By The Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce

– Due in large part to an ample supply of low-cost natural gas, Greater Philadelphia’s manufacturing sector is growing, generating some $50 billion in sales and supporting more than 65,000 jobs in the chemical, defense, food, and pharmaceutical sectors.

Join us as we explore the future of manufacturing in the Greater Philadelphia region on the heels of the much-anticipated report from the Manufacturing Task Force due this fall. This program will feature Councilman Bobby Henon, Co-chair of the Task Force, who will explore next steps for the city and region, followed by a panel discussion.

Panelists include:
William Hunt
CEO, AgustaWestland Philadelphia

Kevin Patrick
VP of Research & Corporate Development, South Jersey Industries

Jeff Warmann
CEO, Monroe Energy

DETAILS:
WHEN: Wednesday, October 16, 2013
8:00 AM – 8:30 AM Registration
8:00 AM – 10:00 AM Program
WHERE – Chemical Heritage Foundation Conference Center managed by THE HUB315 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106

Source – http://www.greaterphilachamber.com/event/3558/state-of-manufacturing

By The Philly Public Record

– Union leaders in Pennsylvania are calling for changes to the Affordable Care Act. The AFL-CIO said it’s concerned about the affordability and accessibility of health insurance under Obamacare, and also worries that workers’ hours may be cut back as an unintended consequence of the law.

“There are still things that need to get fixed,” Rick Bloomingdale, president of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO, said.

On the whole, unions’ biggest complaint with the ACA is the Feds would recognize so-called “multi-employer plans” as employer-based health plans. Those types of plans were legalized by the Taft-Hartley Act and are widely used by labor unions to pool insurance costs between unions and management.

The Treasury Dept. says it will view multi-employer plans the same way as other employer-based health coverage, so individuals enrolled in those plans will not be eligible for government subsidies. Without the subsidies, insurance would be more expensive.

“Our members have negotiated hard for 50 years to get the good health care provided by our plans, and they shouldn’t lose that,” Bloomingdale said.

He said the unions in Pennsylvania are waiting to see what compromise can be reached with the White House and Congress to address their concerns, before starting any grassroots efforts and telling members to contact their Congressmen.

But unions are not likely to join congressional Republicans and conservative Tea Party groups in calling for a repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Leaders in Pennsylvania say they still support the overall goal of Obamacare and want to see changes made that would address their concerns.

Wendell Young IV, president of the United Food & Commercial Workers Local 1776, noted that the Obama administration made special concessions for the Catholic Church and delayed implementation of the employer mandate after opposition by business groups. Unions want the same kind of flexibility from the administration, he said.

“Labor is not against Obamacare. That is absolutely not true,” Young said. “We think that in the sausage-grinder that is Washington, some mistakes were made and those should be corrected.”

Business groups have warned for some time reduced hours would be one of the unintended consequences of the Affordable Care Act.

The labor unions say they want the federal government to institute a penalty for employers who cut hours just to avoid offering health insurance.

“It’s pretty crappy that a business would cut their employees hours in order to avoid giving them health care,” Bloomingdale said.

But there could be an upside, he said. Employees upset with their management for reducing hours might look to unionize.

Source: http://www.phillyrecord.com/2013/09/with-the-unions-pa-leaders-seek-obamacare-changes/
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By Timothy McShea of IAFF Local #22 (Philadelphia)

September 21, 2013 – I’ve been in Colorado Springs since Thursday preparing for what will turn out to be a very emotional day here. Today the names of last year’s 157 Fallen Firefighters, from across the United States and Canada, will be honored at the IAFF Memorial with their names etched in the granite forever. Local #22 (Philadelphia) will have Michael R. Goodwin’s name dedicated not far from Local #22 Members, Bob Neary and Dan Sweeney’s.

This is a very powerful and moving ceremony orchestrated by the IAFF and Colorado Springs Local #5. While walking around the grounds this morning, I saw the full moon over the Cheyenne Mountains. “It Will Be a Great Day” and I thank Dan Cowden and Chip Kelly for their participation in the Honor Guard and ask for prayers and support for Kelly Goodwin and all the families of the fallen Firefighters, whose loved ones will be honored here today.

By PaDems.com

– Yesterday, Tom Corbett announced an out-of-touch health care plan. Instead of proposing a common-sense plan to provide health care access to 500,000 more Pennsylvanians, Corbett’s proposal will reduce coverage, create obstacles, and increase costs for the the Commonwealth’s most-vulnerable. It is no wonder that Corbett’s plan has been roundly criticized.

