Latest Government programs News

US officials say pact with strategically key Pacific island nations underscores American commitment

Mar. 19, 2024 05:02 AM EDT

BANGKOK (AP) — U.S. officials stressed Tuesday that newly-approved legislation providing billions of dollars in funding for three strategically important Pacific island nations is an important sign of American commitment, which comes amid warnings China is actively trying to pry them away from...

Pedal coast-to-coast without using a road? New program helps connect trails across the US

Mar. 19, 2024 00:38 AM EDT

When Mike O’Neil opened his bicycle repair shop in Muncie, Indiana, the Cardinal Greenway trail just outside its window stretched only 2 miles south of the shop. Today, it extends 33 miles (53 kilometers) beyond that, but the ultimate vision is far grander. O'Neil...

Supreme Court appears receptive to NRA free-speech lawsuit against a former New York state official

Mar. 18, 2024 16:55 PM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court justices appeared receptive Monday to National Rifle Association claims that a former New York state official violated its free-speech rights by pressuring banks and insurance companies to blacklist the group after the deadly school shooting in Parkland, Florida. ...

State Medicaid offices target dead people’s homes to recoup their health care costs

Mar. 17, 2024 11:33 AM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — As Salvatore LoGrande fought cancer and all the pain that came with it, his daughters promised to keep him in the white, pitched roof house he worked so hard to buy all those decades ago. So, Sandy LoGrande thought it was a mistake when, a year after her...

Trump ramps up dark rhetoric in Ohio stump speech for Senate candidate Bernie Moreno

Mar. 17, 2024 10:02 AM EDT

VANDALIA, Ohio (AP) — Former President Donald Trump claimed that he — not President Joe Biden — will protect Social Security and warned of a “bloodbath” if he loses in November as he campaigned for Senate candidate Bernie Moreno in Ohio. Trump, speaking on a wind-whipped...

A new kind of hospital is coming to rural America. To qualify, facilities must close their beds

Mar. 16, 2024 08:57 AM EDT

As rural hospitals continue to struggle financially, a new type of hospital is slowly taking root, especially in the Southeast. Rural emergency hospitals receive more than $3 million in federal funding a year and higher Medicare reimbursements in exchange for closing all inpatient...

Arizona legislation to better regulate rehab programs targeted by Medicaid scams is moving forward

Mar. 15, 2024 20:44 PM EDT

PHOENIX (AP) — A Navajo state senator said Friday she's hoping for final approval of her bill to tighten regulations for rehab facilities amid widespread fraud that has bilked hundreds of millions in Arizona Medicaid dollars and scammed hundreds of Native Americans seeking help for addictions. ...

Japan lawyers' group urges Tokyo to halt park development, calling its impact review unscientific

Mar. 15, 2024 13:03 PM EDT

TOKYO (AP) — The Japanese bar association is urging Tokyo's metropolitan government to suspend a disputed redevelopment of the city's beloved park area, saying that its environmental assessment by developers lacked objective and scientific grounds. The metropolitan government...

Atlantic Shores offshore wind farm in New Jersey would have 157 turbines and be 8.4 miles from shore

Mar. 15, 2024 11:44 AM EDT

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J, (AP) — An offshore wind power project proposed for New Jersey would have 157 turbines and be located 8.4 miles (13.5 kilometers) from shore at its closest point, data released by the federal government Friday shows. The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management...

Across the US, batteries and green energies like wind and solar combine for major climate solution

Mar. 15, 2024 09:55 AM EDT

In the Arizona desert, a Danish company is building a massive solar farm that includes batteries that charge when the sun is shining and supply energy back to the electric grid when it's not. Combining batteries with green energy is a fast-growing climate solution. ...