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Thursday, October 31, 2013

Sebelius heads to Hill to defend health law, job

FILE - In this Oct. 24, 2013 file photo, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius speaks in Phoenix. As the public face of President Barack Obama’s signature health care program, Sebelius has become the target for attacks over its botched rollout. Republicans want her to resign and even some Democrats _ while not mentioning her name _ say someone needs to be fired. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)

Marilyn Tavenner, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2013, before the House Ways and Means Committee hearing on the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Stressing that improvements are happening daily, the senior Obama official closest to the administration's malfunctioning health care website apologized Tuesday for problems that have kept Americans from successfully signing up for coverage. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Dave Camp , R-Mich., right, greets Marilyn Tavenner, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2013, prior to Tavenner testifying before the committee's hearing on the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Stressing that improvements are happening daily, the senior Obama official closest to the administration's malfunctioning health care website apologized Tuesday for problems that have kept Americans from successfully signing up for coverage. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Eager to cast blame, lawmakers are preparing to grill President Barack Obama's top health official over problems with the rollout of the government's health care website.

A growing number of Republicans in Congress are calling for Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to step down or be fired because of problems consumers are having signing up for insurance coverage on the government's new website.

On Wednesday, Sebelius heads to Capitol Hill to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, her first appearance before Congress since state-based health exchanges opened for business on Oct. 1.

Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, the top Republican on the Senate Health Committee, on Tuesday joined the list of GOP lawmakers calling for Sebelius to go.

"Taxpayers have spent $400 million to create exchanges that, after 3½ years, still don't work," Alexander said. "No private-sector chief executive officer would escape accountability after such a poor performance."

Sebelius is likely to face questions about problems with the website as well as a wave of cancellation notices hitting small businesses and individuals who buy their own insurance. Lawmakers also want to know how many people have enrolled in plans through the health exchanges, a number the Obama administration has so far refused to divulge.

On Tuesday, Medicare chief Marilyn Tavenner was questioned for nearly three hours by members of the House Ways and Means Committee who wanted to know why so many of their constituents were getting cancellation notices from their insurance companies.

"So what happened to the 'If you like your insurance, you can keep it' question?" asked Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mich., chairman of the Ways and Means Committee.

Camp was referring to one of Obama's earliest promises about the health law: You can keep your plan if you like it. Obama's promise dates back to June 2009, when Congress was starting to grapple with overhauling the health care system to cover uninsured Americans.

As early as last spring, state insurance commissioners started giving insurers the option of canceling existing individual plans for 2014, because the coverage required under Obama's law is significantly more robust. Some states directed insurers to issue cancellations. Large employer plans that cover most workers and their families are unlikely to be affected.

The law includes a complicated "grandfathering" system to try to make good on Obama's pledge. It shields plans from the law's requirements provided the plans themselves change very little. Insurers say it has proven impractical. The cancellation notices are now reaching policyholders.

Tavenner blamed insurance companies for cancelling the policies and said most people who lose coverage will be able to find better replacement plans in the health insurance exchanges, in some cases for less money. Change is a constant in the individual insurance market, she added, saying that about half of plans "churn" over in any given year.

Tavenner delivered the most direct mea culpa yet from the administration for the technical problems that have kept many Americans from signing up through HealthCare.gov. Consumers complain that the site is slow, locks up and often kicks them off before they can complete their application.

"I want to apologize to you that the website has not worked as well as it should," she told the Ways and Means Committee.

Tavenner said the website is improving and the problems should be resolved by the end of November, giving consumers time to get coverage by the March 31 deadline.

The first senior official to publicly answer questions from lawmakers, Tavenner was also pressed about the number of people who have so far enrolled in health plans through the exchanges. Committee members asked Tavenner at least 19 times about the number of people who have so far enrolled through the exchanges.

Each time, she gave a well-rehearsed answer: "We will not have those numbers available until mid-November."

___

Follow Stephen Ohlemacher on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stephenatap

Associated PressSource: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-10-30-Health%20Overhaul-Problems/id-7553c0995e3444c18638e61ad3c5a03a
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Israel plans more than 1,500 new settlement homes

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel announced plans Wednesday to build more than 1,500 homes in Jewish settlements in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, dealing a setback to newly relaunched peace efforts hours after it had freed a group of long-serving Palestinian prisoners.

The construction plans drew angry condemnations from Palestinian officials, who accused Israel of undermining the U.S.-led talks by expanding settlements on the lands where they hope to establish an independent state. U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon also condemned the Israeli decision, and Washington said it would not create a "positive environment" for the negotiations.

Israel had freed the 26 Palestinian prisoners as part of a U.S.-brokered agreement to restart the talks. The construction was meant to blunt anger over the release of the prisoners, all of whom had been convicted of murder in the deaths of Israelis.

Israel's Interior Ministry said 1,500 apartments would be built in Ramat Shlomo, a large settlement in east Jerusalem, the section of the holy city claimed by the Palestinians as their capital. It also announced plans for archaeology and tourism projects near the Old City, home to Jerusalem's most sensitive holy sites.

