英语二题库

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Text 2 As lawmakers fight over what conditions insurance companies should be required to cover, ...

Text 2
As lawmakers fight over what conditions insurance companies should be required to cover, other areas of health-care reform remain painfully neglected. One major example: How much should insurance companies pay for what they cover? Consumers rarely care about health-care prices beyond what they personally pay for deductibles, co-payments and prescription drugs. But insurance payments are crucial to understanding why health-care prices have gotten so out of control in the United States.
A new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine makes this abundantly clear: Hospital emergency departments across the country are prone to excessively overcharge patients with private insurance, the study found, demanding that patients pay - on average - more than four times what Medicare pays for typical emergency procedures.
This is not the heritage of sound medicine. This is the outcome of an extremely complicated and disjointed health-care system - and it's not necessarily the result of greedy hospitals trying to milk large profits out of vulnerable populations. Instead, it's the result of messy provider networks - rife with discounts and confusing contracts, designed by insurance companies and providers to attract customers.
There are policy solutions to correct this system. Maryland, for example, has long operated under an "all-payer system" in which everyone pays the same rate for the same treatment - set by an independent state agency. Under this system, Medicare pays higher rates for care than in other states, but in the long run, it saves money - to the tune of $ 319 million - because the payment system incentivizes hospitals to reduce the number of people they admit. In other words, it encourages payment for quality of care, not quantity. Health-care providers have an incentive to work more closely with nursing facilities to deliver preventive care. Physicians also work more closely with patients to reduce preventable complications and hospital readmissions, which have dropped in Maryland faster than the national average in recent years.
This innovative approach to solving price disparities in health-care costs is refreshing, although what works in Maryland might not work everywhere else. But other states have also passed laws to reduce price variation in health care, particularly for uninsured and low-income patients who would be most harmed by surprise medical bills.
Unfortunately, reform efforts led by Republicans in Congress will likely worry the health-care industry enough to threaten state-led initiatives. Uncertainty - especially in terms of what our insurance markets will look like a year from now - makes it difficult, if not impossible, for states to experiment with different policies. That's a shame, because that's where the exciting and innovative reforms are happening.
29. The author's attitude toward reform efforts led by Republicans in Congress is one of
  • A. pity
  • B. disapproval
  • C. understanding
  • D. expectation
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1 单选题 0分
Text 1
They are falling like dominoes. Executives caught behaving badly might once have been
slapped on the wrist. Today they are shown the door. On July 19th Paramount Television fired its president, Amy Powell, over reports of insensitive comments about race. This is only the latest bigwig to go in a line of departures linked to "personal misconduct". "Boards are now holding executives to higher standards, looking not just at how they treat people but also how they talk to and about them," says Pam Jeffords of Mercer, a consultancy.
The thread connecting these incidents is that all are about perceptions of executive integrity, and by extension, trust. Since trust violations are particularly hard for firms to overcome, often more so than incompetence, firms may believe that firing an errant executive can be the safest, most pragmatic course of action.
Executives were never alt angels. What has changed is that boards are now far less willing to overlook bad behaviour for the sake of superior performance. A 2017 report from PwC, a professional-services firm, found that the share of chief-executive dismissals that were due to ethical lapses increased between 2007-11 and 2012-2016, not because bosses were behaving worse but because they were held more accountable.
Boards seem to be acting thus for two reasons. First, to protect employees and create a safe and inclusive work environment. Second, to protect their brands' reputations. A 2016 study from researchers at Stanford showed that the fallout from chief executives behaving badly, but not unlawfully, was large and lasting. On average each of the 38 incidents studied garnered 250 news stories, with media attention lasting 4. 9 years. Shares usually suffered, though not always. And in a third of cases firms faced further damage, including loss of major clients and federal investigations.
Should an executive's words be judged as harshly as their actions? From the perspective of protecting the brand, as well as discouraging a toxic work environment, they probably should. The power of social media to turn a whispered comment into a Twitterstorm, and the fact that everyone now has a mobile recording device, demands a decisive response.
