NewzIntel.com

Category: Health

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: “A devastating record”: New Greenpeace analysis reveals almost half a million blue sharks caught as ‘bycatch’ in Central and Western Pacific in 2023

    Source: Greenpeace

    TASMAN SEA – A new analysis of the latest fisheries data by Greenpeace Australia Pacific has revealed widespread slaughter of sharks in the Pacific Ocean by industrial longline fishers. The analysis estimates that almost half a million blue sharks were caught as bycatch in the region in 2023, the highest number in recorded history since 1991.
    Greenpeace estimates that around 438,500 near-threatened blue sharks, almost 50 million kilograms, were caught as bycatch in the region in 2023 from Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WFCPFC) data. The figure is double the 2015 numbers.
    The analysis of shark bycatch data also revealed that the Lord Howe Rise and South Tasman Sea areas between New Zealand and Australia had some of the highest rates of birds caught on fishing lines – 13% of bycatch from longliners were seabirds like albatross.
    Greenpeace Aotearoa oceans campaigner Juan Parada says, “This rampant destruction of critical ocean life in the high seas between New Zealand and Australia highlights the urgent need for international cooperation to protect the oceans.”
    “The Tasman Sea faces multiple threats from industrial fishing. We’ve recently seen firsthand the destruction caused by bottom trawlers in a similar area of the high seas, where we witnessed graveyards of destroyed coral. Now we see that almost half a million blue sharks were unnecessarily killed in the West and Central Pacific in 2023. That’s so many sharks that if stacked nose to tail, they would reach the International Space Station and back.
    “The international waters between New Zealand and Australia are globally renowned precisely because of the range and variety of ocean life that lives there, from deep sea corals growing on seamounts to sharks, seabirds and migrating whales. 
    “It’s such a significant place that Greenpeace and allies are calling for it to be one of the world’s first global ocean sanctuaries and it must be protected from longlining and bottom trawling so ocean life can thrive,” says Parada.
    The incident happened on Lord Howe Rise, a region renowned for diverse marine life including corals, sponges, whales and seabirds.
    Parada says, “While some countries are working constructively towards protecting the high seas, New Zealand is actively blocking meaningful ocean protection. Shockingly New Zealand is the only country still bottom trawling these waters.
    “To protect the Tasman Sea, New Zealand must stop bottom trawling and get on with helping to create global ocean sanctuaries so all the life that lives there can thrive.” Scientists agree that to help stave off the worst of the climate crisis at least 30% of the world’s oceans must be protected from industrial harm by 2030.
    Creating global ocean sanctuaries in international waters like the Tasman Sea, those areas outside of any one country’s jurisdiction, will play a crucial role in achieving this goal. In 2023 the world won the Global Ocean Treaty, which provides the legal framework for these sanctuaries, but first it must be passed into law.
    Parada says, “Now is the time for cooperation in ocean protection. Every day that passes without the Global Oceans Treaty in force, marine species are being pushed closer to the brink of extinction by the industrial fishing fleet in the high seas.”
    Greenpeace Australia Pacific spokesperson Georgia Whitaker says of the shark bycatch data, “The data is deeply disturbing – it’s a devastating record and a testament to the destructive nature of the industrial fishing industry. Sharks and other animals dying by the hundreds of thousands a year in this one patch of ocean, brutally killed by a legal and indiscriminate fishing practice like longlining. This is an appalling legacy our global leaders are leaving while the blue lungs of our planet are already facing chronic decline. Industrial fishing is sucking our ocean dry, fuelling the biodiversity crisis, and pushing prehistoric animals like sharks to the brink of extinction. Healthy shark populations are central to a healthy ocean – this is a loss we can’t afford.”
    Ahead of the United Nations Oceans Conference in Nice, France, in June, Greenpeace is calling on governments to ratify the Global Ocean Treaty. Both New Zealand and Australia have signed the treaty but have yet to bring it into force.

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: “A devastating record”: New Greenpeace analysis reveals almost half a million blue sharks caught as ‘bycatch’ in Central and Western Pacific in 2023

    Source: Greenpeace

    TASMAN SEA – A new analysis of the latest fisheries data by Greenpeace Australia Pacific has revealed widespread slaughter of sharks in the Pacific Ocean by industrial longline fishers. The analysis estimates that almost half a million blue sharks were caught as bycatch in the region in 2023, the highest number in recorded history since 1991.
    Greenpeace estimates that around 438,500 near-threatened blue sharks, almost 50 million kilograms, were caught as bycatch in the region in 2023 from Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WFCPFC) data. The figure is double the 2015 numbers.
    The analysis of shark bycatch data also revealed that the Lord Howe Rise and South Tasman Sea areas between New Zealand and Australia had some of the highest rates of birds caught on fishing lines – 13% of bycatch from longliners were seabirds like albatross.
    Greenpeace Aotearoa oceans campaigner Juan Parada says, “This rampant destruction of critical ocean life in the high seas between New Zealand and Australia highlights the urgent need for international cooperation to protect the oceans.”
    “The Tasman Sea faces multiple threats from industrial fishing. We’ve recently seen firsthand the destruction caused by bottom trawlers in a similar area of the high seas, where we witnessed graveyards of destroyed coral. Now we see that almost half a million blue sharks were unnecessarily killed in the West and Central Pacific in 2023. That’s so many sharks that if stacked nose to tail, they would reach the International Space Station and back.
    “The international waters between New Zealand and Australia are globally renowned precisely because of the range and variety of ocean life that lives there, from deep sea corals growing on seamounts to sharks, seabirds and migrating whales. 
    “It’s such a significant place that Greenpeace and allies are calling for it to be one of the world’s first global ocean sanctuaries and it must be protected from longlining and bottom trawling so ocean life can thrive,” says Parada.
    In October last year a New Zealand bottom trawler, t he Tasman Viking, pulled up several types of deep-sea coral while trawling in international waters of the Tasman Sea.
    The incident happened on Lord Howe Rise, a region renowned for diverse marine life including corals, sponges, whales and seabirds.
    Parada says, “While some countries are working constructively towards protecting the high seas, New Zealand is actively blocking meaningful ocean protection. Shockingly New Zealand is the only country still bottom trawling these waters.
    “To protect the Tasman Sea, New Zealand must stop bottom trawling and get on with helping to create global ocean sanctuaries so all the life that lives there can thrive.” Scientists agree that to help stave off the worst of the climate crisis at least 30% of the world’s oceans must be protected from industrial harm by 2030.
    Creating global ocean sanctuaries in international waters like the Tasman Sea, those areas outside of any one country’s jurisdiction, will play a crucial role in achieving this goal. In 2023 the world won the Global Ocean Treaty, which provides the legal framework for these sanctuaries, but first it must be passed into law.
    Parada says, “Now is the time for cooperation in ocean protection. Every day that passes without the Global Oceans Treaty in force, marine species are being pushed closer to the brink of extinction by the industrial fishing fleet in the high seas.”
    Greenpeace Australia Pacific spokesperson Georgia Whitaker says of the shark bycatch data, “The data is deeply disturbing – it’s a devastating record and a testament to the destructive nature of the industrial fishing industry. Sharks and other animals dying by the hundreds of thousands a year in this one patch of ocean, brutally killed by a legal and indiscriminate fishing practice like longlining. This is an appalling legacy our global leaders are leaving while the blue lungs of our planet are already facing chronic decline. Industrial fishing is sucking our ocean dry, fuelling the biodiversity crisis, and pushing prehistoric animals like sharks to the brink of extinction. Healthy shark populations are central to a healthy ocean – this is a loss we can’t afford.”
    Ahead of the United Nations Oceans Conference in Nice, France, in June, Greenpeace is calling on governments to ratify the Global Ocean Treaty. Both New Zealand and Australia have signed the treaty but have yet to bring it into force.

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Business Owner Pleads Guilty to Fraud and Money Laundering Schemes

    Source: United States Department of Justice (National Center for Disaster Fraud)

    PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney David Metcalf announced that Zaven Yeghiazaryan, 44, of Newtown, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty before the Honorable Gerald J. Pappert to 13 counts of an indictment charging him with conspiracy, health care fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with his execution of a variety of schemes.

    The charges arose from the defendant’s commission of fraud offenses targeting, among others, government programs, including through the use of shell companies and false identities, between January 2020 and April 2024. The defendant’s fraud offenses targeted two government programs which offered relief during the Covid-19 pandemic: the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program, and the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program. In addition, the defendant admitted that he participated in a scheme to defraud the Medicaid program.

    Based upon his guilty pleas to the 13 counts, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 230 years in prison, a three-year period of supervised release, and a $3,250,000 fine, restitution of $334,905 and forfeiture. Sentencing is scheduled for September 4, 2025.

    The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration – Office of the Inspector General, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, the United States Department of Labor, the United States Department of Transportation – Office of the Inspector General and the State Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Mary E. Crawley and Special Assistant United States Attorney Megan Curran. 

    MIL Security OSI –

  • Airstrikes kill dozens in Gaza, international criticism of Israel grows

    Source: Government of India

    Source: Government of India (4)

    Israeli forces killed at least 55 Palestinians in airstrikes in Gaza on Tuesday, local medics said, continuing to bombard the enclave despite mounting international pressure to halt military operations and allow unimpeded deliveries of aid.

    Britain announced it was suspending trade talks with Israel and summoning its ambassador over “egregious policies” in the occupied West Bank and Gaza, while European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas asked for a review of the EU-Israel trade deal, according to Dutch news agency ANP.

    The war, now in its 20th month, has left Gaza in ruins and its population facing a worsening hunger crisis. It has strained Israel’s relations with much of the world and those with its closest ally, the United States, now appear to be wavering.

    The United Nations said no humanitarian aid had been distributed yet in Gaza, although Israel eased its 11-week-old blockade on Monday.

    “Israeli authorities are requiring us to offload supplies on the Palestinian side of Kerem Shalom crossing and reload them separately once they secure our team’s access from inside Gaza,” said U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.

    He said four trucks of baby food were dropped off on the Palestinian side of the border on Monday, and that a few dozen trucks of flour, medicine, nutrition supplies and other basic items entered Gaza on Tuesday.

    Israel’s military said 93 UN aid trucks entered Gaza on Tuesday via Kerem Shalom “after a thorough security inspection”.

    Indirect ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas militants in Qatar appeared to falter again, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying he had decided to bring back the senior negotiating team from Doha for consultations.

    Hamas accused Netanyahu of entering the talks in bad faith, pretending to participate in a bid to mislead global public opinion. “No real negotiations have taken place since last Saturday,” the Palestinian Islamist group said in a statement.

    Israel’s military chief said during a Gaza field tour that the army would expand its operations against Hamas, capture additional territory and “clear and destroy the terrorist infrastructure until (Hamas) is defeated”.

    18 DEAD IN AIRSTRIKE ON TWO HOMES, MEDICS SAY

    Israel conducted further airstrikes on Tuesday across the densely populated enclave and medics said the sites hit included two homes where children were among the 18 dead, and a school housing displaced families.

    Israel’s military, which on Monday warned those in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis to evacuate to the coast as it prepared for an “unprecedented attack”, had no comment. Israel says Hamas uses civilian buildings for cover; Hamas denies this.

    In Gaza City, Reuters footage showed men, women and children sifting through the rubble of the Daraj neighbourhood school where they had been sheltering, and where charred pieces of clothing and a red teddy bear lay among scattered belongings.

    At nearby Al-Ahli Hospital, men said prayers over bodies wrapped in white shrouds, before carrying them to their graves.

    “What is our fault? What is the fault of children? What is the fault of the women we found on the stairs with their hair and clothes torn and burned?” said Omar Ahel, who had been sheltering at the school. “By God, this is injustice.”

    Israeli strikes have killed more than 500 people in the past nine days as the military campaign has intensified, Gaza medics say.

    SANCTIONS

    British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told parliament he, along with the leaders of France and Canada, was “horrified” by Israel’s military escalation, repeating calls for a ceasefire.

    The three nations had warned on Monday of “concrete actions” against Israel if it did not stop military operations in Gaza and lift restrictions on aid.

    In addition to suspending trade talks, Britain announced sanctions against a number of individuals and groups in the Israeli-occupied West Bank over alleged violence against Palestinian residents.

    EU sanctions on violent Israeli settlers have been prepared but have so far been blocked by one member state, the EU’s Kallas said, without naming the country.

    “External pressure will not divert Israel from its path in defending its existence and security against enemies who seek its destruction,” Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein posted on X.

    Israel’s ground and air offensive has displaced nearly all Gaza’s 2.3 million residents and killed more than 53,000, according to Gaza health authorities.

    The campaign began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israeli communities near Gaza’s border in October 2023, killing about 1,200 people and seizing 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

    The hunger crisis in Gaza deepened after Israel imposed a blockade on supplies from March 2. The U.N. says at least 500 trucks of aid and commercial goods need to enter Gaza every day to alleviate the humanitarian crisis.

    Louise Wateridge of the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA said on Tuesday there was little food left.

    “Everything’s empty. The warehouses, the distribution centres, they’ve been empty for weeks,” she said, speaking from a warehouse in Jordan that she said had food for 200,000 people that could be driven to Gaza in just a few hours.

    Israel’s leadership has insisted that it can free remaining hostages and dismantle Hamas through stepped-up military action. Hamas has said it would free the hostages in exchange for an end to the war and the release of Palestinians in Israeli jails.

    (Reuters)

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Budget delivers record boost for frontline service delivery

    Source: Australian Capital Territory Policing

    21/05/25

    The Victorian Budget 2025–26 delivers $11.1 billion to strengthen Victoria’s public health system – supporting frontline staff, expanding access to care, and improving health outcomes across the state. This includes a $9.3 billion boost for hospitals.

