• Burnett detailed reasons for ending the ban on drilling on the Outer-Continental shelf for a special pro-con editorial series for Knight-Ridder Tribune news service.  His commentary appeared in the Salt Lake City Tribune on July 29. 
• Burnett also spoke about the Outer-Continental shelf ban on the Bob Davis Show on KSTP-AM and the Don Williams Show on WOND-AM on July 28.
• Burnett discussed the folly of imposing a windfall profits tax on energy companies on the July 27th edition of CNBC’s Power Lunch.
• The July 22 edition of The Economist reported NCPA research on the impact of farm subsidies on poor farmers and developing nations.
• Burnett told CQ Weekly on July 10 that federal agriculture disaster relief encourages overproduction and harms environmentally sensitive lands.
• Burnett and Herrick told the July 7 edition of Human Events that the so-called “Daubert rulings” have helped reduce junk science in court preceding.
• Goodman told the August 2 edition of the Los Angeles Times that reforms to 401(k)s to increase participation were by far the most important aspects of the pension legislation.  This article also appeared in the August 6 Austin American Statesman.
• Moore also told the Baltimore Sun on August 5 that reforms to 401(k)s to increase participation were by far the most important aspects of the pension legislation.  Moore also shared this insight with the August 5 Dallas Morning News, and CBS News Radio on August 2.
• Gov. du Pont’s August 28 commentary for the Wall Street Journal’s OpinionJournal.com, notes that efforts are underway in states like California and Colorado to change the way the president is elected.  Du Pont discussed his column Sept. 8 on the Mark Davis Show on WBAP-AM (Dallas).
• Goodman told KCBS-AM (San Francisco) on August 2 that automatic enrollment into companies’ 401(k) plans is an important step in increasing national savings.
• In a commentary for the August 4 edition of the Washington Times, Burnett noted that the mainstream media ignored recent congressional hearings that provided evidence the science behind global warming theory is fundamentally flawed.
• In a pro-con commentary for the McClatchy-Tribune News Service, Goodman discussed the folly of Chicago’s selective minimum wage ordinance.  This article appeared in the August 7 edition of the Arizona Daily Star.
• In his August 2006 Health Care News article, Herrick illustrates how patients increasingly have access to laboratory testing without seeing their doctor.
• Burnett discussed the crisis in the Mideast and why it increases the importance of lifting the ban on drilling on the outer-continental shelf on August 1 on the John Gambling Show on WABC-AM (New York City), WHAS-AM (Louisville) KCRS-AM (Midland-Odessa), August 3 on the Terry Lowry Show on KTEK-AM (Houston), and August 4 on WNTA-AM (Rockford, IL).
• Herrick told the August 4 Seattle Times that the uninsured have access to medical care when they need it.
• In an article for the August 1 Environment & Climate News, Burnett noted that states are taking the lead in preventing eminent domain abuse.
• Moore told the August 6 Charlotte Observer that automatic enrollment into companies 401(k) plans will be vitally important to younger workers.  The Observer noted the NCPA’s role in developing and promoting the idea.
• Herrick told the August 17 edition of the Baltimore Sun that allowing people to shop for health insurance across state lines would create a more competitive health care marketplace and increase the likelihood that patients will find insurance that fits their needs.  Herricks remarks were also mentioned in American Health Line, Pharma Marketletter, HealthDecisions.org, KaiserNetwork.org, MedicalNewsToday.com and the Economist.com.
• Nationally syndicated columnist Jonah Goldberg noted NCPA research showing farm subsidies cost developing countries $24 billion each year.  Goldberg’s column appeared in the August 3 Los Angeles Times and August 7 Miami Herald.
• Moore told Associated Press columnist Eileen Powell on August 10 that 401(k) reforms were the most important part of the recently approved pension bill.  This article ran in numerous newspapers across the country, including ABCNews.com, Washington Post, BusinessWeek, Pioneer Press (St. Paul, MN), News & Observer (Raleigh, NC), Akron Beacon Journal, Buffalo News, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, San Jose Mercury News, and Sacramento Bee among others.
