Mass. nixes hike in worker's compensation rates

BOSTON — The state insurance commissioner has approved a settlement eliminating a proposed increase in workers' compensation insurance rates.

Attorney General Martha Coakley's argued against the planning increase, which would have hiked rates by an average of 7.7 percent across the state.

Coakley called the proposed increase "totally unjustified" and said it would have hit small businesses hard at a time when the state is grappling with high unemployment.

Coakley, who is also a Democratic candidate for governor, said Friday's settlement will end up saving Massachusetts employers a total of $75 million.

Massachusetts businesses are required to purchase workers compensation insurance to provide coverage for expenses and lost wages of workers injured on the job.

Rates for workers compensation insurance are set at least every other year in an administrative rate hearing

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Cherokee comes back as a crossover

The Cherokee returns to Jeep's 2014 lineup in the form of a sleek compact crossover that is set on a burly, off-road -ready lower half.

Highlighting changes to the Cherokee are a squashed version of Jeep's trademark seven-slat grille and narrow lamps that replace circular headlights. Jeep offers the 5-passenger Cherokee in four models, including a front-wheel-drive version, all-wheel-drive, and four-wheel-drive.

Our tester was the rugged Trailhawk 4X4 model with a locking rear axle and a traction control system with five settings: Auto, Snow, Sport, Sand/Mud and Rock. The Cherokee Trailhawk also had skid plates to protect the undercarriage, a one-inch suspension lift, and all-season tires. Front and rear tow hooks that protrude from the bumpers add to the Trailhawk's character that seems to dare drivers to go ahead, take it off-road and just try to get it stuck.

Our $36,000 tester came equipped with a 3.2-liter V6 engine that produced 271 horsepower. Jeep also offers the Cherokee with a more fuel efficient 2.4-
liter, in-line four-cylinder rated at 184 horsepower. The larger engine costs an additional $1,495 and yielded 20 mpg in average city and highway fuel economy. Regardless of engine choice, a 9-speed transmission that provided smooth upshifts remains. The Cherokee with electronic steering held its line through the corners with a minimal amount of body roll and road noise. While the V6 provided plenty of power for around town and quickly hustled the crossover up to highway speed, the V8 muscle and towing capacity of Jeep's flagship Grand Cherokee that I tested last summer was missed.

However, the Cherokee's well-appointed interior did feel similar to the Grand Cherokee. Black leather-rimmed bucket seats were heated and comfortable. The driver's seat was 8-way power adjustable with an additional 4-way lumbar power adjustment. The heated steering wheel was wrapped in leather as was the shift knob. A household power outlet located in the backseat, a feature not found on many crossover SUVs. is noteworthy.

An 8.4-inch multi-view display with a back-up camera bulged out from the dashboard. The display's touchscreen operation was efficient. Chrysler's solid UConnect system worked well integrating the Jeep's infotainment system, which included navigation with my iPhone. Large dual-zone climate control dials and buttons were appreciated.

I found an abundance of interior storage in the form of cubbies, cup holders, and cutouts. The rear cargo area which expanded with the rear seats folded down provided an ample amount of additional storage space. A power lift gate helped with loading groceries into the back.

If fuel economy is your bottom line when considering an all-wheel-drive crossover, the Ford Escape or Toyota's RAV4 are both worth a test drive when considering the Jeep, but it's difficult to find another competitor that can match the Cherokee Trailhawk's off-road capabilities.

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Foes file SJC brief to put gambling repeal on ballot

Casino opponents yesterday argued that since the industry itself has proposed changes to gaming in Massachusetts, the state's highest court should allow voters to decide whether the 2011 gaming law should be repealed.

In a brief filed with the Supreme Judicial Court, the group Repeal the Casino deal outlined that and other arguments why the court should overturn Attorney General Martha Coakley's ruling that their campaign to put a question on the November ballot is unconstitutional.

Casino operators "have already put forward proposals to change the rules," said spokesman David Guarino. "They open up the door, and then they change the rules when they get in to benefit their bottom line. To say that voters shouldn't have the same right to change the law or to repeal it is disingenuous."