Philadelphia Daily News: Conservative lawmaker rips ‘one term Tom’ Corbett
“State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, the conservative Republican from Butler County said Tuesday morning on The Chris Stigall Show that Gov. Corbett was doomed to be ‘one term Tom’ in the wake of his decision to accept federal Medicaid money to expand health-care coverage from the working poor. Metcalfe said the governor had betrayed the conservative principals he stands for by enlarging an entitlement. ‘I think he’s done,’ Metcalfe said on the show, broadcast on WPHT 1210 AM ‘The Big Talker’ out of Philadelphia.” [Philadelphia Daily News, 9/17/13]

Newsworks: Corbett proposes Medicaid health plan ― with conditions and changes
“‘Private insurance tends to cost more than Medicaid because Medicaid controls the prices it pays providers,’ [Robert Field, a health law professor at Drexel University] said. ‘it has very strict fee-schedules for doctors and hospitals, and it pays the lowest druge prices of any insurance arrangement in the country.'” [Newsworks, 9/16/13]

The Sentinel: Corbett’s Medicaid plan concerns lawmakers, officials
“Antoinette Kraus, director of the Pennsylvania Health Access Network cautioned the governor against stripping protections and benefits from seniors, children and people with disabilities who are currently covered by Medicaid. ‘Expanding coverage for some while reducing coverage for others is not a responsible plan,” she said. “The governor should not put more obstacles in the path of hardworking Pennsylvanians or set the price of coverage so high that it remains unaffordable.’”
[The Sentinel, 9/17/13]

Politico: Pennsylvania to take Medicaid funds, with a catch
“Joan Alker, director of Georgetown University’s Center for Children and Families, said the success of Corbett’s plan in Pennsylvania ‘really comes down to whether or not he’s sincere about wanting to extend coverage to the newly eligible.’…Alker said his decision to link Medicaid to employment status would be an unprecedented change in the safety net structure. ‘I don’t believe people’s health care should be conditioned upon their job search requirements,’ she said.” [Politico, 9/17/13]

Johnstown Tribune-Democrat: Corbett puts conditions on Medicaid deal
“Corbett is still ‘putting ideology above common sense’ by insisting on things like the work-search requirement and the need to shift people into the exchanges rather than Medicaid, said Neil Bisno, president of the SEIU Health Care of PA, a union representing health care workers. ‘The quickest, simplest and best way is to expand Medicaid’ Bisno said.” [Johnstown Tribune-Democrat, 9/17/13]

York Dispatch: York response less than enthusiastic about Corbett plan
“Dr. Kenneth Woerthwein, a member of the NAACP and National Physicians Alliance, is a retired physician who ran a family practice in York from the mid-1970s to 2009. A proponent of the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion, he doesn’t understand how Corbett’s plan will address issues for the poor, he said. The thing is, many people in the group are already working,’ Woerthwein said, whether it be in home nursing care, fast food or retail. ‘For them, it makes no sense to implement something like that.’ It’s also illogical for them to pay monthly premiums, he said. ‘You barely have enough money to pay for basic necessities,’ Woerthwein said.” [York Dispatch, 9/17/13]

Source: http://www.padems.com/press/tom-corbetts-irresponsible-health-care-plan-faces-wide-criticism

By The PA. AFL-CIO

– Reports began to surface last week that Governor Corbett was finally considering a plan to accept Medicaid expansion in Pennsylvania under the Affordable Care Act. This caused some widespread and ultimately premature optimism that Corbett was going to follow the lead of 40 State Senators and do the right thing for Pennsylvania.

Unfortunately, the details reveal that Corbett’s proposal is designed to be a massive giveaway to private insurance companies, while weakening even our existing Medicaid program. This proposal is a kick in the gut to Pennsylvania’s uninsured and working poor.

E-Mail Governor Corbett at: http://act.aflcio.org/c/236/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=7127 And Tell Him To Accept REAL Medicaid Expansion

First, Corbett proposes accepting new Federal dollars, not to expand the Medicaid program, but to subsidize the purchase of private insurance in the State. This would ensure that a portion of our tax dollars are needlessly diverted to the profits of insurance companies, and that fewer uninsured working Pennsylvanians would get the health coverage they need.

Second, Corbett wants the Federal Government to approve changes to Pennsylvania’s Medicaid program that will allow the State to charge premiums to working age adults who are enrolled in Medicaid, or who receive subsidized private insurance through new Federal dollars. That would include charging premiums to working-age adults who are already on Medicaid, including the disabled.

Third, Corbett wants to establish a work-search requirement for Medicaid recipients, and for those who would receive new subsidized coverage under this ‘expansion.’ This concept is completely tone-deaf and insulting, even by Corbett’s standards (the same Corbett who earlier this year said that unemployment is high because the unemployed are all on drugs). If Corbett cared to understand the issue, he would know that the overwhelming majority Pennsylvanians who would be eligible for Medicaid expansion, as well as many current Medicaid patients, are already employed in full-time jobs. The work-search requirement is just another thinly veiled attack on the beneficiaries of government programs, to suggest that they are lazy and do not contribute to society.

This is a fact that Corbett and his allies should know well, because it is through their concerted efforts to drive down wages and keep them low, that we have this situation where so many full time workers are forced to be dependent on public assistance to meet their basic medical care needs, and those of their children.

Governor Corbett cannot possibly believe that the Obama administration will authorize this ‘compromise’ deal, certainly not when Medicaid expansion, with no strings attached, passed our State Senate in the spring by a vote of 40-10.

If Corbett truly believed in creating jobs in Pennsylvania, growing our economy, and ensuring that hundreds of thousands of additional Pennsylvanians have health coverage, then he would have accepted Medicaid expansion a year ago, instead of waiting until now to propose a plan that is nothing but an insult to Pennsylvania’s workers, and a taxpayer-funded giveaway to corporations.

E-Mail Governor Corbett at: http://act.aflcio.org/c/236/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=7127 And Tell Him To Accept REAL Medicaid Expansion

Source: http://www.paaflcio.org/?p=2771