Pennsyvlania Capital-Star 
by Erik Gunn, Pennsylvania Capital-StarDecember 15, 2023 After skyrocketing in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic and then tempering almost as dramatically a year later, healthcare spending in the U.S. rose just over 4% in 2022, hitting $4.5 trillion, the federal government announced this week. The annual growth in the nation’s healthcare spending appears
by Kim LyonsNovember 20, 2023 U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) released a new “greedflation” report in time for Thanksgiving that examines the ways the items Americans buy for their holiday meals are made more expensive by food and agriculture businesses. A new report from U.S. Sen Bob Casey looks at how companies have increased prices
by Jacob Fischler, Pennsylvania Capital-StarNovember 7, 2023 The U.S. House voted late Tuesday to censure Rep. Rashida Tlaib for remarks the Michigan Democrat has made about Israel and Palestine amid the ongoing war in the Middle East. U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., right, comforts Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., center, when Tlaib became emotional during remarks
by Kim LyonsOctober 24, 2023 In what he joked was the worst-kept secret in local Pennsylvania politics since Josh Shapiro announced he was running for governor, former WITF executive Blake Lynch confirmed in an interview with the Capital-Star on Tuesday that he’s joining the growing field of Democratic candidates seeking to oppose U.S. Rep. Scott
by Jennifer ShuttSeptember 21, 2023 WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans were unable for a third time Thursday to begin debate on the Defense funding bill, throwing another wrench into Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s leadership tenure. The Capitol. (Jennifer Shutt, States Newsroom) The 212-216 vote that rejected the rule for the $826 billion Defense spending measure was
by Ashley Murray, Pennsylvania Capital-StarSeptember 15, 2023 WASHINGTON — Healthcare representatives from across the United States are urging Congress to halt cuts to funding that helps hospitals care for uninsured or low-income patients who rely on Medicaid. Hospitals and health systems are asking Congress to avert or delay a forthcoming $8 billion cut to “America’s
by Jennifer Shutt, Pennsylvania Capital-Star WASHINGTON — Americans older than six months should get an updated COVID-19 booster this fall, according to a recommendation the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued Tuesday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended Americans should get the updated COVID-19 vaccine. (Javier Zayas Photography/Getty Images) The vaccine
by Kim Lyons, Pennsylvania Capital-StarJuly 31, 2023 PITTSBURGH – On Saturday, Democrats in Allegheny County selected Pittsburgh-area nonprofit director Lindsay Powell to be their nominee in a special election that will determine the balance of power in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Pittsburgh’s City/County Building (Pittsburgh City Paper photo) Powell, who is director of workforce
by Kim Lyons, Pennsylvania Capital-StarJuly 23, 2023 BRADDOCK, Pa. — By now, most people are aware that U.S. Sen. John Fetterman has been through a difficult time over the past year, to put it mildly. U.S. Sen. John Fetterman talked about his support of reproductive rights to his admiration for Pennsylvania’s senior Sen. Bob Casey,
by Danielle E. Gaines, Pennsylvania Capital-StarJuly 12, 2023 A settlement agreement has been finalized in a lawsuit that alleged federal officials weren’t doing enough to stop Chesapeake Bay pollution originating in Pennsylvania. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, environmental groups and state governments filed a notice in U.S. District Court on Wednesday, dismissing the 2020 lawsuit.
by Capital-Star Guest Contributor, Pennsylvania Capital-StarJune 29, 2023 By Patrick Beaty The Guardian, or Authority of Law, created by sculptor James Earle Fraser, rests on the side of the U.S. Supreme Court on September 28, 2020, in Washington, DC. (Al Drago/Getty Images). On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down an important decision with major
by Tim Henderson, Pennsylvania Capital-StarJune 28, 2023 The median age rose in almost every state last year, census estimates show, continuing a long-term trend that is pushing states to prepare for aging populations. Seventeen states had median ages over 40 in 2022, according to new U.S. Census Bureau estimates of the age at which half
by John L. Micek, Pennsylvania Capital-StarJune 19, 2023 Commonwealth Court Judge Renée Cohn Jubelirer’s February order declaring Pennsylvania’s public school funding system unconstitutional did far more than set a precedent. McCaskey High School in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on May 30, 2023. (Photo by Amanda Berg for the Capital-Star) She handed Pennsylvania policymakers perhaps the greatest challenge they will ever
by Robert Zullo, Pennsylvania Capital-StarMay 20, 2023 As much as two-thirds of North America could face shortages of electricity this summer in the event of severe and protracted heat, according to the regulator in charge of setting and enforcing standards for the electric grid. “Increased, rapid deployment of wind, solar, and batteries have made a
by Peter Hall, Pennsylvania Capital-StarMay 16, 2023 [*This story was updated at 12:26 a.m., May 16, 2023, to reflect updated unofficial vote tallies] Heather Boyd speaks at her victory party after winning the 163rd Pennsylvania House District special election on Tuesday, May 16, 2022. (Capital-Star photo by Peter Hall) Democrat Heather Boyd won the special
by Casey Quinlan, Pennsylvania Capital-StarApril 27, 2023 Higher temperatures. Higher gas prices. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Drivers across the country have seen that seasonal given play out in recent weeks. The national average for a gallon of regular gas is $3.64 on April 26, up 21 cents over the previous month, according to AAA.
