The Texas Supreme Court on Friday ruled that state officials do not have the ability to enforce the state's six-week abortion ban, effectively ending providers' case challenging the law.
Driving the news: Because the law was written so private citizens could enforce it, the court wrote, "Texas law does not grant the state-agency executives named as defendants in this case any authority to enforce the Act’s requirements, either directly or indirectly."
Americans owe at least $195 billion of medical debt, despite 90% of the population having some kind of health coverage, according to new research from the Peterson Center on Healthcare and the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Why it matters: People are spending down their savings and skimping on food, clothing and household items to pay their medical bills.
The key factor determining how Americans have handled COVID-19 — more than race, education or even political affiliation — is where they get their news, according to an analysis of two years of data from our Axios/Ipsos Coronavirus Index.
Why it matters: Partisan divisions weaken U.S. leaders' ability to deal with such existential crises — and the modern media landscape feeds that cycle.
More than 80% of people in the U.S. say inflation, global uncertainty and the war in Ukraine are significant sources of stress, a survey by the American Psychological Association out Thursday finds.
Why it matters: More people rated inflation and the war asstressors than any other issue asked about since the poll was first conducted in 2007, per the APA, which described the findings as "alarming."
Drug companies have asked federal courts to overturn the U.S. border officials' decision to stop allowing Mexican nationals to cross the border to be paid to donate blood plasma, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Why it matters: The plasma is a critical component of treatments for some neurological and autoimmune diseases, and pharmaceutical companies have said that up to 10% of the plasma collected in the U.S. usually comes from Mexican nationals who have entered the country on visitor visas.
Coronavirus cases have continued to plummet nationally and in nearly all states, and daily deaths are also dropping.
Why it matters: COVID precautions have already been lifted across most of the country as pandemic fatigue runs deep. The virus will probably be with us for the long term, but these improving metrics show Americans are moving on with their lives more safely.
