Why America’s $2.9 Trillion Medical Industry Still Runs on Paper Payments by John Tozzi

Dealing with medical bills, like waiting for the cable guy or buying a used car, has become a cliché of consumer exasperation. Everything from electricity and phone bills to tax returns and parking tickets migrated to electronic payments years ago, but America’s $2.9 trillion health-care economy remains stubbornly stuck in the 1990s. The number of medical bills paid by paper check through the U.S. …

No growth boost from developing economies says World Bank By Nick Beams

In the years immediately following the global financial crisis of 2008, the claim was frequently advanced that, while the major capitalist economies were severely impacted, the so-called developing economies would provide a new base for world growth. This upbeat assessment has looked increasingly fragile in the recent period. It has now been officially buried in the latest report on the …

The Richest 0.01 Percent of Americans Gave 42 Percent of Political Donations in 2012 – Stephen Wolf

The top 0.01 percent of Americans gave nearly 42 percent of all political donation dollars in the 2012 election cycle. Photo Credit: crowdpac Forget the top one percent, the top 0.01 percent of Americans [2] gave nearly 42 percent of all political donation dollars in the 2012 election cycle. Just over 30,000 individuals contributed nearly half of all money. It is no coincidence …

Helping Veterans with PTSD Using Yoga – Constance Scharff Ph.D.

We have come a long way in our efforts to treat PTSD and other psychological disorders. Some of the best information has come from veterans themselves. For example, after suffering from the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon, Army veteran John Thurman used his experience with yoga to help others, in a program that packs rooms. There are many complementary therapies …

Major US Political Parties Less Popular Than Ever

A recent Gallup poll found that the major political parties in the United States are seeing their lowest popularity levels in recent memory. Both the Democrats and the Republicans fall well below 50% in terms of approval, with 39% viewing the Democratic party favorable and 37% viewing the Republican party favorable. Since 1992 Gallup has been recording how much support each party …

Real U.S. Unemployment Rate at 23.2%, not 5.5%

The seasonally-adjusted SGS Alternate Unemployment Rate reflects current unemployment reporting methodology adjusted for SGS-estimated long-term discouraged workers, who were defined out of official existence in 1994. That estimate is added to the BLS estimate of U-6 unemployment, which includes short-term discouraged workers. The U-3 unemployment rate is the monthly headline number. The U-6 unemployment rate is the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) …