
Taipei City Councilor Chen Chung-wen is pictured at the Taipei District Court on Oct. 1.Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times UNLAWFUL GAINS:The councilor was found to have pressured the city’s social welfare department to award CCTV installation contracts to his and a partner’s firms Staff writer, with CNA 請繼續往下閱讀... Taipei City Councilor Chen Chung-wen (陳重文) was yesterday sentenced to nine years in prison after being found guilty of illegally obtaining more than NT$3.7 million (US$113,081) for himself and a business partner through a public project. According to the Taipei District Court ruling, Chen was found guilty of corruption and a range of other offenses related to his involvement in a city government procurement project. Six months of the sentence could be commuted to a fine of approximately NT$180,000, the ruling said. Chen, a member of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) who has served as a city councilor since December 2014, said he would discuss the ruling with his attorney before deciding whether to appeal the court’s decision. The court found that Chen had used his position to pressure the Taipei Department of Social Welfare and the Taiwan Intelligent Fiber Optic Network Consortium on multiple occasions last year. Because of that pressure, the social welfare department awarded a contract for the installation of cloud-based CCTV systems across the city’s public nursing care centers to the consortium, the court said. It subcontracted the project to a company Chen set up with his business partner Kang Li-chi (康立錡) in July last year, the ruling said, before passing the project to Kang’s own company, Vqorder Co. Through these dealings, Chen made nearly NT$3.09 million in illegal gains, and Kang made NT$610,845, the ruling said. In pressuring the social welfare department for his own benefit, Chen violated a provision in Article 6 of the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例), according to the court. The provision mandates a sentence of at least five years for “using the opportunity provided by one’s position or status for unlawful gains for oneself or for others in matters under his or her charge or supervision while clearly knowing the act violates the law.” Chen was also convicted of falsely inflating the capital of the company he cofounded with Kang as well as his other company. Chen’s wife, Pai Hui-ping (白惠萍), who had managed his finances, was given a one-year sentence, suspended for two years, for her involvement in the case. Her sentence could be commuted to a fine, but she was ordered to pay an additional NT$200,000 to the public treasury. Kang received a three-year suspended sentence and was ordered to pay NT$300,000 to the public treasury and complete 100 hours of community service. Chen and the others were indicted by the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office on July 19, with the 47-year-old city councilor charged with seeking illegal gains, forging documents and embezzlement, among other offenses. Prosecutors had called for heavy punishment for Chen, citing in particular his repeated requests for documents from the social welfare department and questioning of the department’s officials during city council meetings, among other means of exerting pressure. 新聞來源: TAIPEI TIMES 不用抽 不用搶 現在用APP看新聞 保證天天中獎 點我下載APP 按我看活動辦法Asset manager backs two wagering plays
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Is Bluesky Worth It for State and Local Governments?Imphal: Two days after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) introduced a border pass system for Indian and Myanmar nationals residing within 10 km along the international borders, allowing limited entry into either territory for specific purposes, apex body of majority Meitei community in Manipur on Thursday strongly opposed the notification. The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), an umbrella body of the majority Meitei community in Manipur termed the MHA notification of December 24, unfortunate and said that it would harm the interest of the state and its people. Describing MHA notification as a threat to Manipur’s security and communal harmony, COCOMI Media Coordinator Yumkhaibam Surjit Kumar Khuman on Wednesday accused the Assam Rifles of “bias and of facilitating illegal activities.” He urged the withdrawal of the notification, saying that such measures would compromise the state’s integrity. “Already Chin-Kuki narco-terrorists and infiltrators from Myanmar damaged a lot of Manipur and harmed the interest of the people, such an order would further spoil the security, integrity and social harmony of the state,” the COCOMI leader said. The MHA in a letter to the state Chief Secretary Vineet Joshi on December 24 said that it has introduced a border pass system for Myanmar nationals residing within 10 km of the India-Myanmar border, allowing limited entry into Manipur for specific purposes. The scheme, communicated to the Manipur government, replaces the previously suspended Free Movement Regime (FMR) and also applies to Manipur residents residing within 10 km of the border visiting Myanmar. Under the scheme, the Assam Rifles would issue border passes valid for one week for specific purposes such as visiting relatives, tourism, business, medical needs, sports, official duty, border trade affairs, attendance in seminars or conferences and cultural exchange programmes. Travellers would be required to provide proof of identity and residence, and movement would be strictly regulated within 10 km of the border, the MHA notification said adding that “movement of people from 43 designated crossing points would be granted to holders of ‘Border Pass’ issued by authorised representatives of Assam Rifles.” According to the MHA notification, the Border Pass would be issued only to one adult person aged 18 years or above and persons below the age of 18 years are to be accompanied by their parents. “The entry/exit points would be made functional by the deployment of at least two state police representatives and at least two state health representatives at each entry/exit point for smooth implementation of the system,” the MHA notification said. Manipur has around 400 km of unfenced international border with Myanmar and the Assam Rifles have been guarding the mountainous and difficult border.None
