Xavier Becerra

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Biden Backs Medicare, Medicaid 'Game Changer' for Obese

Proposal to add coverage of weight-loss drugs like Ozempic for those with BMI of 30+

(Newser) - Millions of Americans with obesity would be eligible to have popular weight-loss drugs like Wegovy or Ozempic covered by Medicare or Medicaid under a new rule the Biden administration proposed Tuesday morning, per the AP . The costly proposal from the US Department of Health and Human Services sets the stage...

Ocasio-Cortez Urges Biden to Ignore Ruling on Abortion Pill

DOJ Appeals
Ruling on
Abortion Pill
updated
Apr 10, 2023 4:56 PM CDT

DOJ Appeals Ruling on Abortion Pill

HHS secretary has said he wants Texas judge's decision overturned

(Newser) - On the first business day after a Texas judge blocked Federal Drug Administration approval of an abortion pill, the Justice Department lodged an appeal. The filing in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals asks that Judge Matthew Kascmaryk's ruling not take effect while the appeal is being decided, the...

Texas Takes Administration to Court Over Abortion Rule
Texas Sues US
Over Abortion Rule
Jul 14, 2022 4:20 PM CDT

Texas Sues US Over Abortion Rule

Lawsuit would block requirement that doctors provide access in emergencies

(Newser) - Three days after the federal government told doctors and hospitals they're still required to provide abortions when a patient's health is at risk—regardless of state laws or US Supreme Court rulings—Texas has sued the administration. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra told health care providers...

Days After Biden Meeting, Trudeau Tests Positive

Canadian prime minister spent time with other leaders last week in Los Angeles

(Newser) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted Monday that he's tested positive for COVID-19, days after meeting with President Biden in Los Angeles and months after his first bout with the coronavirus. "I'll be following public health guidelines and isolating," the prime minister posted . "I feel...

$50 Hearing Aids Without a Prescription? That's the Goal
FDA Making a Big Shift
on Hearing Aids
in case you missed it
Oct 23, 2021 4:55 PM CDT

FDA Making a Big Shift on Hearing Aids

Plan would make them available over the counter at a cheaper price

(Newser) - Nearly five years after it was urged to make affordable hearing aids available over the counter, the FDA is taking a big step toward that goal. In a plan released Tuesday , the agency says it will create a new category of hearing aids that will be made available online and...

Pandemic Helps Swell Medicaid Enrollment
Medicaid Rolls Hit
an All-Time High
Jun 22, 2021 4:14 PM CDT

Medicaid Rolls Hit an All-Time High

More than 80 million Americans are covered by the programs designed as a safety net

(Newser) - More Americans are enrolled in Medicaid than ever, new data show, after a jump in signups during the pandemic. Almost 9.9 million people were added to Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program between February 2020 and this January, the Wall Street Journal reports, a rise of 13....

Biden Rolls Back Trump's Transgender Health Care Rules

'Everyone ... should be able to access health care, free from discrimination or interference, period'

(Newser) - The US will protect gay and transgender people against sex discrimination in health care, the Biden administration announced Monday, reversing a Trump-era policy that sought to narrow the scope of legal rights in sensitive situations involving medical care. The action by the Department of Health and Human Services affirms that...

Biden Gets His Health Chief, by Single Vote

Senate confirms Xavier Becerra 50-49 to run Health and Human Services

(Newser) - The Senate on Thursday confirmed California Attorney General Xavier Becerra as President Biden's health secretary by a single vote. The 50-49 largely party-line vote makes the 63-year-old Becerra the first Latino to head the Department of Health and Human Services, per the AP . Becerra has been California's attorney...

Biden's Pick for Big HHS Role a Historic First

Rachel Levine may be first openly transgender federal official to get confirmed by Senate

(Newser) - Xavier Becerra has a new No. 2 at Health and Human Services. The AP reports that President-elect Joe Biden has picked Dr. Rachel Levine, Pennsylvania's current health secretary, to serve as his assistant health secretary under Becerra, who has been nominated by Biden to be the nation's top...

