BOARD CERTIFICATION EXAM STUDY GUIDES Lower Extremity Trauma
[Click on Image to Enlarge]
ME-P Free Advertising Consultation
The “Medical Executive-Post” is about connecting doctors, health care executives and modern consulting advisors. It’s about free-enterprise, business, practice, policy, personal financial planning and wealth building capitalism. We have an attitude that’s independent, outspoken, intelligent and so Next-Gen; often edgy, usually controversial. And, our consultants “got fly”, just like U. Read it! Write it! Post it! “Medical Executive-Post”. Call or email us for your FREE advertising and sales consultation TODAY [678.779.8597] Email: MarcinkoAdvisors@outlook.com
Medical & Surgical e-Consent Forms
ePodiatryConsentForms.com
iMBA Inc., OFFICES
Suite #5901 Wilbanks Drive, Norcross, Georgia, 30092 USA [1.678.779.8597]. Our location is real and we are now virtually enabled to assist new long distance clients and out-of-town colleagues.
ME-P Publishing
SEEKING INDUSTRY INFO PARTNERS?
If you want the opportunity to work with leading health care industry insiders, innovators and watchers, the “ME-P” may be right for you? We are unbiased and operate at the nexus of theoretical and applied R&D. Collaborate with us and you’ll put your brand in front of a smart & tightly focused demographic; one at the forefront of our emerging healthcare free marketplace of informed and professional “movers and shakers.” Our Ad Rate Card is available upon request [678-779-8597].
Posted on February 26, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
BREAKING NEWS
By Staff Reporters
***
***
WASHINGTON, Feb 25 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Tuesday aiming to improve price transparency on healthcare costs by directing federal agencies to strictly enforce a 2019 order he signed during his first term.
The order directs the Departments of the Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services to within 90 days come up with a framework to enforce Trump’s 2019 executive order forcing health insurers and hospitals to disclose healthcare cost details.
***
***
This includes requiring the disclosure of actual prices not estimates, update existing guidance or proposing new regulations that ensure price information is standardized, and updating or issuing enforcement policies that guarantee compliance.
“You’re not allowed to even talk about it when you’re going to a hospital or see a doctor. And this allows you to go out and talk about it,” Trump told reporters as he signed the order. “It’s been unpopular in some circles because people make less money, but it’s great for the patient.”
Posted on February 17, 2025 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
***
LONDON (Reuters) – European shares rose to record levels on Monday, led by defense stocks, as the region’s political leaders called for an emergency summit on the Ukraine war amid growing U.S. calls to boost military spending for security.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was last up 0.4%, as a gauge of defense and aerospace stocks surged almost 4% to lifetime peaks, having already more than doubled in value since Russia invaded Ukraine three years ago
Posted on December 31, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST–TODAY’SNEWSLETTERBRIEFING
***
Essays, Opinions and Curated News in Health Economics, Investing, Business, Management and Financial Planning for Physician Entrepreneurs and their Savvy Advisors and Consultants
“Serving Almost One Million Doctors, Financial Advisors and Medical Management Consultants Daily“
A Partner of the Institute of Medical Business Advisors , Inc.
Stat: 4 in 10. That’s about how many US nursing home residents got an updated Covid-19 vaccine in the winter of 2023–24, according to the CDC, despite the recommendation that adults 65 and older get the new shot. (KFF)
Stocks fell on Monday, with the woes of the three major indexes continuing in the final week of the year as an otherwise strong 2024 comes to a close.
The benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) slipped more than 1% while the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite (^IXIC) fell roughly 1.2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell about 0.8%.
Stocks moved lower as the 10-year Treasury yield (^TNX) retreated from a seven-month high to hover near 4.55%. Stocks closed out last week with a Friday slide from Big Tech names like Tesla (TSLA) and Nvidia (NVDA), with the NASDAQ Composite falling 1.5% and the S&P 500 down over 1%.
