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EX-PROPHETS BRING THEIR A-GAME TO AUGUSTANA COLLEGE BASKETBALL, B1
City mounts up for a year-long celebration MOUNT CARROLL, A3
dailyGAZETTE
Tuesday, January 3, 2017 n SERVING ROCK FALLS, STERLING AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1854
115TH CONGRESS | WHAT’S NEXT
Right turn ahead The 115th Congress opens today, and Republicans have their marching orders in hand: A new direction
WASHINGTON (AP) – Republicans’ grip on all levers of power stands as a mandate to the GOP-led Congress, which will move swiftly to try to undo 8 years of outgoing President Barack Obama’s agenda. With Republican President-elect Donald Trump weeks away from assuming office, GOP lawmakers
plan to open the 115th Congress today and immediately take steps to repeal Obama’s health care law. Beyond that, they’ll look at a tax overhaul, reversing Obama-era environmental regulations and other conservative priorities. RIGHT TURN continued on A54
HEALTH CARE
DIXON
Government coordinates efforts to improve Medicare Feds want to reduce piecemeal approach
Michael Krabbenhoeft/mkrabbenhoeft@saukvalley.com
Riding into the new year B.J. Fenwick (left) owner of Green River Cyclery in Dixon, and two other riders lead the 27th annual New Year’s Day Bicycle Ride on Sunday afternoon. The ride was hosted by the Rock River Valley Bicycle Club. Eight riders made the chilly journey on their bikes from Green River Cyclery to Lowell Park and back on city streets and the bike path – about 10 miles or so. The annual ride happens on the first day of the new year, giving riders the bragging rights – as the event’s blurb says on the business’ Facebook page – to be able to “claim to have ridden every day of the year, so far.” Afterward, riders headed over to River’s Edge Inn to recharge their batteries with some food and drink.
WASHINGTON (AP) – Heart attacks and broken hips cause much suffering and worry as people grow older. This year, Medicare wants to start changing how it pays for treatment of these life-threatening conditions, to promote quality and contain costs. Beneficiaries and family members might notice a new approach. Hospitals and doctors in dozens of communities selected for large-scale experiments on this front are already gearing up. The goal is to test the notion that better coordination among clinicians, hospitals, and rehab centers can head off complications, prevent avoidable hospital re-admissions and help patients achieve more stable and enduring recoveries. If results back that up, Medicare can adopt the changes nationwide. The cardiac and hip fracture experiments are the latest development in a big push under the Obama administration to reinvent Medicare, steering the program away from paying piecemeal for services, regardless of quality and cost. MEDICARE continued on A94
BUSINESS
Protecting his nation, armed with data Rock Falls graduate follows his dream to a job that plays a role in nation’s security BY ASHLEY CADY acady@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5521 @ashleycady_svm
ROCK FALLS – Persistence paid off for a former Twin Cities resident who now heads up a successful company that’s playing a part in the nation’s security. Justin Bennett, 39, started Geodata IT, a St. Louis-based information
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technology company that provides information technology and geographic information systems solutions for the Department of Defense and the intelligence community. The company provide services that include cyber security and risk management, cloud migration and strategy, agile software development, and enterprise content management. Bennett went to Lincoln Elemen-
ABBY.................... A7 COMICS................ A8 CROSSWORD.......B8
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tary School in Sterling, then Rock Falls Middle School, eventually graduating from Rock Falls High School in 1998. With big dreams in hand but no sense of where to take them, he joined the Air Force, where he got an associate degree in Information Systems, and worked in information technology. DATA continued on A54
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Today’s weather High 39. Low 11. More on A3.
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Justin Bennett
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