Fatal Motorcycle Crash Closes Route 46 Near George Washington Bridge

A report Tuesday from accounting and consulting giant PwC projects lower overall growth in medical costs for next year, even as the economy gains strength and millions of uninsured people receive coverage under President Barack Obama's health care law. The report comes with a caveat that sounds counterintuitive at first: self-employed people and others who buy coverage individually could well see an increase in premiums in 2014. For years US health care spending has grown much faster than the overall economy and workers' wages, but since the recession those annual increases have slowed dramatically. The answer will be vitally important, not only for companies and their employees, but for taxpayers who foot the bill for government programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Obama's coverage expansion. —Patients seeking more affordable routine services in settings like clinics springing up in retail stores, as opposed to a doctor's office or the emergency room. —Major employers contracting directly with hospital systems that have a proven record for complicated procedures such as heart surgery and certain back operations.

Up to 5,000 military personnel are expected to receive redundancy letters in the third and biggest round of Army job cuts following the 2010 defence review.

If the deal is completed, it would most likely signal the end of Paul Pierce’s 15-year career with the Boston

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