Chinese state-sponsored hackers breached the U.S. Treasury Department’s computer security guardrails this month and stole documents in what Treasury called a “major incident,” according to a letter to lawmakers that was provided to Reuters on Monday.
The hackers compromised third-party cybersecurity service provider BeyondTrust and were able to access unclassified documents, the letter said.
Posted on December 27, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST–TODAY’SNEWSLETTERBRIEFING
***
Essays, Opinions and Curated News in Health Economics, Investing, Business, Management and Financial Planning for Physician Entrepreneurs and their Savvy Advisors and Consultants
“Serving Almost One Million Doctors, Financial Advisors and Medical Management Consultants Daily“
A Partner of the Institute of Medical Business Advisors , Inc.
Absent Congressional action, beginning January 1sy, 2025, the statutory limitations that were in place for Medicare telehealth services prior to the COVID-19 PHE will retake effect for most telehealth services.
This means most telehealth visits will not be covered by Medicare in 2025, unless Congress acts by the end of December 2024.
***
(Reuters) -The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed fractionally higher on Thursday, stretching its winning streak to five sessions despite light trading volumes and rising U.S. Treasury yields weighing on some of the dominant technology megacaps.
While the NASDAQ Composite and the S&P 500 were broadly unchanged, the indexes both finished slightly in negative territory. This snapped the NASDAQ’s four-session run of higher closes, and ended the S&P 500’s own run at three sessions.
On a day of few catalysts, investors responded to yields on U.S. government bonds inching higher, including the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note hitting its highest since early May at 4.64% earlier in the session. And, a strong auction of seven-year notes early in the afternoon though helped yields come off slightly, with the 10-year note at 4.58% in late-afternoon trade.
Higher yields are traditionally seen as negative for growth stocks, as it raises the cost of their borrowing to fund expansion. With markets increasingly dominated by the megacap technology stocks known as the Magnificent Seven, crimping their performance – especially in lieu of other market catalysts – will put downward pressure on benchmark indexes.
The S&P 500 slipped 2.45 points, or 0.04%, to 6,037.59 points, while the NASDAQ Composite lost 10.77 points, or 0.05%, to 20,020.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 28.77 points, or 0.07%, to 43,325.80.
Six of the megacaps fell, with Tesla leading decliners with a 1.8% fall. The outlier was Apple, rising 0.3% and continuing to edge closer to becoming the first company in the world to hit a market value of $4 trillion.
Posted on April 11, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
MEDICAL EXECUTIVE-POST– Today’sNewsletter
***
Essays, Opinions and Curated News in Health Economics, Investing, Business, Management and Financial Planning for Physician Entrepreneurs and their Savvy Advisors and Consultants
“Serving Almost One Million Doctors, Financial Advisors and Medical Management Consultants Daily“
A Partner of the Institute of Medical Business Advisors , Inc.
NEW YORK (Reuters) -The U.S. accounting watchdog on Wednesday said it has hit KPMG Netherlands with a $25 million civil penalty, a record for the regulator, in response to “egregious” and widespread exam cheating at the foreign affiliate of the major audit firm.
As millions of Americans approach age 66, they face the inevitable question, is it time to retire? The physician population is aging alongside the general population—more than 40% of physicians in the U.S. will be 65 years or older within the next decade. In the case of surgeons, there is little guidance on how to best ensure their competency throughout their career and at the same time maintain patient safety while preserving mature physician dignity.
It is a scenario playing out nationwide. From Oregon to Pennsylvania, hundreds of communities have in recent years either stopped adding fluoride to their water supplies or voted to prevent its addition. Supporters of such bans argue that people should be given the freedom of choice. The broad availability of over-the-counter dental products containing the mineral makes it no longer necessary to add to public water supplies, they say. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that while store-bought products reduce tooth decay, the greatest protection comes when they are used in combination with water fluoridation.