Guarino pointed to Las Vegas billionaire Steve Wynn's efforts, for example, to have the 25 percent tax rate on his proposed Everett casino lowered to whatever rate a tribal casino would pay. The Mashpee Wampanoags, who are eyeing a casino site in Taunton, would be taxed at 17 percent if they have the only facility in southeastern Massachusetts. There will be no tax if another casino opens in the region, such as the proposed Foxwoods casino in Fall River.

A spokesman for Wynn declined to comment.

In an email, Christopher Loh, a spokesman for Coakley, said: "While our office determined that the question does not meet constitutional requirements, the most important thing is to get the right result."

Coakley's office will file its response on April 16, and the court will hear oral arguments in May.

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Obama: Women still face outdated policies at work

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says the economy hasn't caught up to the new reality that women now make up about half of the workforce.

Obama says in his weekly radio and Internet address that women earn about 77 cents for every dollar men earn. He says women face outdated policies that hold them back, and that hurts their families and the broader economy.

Obama is calling in Congress to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour.

In the GOP address, Gov. Rick Snyder of Michigan says there's an economic comeback in states led by Republican governors. He says it can happen nationally if the country follows their lead.

___

Online:

Obama address: www.whitehouse.gov

GOP address: www.youtube.com/user/gopweeklyaddress

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Are tougher penalties against Russia to come?

WASHINGTON — U.S. penalties against a Russian bank and the Kremlin's inner circle have pinched Moscow, but their effectiveness is in doubt if the goal is to get President Vladimir Putin to roll back his forces from Crimea or prevent more land grabs.

Putin has mocked the punitive steps President Barack Obama has taken so far.

He made jokes of Obama's decision to freeze the assets of businessmen with close ties to Putin, as well as Bank Rossiya, which provides them support. Putin retaliated with travel restrictions on nine U.S. officials and lawmakers, including Sen. John McCain. "I guess this means my spring break in Siberia is off," said McCain, R-Ariz.

For now, Putin says there is no need for further Russian moves, even as his Foreign Ministry said Moscow would "respond harshly."

Putin claims to have no plans for further incursions into Ukraine or elsewhere in the region. But he's not planning to reverse Russia's annexation of Crimea, either.

The U.S. and Europe are left to consider the possibility of tougher measures on Russia's energy and banking sectors. That could backfire if Moscow seized American or other foreign assets or cut exports of natural gas to Europe, which is heavily dependent on Russia for energy.

"If Russia doesn't do anything other than what they've done so far with Crimea, I think the Obama administration will probably stand pat with the sanctions that it has already imposed," said Richard Fontaine, president of the Washington-based Center for a New American Security.

"I think they are waiting to see if this is the end of the Russian adventurism, or if there is more to come, and then they will react with more sanctions accordingly."

By taking a step-by-step approach, the U.S. is giving Russia a chance to resolve the crisis, Fontaine said. "The problem with that is that Putin has shown absolutely no appetite to take any off-ramp," he said.

Just the threat of harsher penalties has dimmed the outlook for the fragile Russian economy. Russian stocks were under pressure Friday as a second credit rating agency put the country on notice of a possible downgrade. Visa and MasterCard stopped serving two Russian banks, including Bank Rossiya.

The Russian stock market has lost more than 10 percent this month.

Also Friday, Russia said it might scrap plans to tap international markets for money this year.

The European Union imposed penalties against 12 more people Friday, bringing its list of those facing visa bans and asset freezes to more than 30. They include one of Russia's deputy prime ministers, two Putin advisers and the speakers of both houses of parliament.

But it still is short of the top-tier list of Putin associates punished by the United States, and evidence that Europe is not as eager to punish its energy supplier and trade partner.

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., who went to Ukraine with McCain last week, urged Obama to rally U.S. allies. "To do it alone is very limited. To do it with our allies can have some impact on Putin," he said.

McCain also said cracking down on Russian lawmakers and Putin's inner circle won't get Putin's attention. He said the U.S. should provide financial aid to Ukraine, immediately send defensive weapons to the country, resume work on the missile defense system in Poland and develop a long-term plan to get energy to Europe and Ukraine.

"The higher price that Putin thinks he has to pay for further aggression, the more likely that he doesn't act," said McCain.

Fifty former U.S. government officials and foreign policy experts wrote Obama on Friday urging him to strengthen Ukraine's democratic transition and impose "real costs" on Putin.

