Economic nexus laws enacted post-Wayfair targeting remote sellers and marketplace facilitators vary from the laws in the Wayfair case. Some states have followed the standards in Wayfair while others have not. Let’s take a quick look at these new laws.First, we’ll go over the standards the Supreme Court looked at in Wayfair.South Dakota Standards Under WayfairThe U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Wayfair that physical presence isn’t needed for sales and use tax nexus. This cleared the way for South Dakota to enforce a law requiring a remote seller lacking in-state physical presence to collect and remit the state’s sales tax if, it had:over $100,000 in South Dakota sales of personal property, products transferred electronically, or services; orat least 200 of such sales transactions.These thresholds applied based on sales made in the previous or current calendar year.State Standards After WayfairThe upholding of South Dakota’s sales tax economic nexus standards has led to many states adopting similar standards for:remote sellers; and/ormarketplace facilitators.Also, like in Wayfair, many states include electronic products in calculating thresholds, such as:digital products and electronically downloaded products, like Georgia, Maine and South Dakota;intangible property, like Hawaii; ordigital code, like Arkansas.States have also adopted similar time periods for counting sales included in their thresholds like counting sales made in:the previous or current calendar year—which is the overall trend;the previous 12 months, like Pennsylvania and Texas; or12 consecutive months, like Minnesota.However, some states have adopted laws and policies that vary farther from the South Dakota standards. Let’s look at some of the different rules enacted by the states.Economic Nexus Thresholds, and the Tweaking ThereofSome states changed economic nexus standards they had in place before Wayfair. Some changes are designed to bring in additional sales tax revenue, while others lean more towards the business friendly end of things. For example:California increased its sales threshold for remote sellers from over $100,000 to over $500,000 and will apply the over-$500,000 threshold to marketplace facilitatorsConnecticut increased its transaction threshold from at least 100 to at least 200Washington removed its 200-transaction thresholdStandout Thresholds: States Requiring a Greater or Lesser Economic PresenceWhile the Wayfair over-$100,000 sales threshold is generally the norm among states, some notable standouts, in addition to California noted above, include:Alabama: over $250,000 for remote sellers and marketplace facilitators in the previous calendar year.Massachusetts: over $500,000 for out-of-state Internet vendors in the preceding calendar year.Mississippi: over $250,000 in the previous 12 months.On the transaction side of the thresholds, some states have strayed from the 200-transaction Wayfair norm.Lower Transaction ThresholdA few states have transaction thresholds that are lower than 200 transactions.For example, Massachusetts and Minnesota have thresholds of at least 100 transactions.New York’s threshold is over 100 transactions.To add to the complexity, the time periods for counting transactions also are different for each of these states. Taxpayers will have to look at:the preceding calendar year in Massachusetts;12 consecutive months in Minnesota; andthe preceding four sales tax quarter in New York. More than a handful of states have no threshold for transactions. In that case, remote sellers and marketplace facilitators need to look only to the sales threshold.Everybody Fan Out: Accounting for Related EntitiesNot so fast… some states don’t allow taxpayers to calculate the thresholds of individual businesses that are related separately.States also don’t allow relying on a hold harmless provision when a related entity provides incorrect information.In fact, some states have taken a proactive stance against these practices.Conduct to Defeat a ThresholdIn Texas, the Comptroller can consolidate the total Texas revenue of sellers engaged in conduct that defeats the over-$500,000 threshold.Limitation on Liability LimitationSome states hold marketplace facilitators harmless for collecting an incorrect amount of tax when they receive incorrect information from a marketplace seller. However, the hold harmless rule applies only if that seller is unrelated to them or not them.With respect to evasion, South Dakota’s DOR not only takes a proactive stance to identify remote sellers who meet either of the state’s thresholds, but it relies in part on citizen notifications.Does This Count? What Sales are Included in the ThresholdsStates often apply economic nexus thresholds to taxable retail sales of various items and services. However, there are some notable variations:Illinois advises that exempt sales count toward the state’s thresholds.Michigan includes taxable and nontaxable sales in calculating its thresholds.New York includes in its thresholds taxable and exempt sales of personal property, without deduction for expenses.And with respect to marketplace facilitators, multiple states include sales made on the facilitator’s own behalf and sales made on behalf of a marketplace seller.Looking Ahead: Simplification and the Repeal of Use Notice RulesStates will continue to enact economic nexus laws and streamline them. States with such laws before Wayfair or that rushed to enact laws after Wayfair already are updating their nexus laws. Some areas to watch moving forward include simplification and repeal of use tax notice and reporting requirements.Simplification of Economic Presence for NexusPractitioners should be on the lookout for states moving toward sales tax collection simplification.For example, Alabama provides for remote sellers and marketplace facilitators meeting the sales threshold to collect and remit the state’s flat 8% Simplified Sellers Use Tax (SSUT).Repeal of Notice & Reporting RequirementsAlso, states may follow the trend of repealing remote seller use tax notice requirements. For example, Kentucky repeals these requirements as of July 1, 2019.Also looking forward, it should be interesting to see if more states make adjustments to their thresholds, in what direction these adjustments trend, and whether more states take defensive measures against fraud.Login to read more on CCHAnswerConnect.Not a subscriber? Sign up for a free trial or contact us for a representative. read more