by Peter Hall, Pennsylvania Capital-StarApril 20, 2023 Youth advocates and a juvenile justice official called on Pennsylvania lawmakers to address a shortage of space and staff that has created a crisis affecting children in the justice system. Christopher Spriggs is the acting executive director of the currently shuttered Glen Mills School (Philadelphia Tribune photo) While the
by Jennifer Shutt, Pennsylvania Capital-StarApril 19, 2023 U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. (Getty Images) WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans unveiled a debt limit proposal Wednesday that would lift the nation’s borrowing capacity by $1.5 trillion or suspend it through March. The bill, introduced by Speaker Kevin McCarthy, carries along with it numerous Republican initiatives
by Capital-Star Guest Contributor, Pennsylvania Capital-StarApril 7, 2023 By Brent Landau Resurrection (Fr Lawrence Lew, O.P., CC BY-NC-ND). The date of Easter, when the resurrection of Jesus is said to have taken place, changes from year to year. The reason for this variation is that Easter always falls on the first Sunday after the first
by Kim Lyons, Pennsylvania Capital-StarMarch 29, 2023 PITTSBURGH — U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., will return to the Senate on April 17, after spending several weeks in the hospital for treatment of clinical depression, a source close to the senator confirmed to the Capital-Star on Wednesday. Fetterman checked himself into Walter Reed National Military Medical
by Frank Pizzoli, Pennsylvania Capital-StarMarch 19, 2023 Three central Pennsylvania residents who volunteered to serve in a federal program aimed at addressing violence targeted at vulnerable populations and others, say the experience has been a lesson in “the ABCs of constructive dialogue.” Joseph Bubman, Founding Executive Director, Urban Rural Action (URA photo). Urban Rural Action
by John L. Micek, Pennsylvania Capital-StarMarch 15, 2023 If you ever needed a reminder that we can’t turn a blind eye to hate, then new data from the Anti-Defamation League should more than do the trick. As the Capital-Star reported Tuesday, white supremacist propaganda hit an all-time high across the country in 2022, even as antisemitic propaganda more
by Special to the Capital-Star, Pennsylvania Capital-StarFebruary 27, 2023 By Fred Clasen-Kelly Jimmy Dee Stout was serving time on drug charges when he got grim news early last year. Doctors told Stout, now 62, the sharp pain and congestion in his chest were caused by stage 4 lung cancer, a terminal condition. “I’m holding on,
by Jennifer Shutt WASHINGTON — The nation reached its debt limit Thursday, beginning the uncertain process known as extraordinary measures, in which the U.S. Treasury Department uses accounting maneuvers to avoid defaulting on the debt. The often-used practice is intended to give the Republican House, Democratic Senate and Biden administration time to negotiate a bipartisan agreement
by Capital-Star Guest Contributor, Pennsylvania Capital-StarJanuary 15, 2023 By Harry Campbell As one year ends and another begins, many of us have hope and optimism for the new year. In these early days of 2023, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) is encouraged that momentum in 2022 can bring us closer to cleaner rivers and streams in Pennsylvania. Most
by John L. Micek, Pennsylvania Capital-StarDecember 26, 2022 If you can count on one thing about Pennsylvania politics, it’s that they’re rarely dull. From a historical U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down Roe v. Wade and nationally watched races for U.S. Senate and the governor’s office to the ongoing battle for control of the state
by John L. Micek, Pennsylvania Capital-StarDecember 19, 2022 Pennsylvania residents bought nearly 71,000 guns in November, part of a nationwide buying spree that saw Americans purchase approximately 1.4 million guns, a new analysis of FBI data shows. That seasonally adjusted nationwide tally of 1.36 million weapons sold includes 840,000 handguns and 520,000 long guns (rifles and shoguns), according
by Cassie Miller, Pennsylvania Capital-StarDecember 8, 2022 Three-dozen more blue and gold historical markers will soon adorn roadsides in 18 counties across the commonwealth. The Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission (PHMC) announced Thursday that it has approved 36 new historical markers, selected from 91 applications, to join the more than 2,000 markers already spread throughout
by John L. Micek, Pennsylvania Capital-StarDecember 8, 2022 U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock’s, D-Ga., runoff win against Republican Herschel Walker on Tuesday night was a big deal in a lot of ways. For one thing, Warnock, the pastor of the storied Ebenezer Baptist Church (once ministered by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.) in Atlanta, is now the first Black man to
by Jennifer Shutt, Pennsylvania Capital-StarDecember 1, 2022 WASHINGTON — A record number of women will soon serve in state legislatures, breaking the previous cap of female lawmakers by at least 69 seats and bringing total representation to more than 32 percent, according to the Center for American Women and Politics. States will have at least
by John L. Micek, Pennsylvania Capital-StarDecember 2, 2022 Putting a cap on years of protests, a controversial prison for asylum seekers in Berks County will shut its doors next month, according to published reports. Officials in Berks County announced Wednesday that the federal government, which operates the Berks County Residential Center in Bern Township, will terminate its
by John L. Micek, Pennsylvania Capital-StarNovember 28, 2022 There was no mistaking the anger in President Joe Biden’s voice on Thanksgiving Day as he once again decried America’s fatal love affair with guns. “The idea we still allow semi-automatic weapons to be purchased is sick. Just sick,” Biden said, according to the Associated Press. In the wake of deadly shootings
by Peter Hall, Pennsylvania Capital-StarNovember 14, 2022 Monday proved true what Melissa Cerrado said she told voters on thousands of doorsteps during her campaign for a Pennsylvania House seat in Montgomery County: Every vote counts. Cerrado, the Democratic candidate challenging Republican incumbent state Rep. Todd Stevens in the 151st Legislative District, held on to a
by Peter Hall, Pennsylvania Capital-StarNovember 10, 2022 Control of the Pennsylvania House will come down to three narrow races for legislative districts in the Philadelphia suburbs. In Bucks County, Democrat Mark Moffa held a two-vote lead over Republican Joe Hogan in the 142nd House District and Democrat Brian Munroe had a 406-vote lead over Republican