Medicare's $2,000 prescription drug cap will take effect at the start of the new year.
Why it matters: The yearly limit on out-of-pocket payments, under the Inflation Reduction Act, is expected to lower millions of seniors' medical costs. It will have a particularly significant impact for patients taking expensive drugs to treat cancer and other serious conditions.
Authorities in Australia have issued bushfire warnings and total fire bans in multiple states as extreme heat intensifies across the country over the holiday period.
The big picture: Total fire bans have been issued for parts of South Australia, Western Australia and the entire state of Victoria, where residents evacuated from a growing bushfire in the Grampians region this week. Victorian officials warn they're facing the biggest threat since the deadly Black Summer bushfire season of 2019-20.
The bald eagle is now officially the national bird of the U.S. after President Biden signed into law legislation amending a code to formally recognize the previously unofficial American emblem.
Why it matters: "The Bald Eagle has symbolized American ideals since its placement on the Great Seal in 1782," per a statement from Preston Cook, co-chair of the National Bird Initiative for the National Eagle Center, after Congress passed earlier this month the bill that was sent to Biden's desk.
