Commentary

In the grand sweep of American history, we have often been tempted to defer the difficult decisions of governance in favor of expediency or political convenience. Yet, there are moments when reality compels us to confront the unavoidable truths of our collective predicament. Such a moment is now upon us, and it concerns the solvency of our national budget. To speak plainly, the federal budget cannot be rendered solvent without the reformation of entitlement programs—Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Without such reform, we are hurtling toward what can only be described as a fiscal death spiral, an inexorable trajectory toward insolvency.

Independent pharmacies across Maryland are singularly focused on one urgent priority: pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) reform. As Congress considers the future of healthcare policy, the opportunity to take meaningful action on PBMs is here—and it must not be missed. For too long, these corporate middlemen have driven up drug costs, squeezed local pharmacies to the point where many have gone out of business, and limited patient access to affordable medications. As an independent pharmacy owner in Maryland and the CEO of EPIC Rx, I have seen first-hand the detrimental effect on our communities.

Maryland, as presently governed, finds itself on the precipice of fiscal calamity, a condition made manifest by a burgeoning structural deficit that threatens to become one of the most severe financial crises the state has faced in decades. With a staggering $5.9 billion shortfall projected by fiscal 2030, it is not merely advisable but imperative that Governor Wes Moore assume the mantle of reformer, lest Maryland sink further into the quicksand of fiscal irresponsibility.

America’s seniors are getting a new tool in the war on cancer: a new blood test to detect colorectal cancer received full Medicare coverage the same week as its FDA approval. It is a boon to patients, and a validation of the work that U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) continues to champion after almost 30 years.

A small milestone passed recently in Baltimore County. Hopefully, at least for most families, it went unnoticed. As of now, any driver who fails to stop for a stopped school bus in the county that has activated its flashing lights will be issued a $250 ticket. Well, at least in most instances. Prior to the start of the school year, automated cameras were installed on 80% of the vehicles in the Baltimore County Public Schools fleet.

For hundreds of years, a certain breed of patient gardeners has mastered the skill of bonsai, carefully restricting and nurturing trees that would otherwise get to be 50 or 100 feet tall, so that they would fit on a desktop as an object of wonder. The viewer is filled with awe and astonishment at how someone could achieve such a feat. It is not without great skill and effort, as such a restricted environment is fraught with great peril for a tree.