(The Center Square) – Live Nation Entertainment, the events giant that operates Ticketmaster, is fighting to hold on to practices that states and the federal government allege are anti-competitive and hurt both fans and musicians.

The company recently lost its bid to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice and a coalition of state attorneys general. The lawsuit alleges that Live Nation runs a monopoly that most recently came under fire during Taylor Swift’s Eras tour as fans struggled to get limited tickets to fast-selling shows. 

District Judge Arun Subramanian denied Live Nation’s motion to dismiss the federal action, ruling the DOJ could proceed with its case.

“These allegations aren’t just about a refusal to deal with rival promotors,” Subramanian wrote in his ruling. “They are about the coercion of artists.”

Live Nation is also working on multiple fronts at the state level. More than 25 states and Puerto Rico debated more than 75 bills on ticket sales during 2023 legislative sessions after the fallout from Swift’s mega-tour, according to a report from the National Conference of State Legislatures.

In the wake of the Eras collapse, Arkansas stopped local governments from banning the sale or resale of a ticket at any price; Maine required resellers to refund customers in some circumstances; and Oklahoma prohibited the use of software to bypass controls on a ticket seller’s website, according to the NCL report. In 2016, Congress passed similar legislation banning the use of bots on ticket websites.

In Massachusetts, Live Nation spent $120,000 lobbying lawmakers to pass the Mass Leads Act, a $4 billion economic development measure that ran 319 pages, according to The Verge. Despite opposition from consumer groups, it also allows ticket sellers to restrict the transferability of the tickets they sell, meaning a buyer could be limited to reselling on the seller’s platform. 

The Chamber of Progress, a tech industry trade group, asked the governor to amend the bill, concerned that Live Nation could use ticket terms to force buyers to resell tickets exclusively on their own platform, “further entrenching their monopoly position in the live events ecosystem,” according to a letter from the group.

The Chamber of Progress also opposed a bill in New Mexico to cap resale prices. The group said in a letter that price caps were arbitrary and ineffective.

Diana Moss, of the Progressive Policy Institute, said Live Nation is “pursuing an aggressive state-level campaign to push for laws that effectively regulate the resale market while [the company] continues to operate, unfettered, in the primary market.”

Live Nation has defended its practices. Dan Wall, executive vice president of corporate and regulatory affairs at Live Nation Entertainment, wrote in a blog post that the company isn’t a monopoly and doesn’t reap monopolistic profits.

“The defining feature of a monopolist is monopoly profits derived from monopoly pricing. Live Nation in no way fits the profile,” Wall wrote. “Service charges on Ticketmaster are no higher than on SeatGeek, AXS, or other primary ticketing sites, and are frequently lower. In fact, when Ticketmaster loses a venue to SeatGeek, service charges usually go up substantially. And even accounting for sponsorship, an advertising business that helps keep ticket prices down, Live Nation’s overall net profit margin is at the low end of profitable S&P 500 companies.”

(The Center Square) – As the old saying goes, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” and in my decades of experience in healthcare that absolutely rings true. Thanks to some promising new medical advances, we have a real opportunity to bring prevention and harm reduction to the fight against obesity at scale.

There is currently a proposed Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) draft rule that would provide for coverage for Anti-Obesity Medications (AOMs) to beneficiaries. These medications, known as GLP-1s and commonly known by brand names such as Mounjaro and Wegovy, have been shown to dramatically reduce obesity in patients who have access to them. Unfortunately, access is often limited by authorization and cost, and not everyone who needs these medications is able to obtain them.

In the U.S. more than 40% of adults are dealing with obesity, which means that there are more than 100 million adults who are obese, and more than 22 million who meet the definition of “severe obesity.” Worse yet, the phenomenon has been increasing dramatically in recent years. In 2000, the adult obesity rate was only 30%. Even more alarmingly, the rate of adults with severe obesity has nearly doubled in that time, going from 4.7% to 9.2%. 