    The additional funding means Victoria is investing a record $31 billion in our healthcare system this year.

    The Budget focuses on delivering practical support for services that communities rely on, ensuring Victorians can access timely, high-quality care close to home. Supporting hospitals and expanding capacity

    Supporting hospitals and expanding capacity

    The budget supports expanding and operationalising hospitals, and supporting workforce across Victoria to keep delivering world-class care. This includes:

    • $634.3 million to open and operationalise nine new or upgraded hospitals, including the new Footscray Hospital, Frankston Hospital redevelopment, Maryborough and District Hospital, and community hospitals in Cranbourne, Craigieburn, and Phillip Island Community Hospitals.
    • Additional investments to modernise and future-proof our hospitals include:
    • $57+ million for essential building upgrades at the Royal Melbourne Hospital
    • $61.8 million for the Engineering Infrastructure Replacement Program
    • $52.3 million for the Medical Equipment Replacement Program.
    • An additional $95 million will support nurses, midwives, and healthcare workers through clinical placements and professional development at all stages of their careers.

    Better, faster care in an emergency

    To help more Victorians access emergency care faster:

    • $437 million to expand the Victorian Virtual Emergency Department, increasing its capacity to 1,750 calls per day by 2028–29
    • $48.2 million will support Urgent Care Clinics and expand the Community Pharmacist Program, allowing pharmacists to treat a broader range of conditions for free.
    • $84.2 million will strengthen rural and regional ambulance services through 15 dual paramedic crews, four peak-period units, and four 24-hour services
    • $58.4 million will improve patient flow through emergency departments.

    Expanding mental health and wellbeing care

    Funding in this year’s Budget will give Victorian mental health services the resources they need to care for more Victorians and focus on prevention and early intervention, especially for young people and our regional and rural communities.

    Key investments include:

    • $34.5 million to expand Mental Health and Wellbeing Locals, with seven new locations joining the existing 15 sites. These services provide free care without a referral or Medicare card for all Victorians aged 26 and over
    • $48.5 million for early intervention programs like the Perinatal Emotional Health Program, Rainbow Door, Responder Assist, Koori Mental Health Liaison Officers and more
    • Over $300 million to maintain access to mental health beds, across emergency, hospital, and in-home settings
    • Continued rollout of the Parkville Youth Mental Health and Wellbeing Service
    • Opening of three Youth Prevention and Recovery Care (YPARC) services in regional areas from July 2026
    • $47 million for workforce development including junior psychiatry rotations and registrar training
    • $10.1 million to support lived experience and peer-led services, including young carers through the Satellite Foundation and consumer leadership through the Victorian Mental Illness Awareness Council
    • $7.5 million for suicide prevention initiatives like HOPE, Yarning Safe n Strong, Strong Brother Strong Sister, and LGBTIQA+ aftercare services
    • $10 million for the Mental Health Capital Renewal Fund to help services provide safe and therapeutic environments for recovery
    • The Budget invests $44 million in alcohol and other drug services to expand the pharmacotherapy program, support outreach programs and strengthen residential rehabilitation services.

    Strengthening specialist and community care

    The Budget also supports Victorians with complex, chronic or long-term health needs by delivering services that help people live safely and independently in their communities. This includes:

    • $22 million to support the Home and Community Care Program for Younger People and provide allied health assessments to support NDIS access
    • $2.7 million to enhance the Victorian Aids and Equipment Program
    • $34.6 million for public sector residential aged care services to continue delivering high-quality care and $7.5 million to improve facilities across the sector
    • $7.6 million to support safer medication management in aged care
    • $38.3 million to Local Public Health Units to maintain safe drinking water and operate the thunderstorm asthma early warning system
    • $8.1 million to support our world-class cancer services, including the Victorian Cancer Biobank and Monash Partners Comprehensive Cancer Consortium.

    Inclusive and culturally safe care

    To ensure our health system supports all Victorians, the Budget includes:

    • Funding of over $13 million will support Dandenong and District Aborigines Co-Operative Limited fund an upgraded, modern facility to deliver clinical, social and wellbeing services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Melbourne’s south east
    • $15.8 million for ten Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations to provide culturally safe pregnancy and postnatal care
    • $15.3 million for targeted LGBTQIA+ health initiatives.

    Find out more

    For more information, visit the Victorian Budget websiteExternal Link or read the Premier’s media release.External Link

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Hassan and Congresswoman Goodlander Discuss Importance of the Department of Education for Students & Impact of Trump Administration’s Attacks on Public Education

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for New Hampshire Maggie Hassan
    MANCHESTER – Yesterday morning, U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, and Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander met with educators and school officials to hear about the support that the U.S. Department of Education provides for K-12 students and for students pursuing higher education. The conversation took place as President Trump issued an executive order to begin abolishing the U.S. Department of Education and has already cut important programs for students and schools. 
    “This is a really challenging time for public education and the success of our students, who will be the next generation of citizens, workers, thinkers, inventors, and businesspeople,” said Senator Hassan. “Yesterday’s discussion provided an opportunity to make clear the harms that the Trump Administration is causing to real students and families. At a time when the federal government should be working to strengthen public education in America, the Trump Administration is instead determined to throw our schools into chaos and take away critical resources that help our children thrive.”
    “Education is the lifeblood and ultimate safeguard of American democracy. Here in New Hampshire, we are lucky to have dedicated educators in our public schools. But they can’t do their jobs without the support they need,” said Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander. “I was proud to join Senator Hassan in convening this important conversation with education leaders from pre-K through college to discuss the critical role federal programs play in our public schools. I will always stand up for public education and the people who make it possible.”
    Senator Hassan has been speaking out about the devastating impact that closing the Department of Education will have on students across New Hampshire and the country. Additionally, last month, Senator Hassan introduced and urged consideration of a measure to overturn the President’s executive order to shut down the Department. Congresswoman Goodlander has been an outspoken advocate for protecting public education and is helping lead bipartisan, bicameral legislation, the IDEA Full Funding Act, that will ensure all children with disabilities can access high-quality public education.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: ER Report: A Roundup of Significant Articles on EveningReport.nz for May 21, 2025

    ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on May 21, 2025.

    Australian para sport has issues everywhere – here’s what must be fixed ahead of the Brisbane Paralympics
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katherine Raw, Lecturer, Sport Management, Swinburne University of Technology Bratislav Kostic/Shutterstock Australia’s underwhelming performance at the 2024 Paris Paralympics has raised serious questions about how well our adaptive sport system is working. The Paris games returned our lowest medal tally since 1988, from our smallest team since

    What’s the difference between skim milk and light milk?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Margaret Murray, Senior Lecturer, Nutrition, Swinburne University of Technology bodnar.photo/Shutterstock If you’re browsing the supermarket fridge for reduced-fat milk, it’s easy to be confused by the many different types. You can find options labelled skim, skimmed, skinny, no fat, extra light, lite, light, low fat, reduced fat,

    AI is now used for audio description. But it should be accurate and actually useful for people with low vision
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kathryn Locke, Associate Researcher in Digital Disability, Centre for Culture and Technology, Curtin University Chansom Pantip/Shutterstock Since the recent explosion of widely available generative artificial intelligence (AI), it now seems that a new AI tool emerges every week. With varying success, AI offers solutions for productivity, creativity,

    NZ Budget 2025: science investment must increase as a proportion of GDP for NZ to innovate and compete
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nicola Gaston, Director of the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Shutterstock/Olivier Le Queinec A lack of strategy and research funding – by both the current and previous governments – has been well documented, most comprehensively in the first report

    Starvation of Gaza – a distressing continuation of a decades-old plan
    SPECIAL REPORT: By Jeremy Rose Reading an NBC News report a couple of days ago about a Trump administration plan to relocate 1 million Gazans to Libya reminded me of a conversation between the legendary Warsaw Ghetto leader Marek Edelman and fellow fighter and survivor Simcha Rotem that took place more than quarter of a

    Spotify continues to change music. What’s next – will AI musicians replace music made by humans?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra Spotify was started, according to its official claims, because its founders “love music and piracy was killing it”. In Mood Machine, music journalist Liz Pelly argues this is rewriting history. In fact, she

    Feats of the human body behind Tom Cruise’s stunts in Mission: Impossible movies
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Baumgardt, Senior Lecturer, School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of Bristol He’s leapt from cliffs, clung to planes mid-takeoff and held his breath underwater for as long as professional freedivers. Now, at 62, Tom Cruise returns as Ethan Hunt for one final mission – and

    After another call with Putin, it looks like Trump has abandoned efforts to mediate peace in Ukraine
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stefan Wolff, Professor of International Security, University of Birmingham After a two-hour phone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on May 19, US president Donald Trump took to social media to declare that Russia and Ukraine will “immediately start negotiations” towards a ceasefire and an end to

    The public service has a much smaller gender pay gap than the private sector. It’s a big achievement
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leonora Risse, Associate Professor in Economics, University of Canberra NDAB Creativity/Shutterstock After two years of publishing the gender pay gaps of Australia’s private-sector companies, the Workplace Gender Equality Agency has released public-sector employer data for the first time. The report shows a stark contrast between the private

    For making stars, it’s not just how much gas a galaxy has that matters – it’s where it’s hiding
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Barbara Catinella, Professor and Senior Principal Research Fellow, International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), The University of Western Australia One of the galaxies mapped by WALLABY: the red shade shows the atomic hydrogen gas content of the galaxy, overlaid on an optical image showing the stars.

    The Queensland melioidosis outbreak is still growing. What’s keeping this deadly mud bug active?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Thomas Jeffries, Senior Lecturer in Microbiology, Western Sydney University ap-studio/Shutterstock The outbreak of the deadly “mud bug” melioidosis in north Queensland has not yet abated since it began at the start of this year. So far there have been 221 cases and 31 deaths from the disease

    ‘Outdated and irrelevant’: what do young Australians think of their schooling?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jun Eric Fu, Senior Research Fellow, Youth Research Collective, The University of Melbourne LBeddoe/Shutterstock Australia’s school system – and whether it is doing its job – is often under the microscope from politicians, experts and parents. The most recent NAPLAN results in 2024 triggered a wave of

    Culture at the core: examining journalism values in the Pacific
    ANALYSIS: By Birte Leonhardt, Folker Hanusch and Shailendra B. Singh The role of journalism in society is shaped not only by professional norms but also by deeply held cultural values. This is particularly evident in the Pacific Islands region, where journalists operate in media environments that are often small, tight-knit and embedded within traditional communities.

    The band is breaking up: has the Coalition stopped making sense?
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joshua Black, Visitor, School of History, Australian National University I remember seeing footage, several years ago, of a jubilant Malcolm Turnbull, then prime minister and Liberal leader, speaking in Tamworth to loyal members of the National Party. These were the rank and file who had spent weeks

    Health chief ‘conductor of an orchestra who’s never played an instrument’
    ANALYSIS: By Ian Powell In February 2025, Dr Diana Sarfati resigned, not unexpectedly, as Director-General of Health after only two years into her five-year term. As a medical specialist, and in her role as developing the successful cancer control agency, she had extensive experience in New Zealand’s health system. However, she did not conform to

    Victorian budget has cash to splash on health, transport but new levies, job cuts, rising debt signal pain ahead
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Hayward, Emeritus Professor of Public Policy, RMIT University There was not a lot of cheer in the media reporting ahead of the 2025/6 Victorian budget released on Wednesday. Debt and deficits dominated the coverage. All eyes turned to new treasurer, Jaclyn Symes, to see if in

    RBA cuts interest rates, ready to respond again if the economy weakens further
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock speaks at a forum during the World Bank/IMF meetings in Washington in April. Jose Luis Magana/AP The Reserve Bank of Australia cut the official interest rate for the

    The Coalition is on a break, but the Nationals risk finding their former partner doesn’t want them back
    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Linda Botterill, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University In the weeks since the federal election, there’s been much speculation about the future of the Coalition agreement. In their soul-searching, it seemed possible the Liberals might pull the pin, given the degree of their

    Israel slammed over ‘cynical’ sidestep of global rulings on Gazan humanitarian aid
    Asia Pacific Report Israel has been accused of “manipulation” and “cynical” circumvention of global decisions calling for unrestricted humanitarian aid access to the besieged Gaza enclave. “In a clear act of defiance against international humanitarian obligations, the occupying state has permitted only nine aid trucks to enter the Gaza Strip — covering both the devastated

    Keith Rankin Analysis – The Aratere and the New Zealand Main Trunk Line
    Analysis by Keith Rankin. Government-owned Kiwirail is supposed to be presiding over the New Zealand Main Trunk (Railway) Line, from Auckland to Invercargill. As such it runs a ferry service (The Interislander) between New Zealand’s North and South Islands. We are being told by Kiwirail (and see today’s report on Radio NZ) that the only

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Construction begins at Watson Health Precinct

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    As part of ACT Government’s ‘One Government, One Voice’ program, we are transitioning this website across to our . You can access everything you need through this website while it’s happening.

    Released 20/05/2025

    The ACT Government is delivering the health infrastructure our growing city needs with construction beginning on the Watson Health Precinct redevelopment.

    Minister for Health Rachel Stephen-Smith said the renewed Watson Health Precinct will enable delivery of better health services for young people and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community in Canberra.

    The upgrades will provide new purpose-built facilities to support alcohol and other drug rehabilitation services, as well as residential mental health care for young people.

    The precinct will also expand to include a new residential rehabilitation facility specifically for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – designed, constructed and operated by Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health and Community Services.

    Minister Stephen-Smith welcomed the milestone as a key step toward delivering a modern, inclusive and culturally safe environment that will support recovery and wellbeing.

