Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
Martin Shkreli gets extra time to fight Congress
The weekend winter storm forced House investigators Monday to push back their showdown with Martin Shkreli, the price-hiking drug company executive who is resisting their plans to have him appear before Congress for what he says is his own public embarrassment. Published January 25, 2016
Democrats push fixes to ‘crushing’ student debt
Rising college costs and heaps of student-loan debt are a direct threat to America's future, according to Senate Democrats who proposed legislative fixes Thursday and challenged Republicans to either join them or come up with a plan of their own in a pivotal election year. Published January 21, 2016
Top Obamacare official pledges action on failing co-ops
The man in charge of implementing Obamacare told Congress he will take a proactive approach toward nonprofit co-op plans that have failed at a startling rate, pledging to both help co-ops that survived and leverage the Justice Department to seek repayment of taxpayer loans from those that did not. Published January 21, 2016
House Republicans eye reconciliation to trim 2017 budget
House Republicans will write their 2017 budget to the maximum level of spending set out in last year's budget deal, but will try to come back and cut spending later this year using the same fast-track tool they turned to in trying to repeal Obamacare, the House Budget Committee chairman said Wednesday. Published January 20, 2016
UnitedHealth loses $720 million offering plans under Obamacare, may withdraw next year
The nation's largest insurer said it booked $720 million in losses last year by offering plans under Obamacare, and warned Tuesday that it might still withdraw altogether from the health law by next year. Published January 19, 2016
Supreme Court refuses to take another Obamacare case
The Supreme Court refused Tuesday to take up an appeal that says Congress flouted the Constitution by kick-starting Obamacare in the wrong chamber. Published January 19, 2016
UnitedHealth still down on Obamacare exchanges
The nation's largest insurer said Tuesday it still might withdraw from the Obamacare marketplace by 2017, citing losses on the law's Web-based exchanges despite a stronger-than-expected earnings report buoyed by its Optum division and other lines of business. Published January 19, 2016
Paul Ryan pitches grand 2016 vision that’s short on details
House Speaker Paul D. Ryan said Friday his troops will offer voters a clear, conservative agenda before they vote in November, though he failed to outline concrete goals for 2016 after a three-day retreat in Baltimore that's been dominated by talk of the raucous GOP nominating race for president. Published January 15, 2016
Sierra Leone reports new Ebola case
Officials have confirmed a new case of Ebola in Sierra Leone, delivering a remarkable -- although predicted -- setback for West Africa just one day after world health officials declared an end to the two-year outbreak that killed more than 11,000 in the region. Published January 15, 2016
Kevin Brady and Fred Upton, GOP chairmen, threaten subpoena over Obamacare standoff
Two powerful Republicans threatened Friday to subpoena the Obama administration unless it explains by Jan. 28 why it is funding an obscure program under Obamacare without explicit approval from Congress. Published January 15, 2016
Jacob Lew, Treasury secretary, to visit Puerto Rico over fiscal crisis
Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew pressured Congress to act swiftly in solving Puerto Rico's debt crisis, warning the U.S. territory is in free fall while lawmakers work to throw it a lifeline by March 31. Published January 15, 2016
Paul Ryan touts an ‘inspiring’ 2016
House Speaker Paul D. Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell looked beyond the GOP's bitter presidential race Thursday and said they plan to offer a constructive agenda for voters who'll have the final say in November's general election. Published January 14, 2016
Steve Scalise: House plans ‘bold vision’ despite 2016 contests
House Majority Whip Steve Scalise said Thursday his chamber will forge ahead with spending bills and other initiatives in the coming year, even though the November elections will shorten the legislative calendar and it's unclear how often Senate Democrats will flex their power to block what they don't like. Published January 14, 2016
Congressional GOP preps for post-Obama era at annual retreat
Agreeing with President Obama's low expectations for Congress this year, GOP leaders cast their eye farther afield Thursday, saying they wanted to use the upcoming months to define the kinds of big philosophical choices voters will make in November's elections. Published January 14, 2016
Obama wants to reset clock on Medicaid expansion
President Obama wants to sweeten the deal for 19 states that have refused to expand their Medicaid programs under Obamacare, saying Congress should reset the clock on generous federal matching funds that were set to wind down after this year. Published January 14, 2016
Obamacare penalty fee increasing sharply in 2016
The Obamacare tax is set to hit particularly hard this year, and federal and state officials are hoping the threat of a $1,000 tax bill will finally be enough to prod reluctant Americans to sign up for the president's controversial health law. Published January 13, 2016
HHS reports slight uptick in HealthCare.gov signups
About 8.7 million customers had selected a plan on the federal HealthCare.gov exchange as of Jan. 9, according to a government update Wednesday that showed only a slight uptick in consumer interest between crucial deadlines to get covered under Obamacare in 2016. Published January 13, 2016
Obama defends health care law as Republicans look for repeal
President Obama used his final State of the Union address Tuesday to defend his signature health care law ahead of a momentous year for Obamacare, with just 12 months for him to address rising premiums, faltering health care plans and public doubt about the reforms. Published January 12, 2016
Members of Congress ask Supreme Court to shield religious groups from Obamacare
More than 200 members of Congress asked the Supreme Court Monday to protect faith-based colleges, charities and other nonprofits from Obamacare's birth control rules, citing an American track record of religious liberty that extends from the Pilgrims' landing in Massachusetts to a 1993 law designed to protect the faithful from government mandates. Published January 11, 2016
Paul Ryan invites nuns fighting Obamacare mandate to State of the Union
House Speaker Paul D. Ryan has invited a group of nuns fighting Obamacare's "contraception mandate" to be among his honored guests Tuesday at President Obama's final State of the Union address to Congress. Published January 11, 2016
