Tagged: wyoming

One candidate for the US House of Representatives wants your help to get on the ballot.  Cheyenne Resident Charlie Hardy got into the race after he found it difficult to communicate with our current congressional delegation.  He’s also concerned that the country remains at war.  Hardy wants to run as an independent.  He’s long written and spoken about issues surrounding foreign affairs and has served as a Catholic Priest and missionary.  Hardy tells Wyoming Public Radio’s Bob Beck that while he opposes the country’s continued war effort, he is not anti-military.

We are joined now by Mike Fierberg who works for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services for the US Department of Health.  He tells Wyoming Public Radio’s Bob Beck what seniors can expect from Medicare this year, but we start by asking him how competitive the insurance marketplace will be now that the U-S Supreme Court has approved most of the Affordable Care Act.

Governor Matt Mead says he is hopeful that the eight percent budget cuts he requested from state government agencies may not have to happen.  But the governor says he is still considering the cuts, despite signs that the state revenue picture may be improving. 

Coal production and coal prices are down and stakeholders are offering up lots of reasons as the cause, from weather to new policies and competing fuels. Wyoming Public Radio’s Irina Zhorov reports that it’s a combination of all these factors. 

Irina Zhorov: There is no doubt coal is struggling right now. Karim Rahemtulla is the Senior Correspondent for investment blog Wall St. Daily.

Rahemtulla: The predominant trend that’s in the market right now is a slowdown in consumption, directly related to coal, not necessarily other energy sources.

A Bush administration official has been speaking to members of the media this week about his concerns that the Environmental Protection Agency is overstepping its bounds.   Bud Albright is the former undersecretary for the Department of Energy.  Albright’s main point is that the EPA is unfairly making it difficult for energy companies to operate.  He says they are unfairly impacting the energy market.  He speaks with Wyoming Public Radio’s Bob Beck.

Next on the show is the a Wind Energy expert and the author of the book Harvest the Wind:  America’s Journey to jobs, energy independence and climate stability.  Phil Warburg tells Wyoming Public Radio’s Bob Beck that while it appears that enthusiasm for Wind Energy has slowed down in Wyoming, that is not the case in the rest of the country.

A federal health official has high hopes that a health insurance exchange will help people get affordable health care insurance, even in Wyoming.  An exchange is an on-line marketplace where people can compare policies and costs. 

Mike Fierberg with the U-S Department of Health’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services notes that many worried that a similar effort, known as the Medicare Part D prescription drug program would suffer from a lack of competition.  He says that certainly has not been the case.

A new report says that businesses owned by women are doing better in Wyoming than in any other state.

The study by the group Womenable considered the growth in the number of women-owned firms, how many people those firms employ, and the revenue they generate. CEO Julie Weeks says Wyoming’s ranking makes sense, despite the dominance of the energy industry.

BAER Teams Check Extent of Damage After Wild-land Fires

The fire season came early to Wyoming this year. Usually, Wyoming doesn’t see its biggest fires until late July but already there have been 10 fires that have burned over 265-thousand acres of land. Wet weather and the efforts of thousands of firefighters have contained the larger blazes …So what happens after a fire? Wyoming Public Radio’s Irina Zhorov reports.

Host Intro: Healthcare experts gathered in Jackson this week to spell out what the Supreme Court ruling about the Affordable Care Act could mean for patients in Wyoming. Rebecca Huntington has more...

REBECCA HUNTINGTON: About a hundred people attended the talk, which was held in a classroom at St. John's Medical Center.

HOST INTRO: The Casper Aquifer provides fresh groundwater to Laramie and a portion of Albany County. The water is in great condition, and the city and county have traditionally worked in tandem to keep it that way, but their paths diverged a few years ago. Now, Albany County’s most recent Casper Aquifer Protection Plan resolution is open for public comment, and the public has had a lot to say about it. Rebecca Martinez reports.

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