    “With new and upgraded facilities, the Watson Health Precinct will continue to provide live-in alcohol and other drug rehabilitation services for young people through the Ted Noffs Foundation, alongside residential care for young people experiencing mental health challenges, provided by Marymead CatholicCare,” Minister Stephen-Smith said.

    “The establishment of a residential alcohol and other drug facility for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people fills a service gap in the ACT and increases culturally appropriate treatment options in the territory.

    “Winnunga Nimmityjah has led the design of this new facility and will also be responsible for its construction and operation. This partnership ensures that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people receive culturally safe and appropriate care to support their recovery journey.”

    The ACT Government has worked closely with each organisation to ensure the new infrastructure meets the unique needs of their clients and supports their critical work.

    “Community health organisations play a vital and trusted role in delivering these essential services for the Canberra community. The upgraded facilities will enable our community partners to provide a welcoming, secure and inclusive environment that will support positive clinical and therapeutic outcomes,” Minister Stephen-Smith said.

    The ACT Government committed $49 million in the 2023-24 ACT Budget to upgrade the Watson Health Precinct to support these vital community organisations to continue delivering essential health services to young people and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

    Construction is expected to be completed in mid-2026.

    The ACT Government is making record investments in public healthcare to ensure Canberrans can access the right care, when and where they need it.

    You can find out more about the government’s health projects at builtforcbr.act.gov.au/projects/health.

    Quotes attributable to Julie Tongs, CEO at Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health and Community Services:

    “The new residential rehabilitation facility is designed to support the need for both cultural and therapeutic programs specifically designed indoor and outdoor spaces to allow for a holistic approach for all programs to be deliver seamlessly.”

    Quotes attributable to Anne Kirwan, CEO at Marymead CatholicCare Canberra & Goulburn:

    “At STEPS, (Supporting Young People through early intervention and prevention strategies) we know that a young person’s environment plays a vital role in their mental health recovery. We’re thrilled about the ACT Government’s multi-million dollar investment into youth services at The Watson site. This redevelopment will allow us to create a welcoming, therapeutic space surrounded by nature and designed with the comforts of home where young people can feel safe, supported, and empowered to work towards their wellbeing goals.”

    Quotes attributable to Lachlan Dean, National Programs Manager at Ted Noffs Foundation:

    “Seeking support for drug and alcohol treatment is a massive step for any young person to undertake. Having a space that is designed and created to allow for young people to feel safe, comfortable and promotes treatment removes one barrier to young people accessing support. We welcome the ACT Government’s commitment to improve the treatment options for young people in the ACT.”

    – Statement ends –

    Rachel Stephen-Smith, MLA | Media Releases

    «ACT Government Media Releases | «Minister Media Releases

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cramer, Duckworth Introduce Bill to Help Families Afford Medically Necessary Diapers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND)
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – For babies and toddlers, diapers are essential for their health and well-being. However, nearly half of U.S. families with young children struggle to provide enough diapers to keep them clean, dry, and healthy, according to a report from the National Diaper Bank Network. 
    To assist low-income and middle-class families in addressing diaper needs, U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) introduced the bipartisan End Diaper Need Act. The legislation would make diapers qualified medical expenses for those who rely on them, allowing families to purchase them using their Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) or Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs).
    Further, it provides $200 million per year for fiscal years 2022 to 2025 for the Social Services Block Grant Program, to be used to provide diapers and diapering supplies for infants, toddlers, medically complex children, low-income adults, and adults with disabilities.
    “Diapers are a basic necessity for all babies and toddlers, but many families struggle to afford enough diapers for their children,” said Cramer. “Our bipartisan bill will increase access to diapers for children in need and deliver a commonsense tax policy update to ensure families can use their health savings in a way that works for them.”  
    “No parent should have to choose between paying the bills and buying something as basic as diapers that are essential to the health and well-being of their children,” said Duckworth. “After working for years to secure major funding that is supporting our nation’s diaper banks, I’m proud to have Senators Cramer and Welch on my side reintroducing this bipartisan bill so we can help end diaper need for all families.”
    The End Diaper Need Act is endorsed by National Diaper Bank Network, Aeroflow, Center for Baby and Adult Hygiene Products, Center for Law and Social Policy, Child Welfare League of America, Coalition for Human Needs, First Focus for Children, HDI Wholesale, HIPPY US, JSL, Kimberly-Clark, MomsRising, National Women’s Law Center Action Fund and ZERO TO THREE.
    Click here for bill text.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: VIDEO: Capito Questions HHS Secretary Kennedy During Appropriations Hearing

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for West Virginia Shelley Moore Capito
    [embedded content]
    Click here or on the image above to watch Senator Capito’s questions. 
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS), questioned U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. during a hearing to consider the president’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget request.
    HIGHLIGHTS:
    ON THE IMPORTANCE OF PATIENT ACCESS TO CLINICAL TRIALS:
    SENATOR CAPITO: “Clinical trials are the forefront of research and innovation, and oftentimes represent that last hope of cancer patients and other patients addressing chronic disease when traditional treatments have been ineffective. These clinical trials often lead getting life-saving drugs to the market. Has HHS or any sub-agency assessed the impact of patient access to clinical trials during the reorganization?”
    SECRETARY KENNEDY: “We are not cutting any clinical trials and we’re not cutting drug development. We’re cutting administrative costs.”
    ON RURAL HEALTHCARE INITIATIVES: 
    SENATOR CAPITO: “There’s such significant healthcare challenges in rural America. A lot of it is around access. The rates of chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease are among some of the highest in rural America. HRSA programs are critical to rural health initiatives. In your budget, you announced a cut to HRSA programs. I am concerned about that because of the access issue and because the inequities that I see…where people have easier access to health care than rural America. You’ve got transportation issues, you have connectivity issues, you have generational issues of passing down different diseases. How is rural America going to be better under your reorganization?” 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI China: World Health Assembly adopts global pandemic agreement

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    The 78th World Health Assembly is held in Geneva, Switzerland, May 20, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]

    The World Health Assembly (WHA), the highest decision-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO), adopted the global pandemic agreement on Tuesday.

    The “pandemic agreement” proposes the establishment of a series of new platforms and mechanisms aimed at comprehensively reforming the existing systems for pandemic surveillance, prevention, and response. It seeks to promote research and equitable sharing of pandemic-related products, adjust the production and distribution order of such products, and further improve the global public health governance system, with a particular focus on addressing fairness challenges in international health development.

    WHO member states, meeting on Monday in Committee A of the WHA, approved a resolution calling for adoption of the pandemic agreement. According to a press release on the WHO website, the resolution outlines several steps to advance global preparedness and pave the way for the agreement’s implementation.

    It includes the launch of a process to draft and negotiate an annex to the agreement that would establish a Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing system (PABS) through an Intergovernmental Working Group. The result of this process will be considered at next year’s WHA. Once the Assembly adopts the PABS annex, the pandemic agreement will then be open for signature and consideration of ratification, including by national legislative bodies.

    Following the adoption of the agreement, the Chinese delegation told Xinhua that China has been actively engaged in the agreement negotiation process. Guided by the vision of building a global community of health for all, China has upheld true multilateralism, advocated for greater solidarity and cooperation among countries, and supported the WHO in playing its central coordinating role.

    The Chinese delegation also noted that China has worked with all parties to improve the global health governance system and strengthen global capacity for prevention, preparedness, and response. On technical issues such as pandemic prevention and surveillance, China maintained a science-based approach, put forward constructive textual proposals, and actively contributed to the drafting process, playing an important role in promoting consensus among member states.

    In addition, China, along with countries including Brazil, Indonesia, and Bangladesh, actively responded to the legitimate concerns of developing countries regarding equitable access to health products under the framework of the Group for Equity. These efforts demonstrated China’s image as a responsible major country.

    WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told the assembly that “the WHO pandemic agreement will run among the most significant achievements in the history of this organization and of global health,” underscoring that it places humanity in a stronger position than ever before to prepare for and respond to pandemics.

    In November 2021, a special session of the WHA established an intergovernmental negotiating body tasked with drafting a pandemic agreement under the WHO framework to enhance global capacities for pandemic preparedness, prevention, and response.

    On April 16 this year, the WHO announced that, following more than three years of intensive negotiations, member states had reached a consensus on the draft text of the agreement, which was then submitted for consideration at the 78th session. 

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI China: China urges US to stop politicizing COVID-19 origins tracing

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    A spokesperson for the Chinese Mission to the United Nations Office at Geneva on Tuesday urged the United States to end its politicization of COVID-19 origins tracing and stop exerting pressure on international organizations.

    In response to the groundless remarks made by the U.S. delegation at the ongoing 78th World Health Assembly (WHA), the spokesperson said it is astonishing that the United States — a country that once announced its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) — is now baselessly attacking countries that have consistently stepped up support for the organization. The United States has evidently lost its basic sense of right and wrong. China has always offered selfless support, instead of so-called undue influence, to the WHO, the spokesperson said in a statement.

    The spokesperson stressed that since the outbreak of COVID-19, China has shared information and the genetic sequence of the virus with the international community at the earliest possible time. It has also provided medical supplies and financial assistance to the WHO and 153 countries, including the United States. This reflects China’s commitment to safeguarding the common good of all humanity.

    China supports scientific origins tracing led by the WHO and has invited WHO expert teams to China multiple times for joint studies. These efforts resulted in the authoritative scientific conclusion that a lab leak of COVID-19 from China is “extremely unlikely,” demonstrating China’s openness and transparency on the issue, the spokesperson said.

    The spokesperson pointed out that certain countries, in an attempt to cover up their own poor pandemic response, have resorted to smearing others. Such political manipulation of pandemic issues is disgraceful and doomed to fail. The United States still owes the international community a convincing explanation for the concerns raised by various parties about the origins and handling of the pandemic on its own territory.

    China urges the United States to share its early case data with the WHO and be transparent about Fort Detrick and its network of overseas biological laboratories. The United States should stop political manipulation over COVID-19 origins tracing and cease pressuring international organizations, the spokesperson stated. 

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: UPDATE: Charges – Murder – Palmerston

    Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

    The Northern Territory Police Force has charged a 45-year-old male with murder following the death of a 62-year-old male in Palmerston on 19 February 2025.

    Following the incident the male was arrested and the victim was conveyed to Royal Darwin Hospital with serious injuries.

    The 45-year-old male was initially charged with recklessly endanger serious harm and aggravated assault and was remanded to appear in Darwin Local Court on the 14 April 2025.

    Over a week later on 2 March 2025, the victim passed away.

    Serious Crime detectives upgraded the 45-year-old males charges to murder on the 14 April 2025 and he was remanded to appear in Darwin Local Court today.

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: A guide for health professionals disclosing information to Police

    Source:

    Reviewed May 2025 (previously titled ‘Can I tell the cops? A guide for health professionals.’

    Health professionals have the significant responsibility of knowing and caring for some of the most intimate details of their patients’ lives. Patients trust and expect doctors, nurses, and others to not tell just anyone. This obligation is recognised in the Health Information Privacy Code.

    Rule 11 of the Code says health professionals cannot disclose health information they hold about an individual, unless there is a valid reason to do so.

    What is a valid reason for releasing information? 

    Section 22C of the Health Act 1956 allows, but doesn’t require, health professionals to disclose information to a police officer (and some other officials), if they need the information to do their job. Where the treatment relates specifically to drug dependency, then the information is privileged against disclosure in criminal court proceedings under section 59 of the Evidence Act 2006.

    If you believe that any child or young person has been or is likely to be harmed, whether physically, emotionally, or sexually, you can report the matter to a social worker or Police. This is vital, as there is little that is more serious than the need to protect a child.

    Search warrants and production orders

    If Police have a search warrant or a production order for information about a patient, then health professionals must hand it over to them under the Search and Surveillance Act. A search warrant or production order is approved and issued by the Court if Police have met the grounds required under the Act. If Police have a search warrant, they can search a health provider’s premises. If they have a production order, health professionals must release the information requested. It is an offence to refuse.

    Sometimes Police do not have enough information to obtain a compulsory order. The Privacy Act is flexible enough to allow health professionals to disclose information under an exception to rule 11, when necessary, “to avoid prejudice to the maintenance of the law by any public sector agency, including the prevention, detection, investigation, prosecution and punishment of offences”.

    You may have information that could help Police in their investigations. There will be no breach of rule 11 of the Code if you can demonstrate you have considered this exception, and that you acted in good faith.

    Things to consider

    To be clear, this is your discretion. Consider these things before exercising it: 

    • Unless Police have a search warrant or production order then health professionals don’t have to give them anything.
    • You need to turn your mind to whether this disclosure is reasonably necessary in these circumstances. It’s Police’s job to convince you. If you are convinced, then you can release the information.
    • If Police’s request is vague or informal, or you question why they really need all that information, then follow up. They should provide you with a form or an explanation of why the information is needed. If you’re unsure whether to disclose information, you may wish to seek legal advice or contact the Medical Protection Society https://www.medicalprotection.org/newzealand for further guidance. If you’re still in doubt, you don’t have to tell them, and you can ask them to go back and get a production order.
    • If you decide to disclose to a police officer, it’s up to you to ensure the information you do disclose is proportionate and necessary in the circumstances.
    • Police don’t have to request information from you for this exception to apply. If you are concerned about a potential crime, or the health and wellbeing of someone, then you can disclose information to the appropriate authorities.
    • But again, before you do so, consider what information needs to be disclosed, why this information should be disclosed, and why it is necessary for the purpose you are disclosing it. Also, consider who you are disclosing to. Make sure you send it to the people who can do something about it. 

    Questions?

    If you have any concerns or questions, please use AskUs, which has more than 600 privacy questions and answers, or call our enquiries line on 0800 803 909.

    , , ,

    Back

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Billions missing from health budget

    Source: Team effort to rescue teens

    New analysis from the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi shows that the health service is likely to be underfunded by between $1.2bn to $2bn at the Budget.