More health systems are going to be opting out of Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, George Hill, a managing director at Deutsche Bank in Boston, predicted Monday at a “Wall Street Comes to Washington” webinar hosted by the Brookings Institution. “I think you’re going to see more large provider organizations threaten to opt out of networks, particularly as it relates to MA,” Hill said, adding that there are a number of reasons for this. “Prior authorizations are the problem, claims denials are a huge problem, delayed payments and rates are the problem — barriers in access to care in all varieties are the problem.”
The latest budget update from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) found that the federal government has spent more on paying interest on the national debt than on the military in fiscal year 2024. The CBO’s budget report for March showed that the U.S. has spent $412 billion on military programs at the Department of Defense through the first half of FY-2024, according to preliminary figures from CBO and the Treasury Department.
Consumer price increases remained high last month, boosted by gas, rents, and car insurance, the government said Wednesday in a report that will likely give pause to the Federal Reserve as it weighs when and by how much to cut interest rates this year. Prices outside the volatile food and energy categories rose 0.4% from February to March, the same accelerated pace as in the previous month. Measured from a year earlier, these core prices were up 3.8%, unchanged from the year-over-year rise in February. The Fed closely tracks core prices because they tend to provide a good read of where inflation is headed.
Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:
The S&P 500® index (SPX) dropped 49.27 points (1.0%) to 5,160.64; the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 422.16 points (1.1%) to 38,461.51; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) fell 136.28 points (0.8%) to 16,170.36.
The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) soared more than 18 basis points to 4.548%.
The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) jumped 0.82 to 15.80.
Interest-rate-sensitive sectors like banks, real estate, and utilities led Wednesday’s decliners. The KBW Regional Bank Index (KRX) tumbled 5% to its lowest point since late November. The small-cap Russell 2000® Index (RUT) lost 2.5%. Energy shares were among the few gainers as WTI Crude Oil (/CL) futures rebounded after three-straight losing sessions.
In other markets, the U.S. dollar index (DXY) jumped 1% to a five-month high amid expectations interest rates will remain elevated.
Posted on April 6, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
***
Here’s where the major benchmarks ended:
Markets: Stocks pulled it out for a Friday win after the government dropped encouraging economic data. But all three major indexes were still down for the week, with the Dow enduring its worst of 2024.
Stock spotlight:Tesla took a wild ride, plunging after Reuters reported it had scrapped plans to produce its long-awaited Model 2 affordable EV only to regain some ground after Elon Musk denied it. The company then jumped after hours because Musk said it’ll debut a robotaxi on August 8.
The S&P 500 index gained 57.13 points (1.1%) to 5,204.34, down 1.0% for the week; the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 307.06 points (0.8%) to 38,904.04, down 2.3% for the week; the NASDAQ Composite® ($COMP) rose 199.44 points (1.2%) to 16,248.52, down 0.8% for the week.
The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) rose more than 8 basis points to 4.392%.
The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) fell 0.32 to 16.03.
Meta Platforms (META) and Netflix (NFLX), two members of the “Magnificent Seven” mega-cap group, both jumped around 3% Friday, helping lift the S&P 500 Communication Services Index ($SP500#50) 1.6% to lead top-performing sectors. Meta shares closed at a record above $527, up 49% for the year.
Posted on March 19, 2024 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
***
Stocks started the week off strong yesterday as tech companies rose. Chipotle, Progressive, and more hit all-time highs. Tesla got a boost after announcing higher prices for its Model Y in the US and parts of Europe.
Here’s where major benchmarks ended yesterday:
The S&P 500 index rose 32 points (0.6%) to 5,149.42; the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DJI) gained 75.66 points (0.2%) to 38,790.43; the NASDAQ Composite jumped 130.27 points (0.8%) to 16,103.45.
The 10-year Treasury note yield rose nearly four basis points to 4.34%.
The CBOE Volatility Index® (VIX) dipped 0.08 to 14.33.
