Understanding Government

I wrote a piece a month ago that looked at how the city of Chicago’s focus on violent crime comes at the expense of other worthy issues. Here’s an example: Rebecca Vevea of the Chicago News Cooperative reports that Chicago Public Schools will continue to spend millions on “Safe Passage,” a program that helps students arrive and depart from school safely.

Obviously, there are worse uses of taxpayer money. But Safe Passage was a program launched by federal stimulus funds and those funds have run out. Does CPS really need to keep this additional safety program — for which $10 million has been set aside — when it faces a $612 million deficit?

Chicago Tribune architectural critic Blair Kamin gushes about stimulus money that has gone to make federal buildings more energy efficient. (more…)

Twenty states have sued to block implementation of the national health care reform law and Wisconsin will soon make it twenty-one. Some states have even cited burdensome implementation of the Affordable Care Act as a reason to not provide Medicaid. However, John Bouman of the Shriver Center points out that three different studies (one was commissioned by the White House) show state governments will actually save money due to health care reform. The latest study, from the Urban Institute, asserts that states will save between $40 billion and $132 billion from 2014-2019.

Savings will mostly come from the shifting burden of Medicaid costs. (more…)

Yesterday I blogged that a debate on how much money to put toward Medicaid has shaped the Wisconsin gubernatorial race. Both the Democratic and Republican candidates in the Badger State pledge to reduce spending on the federal-state health program for the poor. Medicaid is also a central issue in the equally tight Illinois race for governor, but the positions are different. The State Journal-Register’s Chris Wetterich reports that the sitting Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn’s running mate, Sheila Simon, has vowed not to cut state spending on Medicaid through raising eligibility standards. (more…)

Kathleen Sebelius

Here is just one of the evil, dastardly domestic discretionary funding programs concocted by the Obama administration and a Democratic Congress: money for community health centers that provide primary and preventive services for low-income people.  Illinois will get almost $46 million from the Affordable Care Act to support community health centers, reports ABC-7 Chicago. Health and Human Services Sec. Kathleen Sebelius announced Friday that HHS will give $725 million to 143 community health centers across the country, money that will provide health care to an additional 745,000 people. (more…)