    “We have examined the spending decisions and announcements of the Minister of Health over the past few months. These demonstrate a pattern of making a new service promise but not providing any new funding for that new service,” said NZCTU Economist Craig Renney.

    “That means the commitments have to be paid out of the existing budget, which is already under huge pressure. These sneaky cuts add up to $1.2bn across 4 years.

    “At Budget 2024 the government provided $1.370bn for cost pressures. This has been calculated by the Treasury as simply covering the cost of existing services. The $1.2bn of new spending are all new services on top. If they come from the ‘cost pressure’ payment above, that acts as a direct cut to existing health services.

    “Assuming the Treasury cost pressure costs are right, health needs $1.713bn just to stand still at Budget 2025 in direct new funding – and likely a figure closer to $2bn once the unknown costs are added.

     “If this money is coming from pay equity funding, it would be the equivalent of those low-income health workers paying for the new service themselves.

    “In opposition, National said that it would “prioritise increases in funding for health and education to account for inflation.” The government now appears to be robbing the very funding set aside for inflation in health to pay for its new priorities, breaking their pre-election promise,” said Renney.

    New Announcements
    Commitment Annual Amount ($m)
    After Hours Care 41
    Cancer Medicines 151
    Hawkes Bay Endoscopy 0.4
    GP Practices 95
    Private Sector Support[1] 50
    Practice Nurses 6
      343.4                4-year total ($m) 1,223.80

    The government has also made the following announcements and has not provided any costing information with those announcements. These costs are likely in the hundreds of millions, but we simply have no current idea about if the government will provide any further resources for them.

    Unknown

    • Bonding of Doctors
    • 100 Overseas Doctors
    • 400 graduate registered nurses
    • New Digital Telehealth Service

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senators Marshall and Warner Reintroduce Bill to Improve Seniors’ Access to Care

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kansas Roger Marshall

    Washington – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) and U.S. Senator Mark Warner (D-Virginia) today reintroduced the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act – bipartisan, zero-cost legislation to improve access to care for seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. The bill focuses on streamlining the often cumbersome and time-consuming prior authorization process, ultimately allowing healthcare providers to spend more time on patient care rather than administrative burdens.
    This legislation would help physicians better serve and improve care for the 32.8 million Americans – including the over 196,000 Kansans – enrolled in an MA plan.
    “Prior authorization is the number one administrative burden facing physicians today across all specialties,” Senator Marshall said. “As a physician, I understand the frustration this arbitrary process is causing health care practices across the country and the headaches it creates for our nurses. With the bipartisan, bicameral Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act, we will streamline prior authorization and help improve patient outcomes and access to quality care.”
    “Our seniors deserve high-quality care delivered in a timely fashion. I am proud to introduce this legislation that takes commonsense steps to modernize the prior authorization process, cutting through red tape, streamlining approvals, and making sure our health care providers are focused on what really matters — supporting their patients,” Senator Warner said.
    Joining Senators Marshall and Warner are U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-New Hampshire), John Fetterman (D-Pennsylvania), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota), Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana),  Shelley Moore Capito (R-West Virginia), John Hickenlooper (D-Colorado), James Lankford (R-Oklahoma), Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyoming), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Mississippi), Tim Kaine (D-Virginia), Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire), Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota), Alex Padilla (D-California), Bill Hagerty (R-Tennessee), Andy Kim (D-New Jersey), John Boozman (R-Arkansas), Dick Durbin (D-Illinois), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Patty Murray (D-Washington), Jerry Moran (R-Kansas), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York), Maria Cantwell (D-Washington), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina), Cory Booker (D-New Jersey), Tina Smith (D-Minnesota), Peter Welch (D-Vermont), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island), Ted Budd (R-North Carolina), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nevada), Tim Sheehy (R-Montana), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin), Pete Ricketts (R-Nebraska), Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut), Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts), Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois), John Hoeven (R-North Dakota), Rick Scott (R-Florida), Mark Kelly (D-Arizona), Jacky Rosen (D-Nevada), Martin Heinrich (D-New Mexico), Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska) and Chris Coons (D-Delaware).
    “Too often, seniors face unnecessarily complicated and burdensome prior authorization processes that can become a barrier to receiving care,” Senator Hassan said. “This bipartisan legislation is a commonsense way to support seniors on Medicare Advantage in accessing care, and to help health care providers focus on their patients instead of paperwork.”
    “Prior authorization places more importance on process than patients. As a doctor, I want that to change. Let’s make sure seniors are receiving timely care,” Senator Cassidy said. 
    “Too often, seniors have to wait to receive vital care because of administrative burdens like prior authorization. I’m proud to join my colleagues in introducing the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act, which will streamline prior authorization and reduce unnecessary health care delays,” Senator Capito said.
    “Seniors across the Cowboy State rely on Medicare, but too often, bureaucratic red tape gets in the way of timely care,” Senator Lummis said. “I am proud to join my colleagues across the aisle to streamline the prior authorization process and put patients over paperwork.”
    “Excessive administrative burdens within the Medicare Advantage program means too many seniors receive delayed benefits, while our health care providers are overwhelmed by paperwork. The current system isn’t working well for anyone, and it’s time we take meaningful action to fix it. This commonsense legislation is a necessary step in the right direction,” Senator Hyde-Smith said.
    “Health care providers handling mountains of paperwork takes up valuable time and can unnecessarily delay older folks’ access to the crucial care they need,” Senator Kaine said. “I’m proud to champion this bipartisan legislation to modernize and streamline health care processes to ensure that Americans covered by Medicare Advantage can more swiftly access care and empower health care providers to direct more of their time to their patients.”
    “Quality, expedited medical care should always be within reach for seniors, and our providers deserve a system that helps them focus on delivering it,” Senator Boozman said. “I’m pleased to join this bipartisan effort to end the inefficient process that delays Medicare Advantage beneficiaries’ evaluations and treatments while removing an unnecessary, bureaucratic burden on clinicians.”
    “Doctors and health care providers are too often bogged down by unnecessary burdens, which can lead to delayed care and negative outcomes for patients,”Senator Cornyn said. “By streamlining the prior authorization process under Medicare Advantage, this legislation would cut red tape, improve enrollee experiences, and ensure seniors receive the timely care they deserve.”
    “Improving the prior authorization process will help seniors have quicker access to the health care they need and remove administrative hurdles for physicians,” Senator Moran said. “This legislation would make commonsense changes to better support thousands of seniors in Kansas and remove the red tape that is costing doctors and patients valuable time.”
    “Senior citizens have spent their entire lives contributing to our communities, and they deserve every resource to support their health and well-being,” Senator Gillibrand said. “The Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act will help cut through unnecessary red tape and ensure timely medical care is accessible to older Americans. Seniors should have reliable access to specialist care, mental health support, preventative services, and the treatments they need to live with dignity. I am proud to support this important legislation, and I pledge to continue fighting to expand access to quality, affordable, and timely health care for our seniors.” 
    “Seniors with Medicare Advantage plans should not have to endure unnecessary delays when seeking medical treatment, and sometimes even life-saving care,” Senator Hirono said. “This legislation will help to reduce these arbitrary waiting periods, streamlining prior authorization processes to ensure that health care providers can treat and care for their patients in an efficient manner.”
    “North Carolina seniors shouldn’t face unnecessary delays when trying to access the care they need through Medicare Advantage,” Senator Tillis said. “I’m proud to support this bipartisan, commonsense legislation that streamlines the prior authorization process, cuts red tape for providers, and ensures patients get timely access to treatment.”
    U.S. Representatives John Joyce, M.D. (R-Pennsylvania-13), Mike Kelly (R-Pennsylvania-16), Suzan DelBene (D-Washington-01), and Ami Bera, M.D. (D-California-06) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.
    This legislation is supported by the Better Medicare Alliance, Humana, and 138 other health care organizations.
    “Prior authorization helps keep health care costs low and ensures seniors are getting the most appropriate care. But the process should be easier. The changes put forth in this legislation are long overdue and will help ensure seniors can get the care they need without delay,” Mary Beth Donahue, President and CEO of Better Medicare Alliance, said. “We are proud to support this bill and thank Senators Marshall and Warner, and Representatives Kelly, DelBene, Bera, and Joyce for their leadership. We look forward to continued work on this issue with Congress and the Administration.”
    “Humana’s job is to ensure our members have access to high quality, affordable healthcare.  We support efforts in the House and Senate to move the Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act forward quickly,” Jim Rechtin, Humana CEO, said. “It is a common-sense approach to making healthcare easier by modernizing the prior authorization process.”
    Background:

    Prior authorization is a tool used by health plans to reduce unnecessary care by requiring health care providers to get pre-approval for medical services. However, the current system often results in multiple faxes or phone calls by clinicians, which takes precious time away from delivering care.
    Prior authorization continues to be the number-one administrative burden identified by health care providers, and nearly three out of four Medicare Advantage enrollees are subject to unnecessary delays due to the practice.
    The bill would codify and enhance elements of the Advancing Interoperability and Improving Prior Authorization Processes (e-PA) rule that was finalized by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on January 17, 2024.
    Last Congress, the bill was supported by a super majority of members in the Senate (60) and a majority in the House (232), and was unanimously passed by the House in 2022.
    In 2018, the Office of the Inspector General at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) raised concerns after an audit revealed that Medicare Advantage plans ultimately approved 75% of requests that were originally denied.
    In 2022, the HHS Office of Inspector General released a report finding that MA plans incorrectly denied beneficiaries’ access to services even though they met Medicare coverage rules.

    The Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act would:

    Establish an electronic prior authorization process for Medicare Advantage plans, including a standardization for transactions and clinical attachments.
    Increase transparency around Medicare Advantage prior authorization requirements and their use.
    Clarify HHS’ authority to establish timeframes for e-prior authorization requests, including expedited determinations, real-time decisions for routinely approved items and services, and other prior authorization requests.
    Expand beneficiary protections to improve enrollee experiences and outcomes.
    Require HHS and other agencies to report to Congress on program integrity efforts and other ways to further improve the e-prior authorization process.
    Result in a zero cost to American taxpayers.

    The full text of the legislation can be found here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Secretary for Health continues to attend 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva (with photos)

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

    The Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, continued to attend the 78th World Health Assembly (WHA) of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland, yesterday (May 20, Geneva time). He also took the chance to meet with other participants and WHO officials to tell the world good stories of Hong Kong and the country.
     
    As members of the Chinese delegation, Professor Lo and the Director of Health, Dr Ronald Lam, continued to attend the plenary session on the second day of the WHA.
     
    In the morning, Professor Lo and Dr Ronald Lam listened to the remarks made by Vice Premier of the State Council Mr Liu Guozhong at the High Level Segment.
     
    Professor Lo said, “Following the presentation of national positions by the Minister of the National Health Commission, Mr Lei Haichao, and the Permanent Representative of the People’s Republic of China to the United Nations Office at Geneva and other International Organizations in Switzerland, Mr Chen Xu, on Taiwan-related proposal, COVID-19 origins tracing and China’s promotion of co-operation and exchange on global health on the first day of the Assembly, Vice Premier of the State Council Mr Liu Guozhong also delivered remarks at the High Level Segment today. As our country has been actively involving in global health cooperation and exchanges, including deploying healthcare rescue teams to many countries and regions over the years, as well as providing over 500 billions of personal protection items and 2.3 billion doses of vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemics, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government spares no efforts to complement the nation’s strategies to contribute to the building of a global community of health for all.”
     
    Professor Lo and Dr Lam also attended a thematic side event hosted by the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine (NATCM) and cohosted by the health authorities of Malaysia, Nepal, Saudi Arabia and Seychelles. The side event, themed “Improving Universal Health Coverage through the implementation of WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025-2034”, was moderated by the Dean of the Vanke School of Public Health of Tsinghua University, Professor Margaret Chan, and the Director of the Institute for Global Health of Peking University, Professor Ren Minghui. The Commissioner of the NATCM, Professor Yu Yanhong, also delivered a keynote speech at the side event.
     
    During the panel discussion, Professor Lo shared the implementation experiences in promoting high-quality and high-standard development of Chinese medicine (CM) in Hong Kong on all fronts. He said, “The HKSAR Government will leverage Hong Kong’s strengths in its healthcare system, regulatory framework, standard-setting, clinical research, trade, and more to develop the city into a bridgehead for the internationalisation of CM. In terms of CM practice, the Hospital Authority has accumulated extensive experience through its integrated Chinese-Western medicine (ICWM) services over the years. The Chinese Medicine Hospital of Hong Kong will further develop the ‘Hong Kong model’ for pure CM, CM-predominant, and ICWM clinical services, with a view to promoting CM service, management standards and system development at the international level. As regards CM drugs, the Government Chinese Medicines Testing Institute is actively advancing the work on scientific research, education and promoting international exchanges on CM drug testing, including developing a series of internationally recognised reference standards and testing methods for CM drugs and their products, and promoting the commercial application of these methods in the sectors through training and technology transfer programmes, with a view to developing Hong Kong into an international hub for CM testing and quality control.”
     
    During their visit to Geneva, Professor Lo and Dr Lam also met with the Director of the Department of Nutrition and Food Safety of the WHO, Dr Luz María De Regil, to discuss the strategies and interventions for obesity and weight management. Professor Lo emphasised, “Like many other regions and countries, Hong Kong is facing the challenges posed by the increasing prevalence of obesity. The HKSAR Government has long been attaching great importance to the prevention and control of obesity and will strive to halt the rise of obesity by adopting life-course interventions.”
     
    The delegation will depart for Hong Kong today (May 21, Geneva time) and arrive in Hong Kong tomorrow (May 22, Hong Kong time).

