David Lidsky's Blog, page 273

2025 drug price rise: Pharma companies plan to make more than 250 medicines more expensive

Drugmakers plan to raise U.S. prices on at least 250 branded medications including Pfizer COVID-19 treatment Paxlovid, Bristol Myers Squibb’s cancer cell therapies, and vaccines from France’s Sanofi.

Drugmakers plan to raise U.S. prices on at least 250 branded medications including Pfizer COVID-19 treatment Paxlovid, Bristol Myers Squibb’s cancer cell therapies, and vaccines from France’s Sanofi at the start of 2025, according to data analyzed by healthcare research firm 3 Axis Advisors.

Where to catch the northern lights this New Year’s weekend

NOAA experts say states like Montana, Minnesota, and Maine could be prime viewing spots, especially if you can find a dark sky free from city lights.

A geomagnetic storm is expected to bring the northern lights, or aurora borealis, to the northern United States during New Year’s Eve and Day, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Luxury fashion’s audit system is missing glaring environmental and social violations

Widespread Milan investigations have uncovered malpractice inside the Italian luxury goods supply chain of Dior, Giorgio Armani, and Alviero Martini this year.

LVMH-owned Dior’s production arm in Italy, Manufactures Dior, relied on formal inspections to assess working and safety standards inside its supply chain last year. In some cases, such certifications missed glaring problems, a Reuters review of unpublished court documents has found. 

3 things you need to know about employee stock options

If options are part of your compensation package, it’s worth your while to get familiar with how they work generally, as well as how your company handles stock options specifically.

Forms of compensation like restricted stock units and performance shares—whereby executives receive a batch of stock from their companies after meeting a performance target—have some key advantages relative to employee stock options.

California will require insurance companies to offer coverage in wildfire zones

The rule will require home insurers to offer coverage in high-risk areas—but can pass on the cost of reinsurance to policyholders.

Insurance companies that stopped providing home coverage to hundreds of thousands of Californians in recent years as wildfires became more destructive will have to again provide policies in fire-prone areas if they want to keep doing business in California under a state regulation announced Monday.

Rhode Island’s state health benefits website hacked, user data exposed

Cybercriminals who hacked Rhode Island’s system for health and benefits programs have released files to a site on the dark web.

Cybercriminals who hacked Rhode Island’s system for health and benefits programs have released files to a site on the dark web, a scenario the state has been preparing for, Gov. Daniel McKee said Monday.

‘Major’ cyber incident: Chinese hackers access Treasury Department computers and documents

Chinese hackers remotely accessed several U.S. Treasury Department workstations and unclassified documents after compromising a third-party software service provider.

Chinese hackers remotely accessed several U.S. Treasury Department workstations and unclassified documents after compromising a third-party software service provider, the agency said Monday.

These 21 states are raising minimum wage in 2025

Millions of low-wage earners will see higher hourly rates in January, but the federal minimum remains stuck at $7.25.

2025 may be a more financially sound year for many Americans. That’s because on January 1 of the new year, the minimum wage for workers in 21 states will climb—some more significantly than others—with more states to follow later in the year. 

The foreign worker visa debate rages on. Has Trump really chosen a side?

In an interview with the ‘New York Post,’ Trump praised the use of visas to bring skilled foreign workers to the U.S.

President-elect Donald Trump appears to be siding with Elon Musk and his other backers in the tech industry as a dispute over immigration visas has divided his supporters.

Trump, in an interview with the New York Post on Saturday, praised the use of visas to bring skilled foreign workers to the U.S. The topic has become a flashpoint within his conservative base.

“I’ve always liked the visas, I have always been in favor of the visas. That’s why we have them,” Trump said.

In fact, Trump has, in the past, criticized the H-1B visas, calling them “very bad” and “unfair” for U.S. workers. During his first term as president, he unveiled a “Hire American” policy that directed changes to the program to try to ensure the visas were awarded to the highest-paid or most-skilled applicants.

Despite his criticism of them and attempts to curb their use, he has also used the visas at his businesses in the past, something he acknowledged in his interview Saturday.

“I have many H-1B visas on my properties. I’ve been a believer in H-1B. I have used it many times. It’s a great program,” Trump told the newspaper.

He did not appear to address questions about whether he would pursue any changes to the number or use of the visas once he takes office Jan. 20.

Trump’s hardline immigration policies, focused mostly on immigrants who are in the country illegally, were a cornerstone of his presidential campaign and a priority issue for his supporters.

But in recent days, his coalition has split in a public debate largely taking place online about the tech industry’s hiring of foreign workers. Hard-right members of Trump’s movement have accused Musk and others in Trump’s new flank of tech-world supporters of pushing policies at odds with Trump’s “America First” vision.

Software engineers and others in the tech industry have used H-1B visas for skilled foreign workers and say they are a critical tool for hard-to-fill positions. But critics have said they undercut U.S. citizens who could take those jobs. Some on the right have called for the program to be eliminated.

Forget the confetti: Most Americans are planning for a low-key New Year’s Eve at home

Fewer parties, fewer plans: Many U.S. adults say they prefer a quiet night in for New Year’s Eve.

Planning a quiet New Year’s Eve at home? You’re in good company.