Israel first announced the Ramat Shlomo plan in 2010 during a visit to Israel by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, sparking a diplomatic rift with Washington that took months to mend. Wednesday's decision is the final approval needed, and construction can begin immediately, officials said.

Ofir Akunis, a lawmaker from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party, said construction also had been approved for several West Bank settlements.

"The building in Judea and Samaria will continue and be intensified," said Akunis, using the biblical term for the West Bank.

In addition, he told parliament that Netanyahu had given orders to "advance plans" for more than 2,000 homes in a longer list of settlements across the West Bank.

While these projects still need additional bureaucratic approvals, they are especially provocative because several of the settlements are deep inside the West Bank and almost certainly would have to be dismantled as part of a peace deal.

Israel captured east Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza Strip, in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians seek all three areas for a future state.

The Palestinians, along with virtually all of the international community, consider the settlements to be illegal or illegitimate.

Nabil Abu Rdeneh, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, condemned the settlement plans, saying they were "destructive to the peace efforts and will only lead to more tensions."

"It's a message to the international community that Israel is a state that doesn't abide by international law and continues to put obstacles in the way of peace," he said.

In Washington, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said, "We do not consider continued settlement activity or East Jerusalem construction to be steps that create a positive environment for the negotiations."

U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said the secretary-general "deplores" the Israeli announcement.

"Settlement activity is contrary to international law and constitutes an obstacle to peace," Nesirky said. "Any measures that prejudge final status issues will not be recognized by the international community."

The previous round of peace talks broke down in late 2008 and remained frozen for nearly five years, in large part because of Palestinian objections to settlement construction.

The Palestinians say continued expansion of settlements, now home to more than 500,000 Israelis, makes it increasingly difficult to divide the land between Israel and a Palestinian state.

Under heavy U.S. pressure, the Palestinians dropped a longstanding demand for a settlement freeze over the summer and agreed to resume negotiations with the understanding that Israel would slow construction.

As part of that arrangement, Israel agreed to release 104 of the longest-serving Palestinian prisoners, most of whom had committed their crimes before a landmark interim peace deal was reached in 1993. Wednesday's release was the second of four groups in the coming months.

Israeli and Palestinian negotiators have been meeting secretly since late July. Under orders from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to keep quiet, they have said little about the discussions, although Palestinian officials say all core issues are being discussed.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because of Kerry's orders, said the talks are currently focusing on Israeli security demands and the contours of future borders.

The future of the settlements would fit heavily into those discussions. It remains difficult to see how the U.S. can bridge the wide gaps between the sides.

Netanyahu opposes a full withdrawal from the West Bank, saying Israel would need to keep significant portions of the territory for security needs.

He also has vowed never to divide Jerusalem. Israel has built a series of settlements around east Jerusalem, including Ramat Shlomo, to solidify its control.

Israel considers east Jerusalem settlements to be "neighborhoods" of its capital, but Israel's annexation of east Jerusalem is not internationally recognized

Danny Danon, a hard-line member of Netanyahu's party, said the U.S. should focus its energies on stopping Iran's suspected nuclear program instead of trying to broker a peace deal by next May.

"To finish the conflict with the Palestinians by May 2014 is wishful thinking," he told foreign journalists in Jerusalem. "I would say let's finish with the threat coming from Iran by May 2014 and then go to the negotiation table and speak with the Palestinians."

Israel has a long history of lopsided prisoner exchanges with its Arab adversaries. But this week's release appeared especially charged because Israel appeared to be receiving little in return except for the opportunity to conduct negotiations that few people believe will succeed.

In the West Bank and Gaza, thousands celebrated long into the night as they welcomed the released prisoners. Abbas greeted them at his West Bank headquarters early Wednesday.

While Israel views the prisoners as terrorists, the Palestinians seem them as heroes in a struggle against Israeli occupation.

"There will be no final agreement without the release of all the prisoners," Abbas told the raucous crowd.

___

Associated Press Writer Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed reporting.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/israel-plans-more-1-500-settlement-homes-190030172.html
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Live Chat: Michael Chandler vs. Eddie Alvarez 2 preview, Bellator 106 talk, UFC headlines

It's very rare that I lead chat discussion with Bellator news and notes, but this week is one such time where that makes sense. MMA's number two organization does their best to recover from their abrupt albeit temporary pivot away from pay-per-view after the cancellation of Tito Ortiz vs. Quinton Jackson.

The reality, despite the hemming and hawing from some fans and media online, is a great card. I don't know if it was ever pay-per-view ready, but it's more than a fine fit for Spike TV.

The questions I have are: will Tito Ortiz finally go away? Who is next for Rampage? Why is Bellator rushing to pay-per-view? And perhaps most importantly, why does everyone seem to not understand a thing about Bellator?

We'll, of course, get to all UFC news and notes.

