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SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

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The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

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Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

Senate Debates Health-Care Measures as Nevadans Worry About Costs

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Wednesday, August 3, 2022   

Congress is considering a major package of bills that could affect not only investments in fighting climate change, but also the affordability of health care.

Jim Manley, a board member of the organization Consumers for Quality Care, said Americans' main concern is that out-of-pocket costs are too high, according to recent polling. Manley said this is putting the squeeze on people in Nevada.

"Nearly three-fourths of Nevadans agree that the cost of health care is going up more than other things they need," he said, "and 61% of voters say they have skipped or delayed getting a health care they need because they're concerned about they'll need to pay out of pocket."

Consumers for Quality Care commissioned the poll, from Impact Research and The Mellman Group. Three-quarters of respondents to the survey also said they feel insurers are unfairly charging them small amounts, over and over again, for minor services.

Manley said he appreciates that Congress is discussing health care right now, but believes there's a need to ensure certain provisions, such as caps on what people have to pay for insulin. He saod that was in an earlier version of the bill the Senate is currently considering. Over the years, Manley said, insurance companies have shifted costs onto patients through higher deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs.

"We are urging Congress, as this reconciliation bill finishes up, to cap insurance deductibles, prescription drug copays and other out-of-pocket maximums at a level that's low that people don't need to skip care and/or go into medical debt," he said.

Negotiations over a reconciliation package in the Senate, known as the Inflation Reduction Act, are ongoing. Most recently, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., agreed on a bill that would allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices and cap out-of-pocket prescription drug costs at $2,000 per year.


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