They said Obama should go after Putin, and expand the sanctions to isolate Russian financial institutions and businesses that are complicit in Russia's incursion into Crimea or support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The group praised the deployment of U.S. fighter aircraft to Poland and the Baltic states but said the U.S. should send additional ground forces, missile defenses or other assets to former Warsaw Pact members of NATO, work to reduce Europe's dependence on Russian natural gas and expand U.S. military rotations to Georgia, which is seeking membership in NATO.

Experts on Russia and Europe caution against looking at the Crimea problem too narrowly. Putin's move into Crimea can be seen as part of a broader strategy of stopping NATO enlargement, or at least keeping neighboring countries off balance so they can't be further integrated into the alliance or have closer ties with the West.

"We don't have anything against cooperation with NATO, nothing at all," Putin said in a speech earlier this week. "We are against having the (NATO) military alliance ... behaving as the master of the house outside our fence, next to our home or on our historical territory."

___

Associated Press writers Donna Cassata in Washington and Lynn Berry in Moscow contributed to this report.

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Health Connector tab grows

The state could lose up to $90 million in federal funds because lingering problems with its disastrous Obama­care website have kept tens of thousands of people on health plans that were supposed to expire in January — forcing it to burn up cigarette tax funds to fill the gap — and that's only part of a fast-approaching hit on taxpayers, experts told the Herald.

"Ninety million extra is a floor for what the coming taxpayer bill will be," said Joshua Archambault, a health care expert at the Pioneer Institute. "Taxpayers will pay for all the pieces of this puzzle that they wouldn't be paying for if the site had worked."

The Health Connector is asking for an extension through Sept. 30 for more than 100,000 people on subsidized plans known as Commonwealth Care — who haven't been able to move to Obamacare-compliant plans because of the bad site, leaving the Bay State with an approximately $10 million a month penalty in federal funding.

"This is the impact of lost federal revenue, lost federal support, due to IT system challenges," Administration and Finance Secretary Glen Shor told the Herald yesterday. So the state will now tap a Connector trust fund used to subsidize health care costs — including cigarette tax revenue — to help fix the mess.

But the $90 million is just one of the costs piling up in the signature Democratic program that has become a headache for Gov. Deval Patrick. Optum, the company hired earlier this year to address technology issues, is charging $16.4 million just through March. Consulting group MITRE also reviewed the system and filed two different reports, though it's unclear how much they'll be paid.

Developer CGI has only been paid $15 million of its $69 million milestone-based contract, but it is unclear whether the state will have to shell out more. Then there is the cost of placing 84,000 Bay Staters on temporary Medicaid coverage — after the state was overwhelmed by the backlog of applications and couldn't process them before applicants' plans expired.

"The cost of temporary coverage will still need to unfold," Shor said. "There are a number of variables."

Stakeholders find the uncertainty unacceptable.

"It's concerning that the state remains unable to quantify the total cost of ownership for their utter failure to comply with the federal health care overhaul," said David A. Shore of the Massachusetts Association of Health Underwriters. "Perhaps more concerning is their complete lack of transparency and accountability on these complex financial issues to residents of the commonwealth."

The experts say with temporary insurance, some new customers who are eligible for some subsidies are essentially getting a free ride now — avoiding hundreds of dollars in premiums and out-of-pocket costs — while the state figures out their eligibility. An unknown number of applicants may not be eligible at all.

"Literally anybody in the commonwealth could sign up right now and be put onto the program," Archambault said.

Exactly who pays for the expenses they rack up in the meantime is still unclear, but Shore predicted all of this will simply drive up health care costs in the end.

"History suggests that the administration will attempt to recoup these monies through assessments on health insurance premiums paid for by small businesses and individual consumers," Shore said. "This is something that all consumers should watch carefully."

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Obama enlists DeGeneres, other celebrities in final health care push

WASHINGTON— President Barack Obama teased Ellen DeGeneres about the selfie she took at the Oscars and confessed to leaving his socks and shoes lying around while the first lady is out of town, but before the end of his Thursday appearance on the talk show he got to put in a plug for the Affordable Care Act.

That's Obama's deal with popular media these days as the president enlists help in his effort to boost health care sign-up numbers before the March 31 enrollment deadline.