There's a lot going on, so join me today to discuss all of this and more. In terms of today's chat, anything is up for discussion, but I will lead with this and it all kicks off at 1 p.m. ET.

As is customary, I'll post the video window here as the event draws near and I'll answer any questions you may have if you post them in the comments section below. Be sure that you click the 'rec' button for those comments/questions you believe most deserve a response.

Be sure to link this page and use the hashtag #chatwrappers on Twitter or even Facebook when you're watching this to let everyone know you're taking part is this activity of ours.

Talk with you all at 1 p.m. ET.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2013/10/30/5046244/live-chat-michael-chandler-vs-eddie-alvarez-2-preview-bellator-106
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A Chair That Turns Into a Brain-Protecting Helmet During Earthquakes

When an earthquake hits, most of us know to run for a doorframe or duck next to a desk. Protecting your noggin should be the priority, and the Mamoris chair wants to help: This clever chair quickly disassembles into a brain-and-neck-protecting helmet.

Qatar benches World Cup 'headbutt' statue

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — The future hosts of the World Cup in Qatar have decided a statue depicting one of the tournament's most talked-about moments is not worthy of public display.

Officials in Doha ordered the removal of a five-meter (16-foot) bronze statue of French footballer Zinedine Zidane's infamous headbutt of Italy's Marco Materazzi in the 2006 World Cup.

So, cranes were brought in this week and on Thursday, the statue's site along Doha's waterfront was empty.

Officials have not commented on the reason for its removal, but the artwork had stirred complaints from Muslim conservatives saying it promoted idolatry. Others argued it's wrong to honor Zidane's unsportsmanlike act in striking Materazzi after an insult from the Italian.

The statue, created by Algerian-born French artist Adel Abdessemed, was unveiled in Doha in early October.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/qatar-benches-world-cup-headbutt-statue-084516716--spt.html
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Sprint's Dan Hesse confirms unlimited data isn't going anywhere after Spark rollout

Of the four major national networks in the US, Sprint has been the most faithful in its commitment to offer unlimited data plans without restrictions. After this morning's announcement that the operator would be rolling out Spark, which promises 50-60Mbps peak speeds (with faster networks on the horizon as part of its Vision) to its users, it left us wondering if this rollout would come with any trade-offs. While he didn't speak to specifics on plans and pricing, CEO Dan Hesse reaffirmed his company's commitment to unlimited data, explaining that he wouldn't have offered Unlimited for Life to customers this summer if he didn't intend to keep the plans around for the foreseeable future. This will be great for the limited number of markets that can take advantage of the blazing speeds right away, but anxious folks in other parts of the country can at least take comfort in knowing that the plans won't have gone anywhere when Spark finally shows up in their hometown.

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/10/30/sprints-dan-hesse-confirms-unlimited-data-isnt-going-anywhere/?ncid=rss_truncated
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10 Things to Know for Thursday

Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about Thursday:

1. OBAMA VOWS TO CURE HEALTH CARE WEBSITE

"There's no excuse" for the dysfunctional rollout, he declares. "And I take full responsibility for making sure it gets fixed ASAP."

2. NSA REPORTEDLY ACCESSES YAHOO, GOOGLE DATA CENTERS

The latest revelations trigger legal questions, including whether the agency may be violating federal wiretap laws.

3. WHAT HASN'T HAPPENED SINCE 1918

The Boston Red Sox claimed their third World Series title in 10 years with a 6-1 win over St. Louis, clinching the title at Fenway Park for the first time since 1918.

4. AFTER PUSHING OUT US MILITARY, IRAQ BACKTRACKS

American weapons, training and manpower are needed to help fight a bloody resurgence of al-Qaida, a top official says.

5. WHAT'S STAYING THE SAME AT THE FEDERAL RESERVE

The Fed — while seeming to signal that the economy is improving — will continue to buy $85 billion a month in bonds.

6. JEWISH BOOKS, PAPERS FOUND IN IRAQ RAISE OWNERSHIP QUESTIONS

A sample of the trove will be displayed this fall in Washington. But plans to return the material to Iraq are meeting opposition.

7. STUDY: GETTING YOUR BELL RUNG SHOULD MEAN A TIME OUT

A report reveals gaps in what is known about the risk of concussions in youth sports, but urges athletes to stay on the sidelines whenever they suffer one.

8. HOW DO YOU 'LIKE' ME NOW?

Mobile advertising spurs a 60 percent quarterly revenue increase for Facebook, beating Wall Street's expectations.

9. SMOKE 'EM IF YOU GOT 'EM — AND YOU'RE 21

The New York City Council votes to raise the tobacco-purchasing age from 18 to 21, higher than all but a few places in the U.S.

10. WHO STOLE THE SHOW AT THE VATICAN

As the pope delivers a homily, a little boy climbs onto the papal chair — and at one point even clings to the pontiff's legs.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/10-things-know-thursday-104756375.html
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