Fortunately, Pennsylvania is doing somewhat better than the national figures, with only 33% of adult Pennsylvanians meeting the definition of obesity, but that still means that millions of Pennsylvanians are susceptible to the negative health outcomes of obesity, and adopting this rule for Medicare and Medicaid would bring vital new treatment options to the nearly 6 million Pennsylvanians who are enrolled in one of the programs, and since Medicaid is partially funded by state tax dollars, this move would also benefit all Pennsylvania taxpayers.

Many adults with obesity are also dealing with one or more related chronic ailments. In the U.S. 58% of adults with obesity also have high blood pressure, and 23% have diabetes. Not only does obesity lead to worse health outcomes for those affected, the obesity epidemic harms society at large by causing health care spending to skyrocket. 

The average annual medical costs in 2019 was nearly $2,000 higher for adults with obesity, and more than $3,000 higher for adults with severe obesity, leading to an additional $173 billion in medical expenditures that could have been directed elsewhere. According to CMS, health care spending in the U.S. reached nearly $5 trillion in 2023, which accounts for 17.6% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). 

These numbers paint a troubling picture of the present, and predict an even more dire future, but the good news is that we have a historic opportunity to reverse course. If the Trump administration moves to finalize this rule, the benefits would be dramatic. 

There is even new research from Penn State indicating that these drugs could help combat the opioid epidemic. Researchers like Dr. Patricia Grigson and Dr. Scott Bunce recently found that these medications reduced addiction-like behavior for heroin and fentanyl in rodent trials, as well as in preclinical human trials. The mere fact that these medications could one day not only treat obesity, but opioid addiction is revolutionary—and this research is taking place right here in Pennsylvania. 

As the Trump administration looks to “Make America Healthy Again,” our members of Congress like Reps. Fitzpatrick, Joyce, and Kelly are being presented with a prime opportunity to do just that. They can demonstrate their leadership and willingness to eliminate access barriers for Medicare beneficiaries by supporting the extension of the draft CMS rule. Together, they can help make good on President Trump’s promise to forge a healthier path for Pennsylvanians and our nation. 

Dr. Stuart Shapiro, formerly Philadelphia Health Commissioner and Staff Leader of the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Health, has enjoyed a successful and diversified career as a businessman, entrepreneur, high-ranking government official and a physician. He has been an advocate for compassionate, quality, and affordable care throughout his distinguished career.

(The Center Square) – A controversial gun control bill has cleared the Colorado General Assembly and now heads to the governor’s desk to be signed into law.

Senate Bill 25-003, when introduced, initially outright banned the sale or purchase of most semi-automatic rifles or shotguns that take detachable magazines and exempted firearms with “permanently fixed” magazines.

The bill was later amended to allow purchases if an individual secures a “firearms safety course eligibility card” from their local sheriff department and then completes a qualifying firearm education course.

SB 25-003 passed a concurrent vote of 19-15-1 in the upper chamber on Friday after the House passed it with amendments earlier this week.

The bill’s Democratic sponsors argue the legislation is necessary to enforce the state’s 2013 ban on magazines that hold more than 15 rounds. Opponents argue that the legislation amounts to a firearm owner identification card and question its constitutionality.

“We passed legislation – in this building, in this General Assembly in 2013 – that limited the sale and possession of high-capacity magazines over 15 [rounds],” said bill sponsor Sen. Tom Sullivan, whose son was killed in the 2012 Aurora theater shooting.

“In the 10-12 years since, it has been woefully inadequate [and] they were not enforcing it. We knew they were not enforcing it,” said Sullivan, D-Centennial.

Sullivan noted the Boulder King Soopers shooting in 2021 and the Club Q shooting in 2022 as examples where the gunmen used illegal high-capacity magazines.

“If we allow the government to redefine rights as privileges, which I argue this bill does, then we place our freedoms at the mercy of those in power,” Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen said Friday leading up to the vote.

“Rights, once treated as privileges, can be restricted, taxed, licensed and ultimately, if they can do all of that to them, they can take those rights away,” the Republican legislator said.

Gov. Jared Polis is expected to sign SB 25-003 into law.

Other gun bills have advanced through the legislature recently, such as a bill to raise the age for ammunition purchases from 18 to 21 and a bill to require gun show operators to have liability insurance.

Democrats failed to pass outright bans on so-called assault weapons during the last two legislative sessions