All but two S&P 500 sectors finished in the green, with communications, information technology, consumer discretionary, and consumer staples leading the advance. Health care and real estate finished modestly lower.
Crude oil prices rose to multi-month highs on the heels of stronger-than-expected industrial production data from China and concerns over potential supply disruptions.
According to Reuters, a Ukrainian strike sparked a fire at the Slavyansk refinery in Krasnodar on Saturday and ongoing attacks have now idled around 7% of Russia’s refining capacity so far this year. Brent Crude Oil (/BZ) futures, the global benchmark, gained 2% Monday.
Posted on November 23, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
***
Thanksgiving is a trading holiday. Both the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq are closed. Black Friday, one of the biggest shopping days of the year, is a half day for the stock market. Both stock exchanges close at 1:00 p.m. ET, with eligible options trading until 1:15 p.m. Normal trading hours resume on the Monday after Thanksgiving, also known as Cyber Monday, when many online retailers host major sales.
***
***
Thanks to plummeting prices at the pump, US drivers will save a collective $1.2 billion this Thanksgiving travel period, and day, compared to last year, according to GasBuddy. The average price per gallon is down nearly 46 cents from a year ago, and more than 50,000 stations now show gas prices at $2.99/gallon or less.
***
Narrow traffic lanes are safer than wide ones. Researchers at Johns Hopkins analyzed more than 1,000 streets in seven major cities across the US and found that narrower roads mitigated traffic collisions in certain conditions. The study did not find a significant difference between roads 9-feet wide and those 10- or 11-feet wide, but it did conclude that traffic accidents increase 1.5x when a road widens from 9 feet to 12 feet. Traffic fatalities are the leading cause of death for Americans aged 1–54.
***
Walgreens will close most of its pharmacies and stores on Thanksgiving Day for the first time in the company’s history, executives said last Thursday. The move to close more than 8,700 stores for the federal holiday comes as some Walgreens workers staged a three-day walkout this fall to push for improved working conditions and increased staffing numbers, Reuters reported.
***
***
Here is where the major benchmarks ended on Wednesday:
The S&P 500 Index was up 18.43 points (0.4%) at 4,556.62, near a four-month high close; the Dow Jones Industrial Average®(DJI) was up 184.74 points (0.5%) at 35,273.03; the NASDAQ Composite was up 65.88 points (0.5%) at 14,265.86.
The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) was down about 1 basis point at 4.41%, after earlier dropping to a two-month low under 4.37%.
CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 0.50 at 12.85.
Communications services and technology were among the strongest performers Wednesday. Food and beverage companies were also firm. Energy shares were among the weakest performers Wednesday behind a drop of over 1% in WTI Crude Oil futures (/CL). ), which fell following reports OPEC delayed a weekend meeting until November 30th, a possible reflection of cartel members struggling to reach consensus over production cuts. WTI crude ended just under $77 a barrel, down 19% from a 2023 high above $95 in late October.
Posted on October 27, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
Pfizer, a key producer of the COVID-19 vaccine, has revised its earnings outlook for 2023, cutting its projected earnings per share and revenue estimates. Pfizer saw its 2022 revenue surpass a record $100 billion as company CEO Albert Bourla vowed that everyone will have a “perfectly normal life with just injection maybe once a year.” Bourla received a 36% pay hike and netted $33 million through the pandemic.
***
***
The U.S. economy grew at its fastest pace in nearly two years in the third quarter as higher wages from a tight labor market helped to power consumer spending, again defying dire warnings of a recession that have lingered since 2022. Gross domestic product increased at a 4.9% annualized rate last quarter, the fastest since the fourth quarter of 2021, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis said in its advance estimate of third-quarter GDP growth. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast GDP rising at a 4.3% rate.
The S&P 500® Index (SPX) was down 49.54 points (1.2%) at 4,137.23; the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) was down 251.63 points (0.8%) at 32,784.30; the NASDAQ Composite was down 225.62 points (1.8%) at 12,595.61.