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICE, law enforcement partners, arrest 13 Armenian rival members, associates of organized crime syndicates for alleged attempted murder, kidnapping and tens of millions in theft

    Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

    LOS ANGELES – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and law enforcement partners in California and Florida, arrested 13 alleged members and associates of Armenian organized crime syndicates May 20. Those arrested are charged in five federal complaints with a series of crimes, including attempted murder, kidnapping, illegal firearm possession and thefts estimated to be in millions of dollars related to online retailer shipments.

    “This transnational criminal organization operated with the structure and brutality of an international cartel, inflicting significant harm on public safety and causing substantial damage to legitimate commerce and supply chains,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Los Angeles acting Deputy Special Agent in Charge Dwayne Angebrandt.

    Among the defendants charged are Ara Artuni, 41, of Porter Ranch, California who is charged with attempted murder in aid of racketeering, and a rival, Robert Amiryan, 46, of Hollywood, California who is charged with kidnapping.

    The defendants arrested in California are expected to make their initial appearances this afternoon and tomorrow afternoon in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.

    Vahan Harutyunyan, 50, of Hollywood, Florida, made his initial appearance earlier today in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and was ordered detained. Two of the remaining defendants, Levon Arakelyan, 45, of Las Vegas, Nevada and Ivan Bojorquez, 33, of Gardena, California are presently detained in state custody on unrelated matters.

    Law enforcement seized approximately $100,000 in cash, three armored vehicles, and 14 firearms during the operation.

    According to affidavits filed with the criminal complaints, Armenian Organized Crime, a Russian mafia-affiliated transnational criminal organization, has made Los Angeles County a center of U.S. operations. Since 2022, two local leaders within the organization, also known as avtoritet, which in Russian means “authority,” allegedly have engaged in a power struggle for control in their territory, resulting in multiple murder attempts and a kidnapping.

    Artuni, an avtoritet, is charged with ordering the attempted murder of Amiryan during the summer of 2023. In retaliation, Amiryan, also an avtoritet, allegedly conspired with members of his own criminal organization to kidnap and torture one of Artuni’s associates in June 2023.

    In addition to attempted murder, Artuni and his criminal enterprise has, since at least 2021, allegedly committed additional crimes, including bank fraud, wire fraud, and “cargo theft” targeting online retailers such as Amazon.com Inc. Artuni Enterprise members and associates enrolled with Amazon as carriers, contracted for trucking routes, and then, while transporting the goods, diverged from the route and stole all or part of the shipment. To date, the Artuni Enterprise has allegedly stolen goods from Amazon worth more than $83 million, according to estimates provided by Amazon.

    The Artuni Enterprise also ran a “credit card bust-out” scheme in which they charged various credit cards to a sham business, then drained the business account before the credit card companies could collect the to-be disputed funds.

    “Today’s arrests reflect that my office and our law enforcement partners are committed to keeping America safe by dismantling transnational criminal organizations,” said United States Attorney Bill Essayli. “Let today’s enforcement action be a warning to criminals: Our communities are not your playground to engage in violence and thuggery.”

    “Investigators from the Burbank Police Department spent hundreds of hours investigating these heinous violent crimes,” said Burbank Police Chief Rafael Quintero. “The Burbank Police Department is grateful for the assistance from its law enforcement partners and the United States Attorney’s Office for their work in holding these individuals accountable for their actions.”

    “Dismantling transnational criminal organizations is at the core of HSI’s mission,” continued Angebrandt. “Through close collaboration with our law enforcement partners, HSI is holding these perpetrators accountable and disrupting their criminal enterprise at every level.”

    A complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.

    If convicted of all charges, the defendants will face statutory maximum sentences ranging from 10 years in federal prison to life imprisonment.

    Homeland Security Investigations; The Los Angeles Police Department Major Crimes Division – Transnational Organized Crime Section; the Burbank Police Department; Northridge and Ventura offices; the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General; IRS Criminal Investigation; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are investigating this matter.

    Assistant United States Attorneys Lyndsi Allsop and Kenneth R. Carbajal of the Violent and Organized Crime Section and Tara B. Vavere of the Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section are prosecuting this case. The Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section provided substantial assistance.

    Individuals across the world can report suspicious criminal activity to the ICE Tip Line 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 866-DHS-2-ICE. Highly trained specialists take reports from both the public and law enforcement agencies on more than 400 laws enforced by ICE.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICE Atlanta worksite enforcement operation results in illegal alien arrests, 2 unaccompanied minors found

    Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

    MOBILE, Ala. – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement found two unaccompanied minors and five adult illegal aliens during a worksite enforcement operation at a subdivision in Theodore May 15.

    ICE Homeland Security Investigations special agents found that the minors, both from Guatemala, had entered the United States in 2023 as unaccompanied children. Border Patrol transferred both UACs to the custody of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement.

    At the worksite enforcement encounter, it was discovered that neither UAC was enrolled in school nor had any relatives in the area. ICE referred the two UACs to the custody of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement.

    The five adult illegal aliens encountered during the operation were citizens and nationals of Guatemala and Mexico, one of the adults has two previous removals from the United States. All five illegal alien adults are in ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations custody pending immigration proceeds and removals.

    For more news and information on ICE’s efforts to enforce our nation’s immigration laws and bolster public safety, national security and border security, follow us on X at @HSIAtlanta and @EROAtlanta.

    Members of the public can report crimes and suspicious activity by dialing 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Reverend Warnock Encourages Atlanta Business, Civic Leaders to Continue Putting Service Over Self in Remarks to Rotary Club of Atlanta

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock – Georgia

    Senator Reverend Warnock Encourages Atlanta Business, Civic Leaders to Continue Putting Service Over Self in Remarks to Rotary Club of Atlanta

    Senator Reverend Warnock encouraged over 100 Georgia business and civic leaders to continue living out their motto of “service above self” in this moment of political and economic uncertainty
    The Georgia Rotarians held a luncheon at the Loudermilk Center in Atlanta, Georgia, including leaders and representatives from various non-profit and small business leaders across the Atlanta region
    Established in 1913, the Rotary Club of Atlanta has grown to be one of the most influential business and civic clubs in the world
    ICYMI from Saporta Report: U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock: ‘Uncertainty is never a friend of business’
    Watch Senator Reverend Warnock’s remarks to the Rotary Club of Atlanta HERE
    Atlanta, GA – In remarks to the Rotary Club of Atlanta yesterday, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA)encouraged over 100 Georgia business and civic leaders to continue living out their motto of “service above self” in this moment of political and economic uncertainty. 
    “As an alum of Head Start, as an alum of Upward Bound, another federal program called Trio that put a kid in housing projects on a college campus every summer so that I could know that I belonged there, as someone who’s been a beneficiary of Pell grants and low-interest student loans. I’m fighting for that kid on Cape Street, and every variation of that kid in rural communities all across our state. And so in this moral moment, I hope that we will recommit ourselves to standing in the best of the Rotarian spirit of service over self. It’s the reason why I’m deeply concerned about much of what is happening right now. I am worried about our country,” said Senator Reverend Warnock. 
    The Georgia Rotarians held a luncheon at the Loudermilk Center in Atlanta, Georgia, including leaders and representatives from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Metro Chamber, YMCA of Metro Atlanta, Ideas United, and various non-profit and small business leaders representing industries across the Atlanta region. 
    Above: Senator Reverend Warnock greeting constituents and local business and civic leaders
    After greeting constituents, the Senator was recognized by the Club’s Board Chair John Yates with a personalized poem he authored highlighting Senator Warnock’s commitment to service for all Georgians. The Senator was introduced by Program Chair and CEO of Ideas United David Roemer ahead of his keynote remarks, where the Senator discussed the detrimental effects of policy unpredictability on businesses and his concerns about tariffs impacts on Georgia small businesses and consumers. Senator Warnock encouraged business leaders to advocate for common-sense leadership and to be unafraid in using their voices to call out the danger and damage Washington politicians pose to Georgia workers and families. 
    “Like many of you, I’m very concerned about these tariffs. I haven’t met anybody yet who’s excited about it. I talked to business leaders. They are worried. I was down in my hometown of Savannah, Georgia a couple of weeks ago meeting with leaders at the port. […] And while there I was talking to leaders and farmers and small businesses, and they feel the uncertainty. One gentleman involved with beekeeping and honey paid more than $25,000 in tariffs on his last import. He’s a small business owner. He doesn’t get to just move something around and be okay for the next quarter. He could lose his business. He does not know what he is going to do. He does not want to pass that cost on to the consumer, but understandably, he does not want to eat those costs himself. We’re hearing stories like that across Metro Atlanta, where business owners and leaders are left scratching their heads because the math ain’t mathing,” said Senator Reverend Warnock. 
    “They cannot plan in this uncertain, unpredictable environment. […] And so this is such an important moment for business leaders to stand up, to raise your voices, to use your influence in the ways that you can. Now, I’m not naive. I know that when you’re running a business, you want to stay as far from politics as you can. I don’t blame you. But there comes a moment when that which is so fundamental to opportunity and possibility is at stake that we have to raise our voices. We have to use our influence in the same way to stand up and fight for tax cuts, stand up and fight for immigration policy that makes good business sense,” Senator Reverend Warnock continued. 
    Above: Senator Reverend Warnock gives remarks to the Rotary Club of Atlanta
    Additionally, Senator Warnock reflected on his new report that uplifts the success of the clean energy tax credits he helped put into law and propelled Georgia to the forefront of our nation’s clean energy economy, but which are now under threat as Washington Republicans seek to scale back these clean energy jobs and investments. 
    “According to my report, in Georgia, nearly all the new [clean energy] investments and the new jobs are in counties outside of Metro Atlanta. Nationwide analyzes show that the vast majority of projects announced following the passage of these clean energy tax credits. Over three and four projects have gone to House districts currently held by Republicans. But this is especially true in Georgia. […] This is good news for Georgia, and to undermine it does not make good sense, it’s hard to defend that. The data is clear, and so my colleagues have a decision to make about who they will fight for and what they believe in. Who will they support? But this I do know: uncertainty is never a friend of business, right? It’s hard to know where they invest. You’re not certain about what’s going to happen along the supply chain, it’s hard to know that you should continue to lean in and invest in a clean energy future in Georgia if the Congress can simply undo two years later what it decided to do two years ago, right at the moment that we’re beginning to make progress,”said Senator Reverend Warnock. 
    Above: Senator Reverend Warnock participates in a fireside chat with Program Chair and Ideas United CEO David Roemer
    Following his remarks, the Senator participated in a fireside chat conversation with David Roemer and fielded questions from members of the Rotary Club of Atlanta. Senator Warnock closed by reiterating his service to all Georgians is rooted in his mission to see America win by making sure every child has a chance, and the next kid growing up in public housing or relying on low-interest loans for an education knows that anything is possible in America. 
    “It’s our job to tell our children that in America anything is possible,” Senator Reverend Warnock said in closing. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Reed Scolds Kennedy & Slams Trump Admin’s Indefensible Cuts to Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Efforts

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Rhode Island Jack Reed
    VIDEO: Kennedy falsely claims: ‘We have a team in Milwaukee.’; Reed: ‘What about the rest of the United States? This is not a problem exclusively in Milwaukee.’
    WASHINGTON, DC –  After successfully working to appropriate $51 million to protect children from lead exposure, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) today confronted President Trump’s Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., about why he effectively shut down a branch of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that is responsible for monitoring childhood lead poisoning.
    Childhood lead poisoning is a preventable environmental health problem.  Lead is a neurotoxin that can impair brain development, particularly when children are exposed before the age of 6.  Lead exposure most commonly occurs through peeling or flaking lead paint or household dust containing lead, though it can also be ingested through water traveling through lead pipes, soil, or in the air near contaminated industrial facilities.  CDC estimates that approximately 500,000 children in the United States have concerning blood lead levels that could adversely impact their health.
    During today’s hearing of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, Senator Reed criticized the Trump Administration’s costly mishandling of the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program (CLPPP), the flip-flopping messages, and failure to assist state health agencies and non-profits.  HHS’s short-sighted cuts are likely to lead to data blind spots when it comes to lead poisoning surveillance, making it harder for health authorities and researchers tracking childhood blood lead levels. Other state agencies and federal departments also rely on this type of data.. 
    Reed led the effort to fund the CLPPP and support childhood lead surveillance and technical capacity, provide lead poisoning prevention training to public health professionals, support childhood blood lead surveillance systems, expand public health laboratory capacity, and ensure targeted screening and case management.  But rather than helping states prevent lead poisoning, the Trump Administration fired the teams responsible for administering programs that keep children safe and healthy from lead poisoning.
    During today’s hearing, Reed asked Secretary Kennedy about shutting down the Childhood Lead Program and what effect the Trump Administration’s abrupt layoffs could have on state and local lead poisoning prevention efforts.  Mr. Kennedy seemed confused and gave conflicting answers before falsely suggesting that HHS had a team of experts in one city: Milwaukee.  Senator Reed noted that HHS has a responsibility to help protect children in all fifty states:
    SEN. REED: Mr. Secretary, I want to ask you about the CDC’s Childhood Lead Program, because we’ve heard a lot of conflicting messages about…
    SEC. KENNEDY: Childhood?
    REED: Yes, the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program.  We’ve heard a lot of conflicting messages. First, the program was eliminated as part of your restructuring of HHS and all the program staff was fired. You suggested that that was a mistake and that the program will be brought back online. Last week you told Senator Baldwin that lead poisoning among children was a very significant issue. And as Congress appropriated the money, the program would continue.
    Well, Congress has appropriated the funding. And as far as we can tell, staff has not yet been hired. And I see no statements reversing your decision to eliminate the program. So which is it?
    KENNEDY: We are continuing to fund the program. And in Milwaukee, we have a team in Milwaukee, and we’re giving laboratory support to the to the analytics in Milwaukee. And we’re working with the Health Department of Milwaukee.
    REED: Well, that’s Milwaukee. What about the rest of the country?
    KENNEDY: Well, I don’t– as I said, I have I have a a TRO now, you know, a federal TRO that does not allow me to talk about the re-org. What I can tell you is that if you appropriate the money, that we are going to spend it.
    REED: We have appropriated the money, Mr. Secretary. You indicated that you have a program in Milwaukee. What about the rest of the United States? This is not a problem exclusively in Milwaukee.
    KENNEDY: My understanding is that that program is continuing. I’m hoping to, I’m, I’m very, very happy to talk to you, Senator, after this and find out exactly what the details are.
    REED: Well, it should be a very simple answer: The program’s back up and running. We’ve hired the staff, which I don’t think you have. And that doesn’t indicate that you’re serious about getting the program running again.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Warner, Marshall Introduce Bill to Improve Seniors’ Access to Care