Creating a stunning video can be a fun creative project. Getting that video out there and attracting viewers is a completely different game. Follow these 5 tips to help boost your video’s rank in YouTube’s search. You’ve got amazing footage and an awesome story to tell. You sprinkled the video up with uplifting stock music. The video is now 100% ready for upload to YouTube. Improve your chances of attracting viewers by applying the knowledge found in the following five tips. After all, YouTube is the #2 search engine after Google, which makes it a super valuable platform to distribute your video.Tip #1: Consider your viewers’ search habits and assign descriptive keywords to your video.First and foremost, you need to understand what your perspective viewers search on YouTube, specifically, and on Google, in general. The reason behind it is simple: if your content contains keywords and key phrases that are more frequent in searches about your topic, the chances are higher for such content to show up in search results. For a video about soccer coaching, I would want to check on what people search to get to similar videos on YouTube.Second, doing keyword research is really a cinch! Take a look at these three keyword tools.Google Adwords Keyword Planner (Free)Adwords Keyword Planner in actionGoogle’s native keyword tool is a powerful solution to keyword research. It helps expand your keyword list and provides volume and competition levels based on your preferred settings (geography, language). The only inconvenience is that you have to have an Adwords account or sign up for one.Keyword.io (Free)Keyword.io in actionThis tool helps identify keyword and key phrase variations. It’s a handy tool to help you avoid keyword stuffing in the video title and descriptions. The tool is free, and its main drawback is the lack of data on search volume for each keyword. It prevents you from getting the information on keyword popularity in search results. KeywordTool.io/YouTube (Free/Paid)With the help of KeywordTool.io, you can get keywords as searched directly on YouTube. The tool provides both keyword variations and popularity (volume & competition). The basic keyword research option is free. Getting all the add-ons comes with a monthly price tag starting at $48.Tip #2: Use the keywords you’ve chosen to create a memorable title for your video. The title of your video is the most important element in ranking the video in YouTube’s search results. Use the keywords that you picked creatively in the title of your video. Make sure that the video title starts with one of your keywords. Great video titles do not exceed 60-70 characters in length. Easy to read, easy to click through! Bonus: Use the same keywords in the name of your video file before uploading it. That will only help to create more relevancy.Tip #3: Create a short and snappy description for your video. Remember to add your site’s URL.Let your imagination run wild in the video description field. There’s so much room given by YouTube. There are two valid points here, though:Use the main message, including the keywords, in the first sentence of the video description.Add the URL of your site before the message folds under “more”. The URL must start with https:// or http:// to become an active link.Don’t add lengthy text stories about your video here, as people rarely click on More and will not see the whole message. Focus on what you’d like to say in 2-3 sentences. Also, add tags related to your topic and keywords.Tip #4: Add bells and whistles to your video. Transcribe & annotate.This tip is for the perfectionists out there. Just remember: perfection takes time. You can transcribe your video and add the copy in the transcription box. Also, consider using annotations. A lot of YouTube publishers recommend having annotations in videos as a way to direct users to a site or another video. Annotations are great tools when they are used in the right spot, right time, and right place. Don’t stuff your video with annoying and irrelevant annotations. Viewers won’t appreciate it.Here’s a helpful video from YouTube on the ins and outs of annotations.Tip #5: Be visually, geographically, and linguistically relevant. Provide a relevant still frame and relevant geographic and language settings.Know your viewer’s preferences. For that, your video will use a thumbnail that’s related and descriptive of your story, rather than a misplaced (albeit eye-catching) one. Your video’s language and geographic settings [Video Language & Video Location under Advanced Settings] should also be in line with your desired audience coverage.Use these 5 tips when you upload new videos to YouTube. These tips are also applicable for all your existing videos. Go to Video Manager in your YouTube account, find the video, and click “Edit”.Need more information on how to get the most out of YouTube? Check these posts out:How to Properly Export Video for FacebookRoyalty Free Music for YouTube: What You Need To KnowGetting Flagged on YouTube or Vimeo? Here’s WhyGot any more tips for growing an audience on YouTube? Share your tips in the comments below! read more
LATEST STORIES PBA IMAGESCalvin Abueva was back after his no-show act and Alaska head coach feels things are starting to fall into place for the Aces.This was despite his team absorbing yet another meltdown Wednesday night to stay winless this conference at 0-4.ADVERTISEMENT “You also saw how important Calvin is to us and I thought Calvin was great tonight. I really thought he was great,” he said.But despite big numbers from Henton and Abueva, Alaska still couldn’t stop its seemingly interminable slide dating back to last conference.Compton, however, is convinced Alaska’s dark days would be over soon.“So, am I happy with 12 straight? That’s not a question you’re obviously gonna ask me—of course nobody is. I’ll tell you right now though, I think something special is about to happen to our team,” he said.“We’re gonna come off, and we’re gonna see Alaska back. We showed flashes of it tonight.”ADVERTISEMENT Alaska won’t play until Aug. 23 against Blackwater, a team which is also winless at this time.