xbet casino online
Fed signals slower rate cuts amid rising inflation, upgraded GDP forecasts
In sports, hindsight is always 20/20, but for the Miami Dolphins, the “perfect vision” comes far too late. The team’s inability to make timely, strategic decisions has caught them in a cycle of missed opportunities, and Tua Tagovailoa ’s contract situation is yet another glaring example. When Tua entered the final stretch of his rookie contract, the Dolphins had to decide whether to pick up his fifth-year option or gamble on his future. While many may have praised the Dolphins for their faith in Tua’s potential, the reality is that choosing not to activate the option left them vulnerable in ways that could have been avoided. Looking back now, the Dolphins’ decision seems questionable at best. The Power of Availability One of the most crucial adages in sports is that “availability is the best ability.” Over the years, Tua has struggled with injuries—some serious, some less so—but the pattern has been undeniable. While he’s shown flashes of brilliance, the reality is that Tua’s availability has been inconsistent, and with injuries continually sidelining him, it’s no surprise that his long-term value has been up for debate. The Dolphins had a golden opportunity to secure Tua at a potentially much cheaper rate by exercising his fifth-year option. The league is riddled with examples of quarterbacks who command sky-high contracts after demonstrating enough promise early in their careers. Yet, by opting to delay a commitment and gamble on his health and performance, Miami lost out on an opportunity to keep their quarterback on a bargain contract for another year. Had the Dolphins locked in that fifth-year option, they could have secured Tua for one more season at a much lower price, mitigating the risk of future injuries or performance issues. Chris Grier’s Oversight Chris Grier, the Dolphins’ General Manager, is at the heart of this decision. It’s easy to criticize with the benefit of hindsight, but Grier’s track record regarding player evaluations and long-term planning speaks for itself. Year after year, the Dolphins have struggled to make the right calls, especially when it comes to securing cornerstone players at a reasonable price ( Andrew Van Ginkel , Deshon Elliot). Now, as Tua’s future is uncertain, it only adds more fuel to the fire of why Grier needs to be held accountable. Had the Dolphins exercised the option, they could have extended Tua following this season on a much cheaper deal due to availability concerns. The Contract Gamble and the Missing Backup In the offseason, Tua signed a multi-year extension that secured him as the team’s long-term quarterback. While the deal represents the Dolphins’ faith in his talent, it came with the risk of continued injuries. The concussion issues that sidelined him for multiple games earlier in the season and the recent hip injury raise serious concerns about his future availability. The Dolphins are now paying a premium for a player whose health is a major question mark, and to make matters worse, the team failed to bring in a competent backup quarterback behind him, the reason they will miss the playoffs this season. A competent backup could have alleviated some of the pressure on Tua, especially when his injuries inevitably caught up with him again. With the Dolphins opting not to shore up this critical position, they are now in the difficult position of depending on an injury-prone quarterback without a reliable safety net. If Tua’s health continues to be a concern, the lack of depth at quarterback could be why Miami misses the playoffs this season. The Dolphins’ inability to plan for injury by not securing a reliable backup is a glaring oversight that should have been considered when signing Tua to a top quarterback deal. The Concussion, the Hip, and Playoff Implications The Dolphins’ playoff hopes are now hanging in the balance, and Tua’s availability was the deciding factor. With his concussion earlier this season and the hip injury that has surfaced now, the Dolphins have every excuse to sit their quarterback down, especially if the team is eliminated from playoff contention. If Tua’s injuries continue to mount and his availability remains uncertain, the Dolphins could see themselves with many more years of mediocrity. Looking Ahead The Dolphins could face a tough decision down the line if Tua’s injuries persist. While the fifth-year option could have given the team more flexibility, Miami’s decision to forgo it has left them in a more precarious position. Suppose Tua’s injuries continue to mount, and his long-term viability is questioned. In that case, the Dolphins will likely find themselves in a dilemma, forced to commit to him long-term or risk starting over again. In the grand scheme of things, it’s easy to say the Dolphins should have exercised Tua’s fifth-year option. However, this is just another reason Chris Grier’s tenure is under scrutiny. In the fast-paced NFL, where timing and long-term vision are paramount, the Dolphins have often made costly errors. If they want to avoid continuing the cycle of mediocrity, changes need to be made—beginning with the man at the helm. This article first appeared on Dolphins Talk and was syndicated with permission.
