News

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy speaks to members of the media at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on May 24, 2023.

National

Up First briefing: Extreme heat and hospitals; Trump faces new charges; summer reads

8:43am July 28, 2023

by Anandita Bhalerao

Congress and the Biden administration have until Sept. 30 to avoid a government shutdown. Hospitals deal with extreme heat. How to cope with losing a pet.

Medicare expects to save nearly $100 billion over the next several years by negotiating on drug prices for select drugs. But which drugs it will choose and how it will go are still open questions.

Health & Safety

What's a fair price for a prescription drug? Medicare's about to weigh in

5:01am July 28, 2023

Medicare soon will start something it hasn't done in its 58-year history: Negotiate on drug prices. On Sept. 1, Medicare will target the first 10 drugs for price negotiations.

At Northwestern University, allegations of hazing in its football program led to the firing of longtime coach Pat Fitzgerald (right) and has the school facing multiple lawsuits, with more likely. Here, Fitzgerald leads the football team onto the field on Sept. 24, 2022, in Evanston, Illinois.

As hazing lawsuits mount against Northwestern, experts hope for a shift in attitudes

5:01am July 28, 2023

by Jonathan Franklin

With allegations of hazing within several sports programs at Northwestern University, experts say that other U.S. universities should use this time to change their own cultures.

That's some pretty good side-eye, Barbie.

We promise this week's NPR news quiz isn't ALL about 'Barbie'

5:01am July 28, 2023

by Holly J. Morris

Other things happened this week besides Barbenheimer. There are also questions about Twitter, Hunter Biden, and animals that continue to evade capture.

The central business district is shrouded by haze in Singapore, on Sept. 23, 2019. Singapore conducted its first execution of a woman in 19 years on Friday, July 28, 2023, and its second hanging this week for drug trafficking despite calls for the city-state to cease capital punishment for drug-related crimes.

World News

Singapore has executed a woman for the first time in nearly two decades

5:00am July 28, 2023

by Ashley Westerman

Singaporean national Saridewi Djamani, 45, was convicted in 2018 of trafficking over 30 grams of heroin. She is first woman to be hanged since 2004.

Paola Mendoza, the daughter of farmworkers, says her parents didn't want her to join them in the fields. She's now in college, studying to be a teacher.

Politics & Government

As these farmworkers' children seek a different future, who will pick the crops?

5:00am July 28, 2023

U.S. farms have faced worker shortages for years. Now compounding the problem: The children of farmworkers are leaving the fields, forcing farm owners to look to other countries for labor.

Former President Donald Trump has been charged with a new count of willful retention of National Defense Information in the case related to his handling of classified documents.

Politics & Government

Trump charged with additional counts in Mar-a-Lago documents case

7:19pm July 27, 2023

by Carrie Johnson

A new defendant was also added the indictment against Trump and his aide Walt Nauta. Carlos de Oliveira was added to the obstruction conspiracy charged in the original indictment.

Los Angeles Lakers' LeBron James, left, accepts the award for best record-breaking performance from his sons, Bronny James, center, and Bryce James, at the ESPY awards July 12, 2023, in Los Angeles. Bronny James was hospitalized in stable condition Tuesday, July 25, 2023, a day after going into cardiac arrest while participating in a practice at the University of Southern California.

Sports

LeBron James' son is released from hospital days after suffering a cardiac arrest

6:21pm July 27, 2023

by Ayana Archie

James committed to join the University of Southern California's basketball team in May. He was practicing with the team when he went into cardiac arrest.

An aerial view shows damage to a Pfizer pharmaceutical factory in Rocky Mount, N.C., from a tornado that struck on July 19. The plant produces many drugs used in hospitals.

Health & Safety

Tornado damage to Pfizer factory highlights vulnerabilities of drug supply

5:55pm July 27, 2023

by Sydney Lupkin

A tornado that ripped through a Pfizer plant in Rocky Mount, N.C., raised worries about shortages of medicines used in hospitals. The drugs include commonly used painkillers and anesthetics.

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World News

With Russia dominating the Black Sea, Ukraine's navy tries to rebuild

5:43pm July 27, 2023

by Greg Myre

First, Russia wiped out Ukraine's navy. Now, Russia is blockading Ukraine's critical grain exports. As Ukraine tries to rebuild, NPR's Greg Myre got a ride on one of its few boats.

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