Judge hears closing arguments on whether Google's advertising tech constitutes a monopolyBy DEVNA BOSE One of the country’s largest health insurers reversed a change in policy Thursday after widespread outcry, saying it would not tie payments in some states to the length of time a patient went under anesthesia. Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield said in a statement that its decision to backpedal resulted from “significant widespread misinformation” about the policy. “To be clear, it never was and never will be the policy of Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield to not pay for medically necessary anesthesia services,” the statement said. “The proposed update to the policy was only designed to clarify the appropriateness of anesthesia consistent with well-established clinical guidelines.” Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield would have used “physician work time values,” which is published by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, as the metric for anesthesia limits; maternity patients and patients under the age of 22 were exempt. But Dr. Jonathan Gal, economics committee chair of the American Society for Anesthesiologists, said it’s unclear how CMS derives those values. In mid-November, the American Society for Anesthesiologists called on Anthem to “reverse the proposal immediately,” saying in a news release that the policy would have taken effect in February in New York, Connecticut and Missouri. It’s not clear how many states in total would have been affected, as notices also were posted in Virginia and Colorado . Related Articles National News | The next census will gather more racial, ethnic information National News | As data centers proliferate, conflict with local communities follows National News | NASA’s stuck astronauts hit 6 months in space. Just 2 more to go National News | Imprisoned Proud Boys leader balks at answering a prosecutor’s questions about Capitol attack National News | National Weather Service cancels tsunami warning for the West Coast after 7.0 earthquake People across the country registered their concerns and complaints on social media, and encouraged people in affected states to call their legislators. Some people noted that the policy could prevent patients from getting overcharged. Gal said the policy change would have been unprecedented, ignored the “nuanced, unpredictable human element” of surgery and was a clear “money grab.” “It’s incomprehensible how a health insurance company could so blatantly continue to prioritize their profits over safe patient care,” he said. “If Anthem is, in fact, rescinding the policy, we’re delighted that they came to their senses.” Prior to Anthem’s announcement Thursday, Connecticut comptroller Sean Scanlon said the “concerning” policy wouldn’t affect the state after conversations with the insurance company. And New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in an emailed statement Thursday that her office had also successfully intervened. The insurance giant’s policy change came one day after the CEO of UnitedHealthcare , another major insurance company, was shot and killed in New York City.CHANGES NECESSARY?
Manchester City, Arsenal, and now Tottenham. The list of top Premier League teams beaten at Bournemouth this season is growing. Dean Huijsen took advantage of Tottenham’s weakness at set pieces to head home a 17th-minute winner in Bournemouth’s 1-0 victory on Thursday. After the game, some Spurs fans appeared to vent their frustration at manager Ange Postecoglou when he went over to the away contingent following his team's insipid display. “They are pretty disappointed, rightly so, and I got some pretty direct feedback as to how we are going,” the Australian coach said, “and that's fair enough.” Bournemouth climbed to ninth — a point and a place above Tottenham in the standings — and underlined its penchant for surprising high-profile visitors to Vitality Stadium. Man City’s remarkable four-game losing run in the Premier League started with a 2-1 defeat at Bournemouth, while fellow title contender Arsenal’s first loss of the season also came at the Vitality, 2-0 on Oct. 19. This was Spurs' sixth defeat of the campaign. They now have as many wins as losses, highlighting the inconsistency blighting their season, and their seven away results so far make remarkable reading: aside from a 3-0 win at Manchester United and a 4-0 thrashing of Man City, Tottenham has lost four and drawn the other at relegation candidate Leicester. “We've got to get out of this space we're in at the moment where we're just not able to get a real grip on our season,” Postecoglou said. An inability to defend set plays continues to hurt Postecoglou’s team. A week after Roma scored twice from them in