Rounds Statement on VA Rule Change to Begin Reimbursing Veterans for Emergency Care

Pat Powers

Rounds Statement on VA Rule Change to Begin Reimbursing Veterans for Emergency Care

WASHINGTON—U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, today made a statement after the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced it has revised its regulations related to payment or reimbursement to veterans who have had to seek emergency care at a non-VA facility.

“After seven years of an improper rule being on the books and thousands of veterans being denied reimbursement by the VA, this announcement is a significant step in the right direction,” said Rounds. “The majority of the veterans impacted by this rule change are elderly veterans, many of whom live on a fixed income and have limited resources to pay their medical bills. These men and women have made incredible sacrifices for our country, and I’m glad the VA has taken action to fulfill its legal obligation to cover their emergency care costs. We will continue to review the revised rule to make certain the VA is acting in the best interest of our veterans.”

This rule change complies with the Emergency Care Fairness Act (ECFA), which was enacted in 2010 and directs the VA to cover veterans with private health insurance when that insurance doesn’t cover the full amount of non-VA emergency care. Previously, the VA had not been paying these costs despite its legal obligation to do so, denying hundreds of thousands of veterans’ claims. The new rule directs the VA to pay claims submitted on or after April 8, 2016, which is the date that the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims reversed a Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision in Staab v. McDonald.

Rounds has been working to get the VA to comply with its legal obligation to pay for these costs for over a year. During a June 2017 Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee hearing, VA Secretary David Shulkin told Rounds of the VA’s decision to withdraw its appeal and begin writing rules to cover these costs. The rules released yesterday are a result of that announcement.

More information on the revised regulation can be found here.

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State Rep. Susan Wismer lone SD participant in new Legislator abortion activist group decrying pro-life dems

Pat Powers

I was included as part of an e-mail blast this morning about a “Reproductive Freedom Leadership Council (RFLC),” a new national network of state legislators committed to embracing leadership on abortion rights. Apparently, the group is being featured in Cosmopolitan Magazine today:

Amid crackdowns on abortion access nationwide, Shannon and more than 200 other state legislators across the country have signed on to a new Reproductive Freedom Leadership Council launched on Thursday by the State Innovation Exchange (SiX), a nonprofit policy and resource center for progressive state legislators. The council’s objective is to put reproductive rights at the forefront of progressives’ — and the country’s — agenda.

and…

Last year, some Democrats, including Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, faced backlash when they suggested that there shouldn’t be a litmus test on abortion rights and the party should be open to anti-abortion politicians. SiX categorically decries progressives who claim reproductive rights aren’t a necessary component to membership in the Democratic party. “Reproductive freedom is a central and necessary component of an inclusive progressive agenda,” reads the new council’s platform.

Athena Salman, a state representative in Arizona who has signed onto the effort, says reproductive rights is one of the main reasons she decided to run for office in 2016. On Thursday, she plans to submit legislation that would repeal major restrictions on abortion access in the state, such as the mandatory 24-hour waiting period and the ban on state insurance coverage for the procedure.

and…

This new coalition of progressive legislators, says Shannon, represents something of an offensive strike. “We are saying and affirming up-front: These rights are important to us. We want to advance reproductive rights. And we will not apologize for that.”

Read it here.

Take note that the article expressly notes that the group “decries progressives who claim reproductive rights aren’t a necessary component to membership in the Democratic party.”

According to the roster provided with the release, South Dakota’s lone participant in this group of Abortion activists who are decrying pro-life Democrats and proposing legislation to expand abortion rights is Democrat State Representative Susan Wismer.

From her legislative profile, there’s no immediate indication of any abortion related legislation Wismer is planning to bring as a result of her membership with the group. As for the statement decrying pro-life Democrats in the party?  That might make for some uncomfortable Dem meetings…

Video from Neal Tapio presser yesterday, notes running for office is “same duty as it takes to sign up for military.”

Pat Powers

Republican activist Florence Thompson has started a facebook page where she provides coverage to issues and candidates she supports on the page SD Trumpet, and yesterday she recorded the press conference Neal Tapio held.

In the video, Tapio notes the strength of his commitment for politics and points out that “..running for office is an honor. It’s a duty. The same duty as it takes to sign up for the military. We don’t ask to take the tough decisions. I didn’t ask to handle meandered waters. I didn’t ask to do any of these issues. I chose to because it’s the right thing to do.”

You can catch more of Thompson’s videos at https://www.facebook.com/SD-Trumpet-1378130172259038/

Thune on iPhone to Apple – you broke it, so why didn’t you fix it?

Pat Powers

US Senator John Thune is in the news today for asking Apple why they didn’t fix iPhone batteries if they knew they were bad, instead of making iPhones slower:

Among other things, Thune wants to know if Apple made any effort to notify its customers that its recent software updates would make several types of iPhones released before 2017 slow down when their batteries weakened.

Thune also asked Apple whether it considered replacing the batteries for free, instead of the current discounted charge of $29 that it began offering in late December after acknowledging how its updates affected older iPhones. He also inquired whether Apple plans to throttle aging iPhones in the future and whether it plans to let consumers know what it’s doing.

Thune demanded a response by Jan. 23. Apple declined to comment.

The inquiry represents the latest backlash against Apple’s decision to slow down older iPhones, a move that the company says is designed to prevent the devices from abruptly shutting down when older batteries are running low or operating in cold weather.

Read that story here.