But boards and the media also risk rushing to judgment and painting the wicked with too broad a brush. An insensitive remark made long ago or as a one-off is not the same as one made as the face of the firm or as part of a consistent pattern. Disney's firing of James Gunn, a director, last week over tweets from a decade ago, before he was hired and for which he has apologised, seems to be one instance in which such distinctions have been papered over. And plenty of companies benefit from environments where people can speak openly and brainstorm out loud.
Once the fallen dominos have been counted, some firms may turn out to have been too gung-ho in responding to the "Weinstein effect". Many, perhaps most, exits will be justified. But all?
21. The phrase "slapped on the wrist"(Line 2, Para. 1) is closest in meaning to
  • A. given an easy penalty
  • B. forced to resign
  • C. despised by the public
  • D. arrested by the police
2 单选题 0分
Text 1
They are falling like dominoes. Executives caught behaving badly might once have been
slapped on the wrist. Today they are shown the door. On July 19th Paramount Television fired its president, Amy Powell, over reports of insensitive comments about race. This is only the latest bigwig to go in a line of departures linked to "personal misconduct". "Boards are now holding executives to higher standards, looking not just at how they treat people but also how they talk to and about them," says Pam Jeffords of Mercer, a consultancy.
The thread connecting these incidents is that all are about perceptions of executive integrity, and by extension, trust. Since trust violations are particularly hard for firms to overcome, often more so than incompetence, firms may believe that firing an errant executive can be the safest, most pragmatic course of action.
Executives were never alt angels. What has changed is that boards are now far less willing to overlook bad behaviour for the sake of superior performance. A 2017 report from PwC, a professional-services firm, found that the share of chief-executive dismissals that were due to ethical lapses increased between 2007-11 and 2012-2016, not because bosses were behaving worse but because they were held more accountable.
Boards seem to be acting thus for two reasons. First, to protect employees and create a safe and inclusive work environment. Second, to protect their brands' reputations. A 2016 study from researchers at Stanford showed that the fallout from chief executives behaving badly, but not unlawfully, was large and lasting. On average each of the 38 incidents studied garnered 250 news stories, with media attention lasting 4. 9 years. Shares usually suffered, though not always. And in a third of cases firms faced further damage, including loss of major clients and federal investigations.
Should an executive's words be judged as harshly as their actions? From the perspective of protecting the brand, as well as discouraging a toxic work environment, they probably should. The power of social media to turn a whispered comment into a Twitterstorm, and the fact that everyone now has a mobile recording device, demands a decisive response.
But boards and the media also risk rushing to judgment and painting the wicked with too broad a brush. An insensitive remark made long ago or as a one-off is not the same as one made as the face of the firm or as part of a consistent pattern. Disney's firing of James Gunn, a director, last week over tweets from a decade ago, before he was hired and for which he has apologised, seems to be one instance in which such distinctions have been papered over. And plenty of companies benefit from environments where people can speak openly and brainstorm out loud.
Once the fallen dominos have been counted, some firms may turn out to have been too gung-ho in responding to the "Weinstein effect". Many, perhaps most, exits will be justified. But all?
22. Boards today value most executives
  • A. communication skills
  • B. professional competence
  • C. moral rntegrity
  • D. loyalty to the company
3 单选题 0分
Text 1
They are falling like dominoes. Executives caught behaving badly might once have been
slapped on the wrist. Today they are shown the door. On July 19th Paramount Television fired its president, Amy Powell, over reports of insensitive comments about race. This is only the latest bigwig to go in a line of departures linked to "personal misconduct". "Boards are now holding executives to higher standards, looking not just at how they treat people but also how they talk to and about them," says Pam Jeffords of Mercer, a consultancy.
The thread connecting these incidents is that all are about perceptions of executive integrity, and by extension, trust. Since trust violations are particularly hard for firms to overcome, often more so than incompetence, firms may believe that firing an errant executive can be the safest, most pragmatic course of action.
Executives were never alt angels. What has changed is that boards are now far less willing to overlook bad behaviour for the sake of superior performance. A 2017 report from PwC, a professional-services firm, found that the share of chief-executive dismissals that were due to ethical lapses increased between 2007-11 and 2012-2016, not because bosses were behaving worse but because they were held more accountable.
