| Stuart Cable on the Stereophonics and his new band
EVERY time he mentions the 'sacked' word, Stuart Cable makes quotation marks in the air. It's as if the term doesn't really exist in his world, at least by his definition. As he tells it, he couldn't have been 'sacked' as the drummer of the Stereophonics because he was going anyway. And people knew about it, including singer Kelly Jones. It's just that he actually hadn't got round to fixing a leaving date, although he'd mentioned to his ex-wife Nicola it would be after a tour to promote the last album he made with the band, You Gotta Go There To Come Back. He didn't have time to bow out with a bang however, because he was 'sacked' while recuperating from an operation in that infamous phone call from bandmate and frontman Kelly. He was beaten to the punch by him, his best friend, the one who he'd been playing in various bands with since the age of 15, and regrets that he didn't get to throw the first one before he was 'let go, left, sacked, whatever' at the height of the band's career.
The Ramen Report: Being Smart With Your Food and Money
As many of us at UCSF learned the hard way, funding higher education is no stroll in Golden Gate Park. With tuition and fees soaring to record heights, students have to be concerned with every dollar spent. Often this means recognizing that your dollar is not really a dollar, but a dollar plus the interest you will be paying on it for the next several years, or decades. To help students make smart decisions about how to spend (and not spend) their money during these lean educational years, Total Higher Education (T.H.E.), a non-profit student loan provider, has launched The Ramen Report blog, an effort to bring financial food for thought to students. The Web site (www.theramenreport.org) features postings on several topics, from the importance of maintaining good credit and surviving the holidays on a budget, to reconsidering that daily latte, which "could add an additional $51 per month to a student loan payment on a 10-year repayment plan." With a blogging format, the site is also a forum for students to share their thoughts on what has worked for them in cutting costs and saving money.
Paying for Vaccinations
Whether you're getting ready to enroll a child in school, take an overseas business trip or go on your dream vacation, plan ahead for vaccinations. You may need a variety of inoculations, which may cost a bundle and take time to be effective. Fortunately, many of the vaccinations -- especially the routine ones children and adults receive -- are covered by health-insurance policies. But that may not be the case with some of the shots recommended for travel to less-developed parts of the world. It's not unusual to pay $95 for yellow-fever vaccine, recommended for travel to places such as ... .
'Don't invalidate home insurance creating dream home'
Almost half of UK householders might want to make sure they take out adequate home insurance before embarking upon turning their properties into their dream houses.Research by home insurance Halifax has highlighted that 11 million UK households plan to transform their properties through a grand design, to the collective tune of £153 billion.Almost one million homeowners make improvements to their properties every year as a result of home envy - being inspired by a friend or neighbour's handiwork in their home.The average home makeover project is estimated by the home insurance provider to cost £13,800, however a slip of the paintbrush and Britons could find themselves claiming for more than £500 million in damage per year.Halifax Home Insurance's Senior Manager of Underwriting, Vicky Emmott, advised Britons to avoid disasters by employing reputable tradesmen."Indeed, trying to tackle certain areas that you are not qualified for, such as electrics or plumbing, could invalidate your home insurance and leave you liable for the cost of any subsequent damage."According to a study conducted by Churchill, a fifth of householders may have risked having to claim on their home insurance by damaging their property or its contents during DIY.UK residents could receive up to 15 per cent off their home insurance when they take combined buildings and contents cover with Kwik-Fit Insurance.© Adfero Ltd
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Affinity Health Plan Creates Free Health Directory for Young Adults
Bronx, NY (Vocus/PRWeb) April 9, 2007 -- Where can young adults find answers to their health questions? Affinity Health Plan, a not-for-profit managed care company based in New York City, recently launched "Just4U ," a free health resource directory for teens and young adults. The directory, available at www.affinityplan.org, provides an accessible resource for young adults to find answers to difficult-to-ask health questions. "Just4U" covers adolescent health issues ranging from dietary advice to lifestyle topics, including a basic guide to privacy and confidentiality, a glossary of health-related terms, and a list of teen-appropriate web resources. "Just4U" also includes a provider directory that lists Affinity doctors and nurses who have identified themselves as teen-friendly.