The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) was down about 11 basis points at 4.845%.
CBOE’s Volatility Index (VIX) was up 0.49 at 20.68.
Energy shares were among the weakest-performing sectors Thursday after a larger-than-expected increase in U.S. oil inventories last week sent WTI crude futures down more than 2% to a two-week low. Communication services and technology were also lower.
The market’s overall weakness belied some notable pockets of strength, including in banks and utilities, as the KBW Regional Banking Index (KRX) jumped more than 3%. Small-caps offered possible signs that a recent steep downdraft may be waning, with the Russell 2000 Index (RUT) dropping to a 12-month low earlier in the day before recovering to close about 0.7% higher.
Posted on September 24, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
***
An NFT is a digital asset that can come in the form of art, music, in-game items, videos, and more. They are bought and sold online, frequently with cryptocurrency, and they are generally encoded with the same underlying software as many cryptos. They’ve been around since 2014.
***
***
NFTs, the digital collectibles, are pretty much worthless now. Using data from NFT Scan, the crypto platform dappGambl found that 95% of the 73,257 Non Fungible Token collections (e.g., Bored Ape Yacht Club) it analyzed are worth 0 ether.
In other words, if NFTs were physical objects, it’d be time to put them on the same garage shelf with Beanie Babies. The report estimates that 23 million people are now the owners of worthless digital files. The crash is mainly for one S/D reason: There just isn’t enough demand to keep up with supply.
Pharmacy giant Rite Aid is negotiating terms of a bankruptcy plan that could see a significant number of its more than 2,100 drugstores permanently close, according to a report.
People familiar with the company’s talks with creditors told the Wall Street Journal that Rite Aid has proposed to close as many as 500 stores in bankruptcy, and either sell or let creditors take over its remaining operations. One group of bondholders wants to liquidate a larger number of stores, and there is an ongoing discussion on the number of stores to be closed, the Journal reported.
Given the conversations remain ongoing, no decisions have been made at this time, Rite Aid said in a statement to Reuters.
Posted on September 18, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
***
Stocks slouched into the weekend as investors wait to see what happens at next week’s Fed meeting. Planet Fitness dropped after its board’s surprise decision to oust the CEO, who had led the gym chain for more than a decade.
***
Instacart is planning to price its IPO shares higher since Arm’s IPO went so well. The grocery delivery company will make its market debut on Tuesday.
Posted on September 11, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
The Securities and Exchange Commissionapproved a funding proposal for the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT), a database designed to allow regulators to monitor all activity and trades in the US equity market.
Up until now, regulators “lacked a consolidated view of the material information” of National Market System securities “to trace orders from originations, modifications, cancellations, routings, and executions,” according to SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who supported the proposal.
With the new proposal, though, brokers will largely be footing the bill. So, while the plan was approved by three of the five commissioners, it’ll face an uphill battle to win approval from broker and asset manager-adjacent trade groups.
***
According to a report by Bloomberg, Wells Fargo & Co. has received federal approval for a $1 billion settlement in a shareholder lawsuit concerning unauthorized customer accounts. However, U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Rochon greenlit the settlement after a hearing in New York, bringing the bank’s total payouts for the scandal to nearly $5 billion. The lawsuit, filed in 2020, accused former CEO Tim Sloan and other executives of misleading investors and the public about the bank’s regulatory interactions following a 2016 scandal.
***
Instacart is aiming to go public at a valuation between $8.6 billion and $9.3 billion, according to reports from The Wall Street Journal and Reuters.
The initial figures reflect a striking departure from what Instacart was worth in the past.
The company’s stock is expected to trade on the NASDAQ under the ticker “CART,” and Goldman Sachs is leading the offering.
Instacart is expected to officially disclose its expected IPO valuation range today.
MCLEAN, Virginia (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday voiced more objections to Fitch Ratings’ downgrade of the main U.S. credit rating, calling it “entirely unwarranted” because it ignored improvements in governance metrics during the Biden administration and the country’s economic strength.