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Saia Partners with Tesla to Launch Two Electric SemisStocks closed higher on Wall Street, giving the market its fifth gain in a row and notching another record high for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% Friday. The Dow added 1%, and the Nasdaq composite tacked on 0.2%. Retailers had some of the biggest gains. Gap soared after reporting quarterly results that easily beat analysts’ estimates. EchoStar fell after DirecTV called off its purchase of that company’s Dish Network unit. European markets closed mostly higher and Asian markets ended mixed. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. Crude oil prices gained ground. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below. Stocks rose on Wall Street in afternoon trading Friday, keeping the market on track for its fifth straight gain. The S&P 500 was up 0.2% and was solidly on track for a weekly gain that will erase most of last week's loss. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 333 points, or 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite was essentially flat with a gain of less than 0.1% as of 3:07 p.m. Eastern. Markets have been volatile over the last few weeks, losing ground in the runup to elections in November, then surging following Donald Trump's victory, before falling again. The S&P 500 has been steadily rising throughout this week to within close range of its record. “Overall, market behavior has normalized following an intense few weeks,” said Mark Hackett, chief of investment research at Nationwide, in a statement. Several retailers jumped after giving Wall Street encouraging financial updates. Gap soared 10.8% after handily beating analysts' third-quarter earnings and revenue expectations, while raising its own revenue forecast for the year. Discount retailer Ross Stores rose 1.5% after raising its earnings forecast for the year. EchoStar fell 2.4% after DirecTV called off its purchase of that company's Dish Network unit. Smaller company stocks had some of the biggest gains. The Russell 2000 index rose 1.8%. A majority of stocks in the S&P 500 were gaining ground, but those gains were kept in check by slumps for several big technology companies. Nvidia fell 3.3%. Its pricey valuation makes it among the heaviest influences on whether the broader market gains or loses ground. The company has grown into a nearly $3.6 trillion behemoth because of demand for its chips used in artificial-intelligence technology. Intuit, which makes TurboTax and other accounting software, fell 5.6%. It gave investors a quarterly earnings forecast that fell short of analysts’ expectations. Facebook owner Meta Platforms fell 0.8% following a decision by the Supreme Court to allow a multibillion-dollar class action investors’ lawsuit to proceed against the company. It stems from the privacy scandal involving the Cambridge Analytica political consulting firm. European markets closed mostly higher and Asian markets ended mixed. Crude oil prices rose. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.41% from 4.42% late Thursday. In the crypto market, Bitcoin hovered around $99,000, according to CoinDesk. It has more than doubled this year and first surpassed the $99,000 level on Thursday. Retailers remained a big focus for investors this week amid close scrutiny on consumer spending habits headed into the holiday shopping season. Walmart, the nation's largest retailer, reported a quarter of strong sales and gave investors an encouraging financial forecast. Target, though, reported weaker earnings than analysts' expected and its forecast disappointed Wall Street. Consumer spending has fueled economic growth, despite a persistent squeeze from inflation and high borrowing costs. Inflation has been easing and the Federal Reserve has started trimming its benchmark interest rates. That is likely to help relieve pressure on consumers, but any major shift in spending could prompt the Fed to reassess its path ahead on interest rates. Also, any big reversals on the rate of inflation could curtail spending. Consumer sentiment remains strong, according to the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index. It revised its latest figure for November to 71.8 from an initial reading of 73 earlier this month, though economists expected a slight increase. It's still up from 70.5 in October. The survey also showed that consumers' inflation expectations for the year ahead fell slightly to 2.6%, which is the lowest reading since December of 2020. Wall Street will get another update on how consumers feel when the business group The Conference Board releases its monthly consumer confidence survey on Tuesday. A key inflation update will come on Wednesday when the U.S. releases its October personal consumption expenditures index. The PCE is the Fed's preferred measure of inflation and this will be the last PCE reading prior to the central bank's meeting in December. Damian J. Troise And Alex Veiga, The Associated Press– Nuvo Int'l Group Ltd. Selected as Winning Bidder in Court-Supervised Sale Process, Subject to Court Approval – – Deal Includes Acquisition of Substantially All of the Company's Assets, Ensuring Business Continuity for Customers, Partners and Employees – TEL AVIV, Israel , Nov. