Penelope Lemov

Recent Articles

• Low Grades for Deficit Financing
• Jun 1, 2003
• Sixteen states are on Moody's Investors Service negative outlook and four on negative watch, with "future credit deterioration likely," according to Robert Kurtter, senior vice president of state ratings for the credit-rating agency. Moody's had already downgraded eight states in the past two years.

• Blocking Erisa
• May 1, 2003
• For decades, a federal law has obstructed state innovation on private health care coverage. That's finally changing.

• Easing The Pain
• May 1, 2003
• To blunt the impact of deep Medicaid cuts, a few states are experimenting with ways to control the program's costs.

• The Universal Cause
• Mar 1, 2003
• There's a dagger at the heart of any solution to the crisis in health care costs--but it's not the skyrocketing price of prescription drugs. Rather, it's the uninsured: the 41 million Americans--one in seven-- who can't afford, aren't offered or choose not to carry health insurance.

• The Universal Cause
• Mar 1, 2003
• Several health insurance companies have stepped up to say they intend to promote universal health care coverage.

• Can Schip Stay Afloat?
• Jan 1, 2003
• By touting its success, advocates hope to spare the children's health insurance program from the budget ax.

• A Dose of Downgrades
• Nov 1, 2002
• Wall Street's opinion of state debt has been heading south this year. Local ratings may not be far behind.

• The Pension Offensive
• Sep 1, 2002
• Public pension officials are getting aggressive about holding companies accountable for portfolio losses.

• The Untaxables
• Jul 1, 2002
• Before Congress revisits the Internet-sales issue, states are developing a simpler and more uniform tax-collection process.

• Deficit Deluge
• May 1, 2002
• It's been a shallow recession, yet states and their budgets are in big trouble.

• More Over Nasdaq, Muni Bond Prices Are Now Online
• Mar 1, 2002
• A Web site launched in January is a big breakthrough for both investors in and issuers of municipal bonds. The site offers the closest thing yet to a real-time "ticker tape" on bond prices.

• The HIPAA Headache
• Mar 1, 2002
• It's complex, costly and confusing. Most states are still trying to figure out what the law that standardizes electronic health data is all about.

• A Bond That Breaks New Ground
• Jan 1, 2002
• Massachusetts and New Mexico made news three years ago when they issued bonds for construction projects and promised to repay the loans with federal highway grants they had coming their way. Now, Chicago has come to market with a variation on the grant-anticipation theme.

• Drug Deals: A Pact to Lower State Employee Pill Prices
• Dec 1, 2001
• Driven by the effect of rising drug prices on state budgets, seven states are banding together to change the way they buy pharmaceuticals for their employee-benefit plans.

• The Muni Market Gets a Boost
• Nov 1, 2001
• After years of benign neglect, the municipal bond market is back in the spotlight. Falling interest rates, a volatile stock market and a weakening economy created a resurgence of interest in both issuing and buying muni bonds in the first three quarters of the year.