Study: Drug coverage to vary under health law

WASHINGTON (AP) — A new study says basic prescription drug coverage could vary dramatically from state to state under President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.That's because states get to set benefits for private health plans that will be offered starting in 2014 through new insurance exchanges.The study out Tuesday from the market analysis firm Avalere Health found that some states will require...

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Stock futures up as China fuels growth hopes; data on tap

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock futures rose on Wednesday after comments from China's new leader boosted global growth expectations. * Chinese Communist Party chief Xi Jinping said the country would maintain its fine-tuning of economic policies in 2013 to ensure stable economic growth. That sparked a rally in Chinese shares, with the Shanghai Composite Index <.ssec> surging 2.9 percent....

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Assad Facing Setbacks as Syrian Capital Is Besieged

Narciso Contreras/Associated PressA kitchen in a residence in Aleppo, Syria, damaged Sunday in fighting between Free Syrian Army fighters and government forces. BEIRUT, Lebanon — Fierce fighting on the battlefield and setbacks on the diplomatic front increased pressure on the embattled Syrian government as fresh signs emerged on Tuesday of a sustained battle for control of the capital. News...

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The Voice: Which Team Will Win?

TV Watch The Voice By Julia Haskins 12/04/2012 at 07:45 AM EST From left: Adam Levine, Cee Lo Green, Christina Aguilera, Blake Shelton and host Carson Daly Mark Seliger/NBC The Voice's top six contestants had two chances to shine on Monday, when each singer performed...

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Fossil fuel subsidies in focus at climate talks

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Hassan al-Kubaisi considers it a gift from above that drivers in oil- and gas-rich Qatar only have to pay $1 per gallon at the pump."Thank God that our country is an oil producer and the price of gasoline is one of the lowest," al-Kubaisi said, filling up his Toyota Land Cruiser at a gas station in Doha. "God has given us a blessing."To those looking for a global response to climate...

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Stock futures signal slightly higher open

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock futures edged up in low volume on Tuesday as the market continues to be hostage to negotiations in Washington on how to avert a "fiscal cliff" that could push the U.S. economy into recession. * Congress Republicans proposed steep spending cuts on Monday but gave no ground on President Barack Obama's call to raise taxes, and the proposal was dismissed by the...

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Clinton Warns Syria Against Using Chemical Weapons

PRAGUE — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad not to use chemical weapons and said that the United States was prepared to act if he ignored the warning. “This is a red line for the United States,” Mrs. Clinton said. “I am not going to telegraph in any specifics what we would do in the event of credible evidence that the Assad regime...

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Johnny Depp Performs with Alice Cooper in L.A.

Caught in the Act 12/03/2012 at 07:15 AM EST Johnny Depp and Alice Cooper Todd Nakamine Johnny Depp rocks!The Lone Ranger actor joined Alice Cooper on stage at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles on Thursday. "Johnny was in great spirits," a fellow concertgoer...

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Asperger's dropped from revised diagnosis manual

CHICAGO (AP) — The now familiar term "Asperger's disorder" is being dropped. And abnormally bad and frequent temper tantrums will be given a scientific-sounding diagnosis called DMDD. But "dyslexia" and other learning disorders remain.The revisions come in the first major rewrite in nearly 20 years of the diagnostic guide used by the nation's psychiatrists. Changes were approved Saturday.Full details...

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China data lifts futures, fiscal cliff concern lingers

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock futures edged higher on Monday on upbeat factory data from China, but concerns over budget dealings in Washington are expected to keep traders cautious. * China's economy picked up in November even as a broader global recovery remains fragile, with factory activity patchy elsewhere in Asia as demand from the developed world remains depressed. *...

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