• Burnett detailed reasons for ending the ban on drilling on the Outer-Continental shelf for a special pro-con editorial series for McClatchy Tribune news service.  His commentary appeared in the Salt Lake City Tribune on July 29 and Kansas City Star August 1. 
• Moore told Dallas Morning News columnist Pam Yip on August 5 that the 401(k) reforms are particularly important for younger workers.  Yip’s column also appeared in the Arizona Republic, Baltimore Sun, Biloxi Sun Herald, Lexington (KY) Herald Leader, and Kansas City Star among others.
• The August 6 edition of the Chattanooga Times-Free Press noted NCPA research discussing the lingering impact of hurricane Katrina on gulf oil production.
• Herrick told the August 15 San Jose Mercury News that long lines are a common feature in national health care plans.
• Moore told Dallas Morning News’ Pam Yip on August 21 that rank and file workers haven’t had much time to think about the investment options available to them.  This column was also distributed nationally by McClatchy-Tribune.
• Moore discussed reforms to 401(k) plans August 8 on Money Matters with Barry Armstrong on WBNW-AM (Boston).
• Herrick reviewed the new book Your Health Matters: What You Need to Know about U.S. Health Care for the August 2006 edition of Health Care News.
• Moore told the August 17 Chicago Tribune that the 401(k) reforms signed into law are a recognition that they are the pension wave of the future. 
• CNN and CNN Headline News cited Moore’s research on August 17 that one-third of workers who qualify for their company’s 401(k) plan currently do not enroll.
• NCPA Adjunct Scholar Robert Michaels told the August 30 edition of Human Events that relying significantly on renewable energy for electricity production is not sound policy.
• Moore told syndicated columnist Humberto Cruz that 401(k) reform is the first step in making them more accessible and valuable to workers.  Cruz’s column appeared in the August 23 Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, FL) and the August 25 Salt Lake City Tribune, among others.
• Moore told the Media General News Service on August 25 that half of workers in the 20s currently do not sign up for their 401(k) plan.
• In a special commentary for McClatchy-Tribune, Moore suggested new taxes on fatty foods disproportionately impact the poor.  This column appeared in the Sept. 5 editions of Arizona Daily Star, Centre Daily Times (Pennsylvania), Columbia Tribune (Missouri), Miami Herald, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and the Sept. 3 edition of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
• Goodman told Scripps Howard columnist Deroy Murdock that single-payer health care systems ration care as a means of controlling costs.  This column appeared in the Sept. 13 edition of NationalReviewOnline, Sept. 5 edition of the Washington Times, and Aug. 24 in Human Events and TownHall.com.
• Wall Street Journal columnist Kim Strassel, co-author of NCPA’s Leaving Women Behind, discussed the book during appearances on KORN-AM (Aug. 30), KGNO-AM (Aug. 31), KBUR-AM (Sept. 12), WYAM-TV (Sept. 12) and WSLB-AM (Sept. 18).
• Burnett appeared on the Sept. 1 edition of Radio America’s Dateline: Washington.  Burnett warned host Greg Corumbus that government subsidies for coastal development are turning bad weather events into human tragedies.
• In a commentary appearing in the September 2006 edition of Health Insurance Underwriter, Herrick explained how interstate competition in health insurance can benefit consumers.
• Gov. du Pont’s Sept. 27 commentary for the Wall Street Journal’s OpinionJournal.com notes that colleges and universities are not providing their students the American history and constitutional understanding needed to make them strong and responsible citizens.
• Strassel told The Standard Times (South Massachusetts) on Sept. 3 that many two-income couples face high taxes and tough choices due to outdated public policies.