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Commonwealth of Virginia Mark R Warner
    WASHINGTON –U.S. Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) today reintroduced the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act – bipartisan, zero-cost legislation to improve access to care for seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. The bill focuses on streamlining the often cumbersome and time-consuming prior authorization process, ultimately allowing healthcare providers to spend more time on patient care rather than administrative burdens.
    This legislation would help physicians better serve and improve care for the 32.8 million Americans.
    “Our seniors deserve high-quality care delivered in a timely fashion. I am proud to introduce this legislation that takes commonsense steps to modernize the prior authorization process, cutting through red tape, streamlining approvals, and making sure our health care providers are focused on what really matters — supporting their patients,” Sen. Warner said.
    “Prior authorization is the number one administrative burden facing physicians today across all specialties,” Sen. Marshall said. “As a physician, I understand the frustration this arbitrary process is causing health care practices across the country and the headaches it creates for our nurses. With the bipartisan, bicameral Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act, we will streamline prior authorization and help improve patient outcomes and access to quality care.”
    Joining Sens. Warner and Marshall are U.S. Sens. Maggie Hassan (D-NH), John Fetterman (D-PA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), James Lankford (R-OK), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Andy Kim (D-NJ), John Boozman (R-AK), Dick Durbin (D-IL), John Cornyn (R-TX), Patty Murray (D-WA), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Tina Smith (D-MN), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ted Budd (R-NC), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tim Sheehy (R-MT), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), John Hoeven (R-ND), Rick Scott (R-FL), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Deb Fischer (R-NE) and Chris Coons (D-DE).
    “Too often, seniors face unnecessarily complicated and burdensome prior authorization processes that can become a barrier to receiving care,” Sen. Hassan said. “This bipartisan legislation is a commonsense way to support seniors on Medicare Advantage in accessing care, and to help health care providers focus on their patients instead of paperwork.”
    “Prior authorization places more importance on process than patients. As a doctor, I want that to change. Let’s make sure seniors are receiving timely care,” Sen. Cassidy said. 
    “Too often, seniors have to wait to receive vital care because of administrative burdens like prior authorization. I’m proud to join my colleagues in introducing the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act, which will streamline prior authorization and reduce unnecessary health care delays,” Sen. Capito said.
    “Seniors across the Cowboy State rely on Medicare, but too often, bureaucratic red tape gets in the way of timely care,” Sen. Lummis said. “I am proud to join my colleagues across the aisle to streamline the prior authorization process and put patients over paperwork.”
    “Excessive administrative burdens within the Medicare Advantage program means too many seniors receive delayed benefits, while our health care providers are overwhelmed by paperwork. The current system isn’t working well for anyone, and it’s time we take meaningful action to fix it. This commonsense legislation is a necessary step in the right direction,” Sen. Hyde-Smith said.
    “Health care providers handling mountains of paperwork takes up valuable time and can unnecessarily delay older folks’ access to the crucial care they need,” Sen. Kaine said. “I’m proud to champion this bipartisan legislation to modernize and streamline health care processes to ensure that Americans covered by Medicare Advantage can more swiftly access care and empower health care providers to direct more of their time to their patients.”
    “Quality, expedited medical care should always be within reach for seniors, and our providers deserve a system that helps them focus on delivering it,” Sen. Boozman said. “I’m pleased to join this bipartisan effort to end the inefficient process that delays Medicare Advantage beneficiaries’ evaluations and treatments while removing an unnecessary, bureaucratic burden on clinicians.”
    “Doctors and health care providers are too often bogged down by unnecessary burdens, which can lead to delayed care and negative outcomes for patients,” Sen. Cornyn said. “By streamlining the prior authorization process under Medicare Advantage, this legislation would cut red tape, improve enrollee experiences, and ensure seniors receive the timely care they deserve.
    “Improving the prior authorization process will help seniors have quicker access to the health care they need and remove administrative hurdles for physicians,” Sen. Moran said. “This legislation would make commonsense changes to better support thousands of seniors in Kansas and remove the red tape that is costing doctors and patients valuable time.”
    “Senior citizens have spent their entire lives contributing to our communities, and they deserve every resource to support their health and well-being,” Sen. Gillibrand said. “The Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act will help cut through unnecessary red tape and ensure timely medical care is accessible to older Americans. Seniors should have reliable access to specialist care, mental health support, preventative services, and the treatments they need to live with dignity. I am proud to support this important legislation, and I pledge to continue fighting to expand access to quality, affordable, and timely health care for our seniors.” 
    “Seniors with Medicare Advantage plans should not have to endure unnecessary delays when seeking medical treatment, and sometimes even life-saving care,” Sen. Hirono said. “This legislation will help to reduce these arbitrary waiting periods, streamlining prior authorization processes to ensure that health care providers can treat and care for their patients in an efficient manner.”
    “North Carolina seniors shouldn’t face unnecessary delays when trying to access the care they need through Medicare Advantage,” Sen. Tillis said. “I’m proud to support this bipartisan, commonsense legislation that streamlines the prior authorization process, cuts red tape for providers, and ensures patients get timely access to treatment.”
    U.S. Reps John Joyce, M.D. (R-PA-13), Mike Kelly (R-PA-16), Suzan DelBene (D-WA-01), and Ami Bera, M.D. (D-CA-06) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.
    This legislation is supported by the Better Medicare Alliance, Humana, and 138 other health care organizations.
    “Prior authorization helps keep health care costs low and ensures seniors are getting the most appropriate care. But the process should be easier. The changes put forth in this legislation are long overdue and will help ensure seniors can get the care they need without delay,” Mary Beth Donahue, President and CEO of Better Medicare Alliance, said. “We are proud to support this bill and thank Senators Marshall and Warner, and Representatives Kelly, DelBene, Bera, and Joyce for their leadership. We look forward to continued work on this issue with Congress and the Administration.”
    “Humana’s job is to ensure our members have access to high quality, affordable healthcare.  We support efforts in the House and Senate to move the Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act forward quickly,” Jim Rechtin, Humana CEO, said. “It is a common-sense approach to making healthcare easier by modernizing the prior authorization process.”
    Background:
    Prior authorization is a tool used by health plans to reduce unnecessary care by requiring health care providers to get pre-approval for medical services. However, the current system often results in multiple faxes or phone calls by clinicians, which takes precious time away from delivering care.
    Prior authorization continues to be the number-one administrative burden identified by health care providers, and nearly three out of four Medicare Advantage enrollees are subject to unnecessary delays due to the practice.
    The bill would codify and enhance elements of the Advancing Interoperability and Improving Prior Authorization Processes (e-PA) rule that was finalized by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on January 17, 2024.
    Last Congress, the bill was supported by a super majority of members in the Senate (60) and a majority in the House (232), and was unanimously passed by the House in 2022.
    In 2018, the Office of the Inspector General at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) raised concerns after an audit revealed that Medicare Advantage plans ultimately approved 75% of requests that were originally denied.
    In 2022, the HHS Office of Inspector General released a report finding that MA plans incorrectly denied beneficiaries’ access to services even though they met Medicare coverage rules.
    The Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act would:
    Establish an electronic prior authorization process for Medicare Advantage plans, including a standardization for transactions and clinical attachments.
    Increase transparency around Medicare Advantage prior authorization requirements and their use.
    Clarify HHS’ authority to establish timeframes for e-prior authorization requests, including expedited determinations, real-time decisions for routinely approved items and services, and other prior authorization requests.
    Expand beneficiary protections to improve enrollee experiences and outcomes.
    Require HHS and other agencies to report to Congress on program integrity efforts and other ways to further improve the e-prior authorization process.
    Result in a zero cost to American taxpayers.
    The full text of the legislation can be found here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Murray Responds to RFK Jr.’s Continued Lies About NIH Staffing Cuts Delaying Clinical Care