“Today, I felt like we’re heading into the right direction. Now we got 19 days to become Alaska again. We just gotta keep working towards it. That’s all we could do.”Sports Related Videospowered by AdSparcRead Next Robredo: True leaders perform well despite having ‘uninspiring’ boss PLAY LIST 02:49Robredo: True leaders perform well despite having ‘uninspiring’ boss02:42PH underwater hockey team aims to make waves in SEA Games01:44Philippines marks anniversary of massacre with calls for justice01:19Fire erupts in Barangay Tatalon in Quezon City01:07Trump talks impeachment while meeting NCAA athletes02:49World-class track facilities installed at NCC for SEA Games MOST READ Church, environmentalists ask DENR to revoke ECC of Quezon province coal plant “Results don’t always indicate growth. If you watched most of that game, LaDontae Henton started playing more the way that we talked about, that he needed to play before we came out here,” said Compton after the Aces dropped a 107-106 decision to TNT KaTropa in a game they led by 13 in the fourth quarter.Import LaDontae Henton, who has been consistent for the Aces, played his best game yet this conference with 42 points and 22 rebounds.FEATURED STORIESSPORTSSEA Games: Biñan football stadium stands out in preparedness, completionSPORTSPrivate companies step in to help SEA Games hostingSPORTSWin or don’t eat: the Philippines’ poverty-driven, world-beating pool stars“I can’t ask anything more. I thought he did an excellent job defensively, he rebounded the basketball, he did not limit himself to just being a three-point shooter,” said Compton of Henton.Abueva missed a game for Alaska due to personal reasons but he returned like he never left with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Trump strips away truth with hunky topless photo tweet DILG, PNP back suspension of classes during SEA Games Ethel Booba on hotel’s clarification that ‘kikiam’ is ‘chicken sausage’: ‘Kung di pa pansinin, baka isipin nila ok lang’ Robredo should’ve resigned as drug czar after lack of trust issue – Panelo Lacson: SEA Games fund put in foundation like ‘Napoles case’ National Coffee Research Development and Extension Center brews the 2nd National Coffee Education Congress FEU Auditorium’s 70th year celebrated with FEU Theater Guild’s ‘The Dreamweavers’ GALLERY: 2017 Alaska IronKids in Cebu Don’t miss out on the latest news and information. View comments read more
After launching the stylish off-roader Duster , the Indian subsidiary of French carmaker Renault is all set to launch entry-level saloon Scala before Diwali.According to reports, the Scala, which would be launched early November, is likely to be priced slightly higher than Sunny that sells in the Rs 6-8 lakh range. Similar to its year old cousin Nissan Sunny, the Scala would sport 1.5 litre diesel power train delivering 84.8bhp. The new saloon is expected to sport minor modifications in headlamp, tail-light, bumper and grille. Besides, the company may later also introduce the 1.5 litre petrol option. It may be noted here that since it ventured into India in May 2011 with premium saloon Fluence, Renault had made a promise of a five-product portfolio in 18 months. From the mere 1,500 cars that the company sold last year, the company expects to grow to 30,000 cars this year, of which nearly half the volume is expected to be contributed by the Duster. With sales in Europe declining and half of Renault’s sales now generated from overseas markets, India, along with China and Brazil, will be among Renault’s top 10 markets worldwide. With Agency inputs read more
AG’s Office warns against false Registrar of Lands accusations Premier attends town hall meetings Facebook Twitter Google+LinkedInPinterestWhatsAppProvidenciales, 06 Jan 2015 – The Legal Year is officially opened in the Turks and Caicos with the newly appointed Chief Justice, bringing new flavor to the process. CJ Margaret Ramsay Hale saluted the tenure of Edwin Goldsborough, the former chief Justice as she performed the full duties of starting a new legal year for the country with a reintroduction of traditional inspection of the guard; motion to open by the Attorney General; statement from the Director of Public Prosecution’s Office, remarks by the TCI Bar Council and Queen’s Council attorneys and her own comments as head of the judiciary. And what a riveting legal year it promises to be; in January alone there will be hallmark cases including the ones involving the former Premier and his then Cabinet Ministers; the case against the now suspended Permanent Secretary of Finance and the decision involving indigenous insurance company British Atlantic Financial Services Ltd. On hand for that opening were country leader Premier Rufus Ewing; Finance Minister Washington Misick; Opposition Leader, Sharlene Robinson; Opposition Members: Delroy Williams and Clarence Selver with Acting Deputy Commissioner of Police, Rodney Adams. Sitting within the legal fraternity at the Myrtle Rigby Courtroom were Deputy Premier, Akierra Missick and Border Control Minister, Donhue Gardiner. Facebook Twitter Google+LinkedInPinterestWhatsApp TCI Premier blasts Opposition side for “slop” information, sets it straight in HOA Related Items:attorney general, British Atlantic Financial Services Ltd, edwin goldsborough, margaret ramsey-hale, premier rufus ewing, sharlene cartwright-robinson, tci bar council Recommended for you read more
WILMINGTON, MA — According to Wilmington Police Logs, Wilmington Police issued the following arrests and summonses between December 13, 2018 and December 19, 2018:Thursday, December 13NoneFriday, December 14NoneSaturday, December 15NoneSunday, December 16NoneMonday, December 17John Amaro Geatry (31, Wilmington) was arrested on a warrant. (10:05pm)Tuesday, December 18Christopher B. Auld (28, Haverhill) and Catherine E. Bradley (28, Tewksbury) were arrested. Auld was charged with larceny under $1,200. Bradley was charged with receiving stolen property under $1,200 (subsequent offense). A male was observed walking out of TJ Maxx in Wilmington with an arm full of clothing and getting into a dark gray sedan. Tewksbury Police notified. Tewksbury Police pulled over vehicle on Main Street in Tewksbury, near Archstone apartment complex. The male party in question was the passenger. Clothing was found in the vehicle. Wilmington Police transported back to Public Safety Building. (12:41pm)James K. Dunnett (52, North Reading) was arrested on Assault & Battery with a Dangerous Weapon. (6:29pm)Wednesday, December 19None(DISCLAIMER: This information is public information. An arrest does not constitute a conviction. Any arrested person is innocent until proven guilty.)Like Wilmington Apple on Facebook. Follow Wilmington Apple on Twitter. Follow Wilmington Apple on Instagram. Subscribe to Wilmington Apple’s daily email newsletter HERE. Got a comment, question, photo, press release, or news tip? Email wilmingtonapple@gmail.com.Thank You To Our Sponsor:Share this:TwitterFacebookLike this:Like Loading… RelatedARREST LOG: Wilmington Police Make 3 Arrests & Issue 4 SummonsesIn “Police Log”POLICE LOG for December 18: 2 Arrested After Theft From TJ Maxx; Man Arrested For Assault & BatteryIn “Police Log”ARREST LOG: Wilmington Police Make 5 Arrests & Issue 4 SummonsesIn “Police Log” read more
