Nevada

Industry group joins governor in dissing state public option, physicians’ group pushes back – Nevada Current

Published

1 year ago

November 7, 2023

Industry group joins governor in dissing state public option, physicians’ group pushes back – Nevada Current

In an ongoing battle to implement a public health care option in Nevada, an organization allied with the insurance and health care industries released a report Monday arguing the public option would exacerbate the state’s provider shortage and reduce access to care.

An arm of Partnership for America’s Health Care Future (PAHCF), a group that advocates on behalf of some of the nation’s largest hospitals, pharmaceutical companies and insurers, commissioned the study.

The report’s release prompted Nevadan physicians with the Committee to Protect Health Care, a national mobilization of doctors, health care professionals, and advocates, to criticize the PAHCF analysis because it used “flawed data to deliver skewed results” and the authors refused “to have the analysis be peer-reviewed.”

PAHCF opposed the public option legislation when it was enacted in 2021, and have advocated against the public option and health industry reforms in other states and nationally.

Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo, who called the public option “bullshit” on the campaign trail, has rallied against its implementation, and called for its repeal during his State of the State Address.

“Governor Lombardo shared his beliefs about this law during his campaign as well as his State of the State address. These findings confirm that he was right. Unfortunately, the Legislature refused to make any changes to this law, so Nevadans are now stuck with the threat that their state’s healthcare system will be harmed,” Lombardo’s Chief of Staff Ben Kieckhefer said in a statement Monday.

Lombardo last month announced his plan to “transform” the public option in the state into a “Market Stabilization Program” by prioritizing federal funds made available through a state innovation waiver program under the Affordable Care Act to finance a reinsurance program for private companies operating in the individual market. Reinsurance for private companies “is a proven method of protecting consumers,” Lombardo said at the time.

Under the Lombardo administration’s recasting of the program, incentives would also be offered for “high-performing insurers” that offer public option plans.

“In an effort to mitigate these threats, the Governor has proposed a reinsurance program that will hopefully offset some of the damage done by the public option, but ideally, the Legislature will revisit this issue when they convene again in 2025,” Kieckhefer said Monday.

Under legislation enacted in 2021, a state-managed public health insurance option is to be created by 2026 with the goal of reducing premium prices by 16% over 5 years. To reduce costs, the program would reimburse providers at a lower rate than private insurers do.

The PAHCF report contends premium reductions required by the bill could not be fully realized in the state.

The hospital reimbursement reductions needed to achieve premium reductions targeted in the public option “are likely to put financial hardship on hospitals,” the PAHCF report said.

Lowering premiums to meet the targets will also harm insurers, the report said, adding “If business cases existed to lower premiums to such competitive levels, we believe market forces would have already driven the premium reductions.”

The report’s assessment contrasts with a report prepared for the state Department of Health and Human Services in December 2022. That actuarial report found that the public option would have a “small negative impact on provider revenue” because the individuals who would benefit from the public option make up only about 3% to 4% of the state’s population and a small proportion of providers’ revenue.

Insurance rates on the state-based health exchange have increased by 2.8% on average over the past year, while rated off the exchange increased by 5.9%, according to the Nevada Department of Insurance.

“Doctors and patients worked hard to help make the Nevada Public Option a reality, and now we’re calling on the health plans to stop obstructing access to affordable healthcare,” Dr. Harpreet Tsui, an internist in Las Vegas and Nevada Lead for the Committee to Protect Health Care, said in a statement. “But with health care premiums continuing to climb, it’s now more important than ever that Nevadans have access to affordable, quality coverage that doesn’t break the bank,” Tsui said.

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Nevada

LETTER: Nevada House Democrats buck their party

Published

7 hours ago

January 12, 2025

Press Room

LETTER: Nevada House Democrats buck their party

As a hard-core conservative, I could never see myself voting for the trio of Nevada Democrats who voted for the Laken Riley Act in the House last week. But stating that, I must give the three politicians high marks for bucking the Democrat trend to favor immigrants over us constituents. That takes courage, and I applaud them for putting principle over politics.

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Nevada

Nevada volleyball players were pressured with 'legal issues' to play SJSU trans player during feud with school

Published

15 hours ago

January 11, 2025

Press Room

Nevada volleyball players were pressured with 'legal issues' to play SJSU trans player during feud with school

EXCLUSIVE: In October, players on the University of Nevada Reno women’s volleyball team were engaged in a highly publicized dispute with its university and athletic department over whether to play a match against San Jose State University.