• Moore told the Sept. 11 edition of the Dallas Morning News that we have a crisis in elderly entitlement programs and that both Social Security and Medicare need to be reformed.  This article also appeared Sept. 12 in Consumer Affairs.
• Goodman appeared on the Labor Day edition of Fox News Channel’s Dayside program (Sept. 4) to discuss Leaving Women Behind.  Goodman suggested reforms to bring public policies up-to-date with the modern family.
• Burnett told syndicated columnist Larry Elder that farm subsidies are hurting developing countries.  Elder’s column appear in the Sept 2 editions of the Orange County Register and Washington Times.
• Moore told the Richmond Times-Dispatch on Sept. 9 that half of all 20 year-old workers currently do not enroll in their employer’s 401(k) plan.
• Herrick told the Sept. 22 edition of USA Today that Wal-Mart’s decision to discount generic drugs can be a boon for seniors.  His comments also appeared on American Healthline, The Daily Journal (Vineland NJ), The Arizona Republic, The Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune and the KaiserNetwork.org Daily Health Policy Report.
• Moore told the Sept. 17 edition of the Washington Post that the costs of maintaining defined-benefit pension plans have climbed sharply in the past six years because companies have been forced to compensate for lower-than-anticipated returns on investments.
• In a special commentary for McClatchy-Tribune, Burnett argued that California’s new greenhouse gas emission limits will result in higher prices for California's consumers, higher unemployment for California's workers and little or no benefit for the environment.  Burnett’s column appeared in the Sept. 16 Sacramento Bee, Sept. 14 Salt Lake Tribune, Sept. 17 Monterey County (CA) Herald and Sept. 16 Duluth News Tribune.
• On September 22, Herrick told BizRadio with Brent Clanton (1320AM Houston) the price of those health care services paid directly, such as cosmetic surgery, have risen at less than one-third as areas of medicine paid by third-parties.
• NCPA Graduate Student Fellow Pam Villarreal told the Las Cruces Sun-News (Oct. 1) that New Mexico has lost more economic freedom than any other state due in part to their high tax burden.  Villarreal’s comments on New Mexico also appeared on the state AP wire and KOB-TV (Sept. 28) and on KSVP-AM (Sept. 28).
• Strassel told The Standard Times (South Massachusetts) on Sept. 3 that many two-income couples face high taxes and tough choices due to outdated public policies.
• Herrick told the Sept. 17 Des Moines Register that patients with HSAs save money and make better choices.
• Moore discussed Oregon’s economic freedom rating on KOPT-AM (Oregon).  Moore cited the NCPA/Fraser annual report in stating Oregon’s comparatively low economic freedom led to poor growth rates.
• Goodman and Leaving Women Behind co-author Kim Strassel made a joint appearance on the Sept. 25 edition of Washington Post Radio to discuss how our public policies need to be reformed to meet the needs of modern families.
• On September 15, Herrick told Terry Lowery, host of the What’s Up Radio Program (KTEK, 1110 AM, Houston), many people are uninsured by choice.
• Villarreal told the Delaware State News (Sept. 29) that “The First State” rates as the nation’s most economically free for the fourth year in a row.  Her comments also appeared on WGMD-AM (Sept. 27) and in the News Journal (Sept. 26).
• Herrick told the Sept. 11 edition of the Journal Record (Oklahoma City) that much of the increase in the medically uninsured can be explained by population growth.
• Burnett discussed how simple economics is behind the recent drop in gas prices on WBAL-AM (Sept. 23) and Wisconsin Public Radio (Sept. 21).
• The Journal Record cited NCPA research on Sept. 7 that showed legislatively mandating health insurance is unlikely to lower the uninsured rate.
• Villarreal discussed Florida’s economic freedom ranking Sept. 28 on WOKV-AM (Jacksonville, FL).
• Herrick discussed consumer-directed health care Sept. 26 on Voice of America; Health and Wellness.
• Villarreal told Carl Wigglesworth on KHAL-AM (San Antonio, TX) Sept. 25 that inheritance is a small portion of wealth, and that the estate tax does not prevent the establishment of financial dynasties.

