Meanwhile, the Louisiana Health Department is trying to figure out how to cut $859 million from the state’s Medicaid program for the poor and uninsured.  That whammy, 11% of funding for health services, was included in the recently passed federal transportation bill.
    Jindal’s administration has outlined proposed cuts that will eliminate programs that care for women with breast and cervical cancer, hospice care, and dentures for adults.
    Officials also say that funding for LSU public hospitals and rural hospitals will be slashed as well, which will threaten some of the facilities with closure.

In the bottom 10 again
    Unfortunately, it has become all too familiar. Once again, Louisiana is ranked in the bottom 10 of a national study.
    This time, it’s CNBC’s annual rankings of Top States for Business.  Louisiana is ranked 42nd out of the 50 states.
    The study considered 10 categories in determining the rankings.  They are:
    *Cost of Doing Business
    *Workforce
    *Quality of Life
    *Economy
    *Transportation and Infrastructure
    *Education
    *Business Friendliness
    *Access to Capital
    *Cost of Living
    To find a bit of good news, it should be mentioned that Louisiana did not drop in the rankings from 2011.  But it did not go up, either, remaining at number 42.
    The top 10 states for business are Texas, Utah, Virginia, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, South Dakota, Colorado, Georgia, and Wyoming.
    The 10 worse states for business are Rhode Island, Hawaii, West Virginia, Alaska, Mississippi, Nevada, Connecticut, Delaware, Louisiana, New Jersey, and California.

Roemer’s Reform Project
    Buddy Roemer’s presidential bid is over, but he is not giving up the fight to change the country’s political system.  The former governor and congressman from Bossier City officially announced last week a new organization called The Reform Project.
    According to Roemer, “It is a nonpartisan, anti-corruption organization fighting both the unfair use of money in our political system and the undemocratic developments occurring in our Republic.”
    He adds, “We will bring about reform through the use of technology and by the power of the people.”
    Roemer explained that the soft launch of The Reform Project is only the beginning.  A highly interactive website will be launched next month.
    The goal is for this website to help organize and activate a powerful grassroots movement that will reform America.
    “Together, we will combat the corruption and call out our elected officials who sell out to the special interests, and we will praise those who put their country first,” Roemer said.
    The website will be www.The ReformProject.org.
    The organization will be asking for contributions  on its website once it’s up and running. ------

by Lou Gehrig Burnett, Publisher of Fax-Net