Gov. Pat McCrory’s office on Thursday reaffirmed his interest in turning Medicaid into a managed care system after he seemed to throw the state’s commitment to that idea into question.
Meeting with reporters Wednesday, McCrory was asked, “Are you still pushing toward a managed care system?”
McCrory replied: “We’re looking at all options. It’s too early for me to tell what exactly the conclusion we’ll come up with.”
The next day, his office clarified, saying that McCrory is sticking with managed care.
“The Governor remains committed to reforming our state’s broken Medicaid system,” the statement said.
“The Governor will focus on a plan that takes a holistic approach to health care, one that improves the system for providers, and one that is predictable and sustainable for generations to come.”
Cate Edwards speaking out
Cate Edwards, the oldest daughter of former presidential candidate John Edwards, has become a spokeswoman for Count Us, Know Us, Join Us, an organization advocating for people living with advanced breast cancer.
“When my mom, Elizabeth Edwards, was first diagnosed with breast cancer, it hit me like a ton of bricks,” Cate Edwards recounts on the website advancedbreastcancer.com.
Edwards spoke with Gayle King, Norah O’Donnell and Charlie Rose of “CBS This Morning” on Thursday about her mom’s philosophy on living with advanced breast cancer until her death in December 2010 and other family issues.
As Elizabeth Edwards shifted her focus from “beating cancer” to living with advanced cancer, she allowed herself to be sad on some days, filled with hope on others and marvel on others that she was alive.
Cate Edwards also told the morning news hosts about forgiving her father after his highly publicized affair with Rielle Hunter.
“One of the toughest things is to forgive someone and it’s a lot harder than holding a grudge,” Cate Edwards said. “But he’s my dad; he’s my family.
“I love him, we’ve been through a lot together.”
These days, Edwards said, her father has “been spending a lot of time with the kids.” Emma Claire is 15 and her brother Jack is 13.
He also regularly sees Quinn, his daughter with Hunter, his eldest said.
“My dad spends a ton of time with her,” Cate Edwards said in the brief segment.
Forest: Pay N.C. teachers most
Tea party conservative Lt. Gov. Dan Forest wants North Carolina to have the highest-paid teachers in the country, and thinks wireless broadband Internet should be in every school.
The Greensboro News & Record reported Thursday that Forest called for the ambitious goals at a small meeting of conservatives in Greensboro on Wednesday.
Raising teacher salaries wouldn’t require a tax increase, he said.
“I think there’s plenty of money in government,” he said. “We’ll figure out a way to do it.”
The newspaper quoted Forest as saying a project to bring high-speed computers to schools could happen by 2016, but raising teacher salaries could take a decade or longer.
North Carolina average teacher pay is currently ranked 46th in the country.
Staff writers Lynn Bonner, Anne Blythe and Craig Jarvis
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