In recent days, Obama has filled out his March Madness brackets on ESPN, joked around with comedian Zach Galifianakis on "Between Two Ferns" and defended his "mom jeans" on-air with radio host Ryan Seacrest — all with the agreement that he'd get a moment to pitch his health care plan.

The White House is aiming to bring young consumers into the fold, and not just because they represent roughly 40 percent of the uninsured population.

Young participants are more likely to pay into the system without drawing heavily on its benefits and are seen as key to ensuring the president's healthcare reform is economically viable.

Administration officials estimate they have signed up more than 5 million of the 6 million people they hope to enroll by the deadline — a downward revision from the 7 million target they named before all the trouble with the rollout of the sign-up website, HealthCare.gov.

As health care experts predicted, young people are taking their time getting on board. Now, the White House is going after them through every media outlet and opinion leader they can mobilize. "Validators," aides call them.

"In order to reach them," said White House press secretary Jay Carney, "we have to, you know, be creative."

While the White House pushes that message, Republicans continue to argue that the reform law is fatally flawed and will harm the other end of the age spectrum. As Obama traveled to Orlando on Thursday, the office of House Speaker John A. Boehner, R-Ohio, said that, while in Florida, the president should answer questions about the reform law from seniors.

"The president has focused plenty of time and energy of late on young people," Boehner's office said in an afternoon news release. "Isn't it time he directly address older Americans who are bearing the brunt of his health care law? He shouldn't leave Florida today without doing so."

In his remarks on the road, Obama planned to focus on his economic agenda — and, always, where health care reform fits into it. As he participates in a roundtable and delivers remarks, however, his staff and pitch people keep a tight focus on the health care push.

Sports media and stars have played a major role in the final push. This week, NBA All-Star Kobe Bryant did an interview on Dan Patrick's radio sports show in which he encouraged people to get coverage before the 2014 sign-up period ends. Former NBA All-Star Grant Hill called in to sports radio shows Wednesday in Miami, Dallas and Houston.

Miami Heat player Shane Battier promoted the health care plan in a conference call the other day with reporters. As he spoke, the administration released a report showing that nearly 2 million people went to emergency rooms each year because of sports-related injuries.

On Thursday, the White House ran a social media campaign trying to drive traffic to GamePlan4Me.com, a website promoting the sports benefits of having health insurance and featuring athletes such as Bryant, New York Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia and New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz.

Of course, some of the pitch men and women are not as famous.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on Thursday traveled to New Orleans and Fort Worth to highlight local efforts to help people enroll.

White House chief of staff Denis McDonough recently called in to a sports talk radio show in Cleveland to talk up GamePlan4Me.com.

Carney said the White House is "comfortable" with the pace of enrollment but thinks it can round up more young people before the deadline.

When Massachusetts ran its first enrollment, he said, "the demographic breakdown at the various stages of enrollment in the open-enrollment period is mirrored by what we've seen in our figures."

"I don't think anyone would argue that Massachusetts did not get, in the end, either sufficient numbers or the sufficient demographic breakdown that it needed to function effectively," Carney said. "So we feel confident that we'll do the same."

———

©2014 Tribune Co.

Visit Tribune Co. at www.latimes.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services

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Sanctions not seen as damaging to U.S.

Economic sanctions President Obama ordered yesterday against some of Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest associates will have little impact on the U.S. or global economies, unless they are expanded to restrict Russia's energy exports to Europe, experts said.

"In terms of the global economy, unless gas exports from Russia to Western Europe are part of the sanctions, the impacts will be very small," said Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at IHS Global Insight.

In his latest round of sanctions over the crisis in Crimea, Obama targeted Putin's chief of staff and 19 others, as well as a major Russian bank that provides them with support.

But that alone will have little, if any, effect on the U.S. economy because Russia is not one of our major trading partners, said Doug Handler, IHS's chief U.S. economist. Russia retaliated, imposing entry bans on U.S. lawmakers and senior White House officials.

"Should there be a collapse in trade volume between the two countries, it would not have a major impact on U.S. economic growth," Handler said. "The greatest impact we'd see would be through Europe."

European Union leaders yesterday announced sanctions on 12 more people linked to Russia's annexation of Crimea. Obama said his administration has been working closely with Europe on more severe actions if Russia continues its incursions into Ukraine.