2019 GMC Sierra Denali review: So close to greatness Comment Car Industry Electric Cars 2020 BMW 330e first drive: A plug-in 3 Series without compromise 37 Photos 1 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class first drive: If it ain’t broke… More From Roadshow Enlarge ImageWith 20 or so more EVs planned for production in the next six years, Volkswagen is going to need a lot of battery cells. Volkswagen Volkswagen has made no secret about its plans for electrification in the near future. With 20 battery-electric models slated to come to market in the next six years, VW is going to need a lot of battery cells, and to get them; it’s decided to make its own.Volkswagen will invest nearly 1 billion Euros in a battery cell production facility in the Lower Saxony region of Germany, the company said Monday in a press release. This news comes pretty soon after the announcement that it would be retooling its factory in Zwickau (also in Saxony) to be an EV only plant.”Today’s decision by the Supervisory Board marks a breakthrough for battery cell production in Lower Saxony,” Stephan Weil, minister president for Lower Saxony, said in a statement. “The production of battery cells is crucial for the No. 1 automotive stronghold. These are positive signals for the Salzgitter location. I am very optimistic that battery cells can be produced in Germany at competitive conditions.”Volkswagen’s release says it’ill have a partner in this battery cell production facility, but it declined to identify that partner. If we were the betting type, we’d guess that it’s Varta — a German battery company in which the government there has recently invested money to kickstart EV cell production.”As part of our comprehensive electrification offensive we plan to secure our battery capacities through strategic partnerships,” Supervisory Board Chairman Hans Dieter Pötsch said in a statement. “At the same time, we wish to expand our production capacities in Europe to support our growth plans. Given the ever greater complexity of our industry and the related challenges, it is essential to focus on our core business.” Volkswagen Tags VW e-Golf wraps new electric drive in hatchback goodness Share your voice Volkswagen read more
Share your voice 1 When I test a vacuum, I just sprinkle oats all over the floor. When NASA tests one, you get this. NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA will leave no Martian rock unturned as it prepares the next Mars robot for the chaos of space travel and landing on the red planet.Over the last two months, the Mars 2020 spacecraft has been subjected to a number of extreme tests designed to ensure it can withstand an intense rocket launch and the extremes of space. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has put the futuristic craft through “acoustic and thermal vacuum” testing — and it has passed with flying colors.The test involve blasting the spacecraft with sound levels as high as 150 decibels — the type of levels you’d hear standing next to a jet at take-off — to replicate the environment of a launch, according to Andy Rose, manager of JPL’s environmental test facilities.After the sound blast tests were performed six times, NASA put the Mars 2020 rover through a brutal test that replicates the vacuum of space. That required the spacecraft to be transported to the Space Simulator Facility and suspended in midair, as seen in the above image.”We ‘put it in space’ by placing the spacecraft in this huge vacuum chamber we have here at JPL,” said David Gruel, assembly, test and launch manager, in a statement. “We pump out the atmosphere, then chill parts of it and cook others while testing the performance of the entire spacecraft.”The facility doesn’t quite achieve a full vacuum but it does get really, really cold. The team drop the temperature in the chamber to -200 degrees Fahrenheit (approx. 129 degrees Celsius). But space also subjects travelling robots to unshielded radiation from the sun so NASA shines a handful of powerful lamps onto the spacecraft. The whole process takes just over a week. “Everything looked great – which is a good thing, because next time this spacecraft stack hits a vacuum, it will be on its way to Mars for real,” said Gruel.Mars 2020 will depart Earth from Cape Canaveral in Florida in July 2020. It’s expected to arrive at Mars’ Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, 2021. Mars 2020 will follow a long list of NASA-built and operated Martian robots, including the recently-deceased Opportunity rover. NASA bid farewell to that plucky explorer in February after a planet-encircling dust storm fried its battery. However, the planet of the robots is still busy with residents. One explorer — Curiosity — and one Marsquake detector — InSight — are currently living and working on its surface. Sci-Tech Tags Comment 14 Photos Dying space missions remembered in inspiring final images NASA read more
Swamy Chakrapani, Zaira WasimTwitterIn an attempt to invoke religious sentiments across the country, Hindu Mahasabha president Swamy Chakrapani has asked Hindu actresses to follow in the footsteps of Zaira Wasim who decided to quit Bollywood as it was damaging her relationship with Allah.”Actress Zaira Wasim, edging away from films for religious faith, is commendable. Hindu actresses should also take inspiration from Zaira,” Swamy Chakrapani tweeted.धार्मिक आस्था के लिए फिल्म अभिनेत्री जायरा द्वारा फिल्म से किनारा करना प्रसंसनीय,हिन्दू अभिनेत्रीयों को भी जायरा से लेंना चाहिए प्रेरणा-?स्वामी चक्रपाणि महाराज-राष्ट्रीय अध्यक्ष-अखिल भारत हिन्दू महासभा pic.twitter.com/AhJlq1seNS— SwamyChakrapani (@SwamyChakrapani) July 1, 2019His tweet came a day after Zaira announced decided to quit her promising career in Bollywood but citing religious reason for her decision. “As I complete 5 years today, I want to confess that I am not truly happy with this identity, that is, my line of work. While I continued to work in an environment that consistently interfered with my Imaan, my relationship with my religion was threatened,” read an excerpt from Zaira Wasim’s Facebook post.Zaira’s decision of leaving Bollywood came as a shock to the entire film fraternity. While some poured in their support for the 18-year-old actress, some termed Zaira’s decision ‘regressive’ and in ‘bad taste’.On the other hand, Zaira’s manager Tuhin Mishra has clarified that the actress’ account was not hacked and the post was done by her contrary to the reports that had started doing the rounds of the industry.”We have never said that her account was hacked. We just said that we would definitely like to know what has happened. And the post was done by her,” Tuhin Mishra told ANI.Zaira too has tweeted, “This to clarify that none of my social media accounts were or are hacked and are being handled by me personally. Kindly refrain from believing or sharing claims that state otherwise! Thanks.”This to clarify that none of my social media accounts were or are hacked and are being handled by me personally. Kindly refrain from believing or sharing claims that state otherwise! Thanks.— Zaira Wasim (@ZairaWasimmm) July 1, 2019 read more
