May 22, 2018

Worries grow over self-driving cars

Haley Britzky

A Bosch development vehicle driverless car. Photo: Yui Mok/PA Images via Getty Images

Seventy-three percent of Americans are afraid to drive in self-driving cars, according to a new American Automobile Association survey.

Why it matters: This is a 10% jump from last year, which could be attributed to two fatal crashes involving a self-driving Uber and a Tesla Model X. Per AAA's survey, millennials were "the most impacted by these incidents," with a 15% jump (from 49% to 64%) in how many fear riding in autonomous vehicles — more than any other generation surveyed.

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Bob Herman

Surprise billing may be about to get worse

Illustration: Lazaro Gamio/Axios

The problem of surprise medical billing — which Congress failed to solve last year — is about to get worse, thanks to a feud between an insurance giant and a company that employs thousands of doctors.

The big picture Parents who have babies in intensive care, women with high-risk pregnancies and people who need anesthesia could receive unexpected bills in the mail as a result of the fight between Mednax, the physician-staffing firm, and UnitedHealth Group.

Go deeperArrow1 hour ago - Health
Dion Rabouin

Companies are behaving like it's a recession

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

Despite historically low interest rates, U.S. companies are being unusually frugal, holding back on issuing new debt and pumping up their balance sheets with cash.

Why it matters: Historically, when interest rates are low and the economy is strong, companies have levered up to increase capital expenditures and buy assets in order to expand. The opposite is happening now.

Go deeperArrow1 hour ago - Economy & Business
Axios

Coronavirus kills 2 Diamond Princess passengers and South Korea sees first death

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC, and China's Health Ministry. U.S. numbers include Americans extracted from Princess Cruise ship.

Two elderly Diamond Princess passengers have been killed by the novel coronavirus — the first deaths confirmed among the more than 600 infected aboard the cruise ship. South Korea also announced its first death Thursday.

The big picture: COVID-19 has now killed more than 2,200 people and infected over 75,465 others, mostly in mainland China, where the National Health Commission announced 118 new deaths since Thursday.

Go deeperArrowUpdated 10 hours ago - Health