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Wall Street Journal
a day ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
18,000 Jobs Out the Drive-Thru Window
There's no such thing as a free fast-food lunch. Last year California super-sized its minimum wage to $20 an hour for employees at big quick-serve restaurant chains, and new research confirms that Sacramento did not repeal the basic laws of economics. According to the study, California only months later had 18,000 fewer fast-food jobs than if the law had never passed. California's $20 fast-food wage rule, up from $16, took effect in April 2024 on chains with at least 60 locations nationwide. 'This is one of the largest one-time minimum wage increases in United States history,' write three economists at the University of California, San Diego, and Texas A&M, who published their paper in the National Bureau of Economic Research. Analyzing federal data, they find that the law raised wages about 8% 'relative to the fast food sector elsewhere in the country.'
Axios
2 days ago
- Business
- Axios
Hospitals scoop up physician practices, driving prices up
Hospitals are steadily buying small physician practices and, in the process, driving up the price of care, a new National Bureau of Economic Research study shows. Why it matters: It's the latest evidence of consolidation in health care that's left more than three-quarters of U.S. doctors employed by health systems or corporations. The pace has quickened in recent years, driven by factors like declining reimbursements for some specialties and expenses like electronic health record systems that have left small independent practices struggling. But that's brought a decline in competition that raises antitrust concerns. "These are thousands and thousands of very small transactions and the question is: What do you do about them?" said Yale economist and study co-author Zack Cooper. "[The Federal Trade Commission] clearly do not have the resources to block every acquisition of three physicians." By the numbers: Between 2008 and 2016, the researchers found the the share of private physician practices acquired by a hospital in the U.S. rose by 71.5%. By 2016, roughly half (47.2%) of physician practices were owned by a hospital. Within two years of physician groups being acquired, the study found, physician prices increased an average of 15.1%. Two years after buying an OB-GYN practice, prices for labor and delivery were up by $475, an increase of 3.3%. Virtually all of the estimated deal valuations of physician-hospital mergers the researchers tracked fell below Hart-Scott-Rodino merger reporting thresholds. The big picture: Health systems see opportunities to achieve more clinical integration and expand referral networks by snapping up independent physician practices. The acquisitions aren't limited to hospitals: Private equity and insurers, and businesses like Amazon, are also scooping up medical practices from doctors fed up with declining pay and high overhead costs. The pandemic and its financial pressures also factored in many physicians' decision to sell: By the start of 2022, 73.9% of physicians were working for someone else, including 52.1% by hospitals and health systems, an Avalere study last year found. Cooper said his research shows prices go up as the hospital acquirers achieve more market dominance, without a corresponding increase in quality of care. "When you buy these physicians, it starves other hospitals of physicians and their patients," Cooper said. The other side: The American Hospital Association said the study relies on data from more than a decade ago gathered from an insurer that itself has become a major acquirer of physician practices. "Hospital partnerships for physicians and their practices can offer stability and resources, including upfront investments, infrastructure improvements, electronic health records alignment and facility upgrades, allowing for the continuation of access to care, especially in rural communities," said Aaron Wesolowski, vice president of research strategy and policy communications at the AHA. He said researchers should focus on corporate insurers and other entities that he said have been the main drivers of physician acquisitions. What to watch: How regulators figure out how to address such a large number of small deals. "We need to start thinking critically about what do you do when an industry composed of three to four people but collectively is 2% to 3% of GDP is getting transformed in the ways that we see them getting transformed," Cooper said. He suggests site-neutral payments, or paying the same rate for services regardless of setting, would stop incentivizing hospitals to gobble up so many small practices. But he believes state policies, such as making merging parties demonstrate benefit before a deal is allowed to go through, would also help.
CNBC
7 days ago
- Business
- CNBC
Trump's 'big beautiful bill' caps student loans. Here's what it means for borrowers
President Donald Trump's massive tax and spending package will bring sweeping changes to federal student loans, in part by capping how much money people can borrow from the federal government to pay for college and graduate school. Among other measures, the legislation, which Trump has called the "one big, beautiful bill," sets new limits for students and their families. The following changes go into effect for new borrowers on July 1, 2026: These new limitations "will reshape how students borrow," said Lesley Turner, an associate professor at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and a research fellow of the National Bureau of Economic Research. "Students are either going to borrow less or make up the difference with private loans, or they will not start or complete a graduate program," Turner said. More from Personal Finance:Trump's 'big beautiful bill' slashes CFPB funding78% say Trump's tariffs will make it harder to deal with debtTax changes under Trump's 'big beautiful bill' — in one chart Aspiring lawyers, doctors and dentists are most likely to be impacted by the new loan limits, Turner said. "It's quite a substantial cut in the loans students have access to." Roughly 9.3% of law students, 27.5% of medical school students and 60% of those in dentistry programs graduated with more debt in 2020 than is allowed under the new loan limits, according to calculations by higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz. In fact, the average cost of medical school already exceeds $200,000. At private institutions, the average cost is closer to $300,000. The new student loan caps "will affect many prospective medical and other health professions students and worsen the nation's persistent doctor shortage," David Skorton, president and CEO of the Association of American Medical Colleges, said in a statement. Other experts say the new loan limits may provide a much-needed check on soaring tuition costs, which have jumped significantly in recent decades — outpacing inflation and other household expenses — leaving some students feeling priced out of higher education. Nearly every year, students and their families borrow more to cover the rising cost of attendance, a trend that has led to a ballooning of total outstanding student debt to more than $1.7 trillion. With new limits on how much people can borrow, high-priced schools might have to lower tuition or increase aid, Turner said. The limits on federal student loans are likely to spur students to find other lenders to bridge the gap. "The new loan limits for Parent PLUS loans and graduate/professional school loans will shift some borrowing from federal loans to private student loans," Kantrowitz said. "This will particularly impact low-income students, who are less likely to qualify for private student loans." Unlike federal loans, private student loan lenders rely on credit scores for the borrower — which could be the student, a parent or even another relative or friend as a cosigner — to determine eligibility and interest rate. "Access is by no means guaranteed," Turner said. As it stands, roughly 90% of student loans come from the federal government, and the remaining 10% are private student loans, according to the College Board. Students often turn to private student loans once they have reached the federal student loan limits and still need additional education financing. Already, private student loan volume is up significantly. Private student loan originations during the 2024-25 academic year jumped 8.63% from a year earlier, according to Enterval Analytics, a student loan data analysis firm. Private loans can also come with fewer safety nets and less flexible repayment options compared to federal loans.