Share PhotoAlto/Michele Constantini/Getty Images/PhotoAltoDoctors and hospitals are increasingly asking patients to pay up front for deductibles, which can cost thousands.Tai Boxley needs a hysterectomy. The 34-year-old single mother has uterine prolapse, a condition that occurs when the muscles and ligaments supporting the uterus weaken, causing severe pain, bleeding and urine leakage.Boxley and her 13-year-old son have health insurance through her job as an administrative assistant in Tulsa, Okla. But the plan has a deductible of $5,000 apiece, and Boxley’s doctor said he won’t do the surgery until she prepays her share of the cost.His office estimates that will be as much as $2,500. Boxley is worried that the hospital may demand its cut as well before the surgery can be performed.“I’m so angry,” Boxley said. “If I need medical care, I should be able to get it without having to afford it up front.”At many doctors offices and hospitals, a routine part of doing business these days is estimating patients’ out-of-pocket payments and trying to collect the money up front. Eyeing retailers’ practice of keeping credit card information on file, “there’s certainly been a movement by health care providers to store some of this information and be able to access it with patients’ permission,” said Mark Rukavina, a principal at Community Health Advisors in Chestnut Hill, Mass., who works with hospitals on addressing financial barriers to care.But there’s a big difference between handing over a credit card to cover a $20 copayment and suddenly being confronted with a $2,000 charge to cover a deductible, an amount that might take months to pay off or exceed a patient’s credit limit.Doctors may refuse to provide needed care before the payment is made, even as patients’ health hangs in the balance.The strategy leaves patients financially vulnerable, too. Once a charge is on a patient’s credit card, they may have trouble contesting a medical bill. Likewise, a service placed on a credit card represents a consumer’s commitment that the charge was justified, so nonpayment is more likely to harm a credit score.Approximately three-quarters of health care and hospital systems ask for payment at the time services are provided, a practice known as “point-of-service collections,” estimated Richard Gundling, a senior vice president at the Healthcare Financial Management Association, an industry group. He couldn’t say how many were doing so for higher priced services or for patients with high-deductible plans, situations that would likely result in out-of-pocket outlays of hundreds or thousands of dollars.“For providers, there’s more risk with these higher deductibles, because the chance of being able to collect it later diminishes,” Gundling said.But the practice leaves many patients resentful.After arriving by ambulance at the emergency department, Susan Bradshaw lay on a gurney in her hospital gown with a surgical bonnet on her head, waiting to be wheeled into surgery to remove her appendix at a hospital near her home in Maitland, Fla. A woman in street clothes approached her. Identifying herself as the surgeon’s office manager, she demanded that Bradshaw make her $1,400 insurance payment before the surgery could proceed.“I said, ‘You have got to be kidding. I don’t even have a comb,’ ” Bradshaw, a 68-year-old exhibit designer, told the woman on that night eight years ago. “I don’t have a credit card on me.”The woman crossed her arms and Bradshaw remembers her saying, “You have to figure it out.”As providers aim to maximize their collections, many contract with companies that help doctors and hospitals secure payments up front, often providing scripts that prompt staff to talk with patients about their payment obligations and discuss payment scenarios as well as software that can estimate what a patient will owe.But as hospitals and doctors push for point-of-service payments to reduce bad debt from patients with increasingly high deductibles, the risk is that patients will delay care and end up in the emergency room, Rukavina said. “Patients are essentially paying for their procedures up front,” he said. “It may not be a significant amount compared to their salary, but they don’t necessarily have it available at the time of service.”The higher their deductible, the less likely patients are to pay what they owe, according to an analysis of 400,000 claims by the Advisory Board, a health care research and consulting firm. While more than two-thirds of patients with a deductible of less than $1,000 were likely to pay at least some portion of what they owe, just 36 percent of those with deductibles of more than $5,000 did so, the analysis found.Fifty-one percent of workers with insurance through their employer had a deductible of at least $1,000 for single coverage this year, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s annual survey of employer health insurance. (KHN is an editorially independent program of the foundation.)Boxley pays $110 a month for her family plan. She could not afford the premiums on plans with lower deductibles that her employer offered. She plans to talk with the doctor and hospital about setting up a payment plan so she can get the surgery in January.“I’ll make payments,” Boxley said, although she acknowledged what she could pay monthly would be small. If that doesn’t pan out, she figures she’ll have to use student loan money she got for graduate school to cover what she owes.Still, experts say that trying to pin patients down for payment in more acute settings, such as the emergency department, may cross a line.Under the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, a patient who has a health emergency has to be stabilized and treated before any hospital personnel can discuss payment with them. If it’s not an emergency, however, those discussions can occur before treatment, said Dr. Vidor Friedman, an emergency physician who is the secretary-treasurer of American College of Emergency Physicians’ board of directors.Bradshaw finally got her appendix removed by calling a friend, who read his MasterCard number over the phone. The surgery was uneventful and Bradshaw was home within 24 hours.“It’s a very murky, unclear situation,” Friedman said of Bradshaw’s experience, noting that a case might be made that her condition wasn’t life threatening. “At the very least it’s poor form, and goes against the intent if not the actual wording of” federal law.Michelle Andrews is on Twitter:@mandrews110.Copyright 2016 Kaiser Health News. To see more, visit Kaiser Health News. read more