House Passes Noem-Backed Provisions to Protect Tribal Sovereignty on Labor Issues

Pat Powers

House Passes Noem-Backed Provisions to Protect Tribal Sovereignty on Labor Issues

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Kristi Noem today led the U.S. House of Representatives in passing provisions to protect tribal sovereignty on labor issues. The legislation, which many South Dakota tribes have long supported, would clarify that the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) does not have jurisdiction over tribally owned and operated businesses.

“In 2004, the National Labor Relations Board unilaterally decided that it needed to meddle in the affairs of tribally-owned businesses on tribal lands, threatening the foundation of Indian law, the principle of tribal sovereignty, and the limits that ought to be placed on the federal government,” said Noem. “Subjecting Native American tribes to National Labor Relations Board rules is yet another sign that some still want the federal government to interfere in tribal decision making. I’m proud to see provisions pass the House that withdraw the government’s heavy hand and again reinforce our commitment to tribal sovereignty.”

In 2004, NLRB unilaterally determined that the National Labor Relations Act applied to tribally owned businesses on tribal lands.  Tribes have expressed great concerns over the impact of this ruling.  In 2011, Noem introduced the Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act, which would clarify in law that tribally owned businesses on tribal lands are not subject to the jurisdiction of the National Labor Relations Act.  As a result, NLRB would not have administration and enforcement powers on reservation land for tribally owned businesses.

The Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act was included in S.140, which passed the House of Representatives today.  The provision was endorsed by Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, the Oglala Sioux Tribe, and the Great Plains Tribal Chairman’s Association.

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More on Tapio Congressional campaign…. Does Former Rapid City Broadcaster Shad Olson have something to do with it?

Pat Powers

And the tips keep rolling in.

An eagle-eyed reader noted to me this afternoon that some of what State Senator Neal Tapio has put out, including what’s on the possible website indexed by Google, seemed to have a bit in common from what he’d seen from former Rapid City area broadcaster (KOTA, KNBN) Shad Olson.

In looking, I caught an interesting note posted to Shad Olson’s facebook page between State Representative Tim Goodwin and Olson:

If someone is asking about a press release, it’s typically a conversation between the person writing it, such as the press secretary and a person asked to sign it.  While it’s not proof, it seems like there’s a possibility of an association between Olson and Tapio. (In addition to a possibility of Rep. Goodwin announcing his preference for “Team Tapio.”)

Stay tuned as more information develops.

It might not have been so unified, after all… Argus reporting some friction between Tapio and Interfaith group.

Pat Powers

While Neal Tapio attended the Interfaith gathering held in the State Capitol Rotunda this Morning, and posed for a picture with the group in attendance, it sounds like there may have been some friction between Tapio and the group:

Members of the group invited Tapio to join them for a group photo. Tapio, looking uncomfortable, stood with them as cameras clicked and flashed.

Then he turned his back to the cameras and began yelling at those around him, “I don’t like being called a racist.”

The former state director for President Donald Trump then launched into a speech he’s frequently made before. He stressed the need to ban travel to the United States by Muslim individuals, particularly from Muslim-majority countries where groups have supported Sharia law.

and…

As Tapio stepped away from the group he told reporters that the interfaith day was a “political movement.”

and…

In weeks prior, U.S. House candidate Shantel Krebs expressed her support for implementing a national registration system similar to one set up after the 9/11 terror attacks.

Tapio also supported the registration system and on Monday called for the creation of a legislative work group to assess the cost of immigration and refugee resettlement in South Dakota.

Read it all here.

It sounds like this is starting off to being an explosive legislative session! Stay tuned for more fireworks!

Draft of “Tapio for US House” Campaign website snapshot grabbed by Google

Pat Powers

You all know I love a great campaign scoop… And courtesy of Google, we have one this afternoon on the plans of Republican Neal Tapio as he prepares to run for Congress.

In doing a search for Tapio information, I stumbled across this recent screenshot of nealtapio.info, which appears to be at least an early draft of his campaign website dated December 27, 2017..

In the lower left corner, you can see that it’s noted as “Copyright 2017 Neal Tapio For House.”

Is this an authentic offering from the campaign? The signs point to “very possibly.”

The header of the page is the same as an image that was prominently included in a press release he issued yesterday regarding the Interfaith rally he was in attendance at today. You’ll note it’s the same image at the top of the website as where he notes on page 1 – “This is the root cause of Islamic terrorism”:

Tapio Press Release by Pat Powers on Scribd

I’m sure there will be more to come as State Senator Tapio moves closer to making an announcement official. But in the meantime, you can read it here, courtesy of Google.

Tapio, Hubbel join Interfaith group’s prayer event after criticism

Pat Powers

After expressing some criticism of the event ahead of time, upcoming Republican candidate for Congress Neal Tapio and Republican Candidate for Governor Lora Hubbel were shown by Dana Ferguson of the Argus Leader to be in attendance of an Interfaith group’s prayer in the Rotunda of the Capitol this AM.

In fact in looking at the pictures, it appears that they joined them from the side in a show of faith:

Here, Tapio joins the group for a photo:

As noted in the State GOP Party Platform:

We support our nation’s heritage of religious freedom and personal responsibility and recognize we must be proactive in defending freedom at every level. We believe in equal rights, equal justice, and equal opportunity for all, regardless of race, creed, sex, age, or ability.

and…

We recognize our country was founded in faith upon the truth that self-government is rooted in religious convictions.

Read that here.

It’s good to see that people of differing opinions can come together to worship.