San Jose State, at the time, rostered a trans athlete.

The Nevada players approached university administrators privately to express their desire to forfeit the match and join four other programs that refused to play SJSU. But Nevada did not honor that request and instead released a statement insisting it would play the match. Nevada also insisted its players would be allowed to skip the contest without facing discipline.

The team ultimately forfeited the day before the match was scheduled to be played, due to not having enough players. However, the university has said it had discussions with the players about potential “legal issues” that would emerge if the match were not played.

“University administrators met with the Nevada volleyball team and discussed scenarios of what could happen if they chose not to play. One of the scenarios that was discussed revolved around possible legal issues for violating the Nevada Constitution,” read a statement that was provided exclusively to Fox News Digital by the University of Nevada, Reno.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

The state’s constitution was revised in 2022, when Democrat lawmakers voted to adopt the Equal Rights Amendment, which added gender identity to its list of diversity classifications that are protected under state law.

“The University of Nevada was prohibited by laws and regulations to forfeit for reasons related to gender identity or expression. As a State university, a forfeiture for reasons involving gender identity or expression could constitute per se discrimination and violate the Nevada Constitution,” Nevada’s statement read.

Nevada’s statement was in response to allegations made by co-founder of the Independent Council on Women’s Sports (ICONS), Marshi Smith.

Smith met and spoke with multiple players on the Nevada team during ther dispute, and heads the legal advocacy group that has brought a lawsuit against San Jose State and the Mountain West conference for its handling of the situation involving the trans athlete.

“At UNR, school administrators warned athletes they could face legal action if they refused to compete against SJSU’s team, which included a male starter,” Smith told Fox News Digital.

The dispute between the players escalated into a national controversy that even garnered mainstream political attention in the weeks leading up to November’s election.

Nevada players, including captain Sia Liilii, spoke out publicly against the university multiple times for its refusal to forfeit the match. Trump’s Director of National Intelligence presumptive nominee Tulsi Gabbard and former Nevada U.S. Senate candidate Sam Brown even visited the team for a photo-op and interview.

SJSU TRANSGENDER VOLLEYBALL SCANDAL: TIMELINE OF ALLEGATIONS, POLITICAL IMPACT AND A RAGING CULTURE MOVEMENT

The scale of the controversy only heightened as the Oct. 26 match date approached. On Oct. 22, Nevada and San Jose State announced that the match would be moved from Nevada’s campus in Reno to San Jose State’s campus in the Bay Area in California, claiming the location change was “in the best interest of both programs and the well-being of the student-athletes, coaches, athletic staff and spectators.”

But then, the day before the match, Nevada announced that its team would forfeit, citing the fact that it didn’t have enough players who were willing to participate. Nevada took a loss on its record, for the match, then went just 1-7 to finish the season.

Nevada players previously spoke about pressures they faced from the university to play the match in a press conference at their university. It was held the day of the originally scheduled match on Oct. 26.

Liilii broke down in tears from the minute she took the podium while she recounted her experience telling school officials she didn’t want to compete against a transgender player.

“We felt unsafe and dismissed,” Liilii said, sobbing. “We met with our school officials to give them our team’s new statement, but they wouldn’t even hear it. We were told that we weren’t educated enough and that we didn’t understand the science. We were told to reconsider our position.”

Nevada sophomore Masyn Navarro alleged her teammates had been told to “stay quiet” about the controversy during the press conference.

“It should not be this difficult to stand up for women. However, we will now take this opportunity to stand up as a team, as some of us have been told to stay quiet,” Navarro said.

WHO IS BLAIRE FLEMING? SJSU VOLLEYBALL PLAYER DOMINATING FEMALE RIVALS AND ENRAGING WOMEN’S RIGHTS GROUPS

Nevada athletic director Stephanie Rempe previously provided a statement to Fox News Digital addressing the allegations that were made at the press conference.

“I did not tell, and am unaware of any member of the athletics administrative team telling members of our women’s volleyball team that they ‘weren’t educated enough,’ that they ‘didn’t understand the science,’ that they should reconsider their position or that they should ‘stay quiet’ regarding their participation in an Oct. 26 match that was scheduled against San Jose State University.”

Rempe said she had offered an apology to the players regarding how they were informed that the university planned to proceed with the game, even after the players had voted to forfeit.

