Tom Howell Jr.

Priests for Life: We’re not stopping our fight against birth control mandate, either

Another high-level litigant has formally rejected the Obama administration's latest attempt to water down an Obamacare mandate that requires most group health plans to cover birth control.

September 17, 2014

Obama admin. pushes back at report on abortion and Obamacare as GOP outcry rises

The Obama administration said Tuesday it will make sure states and insurers understand the ban on using federal funds for abortion, but pushed back at Republican claims that a government audit report proves pro-life advocates' worst fears about Obamacare.

September 16, 2014

Federal study: Uninsured rate down 2 points from 2013

The percentage of Americans who lacked health insurance in the first three months of this year is down 2 points from the same period last year, according to a federal study released Tuesday that fueled Democrats' claims that Obamacare is working.

September 16, 2014

Obamacare plans in 5 states cover abortion in potential violation of law

All of the health plans offered by Obamacare exchanges in five states include coverage for abortions in a potential violation of the law.

September 15, 2014

Obamacare coverage hinges on immigration status for 115K: White House

The Obama administration said Monday that 115,000 Obamacare customers who did not resolve problems with their citizenship or immigration status by the Sept. 5 deadline will lose their coverage at the end of the month.

September 15, 2014

D.C. statehood hearing seeks ‘thoughtful solution’ to lack of voting rights

A Democratic senator held the first congressional hearing on D.C. statehood in 20 years to "restart the conversation" about the city's lack of voting representation on Capitol Hill, but the discussion barely got off the ground before a top Republican quickly dismissed the summit as a one-sided look at a measure that's going nowhere.

September 15, 2014

Republicans unconvinced Obama taking Islamic State threat seriously enough

The Obama administration struggled Sunday to define its strategy for beating back the Islamic State in Iraq and particularly in Syria, where its plan to rely on moderate fighters at this stage is complicating President Obama's sales pitch to Congress and his legacy of winding down wars in the Middle East.

September 14, 2014

If he runs for president, independent Sen. Bernie Sanders may have to pick a side

Sen. Bernie Sanders said Sunday he's thinking about running for president, but first he's got to figure out if he'll rely on the infrastructure of the Democratic Party or stay true to his independent roots.

September 14, 2014

Rep. McCaul: Islamic State doesn’t fit into Obama’s ‘narrative’

The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee said Sunday that President Obama can't seem to "get his head around" the threat the Islamic State poses as it grabs territory in Iraq and Syria and releases gruesome videos of hostage beheadings.

September 14, 2014

Kerry: Debate over whether we’re ‘at war’ with ISIL is distracting from fight

Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday said a "tortured debate going on about terminology" is distracting people from the mission to destroy the Islamic State before it advances farther into Iraq and Syria.

September 14, 2014

Sen. Amy Klobuchar on charges against her beloved Vikings’ Peterson: ‘This is a 4-year-old child’

A Minnesota senator said Sunday that she may be a huge Minnesota Vikings fan, but word that running back Adrian Peterson has been indicted on child abuse charges has made it all the more important for the NFL to handle criminal charges with a sense of urgency.

September 14, 2014

WH chief of staff: Mission in Iraq and Syria is clear, despite reliance on others

White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said the Obama administration has been "very clear" about its mission to degrade and destroy the Islamic State, despite accusations it's playing semantic games to enshroud whether the U.S. is truly at war.

September 14, 2014

Planned Parenthood targets two GOP Senate challengers for their birth control plan

The campaign arm of Planned Parenthood launched ads Friday targeting Republican Senate challengers' embrace of over-the-counter contraception, arguing the tactic is a thinly veiled scheme to ding Obamacare and make women pay more for birth control.

September 12, 2014

House votes to let insurers offer employer plans that don’t comply with Obamacare

The House on Thursday took another swipe at Obamacare ahead of the midterm elections, with about two dozen Democrats joining the Republican majority to pass a bill that lets insurers continue to offer employer health plans that do not comply with the law's coverage standards.

September 11, 2014

Obamacare doesn’t force people to work part-time, study shows

President Obama's health care law is not forcing people to work part-time, according to a new study that contests the claim that firms would slash hours to avoid fines under Obamacare's "employer mandate."

September 11, 2014

IRS can’t escape Lerner, tea party scandal at Obamacare hearing

IRS Commissioner John Koskinen went to Capitol Hill Wednesday to talk about Obamacare. But inevitably, he faced questions about the political targeting scandal that hit the revenue agency shortly before he took the reins.

September 10, 2014

House lawmakers wary of IRS claim of conveying costly Obamacare info

Lawmakers on the House tax committee cast doubt Wednesday on the IRS' ability to explain and administer the changes that Obamacare customers will face when they file tax returns next year.

September 10, 2014

IRS commissioner: We’ll deal with Obamacare even though Congress has withheld funding request

IRS Commissioner John Koskinen told Congress on Wednesday his agency is not getting the funding it needs to help consumers sift through new Obamacare requirements during next year's filing season.

September 10, 2014

House GOP pushes bill to let insurers ignore Obamacare standards

The House Rules Committee cleared the way Tuesday for another debate on poking holes in Obamacare — this time over a bill that would let insurers offer employer-based health plans that do not comply with the law's coverage standards for several more years.

September 9, 2014

Nuns battling the Obama admin. make it official: Tweaks to birth control rule ‘change nothing’

The Little Sisters of the Poor, an elder-care charity run by nuns, made it crystal-clear late Monday that the Obama administration's latest tweak to a mandate that requires employers to cover birth control will "change nothing of substance" in their courtroom fight against the rule.

September 9, 2014