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray
    READ MORE — CNN: After NIH staffing cuts, cancer patient in clinical trial worries she may lose crucial time; Washington Post: NIH scientists have a cancer breakthrough. Layoffs are delaying it.
    Senator Murray: “If RFK Jr.’s mass firings weren’t having an impact on clinical care at NIH, he would provide those details and tell us which positions he’s eliminated. He’s not—because he knows that if he did, he would be caught lying. This isn’t just about Natalie, this is about the millions of Americans like her who are already being harmed by the destruction Secretary Kennedy is causing at HHS, or will be soon.”
    ****FROM TODAY – WATCH and READ: Senator Murray’s exchange with RFK Jr.***
    ***FROM LAST WEEK –WATCH: Senator Murray rebuts Secretary Kennedy’s claims about her constituent, Natalie***
    Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA),  Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, released the following statement on U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s outburst during today’s Senate Appropriations hearing, where Secretary Kennedy repeatedly lied, dodged Senator Murray’s questions, and made a number of totally unfounded allegations, in particular relating to Senator Murray’s constituent, Natalie, who is suffering from Stage Four colorectal cancer and whose care was delayed as a direct result of the Trump administration’s staffing cuts across HHS. Senator Murray brought up Natalie’s story to Secretary Kennedy at a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee hearing last week; additional background on that exchange is below.
    At the appropriations hearing today, Secretary Kennedy claimed to Senator Murray: “You told me two or three days ago, four days ago that we had cut a clinical trial in your state and it turned out what you said turned out to be completely untrue and you knew it was not true because you corresponded.” This was not at all what Senator Murray suggested or what happened. At the HELP hearing on May 14th, Senator Murray laid out how Natalie’s treatment in a trial at the NIH Clinical Center had been delayed by the staffing cuts, according to her doctors at NIH, and then she asked Secretary Kennedy directly how many staff were cut from the NIH’s Clinical Center. Video and transcript of their initial exchange on May 14th is HERE. A full transcript of their exchange today is available HERE.
    “RFK Jr. is a shameless liar and a dangerous conspiracy theorist—he should have never been confirmed. As much as he lies and deflects, I’m not going to stop holding him accountable for the real harm he is inflicting on people in this country.
    “Natalie’s care has been complicated, but here’s what’s not: her NIH doctor told her twice that her care was explicitly delayed due to NIH staffing cuts—specifically, that she would have to wait eight weeks rather than four to have her cells re-infused. On the question of credibility, I will trust an NIH doctor over an anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist every day.
    “After an initial contact with RFK Jr.’s office last Wednesday, it was complete radio silence with no answers until about an hour before today’s hearing. It should not take me raising this issue with RFK Jr. face-to-face to make sure NIH is working the way it’s supposed to.
    “I still have no answer about how many NIH clinical staff have been fired. I still have no answer why Natalie was told by her NIH doctor that her care was being delayed due to staffing cuts. For weeks, my staff has been demanding answers about agency staffing cuts.
    “Meanwhile, my staff has been in constant touch over the past three weeks with dedicated career staff at NIH and FDA—the same people the Trump administration is trying to push out the door—to address Natalie’s case. But it has been no thanks to RFK Jr. or HHS political leadership.”
    “If RFK Jr.’s mass firings weren’t having an impact on clinical care at NIH, he would provide those details and tell us which positions he’s eliminated. He’s not—because he knows that if he did, he would be caught lying. This isn’t just about Natalie, this is about the millions of Americans like her who are already being harmed by the destruction Secretary Kennedy is causing at HHS, or will be soon.”
    __________________________________
    At last week’s HELP Committee hearing with Secretary Kennedy, Murray grilled Kennedy on the Trump administration’s moves to slash staff and block funding at the National Institute of Health (NIH), and laid out how is affecting one of her constituents, Natalie Phelps of Washington state: “One of my constituents, Natalie Phelps—a mom of two from Bainbridge Island in Washington state. She has been fighting aggressive Stage Four colorectal cancer for nearly five years now. Her best hope now is a clinical trial at the NIH Clinical Center. She flew out to the NIH just a few weeks ago for her first appointment, and her care team wanted her to come back in four weeks to start treatment. But because of the thoughtless, mass firing of thousands of critical employees across NIH and HHS that you have carried out, Natalie’s doctors at that clinical center have told her that they have no choice but to delay her treatment by an additional four weeks. Now, an extra four weeks may not sound like a long time but, I will tell you, for Stage Four cancer patients like Natalie, this could mean the difference between life and death.” Video of the full exchange between Senator Murray and Secretary Kennedy is available HERE.
    Later in the hearing, Secretary Kennedy asserted that Natalie was ineligible for her clinical trial and called her story a “canard,” saying: “Senator Murray had raised the issue of a constituent of hers who she said had been denied a place in a clinical trial in Washington due to the RIF. We’ve been able to run down that case. The patient was medically ineligible for that trial. It had nothing to do with the RIF. And NIH has been trying to get her into another clinical trial, but none of our clinical trials have been shut down because of the RIF. That was a canard.”
    Senator Murray returned to the hearing to respond directly to Secretary Kennedy: “Secretary Kennedy came back and said my constituent, who I spoke about earlier, [her care] was not delayed by staffing cuts. First off, she is already enrolled in that clinical trial. It’s not a question of eligibility—the issue, as I stated clearly, was the delay in care that she got. And what you stated, Secretary Kennedy, is not true.”
    “I spoke with Natalie, actually, last night. She asked her NIH doctor directly why, when she was informed of the delay, and her doctor at NIH said very plainly TWICE: her care was delayed because of staffing cuts. And Mr. Chairman, I think it’s important for the record to show, my staff has put in inquiries with HHS leadership and they’ve been unresponsive so far.And, just to make clear, this is just one case of many. But those are the facts,” Senator Murray said.
    Senator Murray has been a leading voice in Congress raising the alarm over HHS’ unilateral reorganization plan and slamming the closure of the HHS Region 10 office in Seattle and the CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Spokane Research Laboratory. Senator Murray has sent oversight letters and hosted numerous press conferences and events to lay out how the administration’s reckless gutting of HHS is risking Americans health and safety and will set our country back decades, and lifting up the voices of HHS employees who were fired for no reason and through no fault of their own.
    In particular, Senator Murray has been leading the charge against the Trump administration’s efforts to gut lifesaving research at NIH and pushed out nearly 5,000 NIH skilled scientists, grants administrators, and other employees at the agency. When the Trump administration attempted to illegally cap indirect cost rates at 15 percent, Senator Murray immediately and forcefully condemned the move, led the entire Senate Democratic caucus in a letter decrying the proposed change, and introduced amendments to Senate Republicans’ budget resolution to reverse it, which Republicans blocked. Murray has led Congressional efforts to boost biomedical research. Previously, over her years as Chair of the Labor-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator Murray secured billions of dollars in increases for biomedical research at NIH, and during her time as Chair of the HELP Committee she established the new ARPA-H research agency as part of her PREVENT Pandemics Act to advance some of the most cutting-edge research in the field. Senator Murray was also the lead Democratic negotiator of the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act, which delivered a major federal investment to boost NIH research, among many other investments. 
    Senator Murray forcefully opposed the nomination of notorious anti-vaccine activist RFK Jr. to be Secretary of HHS, and she has long worked to combat vaccine skepticism and highlight the importance of scientific research and vaccines. Murray was also a leading voice against the nomination of Dr. Dave Weldon to lead CDC, repeatedly speaking up about her serious concerns with the nominee immediately after their meeting. In 2019, Senator Murray co-led a bipartisan hearing in the HELP Committee on vaccine hesitancy and spoke about the importance of addressing vaccine skepticism and getting people the facts they need to keep their families and communities safe and healthy. Ahead of the 2019 hearing, as multiple states were facing measles outbreaks in under-vaccinated areas, Murray sent a bipartisan letter with former HELP Committee Chair Lamar Alexander pressing Trump’s CDC Director and HHS Assistant Secretary for Health on their efforts to promote vaccination and vaccine confidence.
    Senator Murray’s opening remarks at today’s hearing, as delivered, are below:
    “Secretary Kennedy—things are not going well. It is clear what you are doing across HHS is devastating to children, families, seniors, and the millions of Americans HHS programs support.
    “You were required to send us an operating plan detailing how you’re spending funds that Congress provided for programs families rely on. You sent us what you titled the ‘Hill Version,’ which had over 530 asterisks in place of funding levels.
    “Mr. Secretary, we need the real version with actual funding levels. This committee needs to know how you are spending taxpayer dollars right now—and what programs you’re cutting and eliminating.
    “You are blocking billions in funding that Congress appropriated from going out the door, including $3 billion at NIH, and $1 billion in Head Start and $3 billion in child care funding alone.
    “And that’s on top of all of the other funding you’ve illegally ripped away: $11 billion from state and local health departments, $1 billion supporting local substance use and mental health programs, and $66 million in Title X funds for cancer screenings, birth control, and preventive care.
    “You are dismantling HHS, throwing away generations of investments in our health care system and firing critical employees. We’re talking about the people who administer Head Start, LIHEAP, and Meals on Wheels. Or entire teams working on preventing chronic disease and Alzheimer’s, tracking IVF success rates and safety, maternal health, and much more.
    “On top of all of this, you propose a budget with truly devastating cuts that would leave America sicker and weaker.
    “But you’re not waiting to see whether Congress approves that budget proposal. This administration is starting to unilaterally implement it right now—in defiance of Congress and the laws we have passed. If you aren’t already, you are sprinting down the road of illegally impounding billions in funding, through intentional action and through incompetence.
    “To my colleagues on this dais: We heard several weeks ago, what we risk by ceding American leadership on biomedical research. If we bless these staffing and funding cuts across HHS, that means deciding we are comfortable with China leading the future development of every drug, device, and vaccine. The supply chain challenges we faced during the pandemic will be the new normal. Our access to the latest treatments and cures will depend on other countries.
    “It’s time to stand up and assert Congress’ authority. This Committee has dedicated itself in a bipartisan manner over decades to make sure we are the global leader in research and development. And now all of us know this administration is setting us back where it may take decades to regain that position.
    “If we don’t, decades of scientific breakthroughs and medical discovery—and the bipartisan work to support them—risks being burned to the ground, and it will be very hard to rebuild.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Stefanik Supports President Trump’s Golden Dome for Strategic Missile Defense

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (21st District of New York)

    ICYMI: Stefanik Joined Mornings with Maria on FBN to Speak About Enacting President Trump’s Agenda, Harvard’s Ties to China, and Joe Biden’s Health Scandal | Press Releases | Congresswoman Elise Stefanik

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    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: VIDEO: Pressley, Color Of Change, Colleagues Condemn Medicaid Cuts for Trump’s Billionaire Handouts

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07)

    “Donald, there is nothing beautiful about making people sicker, poorer, and more vulnerable. And that’s exactly what this bill would do.”

    Republican Reconciliation Bill Would Rip Away Healthcare and Food Assistance from Millions, Harm Everyone Especially Black and Brown Communities

    Video (YouTube)

    WASHINGTON – Today, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) co-hosted a press conference with Color of Change to oppose the Republicans’ cruel and harmful budget reconciliation package, which would gut critical programs like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to fund billions of dollars in new tax giveaways straight into the pockets of Trump’s billionaire friends. The bill is estimated to cause 14 million people to lose their healthcare and raise costs for millions more. It would also make the largest cuts to food assistance in American history, taking food away from millions of children, seniors, veterans, and folks with disabilities.

    Across Massachusetts, over 955,000 Medicaid enrollees are at risk of losing healthcare coverage under MassHealth, the Commonwealth’s Medicaid program, due to the bill’s work reporting requirements for Medicaid. In the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District, approximately 135,000 enrollees would lose coverage.

    Republicans’ extreme budget plan also threatens the approximately 1,216,000 people in the Commonwealth who depend on SNAP to put food on the table, including 187,000 people in the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District.

    Congresswoman Pressley was joined by Representatives Summer Lee (PA-12), Shontel Brown (OH-11), Alma Adams (NC-12), Gabe Amo (RI-01), and Rashida Tlaib (MA-12), as well as Color of Change’s Interim Executive Director Portia Allen-Kyle, Families over Billionaires’ Campaign Director Michael Linden, and advocates from Color of Change.

    A transcript of the Congresswoman’s opening remarks, as delivered, is available below, and the full video is available here.

    Transcript: Pressley, Color Of Change Host Presser Opposing Medicaid Cuts for Trump’s Billionaire Handouts
    U.S. Capitol
    May 20, 2025

    Good afternoon everyone!

    Thank you for joining us. It is so good always to be surrounded by what I consider to be movement family. I am immensely proud to be partnering with Color of Change as we demand that Republicans take their hands off our healthcare, hands off our food assistance, and hands off other essential, life-saving programs.

    Thank you to Portia, for standing in the gap in such a time as this. Thank you for the indefatigable efforts of the entire team at Color of Change, to the folks here today who are opening their hearts to share their stories with us all. 

    And thank you my colleagues, Representatives Lee, Brown, Adams, Amo and Tlaib for their partnership and to our friends at Families over Billionaires for the work you do each and every day.

    We stand here today because Republicans are trying to gut Medicaid, SNAP, and other essential, life-saving programs so they can line the pockets of billionaires including Elon Musk and Donald Trump.

    Donald Trump is stealing from the poor, the elderly, the vulnerable and everyday working families to line his own damn pockets.

    This is the great Republican ripoff.

    These attacks are precise, intentional, targeted. 

    They mean harm to everyone who calls this country home, beginning with our most vulnerable.

    They’re coming for our veterans, our elders, and folks with disabilities. 

    They’re coming for those in need of life-saving medications for chronic diseases like asthma, high blood pressure, and dementia.

    They’re coming for babies who need formula, parents who are just trying to put food on the dinner table.

    And of course, they mean to harm our Black and brown communities who stand to be the most impacted by these devastating cuts.

    Medicaid is essential healthcare. About 1 in 5 Medicaid enrollees are Black.  

    SNAP is essential food for families. 20% of Black households have faced food insecurity in recent years, compared to 7% of white households.

    As the saying goes, when the rest of America gets a cold, Black folks get pneumonia – and this bill is certainly a testament to that. 

    I represent the Massachusetts 7th, a district that is vibrant, diverse, dynamic, one of the most unequal in this country, and was one of the hardest-hit Congressional districts by the first Trump occupancy.

    And we have every reason to believe that this will be the case again in the second occupancy of the Trump White House.

    Donald Trump was up here today threatening his caucus to fall in line behind his “one big, beautiful bill.” 

    Donald, there is nothing beautiful about making people sicker, making people poorer, making people more vulnerable. And that’s exactly what this bill would do. 

    Nearly 14 million people kicked off their healthcare. Food ripped out of the mouths of millions of children, seniors, veterans, and folks with disabilities. 

    I mean seriously, the only people who’d benefit from this bill are toy spaceship billionaires like Elon Musk and Donald Trump himself.

    The cruelty is the point. 

    Republicans know exactly how cruel and unpopular this bill is. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be trying to move it forward under the cover of night at 11 o’clock on a Sunday or 1am on a Wednesday, like they’re doing this week. 

    You know, Donald Trump and Republicans would love for us to stop fighting back.

    Donald Trump’s a dictator. A dictator wants a citizenry that is uninformed, that is indifferent to the suffering of its neighbor, and that is inactive. 

    They would love for us to cede this dark, dystopian vision that Donald Trump has for America as an inevitability.

    But it is not. And the only way to beat a dictator is with defiance.

    Our colleagues in the House across the aisle, you know, I’m asked all the time if there are opportunities for bipartisanship, to which I respond, “where is the party for bipartisanship?”

    This is just a cult of cowards who have been complicit in wholesale harm. Just a cult of cowards. 

    And the only way to beat a dictator is with defiance. 

    So that’s what brings us here today. We won’t back down, not for a second. 

    And Medicaid, SNAP, Head Start and the VA – these programs aren’t just line items in a budget. 

    They are lifelines. They are lifelines. Policies determine who lives, who dies, who survives, who thrives.  

    So together, we say: 

    Hands off healthcare.

    Hands off our food.

    Hands off our bodies.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Foreign National Sentenced for $3.2 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

    Source: US State of California

    A foreign national was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for his role in a scheme to defraud Medicare of more than $3.2 million through a sham durable medical equipment company.

    According to court documents, Julian Lopez, 55, a citizen of Cuba who resides in Miami-Dade County, Florida, obtained Medicare beneficiary identification cards and sold Medicare beneficiaries’ personal information to a durable medical equipment company, One Medical Services. Lopez knew the Medicare identification cards he obtained would be used to submit fraudulent claims to Medicare. One Medical Services used the information from Lopez to bill Medicare for orthotic braces that were never provided to the Medicare beneficiaries. In connection with the scheme, One Medical Services submitted and caused the submission of over $3.2 million in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare for medically unnecessary DME.

    Lopez pleaded guilty to two counts of health care fraud in February 2025. At sentencing, he was also ordered to pay $1,496,412 in restitution.

    Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Acting Special Agent in Charge Jesus Barranco at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Miami Regional Office; and Acting Special Agent in Charge Brett Skiles of the FBI Miami Field Office made the announcement.

    The FBI and HHS-OIG investigated the case.

    Assistant Chief Emily Gurskis and Trial Attorney Owen Dunn of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case.

    The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in 27 federal districts, has charged more than 5,800 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $30 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Purpose Investments Inc. Announces May 2025 Distributions

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TORONTO, May 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Purpose Investments Inc. (“Purpose”) is pleased to announce distributions for the month of May 2025 for its open-end exchange traded funds and closed-end funds (“the Funds”).

    The ex-distribution date for all Open-End Funds is May 28, 2025. The ex-distribution date for all closed-end funds is May 30, 2025.   