The S&P 500 Index was down 63.34 points (1.4%) at 4,513.39; the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) fell 348.16 points (1.0%) to 35,282.52; the NASDAQ Composite dropped 310.47 points (2.2%) at 13,973.45.
The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) rose about 3 basis points to 4.073%.
CBOE’ss Volatility Index (VIX) was up 2.2 at 16.13.
Consumer discretionary and energy shares were also weaker, with the latter pressured by a more-than 2% drop in crude oil futures.
The U.S. dollar index (DXY) strengthened for a fifth straight day and touched a four-week high, as investors shed riskier assets in favor of what are considered safe havens. Volatility based on the VIX hit its highest level since late May.
Posted on July 28, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
***
US gross domestic product (GDP) increased at a more-than-expected 2.4% annualized rate last quarter thanks to healthy consumer spending and businesses shelling out on investments. The latest figures show that not only is the US economy not spiraling into a recession due to interest rate hikes, it’s actually getting stronger as the year goes on.
In fact, underlying inflation rose at its slowest pace in two years. This could be a sign of the “soft landing” that FOMC Chair Jerome Powell seeks.
***
The European Central Bank also took it a cue from the FOMC and raised interest rates to a 23-year high. Investors think it could be the ECB’s last rate hike this cycle.
***
But, according to CNN, Japan’s central bank kept interest rates unchanged today despite rising inflation but hinted that it could gradually abandon years of cheap money, sending the yen soaring and stocks tumbling. The Bank of Japan (BOJ) said it kept unchanged its short-term interest rate at minus 0.1% and maintained its target for the yield on 10-year government bond at around 0%.
But the central bank also said it would adopt a more flexible approach to controlling the yield on government bonds — which affects borrowing costs across the world’s third biggest economy,diluting a key pillar of its longstanding ultra-loose monetary policy.
***
After a historic 13-day winning streak, the Dow—along with the other two major indexes—closed lower as its dizzying rise finally succumbed to gravity. There were some strong individual performances, however. Meta kept its impressive 2023 rolling after giving an optimistic earnings report.
Posted on July 25, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
***
The IRS will not come to the front / back door
The tax agency will no longer make unannounced visits to taxpayers’ homes or businesses to collect payments due (in most cases). The IRS said it was halting the controversial practice, which has been around since at least the 1950s, to protect its agents’ safety.
Instead, the agency will send letters requesting that the taxpayer schedule an appointment. In specific cases, such as to deliver a summons or subpoena or seize assets, an unannounced visit may still occur, but there are only a few hundred of those each year compared to tens of thousands of the more routine visits, according to Reuters.
Posted on June 29, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
***
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday announced federal and local criminal charges targeting 78 defendants across 16 states as part of a law enforcement action involving $2.5 billion in alleged healthcare fraud schemes targeting elderly and disabled people, HIV patients and even pregnant women.
The cases range from allegations of falsely billing the federal Medicare insurance program for elderly and disabled Americans and paying illegal kickbacks, to the illicit diversion of expensive prescription medications and the improper dispensing of highly addictive opioid pain killers.
Among those facing charges include 24 doctors, nurses and other licensed medical professionals, as well as healthcare executives including the current and former CEOs of a durable medical equipment online platform accused of falsely billing $1.9 billion in fraudulent claims.
Of the $2.5 billion in alleged fraudulent claims to Medicare, state Medicaid programs that serve the poor and supplemental Medicare insurance programs offered by private insurers, about $1.1 billion was actually paid out to the fraudsters, officials said.
“The Justice Department will find and bring to justice criminals who seek to defraud Americans and steal from taxpayer-funded programs,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.
On Friday, the Labor Department will update its Personal Consumption and Expenditures (PCE) index, which is the Fed’s preferred inflation measure. The June employment report follows on July 7th.
