5SR - February 15, 2024

Hitha on AI legislation, Pakistan's elections, and Tracy Chapman

Author

Hitha Palepu
February 15, 2024

Today’s curator is the founder of #5SmartReads, Hitha Palepu. She’s a consummate multihyphenate - CEO of Rhoshan Pharmaceuticals, author of WE’RE SPEAKING: The Life Lessons of Kamala Harris and How to Pack: Travel Smart for Any Trip, and professional speaker. Hitha is an unabashed fan of Taco Bell, Philadelphia sports teams & F1, romance novels, and is a mediocre crafter. She lives in NYC with her husband and two sons.

If you ever feel like the government is slow to take action on urgent things, re-focus your attention on your state’s legislature.

They’re either taking action on it, or their inaction is intentional.

In the case of AI, there’s been a flurry of introduced legislation at the state level - deepfakes, facial recognition, and bias and discrimination within AI.

Most importantly, election-related AI bills have been introduced in over 33 states.

This is an excellent primer on the state of AI legislation in the states - and a good indicator on how Congress will follow (eventually).

Tracy Chapman's Quiet Power + a Thank You (Spike Stack by Akilah Hughes)

I had the incredible fortune of seeing Tracy Chapman tour in 2006 and 2007 - and had no idea it would be one of her last times performing live.

Watching Chapman and Luke Combs perform “Fast Car” at the Grammys was transcendent. In some ways, time had not passed at all. In other ways, it felt like we’ve lived entire lifetimes.

More than that, seeing Chapman again - joyful, powerful, and intentional - was a powerful lesson in what makes a legacy.

Akilah Hughes says it best:

“Her vocals and guitar performance is still top notch. I was disarmed by her small, surprised smile when the audience erupted upon hearing the first few notes she played. When Luke was lip-syncing as she did her part of their duet like a real fan, it was touching. She’s a legend, and not a super public one. Not an incredibly loud one. And aside from everyone noticing how annoying Taylor Swift was being all night, it’s the main thing people are still discussing a few days later. She didn’t have to be loud. She was talented, and she shared her gift, and it was powerful. Her songwriting is inspiring and at a higher level than we saw celebrated most of the night.”

I’ve been cursing Meta’s algorithm suppressing content like this and scrambling on what I should do next. I’m thinking I need to take a cue from Chapman and to simply focus on myself and the work, first and foremost.

The headline says it all. But here’s some additional context:

“For decades, Medicare has paid hospitals — including hospital-owned physician practices that may not be physically located in a hospital building — about double the rates it pays other doctors and facilities for the same services, such as mammograms, colonoscopies and blood tests.

The rationale has been that hospitals have higher fixed costs, such as 24/7 emergency rooms and uncompensated care for uninsured people.

Insurers, doctors and consumer advocates have long complained it's an unequal and unfair arrangement that results in higher costs for patients and taxpayers. It's also a profit incentive for hospitals to buy up physician practices, which health economists say can lead to hospital consolidation and higher prices.

….he House legislation would save Medicare an estimated $3.7 billion over a decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. To put this in perspective, the program is projected to pay hospitals upward of $2 trillion during that same period. But hospitals have long argued that any adoption of site-neutral payments would force them to cut jobs or services or close facilities altogether, particularly in rural areas. And senators are listening.”

H.R.5378 - the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act - will have a tougher fight for passage in the Senate, where it has yet to be introduced. But it’s one worth fighting for, and one you should call your senators to support and co-sponsor.

Any bill is but a step in the right direction to transition our current profitable disease management system into a healthcare system. This is a necessary one.

You know I love my Housewives - and I’m especially fond of the RHONY reboot.

Brynn Whitfield is one of those reasons. I love her one-liners, her perfectly designed West Village apartment, and her vulnerability. I think she’s aces.

This was such a fun read - breezy and heartfelt, both raw and aspirational at the same time. I really love how Hanna Lustig captured her time with Brynn, and captured Brynn herself - it’s a beautiful piece, and one that has me itching for RHONY’s return to my TV.

With the war in Gaza, not much attention has been paid to what’s happening in Pakistan (their deportation of Afghan migrants, the corruption charges and 10 year jail term of former Prime Minister Imran Khan). Pakistan’s surprising election - a significant win of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) officials running as independents.

The results came as a significant surprise, given that PTI was prohibited from using their electoral symbol on ballots. With this independent faction winning 92 seats - more than any independent party - the formation of a government was quite chaotic.

This article does an excellent job of providing the context of the election. Just yesterday, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the Pakistan People’s Party (along with other parties) formed a coalition government. The independent, former PTI elected members will sit in opposition in Pakistan’s parliament.

What happens next? It’s too soon to tell, but it will be consequential.

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