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nuvo Group Ltd. ("Nuvo"), the maker of Invu, a pregnancy monitoring device recently named as one of Time Magazine's Best Inventions of 2024, has entered into a binding term sheet with Nuvo Int'l Group Ltd. ("Nuvo Int'l"), an acquisition company funded by Kips Bay Select LP., and selected Nuvo Int'l as the winning bidder at Nuvo's auction in its sale process under Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. Nuvo Int'l will acquire substantially all of the Company's assets and assume certain of its liabilities for cash and non-cash consideration. "The agreement with Nuvo Int'l marks a significant step in our financial restructuring, and when consummated will allow us to continue to deliver best-in-class pregnancy support to moms-to-be and their doctors," said Rice Powell, CEO of Nuvo. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court hearing to approve the sale is currently scheduled for December 3, 2024 . With Court approval, the transaction is expected to close in the first week of December 2024 . Nuvo is advised in this matter by Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP and Morris Nichols Arsht & Tunnell LLP as legal counsel, Teneo Capital LLC as financial advisor, and Intrepid Investment Bankers LLC as investment banker. About Nuvo Nuvo is leading a transformation in pregnancy care by providing clinicians and expectant mothers with access to medically necessary remote pregnancy monitoring anytime, anywhere. Nuvo's INVUTM platform is an FDA-cleared remote pregnancy monitoring and management system. It enables the delivery of remote non-stress tests (NSTs) and maternal and fetal heart rate monitoring, while pioneering new data-driven personalized pathways that Nuvo believes can improve future health outcomes. INVU is being used by leading health providers and research institutions across the US and Israel. Nuvo plans to continue to expand the footprint of sales in the US and Israel and plans to introduce its INVU platform in Europe in 2024, subject to granting of the CE mark it filed in Europe in March 2023, to provide remote access and insights not previously deemed possible. Nuvo is led by a diverse team of experienced business, medical and technology leaders, united in the mission of breaking down barriers to pregnancy care to give every life a better beginning. For more information and complete indications, contraindications, warnings and precautions, and instructions for use, visit www.nuvocares.com . View original content: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nuvo-group-enters-into-agreement-for-sale-of-pregnancy-support-business-302314626.html SOURCE Nuvo Group Ltd
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By DEVNA BOSE One of the country’s largest health insurers reversed a change in policy Thursday after widespread outcry, saying it would not tie payments in some states to the length of time a patient went under anesthesia. Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield said in a statement that its decision to backpedal resulted from “significant widespread misinformation” about the policy. “To be clear, it never was and never will be the policy of Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield to not pay for medically necessary anesthesia services,” the statement said. “The proposed update to the policy was only designed to clarify the appropriateness of anesthesia consistent with well-established clinical guidelines.” Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield would have used “physician work time values,” which is published by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, as the metric for anesthesia limits; maternity patients and patients under the age of 22 were exempt. But Dr. Jonathan Gal, economics committee chair of the American Society for Anesthesiologists, said it’s unclear how CMS derives those values. In mid-November, the American Society for Anesthesiologists called on Anthem to “reverse the proposal immediately,” saying in a news release that the policy would have taken effect in February in New York, Connecticut and Missouri. It’s not clear how many states in total would have been affected, as notices also were posted in Virginia and Colorado . Related Articles National News | The next census will gather more racial, ethnic information National News | As data centers proliferate, conflict with local communities follows National News | NASA’s stuck astronauts hit 6 months in space. Just 2 more to go National News | Imprisoned Proud Boys leader balks at answering a prosecutor’s questions about Capitol attack National News | 7.0 earthquake off Northern California prompts brief tsunami warning People across the country registered their concerns and complaints on social media, and encouraged people in affected states to call their legislators. Some people noted that the policy could prevent patients from getting overcharged. Gal said the policy change would have been unprecedented, ignored the “nuanced, unpredictable human element” of surgery and was a clear “money grab.” “It’s incomprehensible how a health insurance company could so blatantly continue to prioritize their profits over safe patient care,” he said. “If Anthem is, in fact, rescinding the policy, we’re delighted that they came to their senses.” Prior to Anthem’s announcement Thursday, Connecticut comptroller Sean Scanlon said the “concerning” policy wouldn’t affect the state after conversations with the insurance company. And New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in an emailed statement Thursday that her office had also successfully intervened. The insurance giant’s policy change came one day after the CEO of UnitedHealthcare , another major insurance company, was shot and killed in New York City.