MacKenzie Scott gives rare third gift to medical debt relief group MacKenzie Scott continues to make medical debt relief a priority in her mysterious giving. Stephanie Beasley Of The Chronicle Of Philanthropy, The Associated Press Dec 18, 2024 11:56 AM Dec 18, 2024 12:05 PM Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message FILE - Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party, March 4, 2018, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File) MacKenzie Scott continues to make medical debt relief a priority in her mysterious giving. This week, Undue Medical Debt, formerly RIP Medical Debt, announced it had received a rare third gift — $50 million — from the billionaire philanthropist, signaling her satisfaction with the group’s efforts to purchase medical debt in bulk from hospitals and debt collectors. Scott has donated a total of $130 million to the organization since 2020. Medical debt is increasing despite most of the U.S. population having some form of medical insurance. Nearly 100 million people are unable to pay their medical bills, according to Third Way, a left-leaning national think tank. Overall, Americans owe about $220 billion in medical debt, with historically disadvantaged groups shouldering the bulk of the burden. Lower-income people, people with disabilities, middle-aged adults, Black people, the uninsured, and people living in rural areas are among the groups most likely to be affected by medical debt, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation . Undue Medical Debt buys debt at a discounted price, estimating that it erases about $100 in debt for each $1 donated. The group also collaborates with policymakers to encourage the adoption of measures to curb what people owe for medical care. Scott first gave Undue Medical Debt a $50 million donation in 2020, followed by a $30 million donation in 2022. With that money, the group has relieved nearly $15 billion in debt for more than 9 million people, CEO Allison Sesso said. That’s a significant leap from the $1 billion in debt relieved from 2014 to 2019, she noted. “I’m frankly astounded by this most recent gift from MacKenzie Scott and feel proud to be a steward of these funds as we continue the essential work of dismantling the yoke of medical debt that’s burdening far too many families in this country,” said Sesso. The continued funding has allowed Sesso “to not have to worry about my next dollar,” she said, and “think more strategically about the narrative around medical debt — she has helped us push that conversation.” Undue Medical Debt was started in 2014 by two former debt collection executives, Jerry Ashton and Craig Antico, who were inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement’s advocacy for debt relief. Growth initially was slow. But with Scott’s gifts, the nonprofit has been able to staff up, produce more research, and develop relationships with policymakers who have pushed for changes to hospital billing practices to relieve debt and prevent people from accumulating it in the first place, Sesso said. Undue Medical Debt’s public policy arm has worked with lawmakers in North Carolina, which in July became the first state to offer additional Medicaid payments to hospitals that agree to adopt debt relief measures, she said. The policy change followed the publication of a 2023 report from Duke University, which found that one in five families in the state had been forced into collections proceedings because of medical debt. Since 2020, the organization’s staff has grown from three to about 40, Sesso said. Those hires included an anthropologist who collects stories from people set back by medical debt to inform the group’s research and advocacy work. Scott’s gifts also have helped improve Undue Medical Debt’s technology to identify people eligible for debt relief and to find hospitals from which it can purchase medical debt, among other things, Sesso said. “This coming year, because of this MacKenzie Scott grant, we’ll be able to add more people, making sure that we can support that growth on an ongoing basis,” Sesso said. Few repeat grantees Few organizations have received more than one gift from Scott. Other multi-grant recipients include Blue Meridian, an intermediary group that has directed billions of dollars to nonprofits around the world, and GiveDirectly, which provides no-strings-attached cash payments to low-income people globally. GiveDirectly has received $125 million from Scott since 2020. Blue Meridian has not disclosed amounts for the four gifts it’s received since 2019. Scott’s contributions to those two organizations were for specific causes like GiveDirectly’s U.S. poverty relief fund, said Christina Im, a senior research analyst at the Center for Effective Philanthropy. In the case of Undue Medical Debt, the timing of Scott’s first gifts in 2020 and 2022 seemed to correspond with COVID-relief efforts, she said. Scott, the former wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is worth an estimated $32 billion but provides few details about her grantmaking decisions. Without further information, it’s hard to know what prompted this third donation to Undue Medical Debt, but Scott has said in public statements that she wants to help those who are most in need and bear the brunt of societal ills, said Elisha Smith Arrillaga, the Center for Effective Philanthropy’s vice president for research. “I have not seen a lot of other folks funding in this area,” Smith Arrillaga added. Anger over health care costs Scott’s latest gift to Undue Medical Debt comes amid national debates about medical insurance and the cost of medical treatments. The murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on December 4 in Midtown Manhattan has heightened these conversations, with some lionizing the man who allegedly committed the crime. “That’s no way to get change, full stop,” Sesso said in reference to Thompson’s murder. “But I think the anger around insurance companies and having access to care is very clear.” The U.S. has one of the most expensive health care systems in the world. And the amount of medical debt carried by individuals seems to be increasing, noted Adam Searing, a public interest attorney and associate professor at Georgetown University, where he focuses on Medicaid and other health coverage programs. Searing previously served for 17 years as director of the Health Access Coalition at the nonprofit North Carolina Justice Center, advocating for the uninsured and underinsured. During that time, he heard from people losing their homes due to liens from hospitals. Sometimes those liens could be delayed, but it still meant that the debtors couldn’t pass those homes along to their children or grandchildren, he said. “Those stories stuck with me,” he said. “It really has an impact on families.” Relieving debt allows people to get their lives back on track and become financially secure after a major illness or series of expensive bills, Searing said. For philanthropists, it’s also a cause that is largely nonpartisan. Scott shining a spotlight on the issue is undoubtedly “a good thing,” he said. “I think it will have a big effect.” _____ Stephanie Beasley is a senior writer at the Chronicle of Philanthropy. This article was provided to The Associated Press by the Chronicle of Philanthropy as part of a partnership to cover philanthropy and nonprofits supported by the Lilly Endowment Inc. The Chronicle is solely responsible for the content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy . Stephanie Beasley Of The Chronicle Of Philanthropy, The Associated Press See a typo/mistake? Have a story/tip? This has been shared 0 times 0 Shares Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message Get your daily Victoria news briefing Email Sign Up More Health Virtual safari trips, a return to the cockpit: seniors embrace VR in long-term care Dec 18, 2024 11:54 AM Health officials say Louisiana patient is first severe bird flu case in US Dec 18, 2024 11:07 AM What Americans think of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his health stances Dec 18, 2024 10:55 AMCOP29 ends with deal on climate finance after bitter fight
Week 17 Care/Don't Care: Unlike Vikings, Packers' lack of a true WR1 hurts them when it matters most
Indian share market opens lower, Nifty below 23,800In conclusion, when it comes to choosing earphones on Double Twelve, the Samsung Galaxy Buds3 Series stands out as a top choice for discerning audiophiles and tech enthusiasts. With its exceptional sound quality, innovative features, comfortable fit, and seamless connectivity, these earphones offer a superior audio experience that is unrivaled in the market. Whether you are upgrading your current earphones or looking for a new addition to your audio collection, the Galaxy Buds3 Series is the perfect choice for those who demand the best in sound quality and performance. Upgrade to the Samsung Galaxy Buds3 Series today and elevate your listening experience to new heights.