Tuesday, June 25, 2019Top afternoon stories:J. Scott Applewhite/APU.S. Customs and Border Protection Acting Commissioner John Sanders.Customs And Border Protection Acting Commissioner ResignsThe acting commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Tuesday he’s stepping down amid outrage over his agency’s treatment of detained migrant children. John Sanders said in a message to CBP employees that he would resign on July 5.CBP is the agency that apprehends and first detains migrant parents and children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. Lawyers who visited CBP facilities last week described squalid conditions: inadequate food, lack of medical care, and children trying to care for toddlers.Six children have died since late last year after being detained by CBP.Sanders pushed Congress to pass $4.5 billion in humanitarian funding. In an interview last week with The Associated Press, Sanders talked about how the deaths “impacted him profoundly.”Harris County Animal Shelter.Dogs are housed at the Harris County Animal Shelter, which is currently severely overcrowded.Critical Situation At Harris County Animal ShelterThe Harris County Animal Shelter is currently housing more than double the animals it has capacity for and is asking for help from residents that could adopt or foster. Shelter officials are concerned about the possibility of having to euthanize a significant number of animals.As of Tuesday, the shelter was housing 510 animals, mostly dogs, while its maximum capacity is supposed to be 200, spokesperson Kerry McKeel told News 88.7. “We don’t have the ability to hold animals indefinitely and space is a concern,” said McKeel. “We are putting animals everywhere we can right now.”McKeel noted that “at the beginning of May, spring time, is when we really started to see an uptick in the number of animals coming in.” She said summer is traditionally the busiest intake season at the shelter.The shelter is asking residents to either adopt animals or temporarily take them in foster care.Courtesy of Domino’sDomino’s autonomous pizza delivery vehicle is made by robotics company Nuro.Houston’s Appeal For Driverless DeliveryLast week, Domino’s announced it will launch its first self-driving pizza delivery in Houston. And earlier this year, Kroger chose the Bayou City as one of its first places for driverless grocery delivery.So what is it about Houston that makes it an attractive city for companies to test out their autonomous vehicles?Chris Newport, senior manager with tech consulting firm Accenture in Houston, thinks there are a few reasons – economic, structural, environmental and cultural.“We have in Houston an electrical grid that’s been designed to meet a high demand for power and to do so in a resilient way,” he said. “And our transportation network has been largely designed for cars.”Other factors he mentioned are Houston’s strong population growth, climate, flat geography and tradition of welcoming innovative services. Share read more
Federal and local authorities are continuing their investigations into what led to a bus collision on Nov. 1 that left six people dead and sent ten others to the hospital with multiple injuries.Investigators say a school bus was traveling eastbound near the 3800 block of Frederick Avenue when it hit a Mustang, then struck a wall at Loudon Park Cemetery before finally running into an oncoming No. 10 MTA bus traveling from Dundalk to Catonsville.Fire department and rescue officials are at the scene of an early morning fatal collision between a school bus and a commuter bus Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2016, in Baltimore. (Jeffrey F. Bill/Baltimore Sun via AP)The driver of the Mustang sustained minor injuries and is expected to survive.The six people killed in the crash included both the school bus driver and the MTA driver. The school bus was on its way to pick up 18 special needs children and there were no children onboard. In addition to the driver, a school aide was on the bus and survived, according to Baltimore City Police.The school bus is contracted to Baltimore City through AA Affordable Transportation.During a press conference on Nov.1 Baltimore City Police spokesman T.J. Smith identified the deceased six victims only by age; by Nov. 2 five of the six victims had been identified:51-year-old Gerald Halloway46-year-old woman (Next of kin not determined)33-year-old Ebonee Danell Baker, (MTA bus driver)67-year-old Glenn R. Chappell (School bus driver)51-year-old Cherry Yarborough52-year-old Terrance Lee CaseyTwo of the victims of the crash who were taken to University of Maryland Medical Center for treatment Tuesday have been discharged.“This was a grueling and gruesome process of removing bodies; all six people were dead on the scene,” Smith said. “Our homicide investigators were out here because this is an extraordinary incident. Rarely do we deal with mass casualty situations that involve this many deaths at one scene. So we brought out additional personnel to support our crash scene. This is a crash investigation; not a criminal investigation.”During the same press conference, MTA spokesperson Paul Shepard confirmed the death of the MTA bus driver.“We are really wounded but were going to come out of this stronger,” said Shepherd. “We want to thank you all for being here. We can confirm, sadly, that our operator was among the fatalities in this terrible accident.”That MTA bus operator has been identified as Ebonee Baker.Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis expressed his sadness at the tragic event.“They’re on their way to make a living, they’re on their way to the job and they’re on their way to support their families,” said Davis. “Our hearts and prayers go out to them, to their families, to their co-workers as well.”The NTSB team is gathering information on the crash and will remain on the scene for the rest of the week. Jennifer Morrison, NTSB investigator, said her team expects to remain in Baltimore for some time.“We expect to be in the area for the remainder of the week. During that time, we will continue to gather factual information with the goal of ultimately determining the cause of the crash, and issuing safety recommendations aimed at preventing future crashes and fatalities,” Morrison said.Sean Braxton, of Columbia Maryland, and the driver of the Mustang that was hit by the school bus, said he was driving to work when his silver Mustang was hit. The collision crushed the rear of the car and forced its nose into the pavement.“I just look up and I still see the bus going down the street and at that point I just had to close my eyes and try to get myself together,” Braxton told reporters. “And then people came into the car and started helping me out.”Many first responders rushed to the aide of those involved in the crash, trying to help and save lives.According to a statement released by Baltimore City Schools, seven different vendors are contracted to provide transportation for students. The bus involved in the crash provided curb to curb transportation to 18 students from their homes to school. As of Nov. 2 those children are being transported by a bus owned by Baltimore City Schools.