Healthcare for foreigners in Bulgaria?
A Bulgarian National Television (BNT) story showed that foreigners from non-EU countries living in Bulgaria cannot be provided with free healthcare services from the Bulgarian state, even though they have paid their healthcare social securities. On April 1, BNT featured the case of Ukrainian Elena Glushtuk, who married a Bulgarian citizen last August and currently lives in the city of Smolyan, in Rhodope Mountain. After marrying her husband, Glushtuk got the status of a long-term resident in Bulgaria. She even got an ID card for foreigners (lichna karta in Bulgarian). Eight months ago, Glushtuk became pregnant and started paying her healthcare social security and started regular medical check-ups at her general practitioner, like any Bulgarian citizen. This routine changed dramatically after January 1 2007, the date when Bulgaria entered the European Union.
California Mother Recovers from Loss to Help Families with Sick ...
A California woman survived a personal tragedy with a commitment to help others that is keeping the memory of her late son alive. VOA's Mike O'Sullivan spoke with Valerie Sobel, who lost her son to cancer, and now helps the parents of seriously ill children. .
Abreu, A-Rod lead Yankees
Bobby Abreu drove in four runs, Alex Rodriguez homered for the third straight game, and the Yankees beat the Twins, 8-2, last night. Abreu went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer, Jorge Posada hit a two-run double, and Derek Jeter had three hits and scored two runs. Johnny Damon had two hits in his first start in a week due to a calf strain. Perhaps the most promising performance, however, came from Carl Pavano (1-0), who gave up six hits and two runs in seven efficient innings. He struck out two without a walk over 79 pitches to get his first win since May 22, 2005. Trying to revive his derailed career this year as Minnesota's fifth starter, Ponson (0-1) hadn't pitched since March 31, the last day of spring training. He gave up 10 hits and eight runs in 5 2/3 innings. Five of the runs Ponson allowed came with two outs, and he threw well in stretches.
Rest home health-plan sales criticized
State investigators are looking into complaints that insurance agents switched memory-impaired residents of a Cary rest home from traditional Medicare to private Medicare plans, resulting in higher costs and fewer benefits for the residents. Such tactics might be on the rise across North Carolina and the nation. Insurance regulators and advocates for older people say they have seen increasing evidence of inappropriately aggressive sales tactics for "Medicare Advantage" programs, which are private insurance policies that are paid by Medicare. People who switch to private Medicare policies often have to change doctors and hospitals and can face higher payments - circumstances that might not be fully explained by unscrupulous brokers, according to a January report by the Medicare Rights Center and California Health Advocates.
On the job
More than eight out of 10 Americans consider themselves "entrepreneurial" and one-fourth dream of owning their own business, a new survey shows. But to get their business off the ground, 71 percent said they need financial support, while 42 percent would like mentoring from successful entrepreneurs, according to a survey conducted for Ace Hardware. .
Bill takes care of in-laws
California soon could become the first state where workers are paid for leaving their job to care for a seriously ill mother-in-law.Or father-in-law.Or brother, sister, grandparent or grandchild.Pending legislation would expand a 3-year-old, state-run program that provides temporary pay for bonding with a new child or caring for an ill parent, child, spouse or domestic partner.State Sen. Sheila Kuehl, a Santa Monica Democrat who proposed the new measure, Senate Bill 727, said it would create flexibility to help most families respond to health emergencies.California's current paid family leave program excludes too many people in a state of 37 million people, where it is not uncommon for extended family members to live together, Kuehl said."It was sort of artificial to say that if you happen to have a parent to take care of you, that's fine, but if you happen to only have your brother or sister, they can't take time off," Kuehl said.Carina Barlow, 42, of Vallejo said she could benefit from SB 727 some day.Barlow, a medical records clerk, said her employer balked two years ago when she sought a temporary leave to care for a diabetic brother who had suffered a heart attack.The incident forced Barlow to ask herself: What if she personally needed care? She is unmarried, with a young daughter, and her 80-year-old mother is in declining health, she said."Who's going to take care of me?" Barlow asked.
