NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander Touchdown May 25

Wed, 14 May 2008 16:45:49 GMT

clipped by: Kauaiguy
clipper's remarks: Looking for water and the possibility of life.

May 13, 2008: NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is preparing to end its long journey and begin a three-month mission to taste and sniff fistfuls of Martian soil and buried ice. The lander is scheduled to touch down on the Red Planet on Sunday, May 25th.

Phoenix will enter the top of the Martian atmosphere at almost 13,000 mph. In seven minutes, the spacecraft must complete a challenging sequence of events to slow to about 5 mph before its three legs reach the ground. Confirmation of the landing could come as early as 7:53 p.m. EDT.

Tags: mars, nasa, space, science

Wall Street Shaken Over Health Insurers Profit Margins

Wed, 14 May 2008 16:30:47 GMT

clipped by: Kauaiguy
clipper's remarks: The nation's largest publicly traded health plans say they don't plan to temper premium increases for the sake of keeping members on their rolls -- particularly not while they are under pressure from Wall Street over what it sees as their disappointing earnings.

Wall Street analysts were shaken over the long-term prospects of the health plan business after bellwethers WellPoint and UnitedHealth Group, the nation's two largest private-pay plans, reported less-than-expected profits from the first three months of this year.

...most say their risk-based commercial numbers -- representing traditional employer health benefits -- are declining or are not growing as quickly as anticipated. But health insurers say cutting premiums or reducing the rate of increase to keep customers would affect their bottom lines more than losing some members over premium hikes.

Clip Source: www.ama-assn.org

Health plans say they'll risk losing members to protect profit margins

The nation's largest publicly traded health plans say they don't plan to temper premium increases for the sake of keeping members on their rolls -- particularly not while they are under pressure from Wall Street over what it sees as their disappointing earnings.

Wall Street analysts were shaken over the long-term prospects of the health plan business after bellwethers WellPoint and UnitedHealth Group, the nation's two largest private-pay plans, reported less-than-expected profits from the first three months of this year.

Tags: healthcare, wall street, economy, health, politics

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NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander Touchdown May 25

Wall Street Shaken Over Health Insurers Profit Margins

Health plans say they'll risk losing members to protect profit margins