Boards seem to be acting thus for two reasons. First, to protect employees and create a safe and inclusive work environment. Second, to protect their brands' reputations. A 2016 study from researchers at Stanford showed that the fallout from chief executives behaving badly, but not unlawfully, was large and lasting. On average each of the 38 incidents studied garnered 250 news stories, with media attention lasting 4. 9 years. Shares usually suffered, though not always. And in a third of cases firms faced further damage, including loss of major clients and federal investigations.
Should an executive's words be judged as harshly as their actions? From the perspective of protecting the brand, as well as discouraging a toxic work environment, they probably should. The power of social media to turn a whispered comment into a Twitterstorm, and the fact that everyone now has a mobile recording device, demands a decisive response.
But boards and the media also risk rushing to judgment and painting the wicked with too broad a brush. An insensitive remark made long ago or as a one-off is not the same as one made as the face of the firm or as part of a consistent pattern. Disney's firing of James Gunn, a director, last week over tweets from a decade ago, before he was hired and for which he has apologised, seems to be one instance in which such distinctions have been papered over. And plenty of companies benefit from environments where people can speak openly and brainstorm out loud.
Once the fallen dominos have been counted, some firms may turn out to have been too gung-ho in responding to the "Weinstein effect". Many, perhaps most, exits will be justified. But all?
23. The report from PwC reveals
  • A. decreased tolerance to incompetent executives
  • B. increased immoral behaviors among executives
  • C. improvement in executives' job performance
  • D. increased requirements on executives' accountability
4 单选题 0分
Text 1
They are falling like dominoes. Executives caught behaving badly might once have been
slapped on the wrist. Today they are shown the door. On July 19th Paramount Television fired its president, Amy Powell, over reports of insensitive comments about race. This is only the latest bigwig to go in a line of departures linked to "personal misconduct". "Boards are now holding executives to higher standards, looking not just at how they treat people but also how they talk to and about them," says Pam Jeffords of Mercer, a consultancy.
The thread connecting these incidents is that all are about perceptions of executive integrity, and by extension, trust. Since trust violations are particularly hard for firms to overcome, often more so than incompetence, firms may believe that firing an errant executive can be the safest, most pragmatic course of action.
Executives were never alt angels. What has changed is that boards are now far less willing to overlook bad behaviour for the sake of superior performance. A 2017 report from PwC, a professional-services firm, found that the share of chief-executive dismissals that were due to ethical lapses increased between 2007-11 and 2012-2016, not because bosses were behaving worse but because they were held more accountable.
Boards seem to be acting thus for two reasons. First, to protect employees and create a safe and inclusive work environment. Second, to protect their brands' reputations. A 2016 study from researchers at Stanford showed that the fallout from chief executives behaving badly, but not unlawfully, was large and lasting. On average each of the 38 incidents studied garnered 250 news stories, with media attention lasting 4. 9 years. Shares usually suffered, though not always. And in a third of cases firms faced further damage, including loss of major clients and federal investigations.
Should an executive's words be judged as harshly as their actions? From the perspective of protecting the brand, as well as discouraging a toxic work environment, they probably should. The power of social media to turn a whispered comment into a Twitterstorm, and the fact that everyone now has a mobile recording device, demands a decisive response.
But boards and the media also risk rushing to judgment and painting the wicked with too broad a brush. An insensitive remark made long ago or as a one-off is not the same as one made as the face of the firm or as part of a consistent pattern. Disney's firing of James Gunn, a director, last week over tweets from a decade ago, before he was hired and for which he has apologised, seems to be one instance in which such distinctions have been papered over. And plenty of companies benefit from environments where people can speak openly and brainstorm out loud.
Once the fallen dominos have been counted, some firms may turn out to have been too gung-ho in responding to the "Weinstein effect". Many, perhaps most, exits will be justified. But all?
24. We can infer from Paragraphs 4 and 5 that
  • A. many executives behaved badly because of their eagerness to protect brand reputation
  • B. only a small percentage of the stories about executives have been proved true
  • C. a firm may suffer heavy losses due to an insensitive remark from its executives
  • D. social media is encouraging misconducts among chief executives with its great power
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