Help The Middle ClassNews and Information For The Heart Of America
Growth of Unpaid Internships May Be Illegal, Officials Say (New York Times)
With job openings scarce for young people, the number of unpaid internships has climbed in recent years, leading federal and state regulators to worry that more employers are illegally using such internships for free labor.
Convinced that many unpaid internships violate minimum wage laws, officials in Oregon, California and other states have begun investigations and fined [...]
Transportation Department Sets New Fuel Efficiency Standards For Autos (The Washington Post)
Consumers will pay more for cars upfront but may save money in the long term under new rules finalized Thursday by the Obama administration that will increase fuel efficiency and for the first time set greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars and light trucks.
The new fuel efficiency standards, issued by the Transportation Department and the [...]
Fed’s Mortage Purchase Program Ends. What Now? (Los Angeles Times)
The government’s $1.25-trillion program to prop up the housing market by purchasing mortgages came to an end Wednesday — in a small, messy room at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York with four desks and a Nerf basketball hoop.
For the last year, a small team of traders has worked here to buy massive amounts [...]
BIG QUESTION: Will The Middle Class Really Pay Less For Health Care? (USA Today)
President Obama’s restructuring of the nation’s health care system will make it easier for poor and sick Americans to get and keep insurance. What’s less clear is whether it will reduce health care costs for most Americans, as the White House says it will.
Medical costs are rising fast — up 5.7% last year, while the [...]
15 Money Rules Your Children Should Know (The Wall Street Journal)
It’s a simple calculus, kids and money: From birth until college graduation, children consume dollars like they’re chicken nuggets.
For those of us who aren’t independently wealthy, that puts unrelenting pressure on the family pocketbook. The financial demands of raising a child require that money you otherwise might use to prepare for retirement, or to save [...]
Obama Signs Student Loan Reform Program (Huffington Post)
Finalizing two major pieces of his agenda, President Barack Obama on Tuesday sealed his health care overhaul and made the government the primary lender to students by cutting banks out of the process.
Both domestic priorities came in one bill, pushed through by Democrats in the House and Senate and signed into law by a beaming [...]
Health Care Overhaul: Answering Some Frequently Asked Questions (NPR)
The health-insurance overhaul package signed into law by President Obama is the most far-reaching health legislation since the creation of the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
The following is a look at the impact of the law, which will extend insurance coverage to 32 million additional Americans by 2019, but which will also have an effect on [...]
NOW THEY TELL US: Nonpartisan CBO Reports Deficit Will Be Much Worse Than Obama Says (MONEYNEWS.COM)
A new congressional report released Friday says the United States’ long-term fiscal woes are even worse than predicted by President Barack Obama’s grim budget submission last month.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office predicts that Obama’s budget plans would generate deficits over the upcoming decade that would total $9.8 trillion. That’s $1.2 trillion more than predicted by [...]
Health Overhaul Likely To Strain Doctor Shortage (AP & Yahoo! News)
Better beat the crowd and find a doctor.
Primary care physicians already are in short supply in parts of the country, and the landmark health overhaul that will bring them millions more newly insured patients in the next few years promises extra strain.
The new law goes beyond offering coverage to the uninsured, with steps to improve [...]
OBAMACARE UPDATE: Some States Winners, Some States Losers (Yahoo! News/CSM)
Under the nation’s healthcare reform plan, the nation’s Medicaid system will grow as one of the main organizations to implement the goal of expanded medical coverage.
But it appears that, from a financial standpoint, some states will be winners and some will be losers in this new arrangement.
Here’s a look at why some states may stand [...]