The Hill
09-07-2025
- General
- The Hill
The real crisis in education is what we aren't measuring
There's a reason so many students feel disconnected from school. It's not a lack of effort by teachers or disengagement by families. It's that the structure of our schools still reflects priorities from a very different time. We are operating a 21st-century society on a 20th-century education system, shaped by 19th-century design. We move students through rigid age cohorts. We ring bells to signal shifts between subjects. We still treat standardized testing as the definitive measure of success. But the world our children are entering no longer functions that way. It demands something more and something different. We should be asking: Are we educating students to succeed on a test, or to thrive in a world shaped by uncertainty, technology and rapid change? Today's students will inherit a global economy already transformed by artificial intelligence and automation. According to McKinsey, two-thirds of executives now rank 'social, emotional, and advanced cognitive skills' as more important than technical skills in the evolving workplace. Yet those are the very skills our system undervalues or ignores. We continue to reward memorization and test-taking, when what's needed is initiative, discernment and adaptability. For years, we've referred to communication, teamwork, empathy and leadership as 'soft skills.' That phrase undersells their value. Increasingly, scholars and employers are calling them what they are: durable skills. These are abilities that persist, deepen and grow in importance across careers and life stages. They don't become obsolete with each software update. In fact, they become more essential the more complex our world becomes. AI can write code and summarize documents. But it can't mediate a conflict, navigate ambiguity or lead with judgment. These human capabilities can't be automated — and they will only become more vital as technology advances. According to Harvard's Project on Workforce, jobs built on collaboration, creativity and leadership are among the most resilient to automation. The National Bureau of Economic Research has reached similar conclusions. And yet our schools continue to define success by metrics that miss the mark. A 2023 report from the Carnegie Foundation and ETS concluded that traditional assessments are misaligned with the skills most predictive of long-term success. In response, they've begun testing new approaches to measure collaboration, perseverance and problem-solving. That's a step forward, but change at the margins is not enough. We need to rethink what we value and how we build it. This is not an argument for lowering standards. It's an argument for raising the right ones. True rigor includes intellectual stamina, but also the ability to listen well, lead wisely and learn from failure. Those traits don't show up in multiple-choice exams, but they determine whether someone succeeds in real life. We say we want to prepare students for college and career, but too often that means checking boxes: GPA, test score, extracurriculars. What if we asked different questions? Are students learning how to manage conflict? Are they prepared to act with integrity under pressure? Are they learning how to take initiative in uncertain situations, or to contribute meaningfully in a group? Are they growing in character, not just content knowledge? None of this happens by accident. It requires deliberate design. That means creating space in the school day for collaborative work, real-world problem solving and thoughtful reflection. It means investing in teacher training that goes beyond content delivery and cultivates leadership development. It means seeing students not as data points, but as future citizens, innovators and leaders. Some schools are starting to lead the way: integrating project-based learning, mentorship and social-emotional development into their approach. But isolated examples aren't enough. This moment calls for a shift in mindset: one that recognizes that we're not simply preparing students to perform; we're preparing them to contribute. The stakes are real. A 2024 survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers found that fewer than half of employers believe recent graduates are proficient in leadership. Confidence in graduates' critical thinking and collaboration skills was even lower. That's not just a workforce challenge; it's a civic one. In a democracy, we need citizens who can engage across differences, analyze complex problems and lead with empathy. If we don't teach those skills with intention, we shouldn't be surprised when they go missing in public life. America has much to celebrate in education: broader access, exceptional teachers and countless educators who go above and beyond. But pride must not become complacency. In a rapidly changing world, we can't afford to leave the system on autopilot. It calls for reflection, adaptation and bold resolve. The factory-style model of education may have made sense in another century, but it no longer fits the moment. Today's students face a world that is changing faster than any generation before them, and they need an education system that is as dynamic and forward-thinking as the challenges ahead. Our children carry extraordinary potential to lead, to build, to reason and to serve. It's time their schools reflected that promise with the flexibility and purpose they deserve. The real crisis in education isn't that we aren't working hard enough. It's that we're still measuring the wrong things. The sooner we fix that, the better chance we give our children, and our country, to rise to the challenges ahead. Jason E. Thompson is an entrepreneur currently serving as a Republican in the Utah House of Representatives. He is also a member of the Utah Federalism Commission.