So, here is where the major benchmarks ended, yesterday:
The S&P 500 Index was down 1.55 points at 4,376.86; the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 74.08 (0.2%) at 33,852.66; the NASDAQ Composite was up 36.08 points (0.3%) at 13,591.75.
The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) was down about 6 basis points at 3.71%.
CBOEs Volatility Index (VIX) was down 0.31 point at 13.43.
Regional banks and utilities were among the weakest sectors Wednesday, with the Philadelphia Utility Index (UTY) ending at its lowest level in nearly four weeks. Energy companies ranked among the top gainers as crude oil futures rose more than 2%.
Insurer Travelers Companies fell 2.5% to become the day’s worst-performing Dow stock.
Salesforce shares rose after Goldman Sachs said the company was poised to boost its profits.
Intel shares fell after Oracle said its software would be compatible with Ampere Computing chips in a blow to Intel’s position with data center customers.
Posted on June 15, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
UnitedHealth Group expects to spend more of its members’ premiums on medical care in the second quarter, driven by a rise in outpatient care for Americans 65 and older in Medicare plans, CFO John Rex said Tuesday at a Goldman Sachs investor conference. Speaking at a Goldman Sachs healthcare conference, Tim Noel, CEO of UnitedHealth’s Medicare and retirement business, pointed to elevated demand for outpatient procedures from Medicare patients, per Reuters.
“We’re seeing that more seniors are just more comfortable accessing services for things that they might have pushed off a bit like knees and hips,” Noel reportedly said at the conference. The elevated demand is expected to increase the company’s second-quarter costs and premiums look set to lag spending on claims. As a result, UnitedHealth said it expects its medical loss ratio for full-year 2023 to be in the upper end of its prior outlook.
But, following the news, RBC Capital analyst Ben Hendrix reiterated UnitedHealth with an Outperform and maintained its $592 price target. Mizuho analyst Ann Hynes also reiterated UnitedHealth with a Buy and a $600 price target.
The S&P 500 Index was up 3.58 points (0.1%) at 4,372.59; the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) was down 232.79 (0.7%) at 33,979.33; the NASDAQ Composite was up 53.16 (0.4%) at 13,626.48.
The 10-year Treasury note yield (TNX) was down about 4 basis points at 3.80%.
Cboe’s Volatility Index (VIX) was down 0.74 at 13.87.
Regional banks and retail were among the weakest sectors Wednesday. The KBW Regional Banking Index (KRX) tumbled from a 14-month high earlier in the day, ending down nearly 3%. Small-caps stocks also took a hit, as the Russell 2000 Index (RUT) fell 1.2%. The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) rebounded sharply from a four-week low, boosted by the indications rates will stay higher for longer.
Posted on April 24, 2023 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
By Staff Reporters
***
Moody’s research released on Friday suggests that the industry is experiencing greater instability from several bank failures and high inflation, calling “into question whether some banks’ assumed high stability of deposits and their operational nature, should be reevaluated,”
The Wall Street Journal reported. Six U.S. banks were placed on Moody’s review list in March, per Reuters. All six banks put for review failed and were downgraded with the new study, including Comerica Inc., First Republic Bank, Intrust Financial Corporation, UMB Financial Corp, Western Alliance Bancorp and Zions Bancorporation.
***
Apple’s latest product launch, in partnership with Goldman Sachs, is a savings account that will yield a meaty 4.15% in annual interest just for parking your money in it. The details:
You can open the savings account via the Wallet app on your iPhone, but you’ll need an Apple Card (Apple’s credit card) to be eligible.
No minimum deposit is required, the max balance is $250,000, and all of your funds are FDIC-insured.
Posted on June 27, 2022 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™
***
By Nate Raymond
***
***
(Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court just made it harder for prosecutors to win convictions of doctors accused of running “pill mills” and excessively prescribing opioids and other addictive drugs by requiring the government to prove that defendants knew their prescriptions had no legitimate medical purpose.