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Israel , renowned for its expertise in silicon chip design that powers global tech giants like Intel , Nvidia , and Apple , is expanding its innovation into a new frontier—biochips. Israel will soon host its first-ever research and development lab dedicated to biochip and smart sensor technology, focusing on medical diagnostics, environmental rehabilitation, and energy generation from waste. 2 View gallery After becoming a leader in the field of silicon, Israel is turning to a new field ( Photo: Shutterstock ) The lab, a collaboration between Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Israeli company Bacaromus, will integrate biology, engineering, and artificial intelligence. The $29.6 million project will be supported by a $19.6 million investment from the government through the Israel Innovation Authority. Biochips developed in the lab aim to revolutionize fields such as medicine and environmental science. Applications include accelerating drug development, real-time monitoring of health conditions from within the body, rapid diagnosis of infectious diseases from small samples, purifying contaminated water, and more. Biochips and biological devices have the potential to manipulate individual cells, perform microscopic processes, and detect molecular changes. Practical uses range from identifying airborne toxins, breaking down oceanic plastic and organic waste, diagnosing viral and bacterial diseases, detecting explosives at border crossings, cultivating food in harsh conditions, and pinpointing contaminated areas. Get the Ynetnews app on your smartphone: Google Play : https://bit.ly/4eJ37pE | Apple App Store : https://bit.ly/3ZL7iNv The new facility will provide Israeli biotech researchers and companies with cutting-edge tools and infrastructure to drive biochip innovations across medicine, energy, and agriculture—reducing dependence on foreign resources. Dror Bin, CEO of the Israel Innovation Authority, stated the lab will serve as a hub for research, knowledge sharing, and technological development, attracting foreign investments, international collaborations, and fresh talent to Israel. 2 View gallery Biochips may help break down plastics that have long since become one of the planet's biggest problems ( Photo: Shuttertock ) The lab’s founders, IAI and Bacaromus, were chosen following a rigorous selection process. IAI brings decades of expertise in advanced technology development, including 3D printing, advanced materials, machine learning, simulation, and system integration. Bacaromus, based in Caesarea, specializes in chip packaging and optical components, offering cleanroom facilities, assembly support, and a skilled team with extensive experience in the field. Innovation, Science, and Technology Minister Gila Gamliel hailed the project as a strategic milestone. “The new lab marks a groundbreaking chapter where biology, engineering, and artificial intelligence converge to create transformative solutions that can change the world,” she said. >IPL 2025 Mega Auction The TOI Entertainment Desk is a dynamic and dedicated team of journalists, working tirelessly to bring the pulse of the entertainment world straight to the readers of The Times of India. No red carpet goes unrolled, no stage goes dark - our team spans the globe, bringing you the latest scoops and insider insights from Bollywood to Hollywood, and every entertainment hotspot in between. We don't just report; we tell tales of stardom and stories untold. Whether it's the rise of a new sensation or the seasoned journey of an industry veteran, the TOI Entertainment Desk is your front-row seat to the fascinating narratives that shape the entertainment landscape. Beyond the breaking news, we present a celebration of culture. We explore the intersections of entertainment with society, politics, and everyday life. Read More Palak Tiwari inspired iconic ethnic looks 10 heart healthy drinks to consume regularly Gajar benefits: 8 benefits of consuming one carrot every day Samyuktha’s soulful journey to Bhutan’s iconic Tiger’s Nest 8 wedding outfits you can pick from if you don't want to wear a ‘Lehenga’ Esha Kansara stuns with her gorgeous looks Aditi Rao Hydari exudes old Hollywood glamour in an off-shoulder Black dress 7 diet tips to learn from Rishabh Pant for weight loss 10 most famous paragliding destinations in the world