New York Post
06-07-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Unlike Zohran Mamdani, most Dems want prosperity — not class warfare
Liberals and progressives are celebrating Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani's primary victory as proof that New York City is ready for a 'democratic socialist' revolution. They're badly in need of a history lesson: Every socialist revolution has failed and set back the goals it meant to accomplish. Everywhere it has been tried, socialism has meant economic decay at best and mass death at worst. The global death toll from socialism and communism is roughly 100 million souls. Whether the victims died in Stalinist gulags, Mao's Great Leap famine or Pol Pot's 'killing fields,' the underlying logic was the same: When the state owns everything, the individual owns nothing — not even his life. Mamdani's own platform may seem more anodyne, but it is a distilled sampler of socialism's greatest failures: nationalized businesses (public utilities), price controls (rent freezes, 'affordable' everything) and government-run retail. Meanwhile, capitalism's ledger shows no mass graves — only the lifted living standards of billions. Even China's rise from Mao-made famine to middle-class affluence began the day Deng Xiaoping opened markets and let peasants keep what they grew. Mamdani promises city-run groceries to 'bring down prices,' as if 8 million New Yorkers will flock to a public-owned store without remembering Venezuela's empty-shelf socialism. He proposes a rent freeze, forcing down the price of housing. Berlin's leftist government tried the same stunt with its 2020 Mietendeckel: Apartment listings collapsed 41.5% in a single year. He proposes fare-free buses. Tallinn, Estonia, made transit free in 2013; a Royal Institute of Technology audit found ridership rose barely 3% and car traffic scarcely fell, even as taxpayers picked up the heavy bill. He proposes no-cost child care. Quebec's celebrated '$5-a-day' day care ballooned in cost and delivered a 'sizeable negative shock to non-cognitive skills' that lingered into adolescence, per the National Bureau of Economic Research — along with higher crime and lower life satisfaction. All this is funded, naturally, by punishing 'the rich' — until they decamp to Florida, just as over a million wealth-holders fled Fidel Castro's Cuba, 6 million Venezuelans (most college educated) abandoned Nicolás Maduro's 'Bolivarian miracle' and 15% of Russia's millionaires bolted in a single year once Vladimir Putin's neo-Soviet expansion started. The socialist mayoral hopeful's web site also touts 'public ownership of utilities,' a polite phrase for state takeover of the power grid. Another of Mamdani's proposals is boosting the city's minimum wage to $30 an hour by 2030 — an 82% jump. Every morning, the NY POSTcast offers a deep dive into the headlines with the Post's signature mix of politics, business, pop culture, true crime and everything in between. Subscribe here! That would saddle small employers with entry-level labor costs near $65,000 a year, forcing many to lay off staff, automate or close — and leave fewer rungs on the ladder for new workers. Then there's policing. This may be the part of Mamdani's platform that is most acutely not what it seems. In 2020, Mamdani embraced 'defund the police' during the city's summer of riots. Now he says he merely wants to shift funds to a new Department of Community Safety. Here's the irony socialists rarely acknowledge: Every successful socialist leader, from Venezuela's Hugo Chávez and Maduro Venezuela to Colombia's Gustavo Petro and Mexico's Claudia Sheinbaum's Mexico, has depended on a stronger, more intrusive police force to enforce rationing, suppress dissent and make those neat five-year plans look 'orderly.' Finally, his 'Trump-proofing' proposal — getting ICE out of NYC and ending any cooperation with the feds — sounds like an open invitation for gangs like the Tren de Aragua and MS-13. Do New York City socialists expect everyone to hold hands and sing Kumbaya? Mamdani's agenda is doomed to fail because it doesn't understand that NYC's problem is not capitalism but its own government. High costs in New York stem from layers of policy that strangle them: restrictive zoning locks 75% of residential land into one- and two-family lots, prevailing-wage and union rules push subway construction to an eye-watering $2 billion to $3 billion per mile, and the New York City Housing Authority's $80 billion repair backlog shows what happens when government runs housing. Add the nation's heaviest big-city tax burden and miles of red tape, and you've got an economy in which prices climb and paychecks stall. Why are Democrats doing this to themselves? Part of the answer is Donald Trump. An unconventional Republican back in the White House has driven many liberals to think the best response is a hard-left hook. But backing Mamdani's agenda clashes with that of the majority of Democratic voters who value prosperity over class warfare — among them the millions of Latinos who've escaped socialism, support Democrats and now face a party willing to impose on them the very ideas that prompted them to flee. Santiago Vidal Calvo is a policy analyst at the Manhattan Institute. The views are his own and not those of the Manhattan Institute.