    Open-End Funds Ticker
    Symbol    		 Distribution
    per share/unit    		 Record
    Date    		 Payable
    Date    		 Distribution
    Frequency
    Apple (AAPL) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Units APLY $0.1667 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Canadian Financial Income Fund – ETF Series BNC $0.1225¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Berkshire Hathaway (BRK) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Units BRKY $0.1000 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Bitcoin Yield ETF – ETF Units BTCY $0.0850 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Bitcoin Yield ETF – ETF Non-Currency Hedged Units BTCY.B $0.0970 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Bitcoin Yield ETF – ETF USD Units BTCY.U US $0.0815 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Credit Opportunities Fund – ETF Units CROP $0.0875 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Credit Opportunities Fund – ETF USD Units CROP.U US $0.0975 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Ether Yield – ETF Units ETHY $0.0405 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Ether Yield ETF – ETF Non-Currency Hedged Units ETHY.B $0.0500 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Ether Yield ETF – ETF Units Non-Currency Hedged USD Units ETHY.U US $0.0395 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Global Flexible Credit Fund – ETF Units FLX $0.0461 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Global Flexible Credit Fund – Non-Currency Hedged – ETF Units FLX.B $0.0551 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Global Flexible Credit Fund – Non-Currency Hedged USD – ETF Units FLX.U US $0.0385 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Global Bond Class – ETF Units IGB $0.0860¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Microsoft (MSFT) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF units MSFY $0.1100 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Enhanced Premium Yield Fund – ETF Series PAYF $0.1375¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Total Return Bond Fund – ETF Series PBD $0.0590¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Core Dividend Fund – ETF Series PDF $0.1050¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Enhanced Dividend Fund – ETF Series PDIV $0.0950¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Real Estate Income Fund – ETF Series PHR $0.0720¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose International Dividend Fund – ETF Series PID $0.0780 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Monthly Income Fund – ETF Series PIN $0.0830¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Multi-Asset Income Fund – ETF Units PINC $0.0840 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Conservative Income Fund – ETF Series PRP $0.0600¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Premium Yield Fund – ETF Series PYF $0.1100¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Premium Yield Fund Non-Currency Hedged – ETF Series PYF.B $0.1230¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Premium Yield Fund Non-Currency Hedged – ETF USD Series PYF.U US $0.1200¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Core Equity Income Fund – ETF Series RDE $0.0875¹ 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Emerging Markets Dividend Fund – ETF Units REM $0.0950 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Canadian Preferred Share Fund – ETF Units RPS $0.0950 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose US Preferred Share Fund – ETF Series RPU $0.0940 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose US Preferred Share Fund Non-Currency Hedged – ETF Units2 RPU.B / RPU.U $0.0940 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Strategic Yield Fund – ETF Units SYLD $0.0970 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    AMD (AMD) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Series YAMD $0.2000 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Amazon (AMZN) Yield Shares Purpose ETF- ETF Units YAMZ $0.4000 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Broadcom (AVGO) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Series YAVG $0.1500 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Coinbase (COIN) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Series YCON $0.3000 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Costco (COST) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Series YCST $0.1000 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Alphabet (GOOGL) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Units YGOG $0.2500 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Tech Innovators Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Series YMAG $0.2000 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    META (META) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Series YMET $0.1600 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Netflix (NFLX) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Series YNET $0.1100 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    NVIDIA (NVDA) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Units YNVD $0.7500 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Palantir (PLTR) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Series YPLT $0.2500 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Tesla (TSLA) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Units YTSL $0.5500 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    UnitedHealth Group (UHN) Yield Shares Purpose ETF – ETF Series YUNH $0.1100 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
               
    Closed-End Funds Ticker
    Symbol    		 Distribution
    per share/unit    		 Record
    Date    		 Payable
    Date    		 Distribution
    Frequency
    Big Banc Split Corp, Class A BNK $0.1200¹ 05/30/2025 06/13/2025 Monthly
    Big Banc Split Corp – Preferred Shares BNK.PR.A $0.0700¹ 05/30/2025 06/13/2025 Monthly


    Estimated May 2025 Distributions for Purpose USD Cash Management Fund, Purpose Cash Management Fund, Purpose High Interest Savings Fund, and Purpose US Cash Fund

    The May 2025 distribution rates for Purpose USD Cash Management Fund, Purpose Cash Management Fund, Purpose High Interest Savings Fund, and Purpose US Cash Fund are estimated to be as follows:

    Open-End Fund Ticker
    Symbol    		 Final distribution
    per unit    		 Record
    Date    		 Payable
    Date    		 Distribution
    Frequency
    Purpose USD Cash Management Fund – ETF Units MNU.U US $ 0.3528 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose Cash Management Fund – ETF Units MNY $0.2370 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose High Interest Savings Fund – ETF Units PSA $0.1068 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly
    Purpose US Cash Fund – ETF Units PSU.U US $ 0.3495 05/28/2025 06/03/2025 Monthly

    Purpose expects to issue a press release on or about May 27, 2025, which will provide the final distribution rate for Purpose USD Cash Management Fund, Purpose Cash Management Fund, Purpose High Interest Savings Fund, and Purpose US Cash Fund. The ex-distribution date will be May 28, 2025.

    (1) Dividend is designated as an “eligible” Canadian dividend for purposes of the Income Tax Act (Canada) and any similar provincial and territorial legislation.
    (2) Purpose US Preferred Share Fund Non-Currency Hedged – ETF Units have both a CAD and USD purchase option. Distribution per unit is declared in CAD, however, the USD purchase option (RPU.U) distribution will be made in the USD equivalent. Conversion into USD will use the end-of-day foreign exchange rate prevailing on the ex-distribution date.


    About Purpose Investments Inc.

    Purpose Investments is an asset management company with more than $21 billion in assets under management. Purpose Investments has an unrelenting focus on client-centric innovation and offers a range of managed and quantitative investment products. Purpose Investments is led by well-known entrepreneur Som Seif and is a division of Purpose Unlimited, an independent technology-driven financial services company.

    For further information please contact:
    Keera Hart
    Keera.Hart@kaiserpartners.com
    905-580-1257

    Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investment fund investments. Please read the prospectus and other disclosure documents before investing. Investment funds are not covered by the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government deposit insurer. There can be no assurance that the full amount of your investment in a fund will be returned to you. If the securities are purchased or sold on a stock exchange, you may pay more or receive less than the current net asset value. Investment funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI New Zealand: Awards – Outstanding exporters to be recognised at ExportNZ ASB Bay of Plenty Export Awards

    Source: EMA

    Judges for the ExportNZ ASB Bay of Plenty Export Awards have announced the finalists who will be honoured at the awards gala on Friday 18 July at Mercury Baypark, Mount Maunganui. The awards, organised by the EMA, celebrate the exceptional achievements of Bay of Plenty businesses who are exporting goods and services to markets around the world.
    The event is proudly supported by principal sponsor ASB, as well as Sharp Tudhope, Air NZ Cargo, Page Macrae, Zespri, and Orbit Travel, and supporting partners NZTE, Comvita and Port of Tauranga.
    Winners announced at Awards Gala on 18  July, at Mercury Baypark, Mount Maunganui
    The success of each finalist will be celebrated at the 1920s-themed awards gala on 18 July, which promises to be a night of elegance, glamour and celebration, honouring the innovation and resilience of the region’s exporters. Gala tickets are available at ExportNZ ASB Bay of Plenty Export Awards 2025 .
    List of finalists – ExportNZ ASB Bay of Plenty Export Awards
    Finalists in the 2025 awards encompass a broad range of innovative businesses, showcasing the breadth and depth of exporting excellence in the Bay of Plenty region. These include heavy engineering and precision machine manufacturers, technology and software solution providers for the agricultural, health and legal sectors, as well as a manufacturer of kids’ cycling accessories. The finalists for the 2025 ExportNZ ASB Bay of Plenty Export Awards are:
    • Bluelab – a manufacturer of precision instruments for measuring pH, electrical conductivity and temperature in controlled agricultural environments.
    • Carepatron – a provider of a secure, cloud-based healthcare solution for practitioners to manage clients, appointments, payments, and records.
    • Kids Ride Shotgun – a designer and manufacturer of mountain bike seats and accessories for young children to enjoy biking with their families.
    • LawVu – a provider of a unified, cloud-based legal workspace, designed for in-house legal teams to efficiently manage matters, contracts, spend, documents, and reporting within a single, secure platform.
    • Medella Health – a developer of innovative wellness devices, including the Flowpresso therapy suit, which combines compression, deep pressure and thermo therapy.
    • Oasis Engineering – a manufacturer of high-pressure control devices for gases, such as hydrogen and compressed natural gas.
    • Plazmax – a designer and manufacturer of advanced computer numerical control (CNC) plasma cutting and robotic welding systems for precision engineering.
    • Rhino Manufacturing – an industry-leading supplier of parts for trucks and trailers; Rhino guards blend powerful performance with striking style.
    • Spida Machinery – a manufacturer of high-quality, precision machinery for the frame, truss, and building-component industries.
    • Trimax Mowing Systems – a designer and manufacturer of tractor-powered roller and flail mowers for commercial use.
    The short-listed exporting companies will be judged over the following categories:
    – Best Emerging Business (in partnership with Air New Zealand Cargo) – recognising businesses in the early stage of their international growth journey.
    – Excellence in Innovation (in partnership with Page Macrae) – recognising success in the commercialisation of innovation in international markets, incorporating intellectual property, strategy, processes and monitoring.
    – Exporter of the Year (in partnership with Sharpe Tudhope) – recognising the success of those businesses that are established in their international growth journey.
    In addition, the Export Achievement Award (in partnership with Zespri) recognises an individual who has made a material contribution to the export success of a business. Finalists for this category are:
    – Sarah Webb, LawVu
    – Karl Stevenson, BlueLab
    Finally, the Services to Export Award (in partnership with Orbit Travel) recognises an individual or business, who may or may not be directly involved with exporting, but has made a significant contribution to exporting success in the Bay of Plenty. Entry for this award is by nomination only, with the winner announced at the awards gala on 18 July.
    Highlighting export innovation in Bay of Plenty
    The awards are organised by the EMA on behalf of ExportNZ. EMA Chief Executive John Fraser-Mackenzie says, “We look forward to honouring these outstanding companies at this year’s awards gala on 18 July, which will harness the spirit of the ‘Roaring Twenties’.
    “The awards celebrate the community of business, providing an opportunity for peer-to-peer networking and knowledge sharing among like-minded, export-oriented companies.”
    Chair of the ExportNZ BoP Executive Committee Warwick Downing says, “These awards shine a well-deserved spotlight on the incredible exporters in the Bay of Plenty who work tirelessly to bring New Zealand products and services to the world.
    “Equally important is the opportunity they provide to bring the exporting community together, to share stories, challenges, and insights that help drive the sector forward.”
    Head of Trade Finance at ASB Bank Mike Atkins says, “We are excited to partner with ExportNZ to celebrate the export champions from the Bay of Plenty region.
    “At ASB, we are passionate about enabling exporters to scale up, be it through working capital funding or other advisory initiatives across productivity, sustainability, clean tech, and food & fibre.”
    Executive Director of ExportNZ Josh Tan says, “These awards are a recognition of the incredible mahi of exporters in the Bay of Plenty who continue to deliver excellence.
    “The awards not only celebrate the individual enterprises, importantly they encourage a collaborative culture that nurtures exporting success across the region.”

    MIL OSI New Zealand News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Fatal traffic accident in Ngau Tau Kok

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

    Fatal traffic accident in Ngau Tau Kok 
         At 10.53pm, a bus driven by a 38-year-old man was travelling along Ngau Tau Kok Road southbound. When approaching Choi Wan Road Sitting-out Area, it reportedly knocked down an 84-year-old man who was crossing the road.
     
         Sustaining serious head injury, the man was rushed to United Christian Hospital in unconscious state and was certified dead at 11.17pm.
     
         The bus driver was arrested for dangerous driving causing death and is being detained for enquiries.
     
         Investigation by the Special Investigation Team of Traffic, Kowloon East is under way.
     
         Anyone who witnessed the accident or has any information to offer is urged to contact the investigating officers on 3661 0262 or 3661 0277.
     
    Issued at HKT 7:18

    NNNN

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Polis Signs Bills into Law Expanding Freedoms for Colorado Food Trucks and Protecting Colorado’s Environment and Air Quality, Takes Action on Bills

    Source: US State of Colorado

    DENVER – Today, Governor Polis signed bills into law expanding mobility and operations across Colorado for food truck owners and operators, investing in environmental opportunities for youth, and protecting Colorado’s clean air by increasing building decarbonization standards. 

    Governor Polis signed HB25-1295 – Food Truck Operations, sponsored by Representatives Manny Rutinel and Mandy Lindsay, and Senators Dylan Roberts and John Carson. 

    “I’m excited that we are making it easier for food trucks to serve up delicious food in different cities and towns across the state. By getting rid of unnecessary regulations, Colorado’s talented chefs can bring more delicious food to your community,” said Governor Polis. 

    Governor Polis also signed the following bills into law increasing environmental literacy for Colorado’s youth, and improving Colorado’s air quality: 

    • SB25-055 – Youth Involvement In Environmental Justice, sponsored by Senators Faith Winter and Janice Marchman, and Representatives Junie Joseph and Jennifer Bacon
    • HB25-1269 – Building Decarbonization Measures, sponsored by Representatives Jenny Willford and Alex Valdez, and Senators Matt Ball and Cathy Kipp 

    “We all have a role to play in protecting this state we love for future generations and these bills help more young people get involved in improving our environment and reduce emissions from buildings in our state to improve Colorado’s air quality. I appreciate the sponsors for their work on these bills to support Colorado’s future,” said Governor Jared Polis. 

    The Governor also signed the following bills administratively: 

    • SB25-155 – Legislation Inside Advisory Council, sponsored by Senators Gonzales and Ball, and Representative Clifford
    • SB25-176 – Sunset Commodity Handler & Farm Products Act, sponsored by Senators R. Pelton and Snyder, and Representatives Martinez and Winter
    • SB25-226 – Extending Spinal & Related Medicine Program, sponsored by Senators Amabile and Kirkmeyer, and Representatives Bird and Taggart
    • SB25-229 – Reimbursement for Community Health Workers, sponsored by Senators Kirkmeyer and Bridges, and Representatives Bird and Taggart
    • HB25-1113 – Limit Turf in New Residential Development, sponsored by Representatives Smith and McCormick, and Senator Roberts
    • HB25-1175 – Smart Meter Opt-In Program, sponsored by Representatives Lieder and Joseph, and Senator Rodriguez 

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