a 2-2 draw in the Europa League, Huijsen roamed free in the area at a corner and headed home unmarked. Postecoglou said in May said he “wasn’t interested” about his side’s fallibility while defending set pieces, and said after losing 1-0 to Arsenal in September — after a goal from Gabriel at a corner — that “it’s my burden to carry and I’m happy to do that.” “We started well and conceded a really poor goal," Postecoglou said after the Bournemouth game. “It’s a difficult place to come when giving the opposition the opportunity to play in the manner they want.” IWOBI DOUBLE Alex Iwobi scored goals early and late in the game to lead Fulham to a 3-1 win over Brighton. The Nigeria winger intercepted a stray pass out from the back by Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen and slotted into an unguarded net for the opener in the fourth minute and curled home Fulham’s clinching goal in the 87th. Carlos Baleba equalized for Brighton in the 56th before Brighton midfielder Matt O’Riley – a former Fulham academy player – deflected the ball into his own net from a corner to put the home side back in front. Fulham climbed to sixth in the standings, a point and a place behind Brighton. AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Ashlon Jackson scored a career-high 30 points and No. 13 Duke defeated No. 9 Kansas State, 73-62 on Monday, in the semifinals of the Ball Dawgs Classic. The Blue Devils (6-1) overcame an early 11-point deficit behind Jackson’s shooting to advance to Wednesday’s championship game against No. 8 Oklahoma, an 85-62 winner against DePaul. Jackson, who has scored in double figures in all six of Duke’s games, shot 12 of 19 (63.1%) from the floor, including 6 of 9 (66.7%) from 3-point range. Reigan Richardson added 16 points for the Blue Devils. Kansas State (5-1) was led by Ayoka Lee, who had 16 points. Serena Sundell scored 15 and Kennedy Taylor came off the bench to add 11 for the Wildcats. Takeaways Kansas State: With her 16-point performance, Lee needs 48 points to pass Kendra Wecker (2001-05) for the Kansas State career scoring record. Wecker scored 2,333 points. Lee, the 2024-25 Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year, is averaging 15.3 points. Duke: Jackson hit her season average of 13.3 points by the 3:54 mark of the second quarter when her pull-up jumper gave her 14. The junior guard was 8 of 11 from the floor, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range, and had 20 points by halftime. Key moment With the Blue Devils trailing by six midway through the second quarter, Jackson triggered a 15-0 run with 13 of the team’s points to help Duke take a lead they’d never relinquish. Up next Duke will face No. 8 Oklahoma on Wednesday in the championship game, while Kansas State will face DePaul in the consolation game. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here. AP women’s college basketball: andReactions have continued to trail the decision of members of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), condemning the delay in convening the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the party. Former National Publicity Secretary of the party, Kola Ologbondiyan, and Ambassador Umar Damagum’s loyalist, Daboikiabo Warmate, sharply disagreed on the BoT’s position. Ologbondiyan in a statement said the decision mandating the North Central geo-political zone to nominate a replacement for Senator Iyorchia Ayu is timely, patriotic, and commendable. “The decision is in consonance with the demand of the North Central zone, which has consistently agitated that the acting National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Ilyasu Damagum, revert to his elected position as Deputy National Chairman and allow the North Central to produce a successor. “This bold and courageous decision of the BoT must be commended by the rank and file of the party,” Ologbondiyan stated. But Warmate argued that the open attack on the NWC by the BoT Chairman Senator Adolphus Wabara was uncalled for and a breach of the PDP constitution. He also claimed that the BoT meeting did not meet the required two-thirds majority to form a quorum and take bidding decisions, as stated in the constitution. Warmate said the reason given for the postponement of the NEC meeting was genuine, stating that it was done after due consultations. He alleged that the BoT Chairman contravened section 32(11) of the PDP Constitution on the formation of a quorum. “Out of the 126 members of the board, only 36 were in attendance which didn’t meet the required two-thirds needed to sit and take decisions that should be made public. “The BoT Chairman also contravenes section 10(1g); 2 and 4, and section 58(1a, h, and i) which caution members from making public any dispute in the party,” he added.