Candidates talk about tackling state's health care woes
(LOUISVILLE) -- Along with the emergencies that Dr. Amir Ahmad treats in eastern Kentucky, he gets his share of patients suffering from sore throats, ear infections and mild breathing problems. "Most of them could be treated in the clinic," said Ahmad, emergency room medical director at Harlan Appalachian Regional Hospital. "The main reason is they don't have insurance -- that's why they come here." Ahmad estimates that 15 percent of patients treated each year in the hospital's emergency room have no health insurance. Even if the cases appear minor, they routinely undergo X-rays and blood work as a precaution -- costs the hospital often ends up absorbing and which drive up the overall expense of health care, he said. "It's a broken system," Ahmad said in a phone interview.
New book suggests lower tips for bad service
A waiter at Lena's Restaurant in Nyack, N.Y., kept interrupting as we were dining. "I'm sorry to interrupt you, but . . ." Time after time. He didn't sound very sorry. In fact, he had a self-satisfied smile on his face. Should I have left him no tip? No, writes Peggy Post, great-grand-daughter-in-law of Emily Post herself, in a new book, "Excuse Me, But I Was Next . . ." (Harper-Collins, 2006). You might reduce a tip, she advises, but not eliminate it. A small tip hurts all the employees sharing in the tip pool. Tip 10 percent if the service is mediocre, 8 percent if it's poor. The book suggests that things have indeed become less formal these days. Men don't have to walk on the street side of the pavement. Dining out, you can rest your elbows on the table (when you're not really eating).
Med money trauma is regional
By Jerome WrightContact
April 8, 2007 The Regional Medical Center at Memphis is facing a projected $10 million budget shortfall and millions in unpaid medical bills from Arkansas and Mississippi residents. During legislative sessions in Mississippi and Arkansas this year, officials from The Med lobbied legislators and state officials in both states for more money. .
Bill backup clogs waning session
JEFFERSON CITY | With six weeks left in Missouri's legislative session, bills not going very far very fast have the Senate backed up like lake traffic on Memorial Day weekend. A plan to remake Missouri's Medicaid system tied up the Senate for three days last week before receiving initial approval Wednesday. The proposed sale of a portion of Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority assets to finance a campus building boom also has bogged down and faces delaying tactics by opponents. Legislation to eliminate the $500 loss limits at Missouri's casinos to increase gambling revenues and finance scholarships is mired in debate. A proposal to prohibit counties from regulating large livestock farms in exchange for new statewide standards is also stuck in neutral. "This session is becoming awfully clogged up," said Sen.
Video: Providers, Hospitals Can Now Access Consistent Health ...
WASHINGTON, April 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Healthcare providers and hospitals can now access in seconds consistent eligibility and benefits information required to verify patient health insurance coverage thanks to new standard business rules developed by the CAQH Committee on Operating Rules for Information Exchange (CORE). To view the Multimedia News Release, go to: http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/caqh/27654/ Currently, provider practice staffs often spend hours researching and making follow-up calls at significant cost to obtain and verify insurance information. The CORE rules, which build on the HIPAA eligibility (X12 270/271) transaction, make electronic administrative data communications seamless, streamlined and predictable, regardless of the technology -- in many cases eliminating the need for practice staff phone calls.
Blue Cross of California Keeps Promise to Members: Enhanced ...
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif., March 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Cross of California (Blue Cross), through its affiliate BC Life & Health Insurance company, is now offering new health plan options for employers and individuals that will change the way consumers think about health care, helping them to lead healthier lives while also helping them gain control over the rising cost of care. These new consumer-driven health plan (CDHP) products and services are now available to large and small businesses as well as individuals. Previously, these products were offered only to national employers' members. "Our customers who choose these consumer-driven products will have new opportunities to lead healthier lives," said Blue Cross president Brian A. Sassi. "Our suite of Lumenos CDHP products puts consumers in control of their health care dollars and offers them an incentive to spend wisely and demand better health care quality and value." Blue Cross will offer the following core CDHP products: -- Lumenos Health Reimbursement Account -- Lumenos Health Savings Account -- Lumenos Health Incentive Account -- Lumenos Health Incentive Account Plus Consumers who choose Lumenos products will be eligible for extensive preventive care and personal health coaching, as well as smoking cessation and weight management programs.
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