“At this time of tragedy, our hearts and thoughts are with the families, friends, and loved ones of those killed and injured,” the statement says. “We hope for the speedy and full recovery of those injured,” the statement says.10 victims were injured and taken from the scene to area hospitals. Their injuries ranged from minor to critical.Deborah M. Stein, Chief of Trauma and Director of Neurotrauma Critical Care at the University of Maryland R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, and her team are treating five of the victims.“We are currently treating five patients. One is critically injured, one is in serious and the other three are fortunately in stable condition…They are actually relatively generic injuries for what we see in motor vehicle crashes. I can’t give any details on the actual specifics of the injuries of the patients, but injuries to the facial bones, injuries to spine, spinal column, some visceral injuries as well.”Police say it is possible the school bus driver had a medical emergency because they have no evidence the bus tried to stop or decelerate before hitting the car and the MTA bus.“The school bus basically ripped the entire driver’s side off the MTA bus,” T.J. Smith said. “It literally looks like a bomb exploded in the bus and its catastrophic damage. We did not observe any type of skid marks on the road, which leads us to believe there, was no type of deceleration, but we don’t know all of those answers at this point in time.”Governor Larry Hogan and Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake were among many officials releasing statements expressing their condolences.Police are asking anyone that may have footage, pictures, or just witnessed the crash to come forward with any information. read more
Agency and media conglomerate Endeavor has hired Guy Schory, a former eBay and PayPal executive, as its first chief digital officer.Schory will head up Endeavor’s digital efforts across product management, marketing, data platforms, advertising and commerce. He also will lead Endeavor’s digital direct-to-consumer and business-to-business operations, including Endeavor Streaming, the video-streaming distribution unit formed out of the company’s $250 million acquisition of NeuLion last year. Endeavor’s brands include WME, IMG and UFC.“As Endeavor continues to evolve, our ability to create innovative digital businesses, products and experiences for our clients and platform matters now more than ever,” Endeavor CEO Ariel Emanuel said in announcing the hire. “Guy is a strategic executive who has the experience operating world-class businesses at scale and the expertise required to take us to the next level.” Popular on Variety ×Actors Reveal Their Favorite Disney PrincessesSeveral actors, like Daisy Ridley, Awkwafina, Jeff Goldblum and Gina Rodriguez, reveal their favorite Disney princesses. Rapunzel, Mulan, Ariel,Tiana, Sleeping Beauty and Jasmine all got some love from the Disney stars.More VideosVolume 0%Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcutsKeyboard Shortcutsplay/pauseincrease volumedecrease volumeseek forwardsseek backwardstoggle captionstoggle fullscreenmute/unmuteseek to %SPACE↑↓→←cfm0-9Next UpJennifer Lopez Shares How She Became a Mogul04:350.5x1x1.25×1.5x2xLive00:0002:1502:15 Schory most recently served in various leadership roles at eBay and PayPal, where he led global strategic initiatives focused on scaling key capabilities in commerce and payments, including mergers and acquisitions, R&D center development, strategic partnerships and innovation programs. His tenure also included roles in product management and corporate strategy, and he was responsible for several of eBay’s consumer mobile products and digital marketing platforms. Schory first joined eBay in 2006 and left the company in 2016.Schory is a tech investor who serves on the boards of several technology and commerce companies, including Timbuk2 and Dataminr. He also serves on the advisory board of the Zell Entrepreneurs Program, a university program that has launched more than 60 ventures, and founded a mentorship program for youth who use technology to positively impact their communities.He holds three issued U.S. patents in e-commerce and mobile technologies. Schory received a bachelor’s degree in international relations with an economics focus from Stanford University. read more
(PhysOrg.com) — By analyzing data from experiments performed earlier this decade at the Oak Ridge Electron Linear Accelerator (ORELA), physicists have made observations that seem to conflict with the widely accepted theory of the nucleus. © 2010 PhysOrg.com This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only. Explore further More information: P. E. Koehler, et al. “Anomalous Fluctuations of s-Wave Reduced Neutron Widths of 192,194Pt Resonances.” Physical Review Letters. DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.105.072502 via: Nature News In 2002, Paul Koehler, a physicist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennesse, and others were measuring neutron resonances in four types of platinum isotopes. These resonance patterns – which are the energies at which the nucleus of a platinum isotope absorbs neutrons – are affected by the motion of the protons and neutrons inside the nucleus. These motions are thought to be chaotic, at least according to random matrix theory, which is used to determine the behavior of large nuclei. However, in a recent study, Koehler and his colleagues found that the protons and neutrons seem to move in a collective way that can’t be explained by any known model of nuclear structure.“The new results suggest that the roughly 200 nucleons inside the platinum nuclei studied act in unison to exhibit regular rather than chaotic properties,” according to a news article from ORNL’s website. “Given the relatively high energy and large number of nucleons involved, such collective behavior is totally unexpected and unexplained.” The researchers say that their results reject the random matrix theory for this data with a 99.997% probability. But to confirm their claim, the scientists need to perform further experiments on the nuclei of other elements besides platinum, which could verify that the discovery is not simply due to an unusual property of platinum nuclei. However, the problem is that ORELA has been closed due to budget cuts, and is not scheduled to reopen any time soon. The US Department of Energy has said that other research projects are a higher priority for the field of nuclear science. According to Koehler, there is one other place in the world where similar measurements could be made, which is the Geel Electron Linear Accelerator (GELINA) in Geel, Belgium. Here, the physicists could also repeat early experiments regarding random matrix theory performed in the 1970s at Columbia University, and see if the results hold up to modern instruments and analysis methods.As Koehler explained, resolving the issue could have implications for nuclear reactors. Scientists rely on random matrix theory to estimate the probability of escaping neutrons colliding with nuclei, and use these estimates to determine how much shielding is needed for nuclear reactors and stockpiles. Although some extra shielding is typically added, if more nuclear reactors are going to be built in the future, having an accurate estimate for shielding protection would be an important safety standard. Citation: Discovery could challenge established theory of the nucleus (2010, August 26) retrieved 18 August 2019 from https://phys.org/news/2010-08-discovery-theory-nucleus.html Surprising nucleon behavior read more