An on-duty Red Lake Tribal police officer was one of two drivers who died in a traffic collision Wednesday, officials said. The crash occurred on Hwy. 1 east of the Red Lake community, according to the Red Lake Police Department. Police identified the officer as Jesse Branch, 35, and the other person who died as Alan Lussier Jr. Officials did not give an age for Lussier or cities of residence for either man. The circumstances of the crash have yet to be disclosed. Red Lake Tribal Chairman Darrell G Seki Sr. has ordered flags flown at half-staff at tribal buildings and other locations in Branch’s honor. Several who knew Branch took to social media to mourn him. “He was so so proud to move from detention to police officer,” wrote Alice Benaise, who said she saw and chatted with him for a few minutes Saturday. ”He told me he had just come back from a training. He just loved Red Lake & our people.” Ashlyn Lyons posted online that Branch had been her coworker for many years and knew him since he was 18 years old. “He was ready to enter into public safety at a young age,” Charnoski wrote. “He dedicated his life to Red Lake Nation. The same police department lost another officer in July 2021, when Ryan Bialke was shot to death by David Brian Donnell Jr. Donnell, now 31, was sentenced two years later to a 37-year term. Bialke was one of five officers to respond to a welfare check at Donnell’s home on the Red Lake Indian Reservation on July 27, 2021. Donnell, who was reportedly using drugs and suicidal, went inside the house when officers arrived. Bialke, who knew there was a tribal warrant out for Donnell, kicked down the front door. He was met with gunfire and died immediately.NASA's stuck astronauts hit 6 months in space. Just 2 more to go
Federal Prosecutors Move to Dismiss Charges Against Donald Trump Over Presidential ImmunityNoneBig Central Conference: United Silver All-Division football teams, 2024NASHVILLE, Tenn (AP) — Josh Heupel made clear his No. 7 Tennessee Volunteers couldn't have started their regular season finale any worse giving up 14 points within the first five minutes. The Vols showed they can finish, which has them on the verge of hosting a College Football Playoff game. Nico Iamaleava threw for 257 yards and four touchdowns rallying Tennessee to routing in-state rival Vanderbilt 36-23 Saturday. “Finishing the way that we needed to and that we wanted to always is sweet, and these guys earned the right for this to be a big game," Heupel said. "They went out, they took it.” The Volunteers (10-2, 6-2 Southeastern Conference; No. 8 CFP) needed a big victory to impress the College Football Playoff committee. They beat Vanderbilt (6-6, 3-5) for a sixth straight season leaving the Commodores needing to win their bowl game to post their first winning record since 2013. Better yet, the Vols rebounded from a nightmare start giving up the first 14 points by scoring 29 straight points. They led 24-17 at halftime on Iamaleava's first three TD passes. “Once they took the momentum, we kind of allowed them to have it for the rest of the game," Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea said. "And you got to credit Tennessee. I mean, obviously, they were playing for the playoffs and credit coach Heupel and his team for their winning performance.” Junior Sherrill returned the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown for Vanderbilt to stun a mostly orange crowd. Dylan Sampson fumbled on the Vols’ second play from scrimmage, and Sedrick Alexanader's 4-yard TD run on a 26-yard drive put Vandy up 14-0 quickly. Then Iamaleava got Tennessee going with a 28-yard TD pass to Dont’e Thornton Jr. Tennessee got a break when Max Gilbert's 50-yard field goal bounced off the crossbar and over. Iamaleava found Thornton again on an 86-yard catch-and-run TD, then he tossed an 18-yard TD pass to Miles Kitselman. “Nico I just thought played really well throughout the course of the football game ...,” Heupel said. An early interception remained on Iamaleava's mind postgame. He also scrambled six times for 42 yards and wasn't sacked once. “I still feel like I can do better,” Iamaleava said. Iamaleava capped the opening drive of the third quartewith a 14-yard TD pass to Mike Matthews. The Vols added a safety by Tyre West and another Gilbert field goal. Diego Pavia threw a 31-yard TD pass to Richie Hoskins late with Vandy's 2-point conversion failing for the final margin. Tennessee shook off yet another slow start. The Vols may move up a spot or two . The biggest question is whether the Vols get to host a playoff game at Neyland Stadium where they went undefeated. Tennessee put together TD drives of 91 and 96 yards in the first half. The Vols then beat Vandy at its own game of keepaway after not even managing 10 minutes of possession in the first half. They finished with the edge in that stat outgaining Vandy 538-212. Vanderbilt had some of the best offensive success against Tennessee in the first half of any opponent this season. The Commodores had 114 yards rushing and 17 points by halftime against a defense that came in ranked sixth nationally allowing just 98.8 yards a game. The Vols also held 10 opponents under 20 points this season. Lea said the Commodores ran just 11 plays to Tennessee's 44 after halftime. The Tennessee running back, who set the program record with 22 rushing TDs this season, didn't reach the end zone for the first time this season. Sampson finished with 178 yards rushing to reach 1,485 yards for the season, topping the school mark of 1,464 set by Travis Stephens in 2001. “I don’t know if anybody’s played the position better than he has this year,” Heupel said of a running back who wasn't among the Doak Walker finalists. “He’s special. He's dynamic.” Tennessee waits to hear its spot in the CFP field, while Vanderbilt learns its bowl destination Dec. 8. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football.
Brendan Rodgers praises Celtic and Cameron Carter-Vickers’ mentality
Ex-B.C. stock promoter Avtar Dhillon sentenced to prison for fraud in U.S.Data Labeling Solution And Services Market Competitive Analysis and Growth Insights to 2031, Appen Limited, Clickworker GmbH, CloudApp, CloudFactory Limited, Cogito Tech LLC