“On Oct. 14 and Oct. 22, I spoke with the team for less than five minutes each time and those gatherings were operational in nature. At all three meetings, I shared our genuine apology for not sharing the statement released on Oct. 3 in advance of their match against UNLV. As has been stated on multiple occasions, we continue to support the rights of the volleyball players who choose and choose not to participate,” Rempe said.

Article I, Section 24 of the Nevada Constitution provides that “Equality of Rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by this state or any of its political subdivisions on account of race, color, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, ancestry or national origin.”

But Liilii is now one of 11 former or current Mountain West volleyball players engaged in the lawsuit against San Jose State and the Mountain West for its handling of the situation involving the trans athlete.

San Jose State co-captain Brooke Slusser leads the suit and is engaged in a separate lawsuit against the NCAA citing her experience of having to share a team, bedroom and changing spaces with the trans athlete while knowledge of the player’s birth sex was actively withheld from her for an entire season by the school and conference.

HOW TRANSGENDERISM IN SPORTS SHIFTED THE 2024 ELECTION AND IGNITED A NATIONAL COUNTERCULTURE

The other players on the plaintiff list are Alyssa Sugai, Elle Patterson, Nicanora Clarke, Kaylie Ray, Macey Boggs, Sierra Grizzle, Jordan Sandy, Katelyn Van Kirk and Kiersten Van Kirk. Former SJSU Assistant volleyball coach Melissa Batie-Smoose, who was suspended by San Jose State after filing a Title IX complaint alleging the university gave favorable treatment toward the trans player, is also a plaintiff.

Smith told Fox News Digital that some athletes have expressed fear of retaliation by their schools when deciding whether or not to seek their help.

“The most common first question we hear from NCAA female athletes seeking support is: ‘What can my school or the NCAA do to retaliate against me if I speak out against allowing men in women’s sports?’ They’re often terrified of losing scholarships or being kicked off their teams,” Smith told Fox News Digital.

“The first reassurance we provide is that these athletes have a Constitutional right to free speech. They can speak out or forfeit in protest against discrimination, Title IX violations, or increased safety risks when competing against a male athlete—without fear of retaliation, regardless of the lies their schools may tell them.”

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

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Nevada

Nevada basketball: How to watch Nevada at Fresno State on Saturday

Published

1 day ago

January 11, 2025

Press Room

Nevada basketball: How to watch Nevada at Fresno State on Saturday

After a challenging start to conference play, the Nevada basketball team has a chance to pick up its first win of the season in the Mountain West on Saturday.

But so does Fresno State.

The Wolf Pack plays the Bulldogs with tip-off set for 4 p.m. Saturday.

Nevada is 0-4 in conference (8-7 overall) and coming off a one-point overtime loss, 82-81, at New Mexico. The Bulldogs (4-12, 0-5 MW) lost by 27 at Colorado State, 91-64, on Tuesday

What time is the Nevada-Fresno State game at Save Mart Center?

Saturday, 4 p.m. in Fresno, California.

What TV channel and radio station are airing the Nevada-Fresno State game?

The game will be broadcast on TV on KNSN (Ch. 21) and on the Mountain West Network. It will be on the radio at 95.5 FM with John Ramey. All games are available online through the Varsity Network app.

The rankings

Nevada is No. 59 in the current KenPom Rankings, while Fresno State is No. 264.

Meanwhile, Nevada is No. 53 in the NCAA NET rankings and Fresno State is No. 273.

Scoring

Nick Davidson leads the Wolf Pack at 15.3 points per game and Kobe Sanders is averaging 15.1.

The Bulldogs have five players averaging double figures, led by Amar Aguillard at 13.3 points per game and Zaon Collins at 12.9.

Mountain West Standings

Conference, overall

Utah State 5-0, 15-1
New Mexico 5-0, 13-3
Boise State 4-1, 12-4
San Diego State 3-1, 10-3
UNLV 3-1, 9-6
Colorado State 3-1, 9-6
Wyoming 2-3, 9-7
Nevada 0-4, 8-7
Air Force 0-4, 3-12
San Jose State 0-5, 7-10
Fresno State 0-5, 4-12

Saturday’s games: Nevada at Fresno State, San Diego State at New Mexico, San Jose State at Air Force, UNLV at Colorado State, Boise State at Utah State.