News from around the nation.

President Joe Biden addresses the Democratic National Convention, U.S. intelligence confirms Iranian hacking attempts on presidential campaigns, and severe storms in the Northeast caused historic flooding. Arkansas faces Medicaid coverage challenges, Biden administration targets high drug prices, and Minnesota introduces a climate adaptation tool.

Transcript

The Public News Service Daily Newscast, August 20th, 2024.

I'm Farah Siddiqui.

President Joe Biden took to the Democratic National Convention podium Monday to kick off the party's event in Chicago.

Meanwhile, U.S. intelligence has confirmed former President Donald Trump's claims that his campaign was breached by Iranian hackers.

In preparation for the upcoming legislative session, workers at Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families are interviewing Arkansans about their health coverage and finances.

Frida Ross has more.

The nonprofit advocates for families before state and national lawmakers.

Camille Richoux says many residents are still dealing with the after effects of Medicaid unwinding.

Having to choose between medications at the pharmacy, people who are saying what's the most important prescription of all the prescriptions that I have that's going to keep me alive, and that has impacts on their long-term health.

She says more than 270,000 adults and around 150,000 children lost coverage last year.

Many people didn't know they were uninsured until they tried to schedule doctor's appointments.

The Biden-Harris administration's move to stand up to big drug companies is seen as a first step in reining in price gouging.

As advocacy groups take a victory lap for moving lawmakers to finally allow Medicare to negotiate lower prices for 10 widely used medicines, a new report details how the makers of those drugs have gouged billions of taxpayer and consumer dollars.

Kyle Herrig with the group Accountable.us says drug makers have exploited U.S. patent laws to control prices for decades.

These kind of tactics keep prices high for the consumers and often lead to patients skipping doses, disproportionately affecting lower income Black and Latin American communities.

Drug makers have routinely paid competitors to delay the introduction of cheaper generic versions of popular drugs.

I'm Eric Galatas.

From government planners to farmers to residents, those wondering how climate change will impact Minnesota in future decades can now get that information at their fingertips.

Officials behind a new tool say it helps with certain types of planning.

The University of Minnesota Climate Adaptation Partnership recently launched the interactive digital tool called MinClimat.

Users can map out predictions such as how much snow cover would be lost during the winter by the year 2060 based on scenarios involving greenhouse gas emissions.

The partnership's interim director, Nate Myers, says they want to help the public make informed decisions when looking ahead.

So for instance, if someone is wondering when they might want to replace their roof with something like a fortified roofing system, you know, one way that they can gather information to answer that question is to use these climate projections.

The user can try to see how the immediate area surrounding that structure would become more susceptible to heavy rain events.

I'm Mike Moen.

This is Public News Service.

Tennessee's community health centers are vital to the well-being of nearly 428,000 residents, according to new data.

Our Danielle Smith has the details.

These centers must report detailed information annually to the federal government through the Uniform Data System.

Tennessee Primary Care Association CEO Libby Thurman.

So these are individuals, most likely children, that are seen in their schools.

So looking at trend data from 2020 to 2023, almost a 38 percent increase in the number of patients seen in that setting.

Meanwhile, in Nashville, Neighborhood Health has expanded its services by 12 percent, witnessing growth across all patient demographics, including a 31 percent increase in pediatric patients and a 19 percent increase in patients from minority groups.

Environmental groups are concerned that part of the proposed Project 2025 calls for closing several federal agencies, including the National Weather Service, that political conservatives consider too powerful or superfluous.

There's a particular concern among Nevadans that science-based agencies, particularly those battling climate change, would be eliminated or their functions privatized.

David Kiva with the Environmental Defense Fund Action Agency says agencies such as the National Weather Service would be privately operated to make a profit instead of providing a vital public service.

The idea that you would privatize the National Weather Service doesn't just mean that the quality of the forecast would decline.

It also critically means you might not get life or death warning to seek shelter at a time when you really need it.

The Heritage Foundation's Project 2025 is a 900-page plan likely to be adopted if Republicans win control of government.

Mark Richardson reporting.

A proposed rule from the U.S. Department of Agriculture would clarify the definition of "fair" in a century-old law that dictates meat market practices.

The Fair and Competitive Livestock and Poultry Markets Rule would amend regulations under the 1921 Packers and Stockyards Act to define unfair practices as business conduct that harms the market and market participants.

Just four companies process about 85 percent of American beef, the result of a long process of corporate consolidation that started in the 1980s and was exposed during COVID-era market disruptions.

Longtime South Dakota farmer and rancher Nick Nemec says the proposed rule could help.

If we had, you know, I don't know what the right number is, a dozen, 20 packing plants slaughtering beef, then there'd be real competition in the marketplace.

Vice President Kamala Harris in a speech last week said competition helps drive down prices.

She also promised to support small businesses and implement a first-ever federal ban on price gouging and approach her opponents call price control.

I'm Kathleen Shannon.

This is Farah Siddiqui for Public News Service.

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