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• As Congress continues debate over reduction and possible elimination of the estate tax, the NCPA released a new study that undermines the chief argument made by proponents of the tax – that estate taxation prevents the concentration of wealth in the hands of financial dynasties. The report shows that the contribution of inheritances to the distribution of wealth in the U.S. is surprisingly small.  Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and Senator Jon Kyl wrote a letter to their colleagues drawing their attention to this study. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/st/st289/

• Employees routinely shift costs from their employer’s health insurance plan to the more generous and inefficient workers’ comp system, according to this new NCPA study.  Employers can’t control workers’ comp costs as much, and as a result, they face increasingly higher insurance premiums, which reached nearly $60 billion in 2000.  Workers ultimately bear these costs through lower wages. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/st/st287/

• The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) was intended to tax the small number of wealthy people who, in any given year, legally owe no personal income tax due to the many number of exemptions allowed in the U.S. tax code.  Yet due to the nature of the exemptions, more and more people will fall subject to the AMT.  This new NCPA Brief Analysis suggests Congress should create a new system that taxes everyone fairly, efficiently, and simplifies the entire tax law. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba/ba571/

• Forcing developing countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to prevent climate change before they fully develop their economies will lead to continued poverty and more environmental harm, according to this new NCPA Brief Analysis. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba/ba570/

• Can the problem of the growing number of people without health insurance be solved by passing a law mandating its purchase?  A budding bi-partisan movement believes it can.  Yet a new NCPA Brief Analysis cautions that experience with mandates in auto insurance shows mandating health insurance may not work. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba/ba569/

• Despite claims that there is a health insurance crisis in the U.S., the proportion of Americans without health insurance has changed little in the past decade.  This new NCPA Brief Analysis says the increase in the number of people without health insurance is largely due to immigration and population growth. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba/ba568/

• Congress has made it easier for workers to prepare for retirement by passing the Pension Protection Act of 2006. Most of the media coverage has focused on how the new act will affect corporate defined-benefit pension plans like the one for pilots at Northwest or Delta Airlines.  This new NCPA Brief Analysis however, notes the most important and far-reaching features of the bill are provisions that encourage the expansion of such employer-sponsored retirement accounts as 401(k)s and 403(b)s. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba/ba567/

• Medicaid is a joint federal-state health care program, primarily for the poor.  Each state budgets its own Medicaid spending, but receives federal funds based on a matching formula.  That means wealthy states that spend more on Medicaid receive more federal funds, while poor states, which tend to have larger poverty populations, receive less.  This new NCPA Brief Analysis examines the reasons for such disparities in the Medicaid program, and what should be done. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba/ba566/

• The U.S. House of Representatives passed another increase in the federal minimum wage. Yet a new NCPA Brief Analysis suggests a minimum wage increase will induce even more employers to drop or reduce health insurance benefits, resulting in a further increase in the number of uninsured. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba/ba565/

• As former Vice President Al Gore’s global warming movie nears the end of its run in theaters, a new NCPA Brief Analysis suggests combating climate change requires creative thinking about the world’s energy needs.  According to the analysis, nuclear power holds the most promise as a clean, practical alternative to fossil fuels that could help satisfy the world economy’s growing demand for energy. http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba/ba564/

• The United States needs oil and natural gas. The best estimates indicate that by 2025 U.S. oil consumption will grow by one-third — even with the rise of renewable biofuels — and electricity demand will increase by more than 45 percent, with natural gas fueling much of the new electric power generation. Where will Americans find the additional oil and gas they need? Much of it lies under the deep waters of the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). According to an NCPA Brief Analysis, only politics prevents the development of decades’ worth of oil and gas supplies.http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba/ba563/

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• The NCPA has recently added a new feature to our comprehensive Web site for consumer-driven health care information: Patient Power Pulse, a new blog offering links to the latest news and expert analysis on the hot health care topics of the day.  Visitors can also add their comments. 
• The NCPA has launched a special Web site to promote our latest book, Leaving Women Behind: Modern Families, Outdated Laws, by Kim Strassel, John Goodman and Celeste Colgan.  The book notes that the most important economic and social change in the past half-century has been the movement of women into the labor market, yet our outdated public policies have completely ignored the change.  The site not only provides visitors with a gateway to purchase the book, but also the opportunity to share their experiences.  Visit www.LeavingWomenBehind.com

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