Bipartite entanglement and partial measurements. Credit: (c) 2015 Nature 528, 77–83 (03 December 2015) doi:10.1038/nature15750 A way has been found to interconnect quantum devices including preserving entanglement Entanglement is, of course, a sometimes perplexing aspect of quantum mechanics where two separated particles share the same state—what happens to one, happens to the other, including changes made by simply measuring them. As strange as this aspect is, scientists have over the past several years come to better understand, measure and even cause it to come about on demand. But, as Rolston points out, the same cannot be said for systems where there are more than two particles involved, and that is where the researchers with this new effort focused their attention.To learn more, they came up with a way to measure entanglement entropy, which is a measure of the seeming randomness that comes about by simply observing just a portion of an entangled system. They used lasers to create an optical lattice that caused the creation of four individual compartments in one system where each compartment held just one atom. But they created the lattice in such a way as to allow for controlling the depth of the compartments, which when set low enough allowed particles to tunnel to other compartments and thus “feel” the presence of the other particles. The arrangement allowed for the creation of a many-body state. The team built two such four-compartment systems and first caused the atoms inside the systems to be identical to the atoms in the second system, and then compared just portions of each system—they note that differences they measured between different parts of the two systems when the whole remained identical could only occur if there were entanglement in the system.The experiments conducted by the team, Rolston notes, are the first of their kind and that means that while a lot has been shown, there is a lot more that can learned by tweaking and experimenting with the approach the group used. Journal information: Nature (Phys.org)—A team of researchers at Harvard University has developed a way to measure entanglement entropy in many-body systems. In their paper published in the journal Nature, the team describes the technique they used and why they believe their findings have set the stage for using entanglement to conduct future studies of many-body systems. Steven Rolston with the University of Maryland offers a News & Views piece on the research done by the team and explains why such work is important in understanding non-equilibrium systems. Explore further © 2015 Phys.org Citation: A way to study entanglement entropy between multi-body systems (2015, December 3) retrieved 18 August 2019 from https://phys.org/news/2015-12-entanglement-entropy-multi-body.html More information: Rajibul Islam et al. Measuring entanglement entropy in a quantum many-body system, Nature (2015). DOI: 10.1038/nature15750AbstractEntanglement is one of the most intriguing features of quantum mechanics. It describes non-local correlations between quantum objects, and is at the heart of quantum information sciences. Entanglement is now being studied in diverse fields ranging from condensed matter to quantum gravity. However, measuring entanglement remains a challenge. This is especially so in systems of interacting delocalized particles, for which a direct experimental measurement of spatial entanglement has been elusive. Here, we measure entanglement in such a system of itinerant particles using quantum interference of many-body twins. Making use of our single-site-resolved control of ultracold bosonic atoms in optical lattices, we prepare two identical copies of a many-body state and interfere them. This enables us to directly measure quantum purity, Rényi entanglement entropy, and mutual information. These experiments pave the way for using entanglement to characterize quantum phases and dynamics of strongly correlated many-body systems. This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only. read more
Kolkata: The state Agriculture department has taken a series of steps to ensure that farmers in Birbhum district, where there is unusual rainfall, get sufficient water to avoid any damage to crops.The state Agriculture minister Asish Banerjee and Pradip Majumdar, the agriculture advisor to the Chief Minister, held a meeting at Suri in Birbhum recently in this connection with senior representatives from Zilla Parishad, MLAs and the officials of the state Irrigation and Power department. Also Read – Rain batters Kolkata, cripples normal lifeBanerjee said: “We have urged the officials of the Power department to ensure power supply to the farmers to run submersible pumps in order to fetch water for their agricultural lands. “In case there is any financial problem, they can take an undertaking from the farmers. As per the undertaking, the farmers will make payment for the power connection after they sell out the agricultural produce.” The state Irrigation department ensured supply of safe drinking water as much as possible when there was unusual rainfall in certain parts of Birbhum, East Burdwan and a part Murshidabad districts. Also Read – Speeding Jaguar crashes into Mercedes car in Kolkata, 2 pedestrians killedNow, steps are needed to be taken so that more water can be supplied for agriculture in the areas in these three districts. At the same time, the officials of the agriculture department have also been directed to take necessary measures so that water can be pumped in from water bodies like ponds those preserved under the “Jal Dharo Jal Bharo” project. “If necessary pumps will be installed to help farmers,” Banerjee said. The Zilla Parishad authorities and the MLAs have been urged to keep a watch at the situation and extend help to the farmers as and when needed. The MLAs have also been urged to set up pumps so that crisis situations can be tackled in future without facing any trouble. read more