Biden Makes Surprise Pick for HHS
Biden's HHS Pick
Is a Surprise
Dec 7, 2020 3:30 AM CST

Biden's HHS Pick Is a Surprise

And not necessarily a pleasant one for some public health experts

(Newser) - Joe Biden's pick for Health and Human Services secretary was a bit of a surprise: The president-elect is reportedly going with Xavier Becerra, currently California's attorney general. The New York Times notes Becerra was long seen as a contender for the same job at the federal level, but...

AG Sides With Defendant on Stillbirth Murder Charge

California woman was charged after an autopsy found meth in her child's system

(Newser) - A woman awaiting trial on a murder charge has received unexpected support from California's top prosecutor. Attorney General Xavier Becerra has filed a brief with the court calling for the case against Chelsea Cheyenne Becker to be dropped, CNN reports. Becker gave birth to a stillborn child last September...

Traveler: TSA Agent Conducted Very Peculiar 'Screening'

Johnathon Lomeli, accused of tricking woman into baring her breasts, is fired

(Newser) - If a Transportation Security Administration agent asks you to lift up your shirt in an airport elevator, he's probably not following screening protocol. One woman found that out the hard way, and now an ex-TSA agent is facing legal repercussions. Per a criminal complaint cited by the AP , 22-year-old...

AG: Fake Pharmacist Doled Out 750K Prescriptions

For over 10 years, Kim Thien Le worked as Bay Area pharmacist without license: Xavier Becerra

(Newser) - For more than 10 years, Kim Thien Le handed out scads of prescriptions as a pharmacist at a handful of Walgreens stores in the Bay Area—nearly 750,000 scripts when all was said and done, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra noted Tuesday. The problem, per the AG's statement:...

Huge Equifax Data Breach Has Led to a Huge Penalty

Consumer credit-reporting agency to pay up to $700M to victims, states in settlement

(Newser) - After a huge data breach in 2017 that affected nearly 150 million people, a major credit-reporting agency has agreed to pay up. The Washington Post reports that, under an agreement with attorneys general from 48 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, Equifax will offer up to $700 million:...

Trump's Declaration Just Got Its Biggest Legal Challenge

16 states sue to block border wall plans

(Newser) - "It’s kind of awkward to say that on Presidents' Day we're going to be suing the president of the United States, but sometimes that's what you have to do," California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said Monday, announcing a major legal challenge to President Trump's...

Stacey Abrams: 'We Do Not Succeed Alone'

Democrat delivers powerful SOTU response

(Newser) - Stacey Abrams stepped onto the biggest stage of her political career Tuesday and accused President Trump and his fellow Republicans of abandoning working Americans and fomenting partisan and cultural discord. The Georgia Democrat introduced herself to the nation months after narrowly losing her bid to become America's first black...

Federal Judge's Ruling on ACA an 'Assault' on Americans

ObamaCare has been deemed unconstitutional; the appeals process gears up

(Newser) - The Supreme Court has twice voted (in 2012 and 2015) to keep the Affordable Care Act in place; it may soon see its third big case related to the health care law. That's because US District Court Judge Reed O’Connor of Texas has responded to a suit from...

21 US States Just Took New Action on Net Neutrality

Lawsuit from attorneys general claims FCC broke the law by voting to repeal net neutrality rules

(Newser) - A lawsuit filed Tuesday claims the FCC broke federal law when it voted to repeal net neutrality rules in a move labeled "arbitrary, capricious and an abuse of discretion," Reuters reports. As promised , a lawsuit filed by 21 state attorneys general, all Democrats, argues the FCC will allow...

2 States Sue Over Trump Decision on Birth Control

Massachusetts, California take action

(Newser) - Two attorneys general filed lawsuits Friday over the Trump administration's decision to allow businesses to refuse to cover employees' birth control in their insurance plans. The move rolled back a mandate of the Affordable Care Act and allows companies to claim moral or religious objections to providing birth control...

Gatorade Agrees to Stop Disparaging Water

California filed complaint about 'anti-water' video game

(Newser) - Gatorade has agreed not to make disparaging comments about water as part of a $300,000 settlement reached Thursday with California over allegations it misleadingly portrayed water's benefits in a cellphone game where users refuel Olympic runner Usain Bolt. The game, downloaded 30,000 times in California and 2....

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