Category: Media

State needs to embrace ACA, health care execs say (Journal Record)

By Kirby Lee Davis TULSA – The U.S. Supreme Court’s King v. Burwell ruling leaves Oklahoma little choice but to embrace the Affordable Care Act, several health care executives told a Tulsa Regional Chamber audience Wednesday. But such views ignore… Read more [More...]

Oklahoma continues to rank high for state and local sales-tax rates (Tulsa World)

By RANDY KREHBIEL Oklahomans continue to pay some of the highest combined state and local sales taxes in the country, according to an annual report by the Tax Foundation. At 8.78 percent, Oklahoma’s average combined sales-tax rate was slightly higher… Read more [More...]

Up Ahead, Turnover of Insurers on Health Market (Oklahoma Watch)

By Warren Vieth Two private health insurance companies participating in the Affordable Care Act market in Oklahoma are expected to leave the program next year, while another big insurer wants in. The shuffle, which would occur on Jan. 1, illustrates… Read more [More...]

Supreme Court Obamacare ruling: Reactions from Oklahoma (The Frontier)

By Ziva Branstetter For Julie Alexander, $8.10 per month bought a lot of piece of mind. That’s what she had to pay this year for a health insurance plan under the Affordable Care Act, after subsidies provided by the law.… Read more [More...]

Supreme Court keeps ACA subsidies alive (Edmond Sun)

By James Coburn The Affordable Care Act survived a second challenge in the U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday morning. Justices ruled 6-3 in the King vs Burwell case to uphold the federal government’s right to provide health coverage subsidies to people… Read more [More...]

Q&A: What Obamacare Ruling Means for Oklahomans (Oklahoma Watch)

By Warren Vieth The U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the Affordable Care Act means that more than 80,000 Oklahomans can continue to receive federal subsidies to help them pay for health insurance. It will be days, possibly weeks, before the… Read more [More...]

Statement: Supreme Court health care decision is a victory for Oklahomans

Oklahoma Policy Institute released the following statement in response to the Supreme Court decision upholding subsidies for insurance purchased on the Affordable Care Act federal marketplace: The Supreme Court decision is a victory for tens of thousands of Oklahomans and… Read more [More...]

Does State Have Plans if Thousands Lose Insurance Subsidies? (Oklahoma Watch)

By  WARREN VIETH AND BEN FENWICK Gov. Mary Fallin’s office won’t say if the state has a plan to help thousands of Oklahomans who might be priced out of health insurance if their subsidies are struck down by the U.S.… Read more [More...]

In Oklahoma Schools, Record Numbers of Homeless Children (Oklahoma Watch)

By Nate Robson A resilient economy and low unemployment have done little to stem the tide of students who are finding themselves homeless in Oklahoma. Despite a five-year oil and gas boom and falling jobless rates, growing numbers of youths… Read more [More...]

Working late, to leave early: Oklahoma state budget proposal assailed but may pass soon (The City Sentinel)

By Patrick McGuigan OKLAHOMA CITY – A budget proposal with support from Governor Mary Fallin, House Speaker Jeffrey Hickman, R-Fairview, and Senate President Pro Temp Brian Bingman, R-Sapulpa, is not particularly popular, but many legislators indicated a willingness to pass… Read more [More...]