Yesterday, he signed an executive order giving the U.S. authority to impose sanctions on key sectors of the Russian economy.

"This is not our preferred outcome," Obama said. "These sanctions would not only have a significant impact on the Russian economy, but could also be disruptive to the global economy."

Earlier this month, the showdown in Ukraine caused both U.S. and European markets to fall, as the crisis stoked fears of a tit-for-tat campaign of economic sanctions between Western powers and Russia — Massachusetts' 28th largest export market last year, accounting for less than $150 million of the state's exports.

"Russia is a promising market and a trade partner, but not a terribly important one for either the U.S. or Massachusetts," said Andre Mayer, senior vice president at Associated Industries of Massachusetts. "Sanctions should not be damaging to our industries, as long as they are carried out with Western European nations."

Herald wire services contributed to this report.

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Howard Johnson Inn to get ‘edgy’ redo

An "edgy" and "irreverent" 94-room boutique hotel paying homage to the Fenway's musical and artistic history will replace the shuttered and past-its-prime Howard Johnson Inn.

Samuels & Associates plans to open The Verb this summer after an 
$18.8 million-plus redevelopment that will include an interior gut-renovation of the Boylston Street property while preserving the 1959 building's mid-century facade and architecture.

It will be the first hotel for Samuels, which is credited with breathing new life into the Fenway with numerous residential, retail and office projects, including Fenway Triangle Trilogy, 1330 Boylston St. and the Van Ness Building. For this development, it is partnering with Weiner Ventures and Spot-On Ventures, developers of the Mandarin Oriental Boston.

"We're completely refurbishing the entire building," said Spot-On principal Robin Brown, a former 13-year general manager of the Four Seasons Hotel Boston. "It was a very high-quality building that lacked in love. We're more than tipping our hat to the original architects' design intent, making it authentic, but modern."

The team hired a London branding firm to brainstorm about the hotel's positioning, its style of service and attitude, and its name.

"Everything about the hotel will be a little bit irreverent," Brown said. "This is like me having a midlife crisis of hotels that's grounded with superb service and superb details, nailed with a huge sense of humor. This is not going to be a serious hotel."

The hotel's lobby will include a DJ spinning vinyl albums that will be on display. Boston music and pop-culture memorabilia ranging from historic Boston Phoenix covers to photos of musicians who performed in Boston or appeared on WFNX-FM radio also will decorate the public spaces.

"Once we really got to know the building, we saw that (it) really had great bones," said Leslie Cohen, Samuels' executive vice president of development. "We thought this was a great opportunity to create a spectacular new product in short order. Hotel rooms are in high demand."

Room rates are expected to start in the $200 range.

The hotel will include a heated outdoor pool and deck, along with a 4,000-square-foot, three-meal restaurant and bar.

"We're looking for (a chef) that fits in with the vibe of the Fenway — someone who is up-and-coming and consistent with our restaurateurs," Cohen said.

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Putnam CEO picked to also run parent co.

Putnam Investments President and CEO Robert L. Reynolds has been tapped to also head the Boston firm's parent company as it combines its retirement businesses to serve the U.S. marketplace with greater breadth.

In a conference call with reporters yesterday, Winnipeg-based Great-West Lifeco, Inc., announced the appointment of Reynolds as president and CEO of Great-West Lifeco U.S., the company that owns Putnam Investments and Denver-based Great-West Financial. Reynolds also will assume those roles at Great-West Financial after its president and CEO retires in May, but he will continue to hold his positions at Putnam and remain based in Boston.

"Bob has been a driving force of innovation and industry progress in financial services for three decades — having led institutional and retail asset management, insurance and retirement services businesses over the course of his career," said Paul Mahon, president and CEO of Great-West Lifeco.

Under Reynolds' leadership, the retirement businesses of Putnam Investments and Great-West Financial will be combined and offer comprehensive retirement services to small-, mid- and large-sized corporate 401(k) clients, state and municipal employee retirement plans, and public education and nonprofit employee plans. Combined, the two companies have more than 5 million participants and oversee $220 billion in assets.

"We see a huge opportunity to see the businesses collaborate," Reynolds said. "Together we can grow faster than we can grow separately."

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