The Trump administration is planning to meet with executives from U.S. oil companies later this week to discuss boosting oil production in Venezuela, according to a source familiar with the matter.
The discussions would come in the wake of the U.S.-led operation that ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás
Maduro and could mark a major shift in American energy involvement in the South American nation. The administration is exploring ways to bring U.S. oil companies back into Venezuela after the government there took control of U.S.-led energy operations nearly two decades ago.
The White House declined to comment directly on the planned meetings but said it believes U.S. industry is prepared to move into Venezuela.
U.S. health officials are investigating ongoing measles outbreaks in South Carolina and other states to determine if they are unrelated to last year’s major outbreak in Texas. The country must show the cases are unconnected to retain its World Health Organization measles elimination designation.
On the fifth anniversary of the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol, there will be no official government memorial.
President Donald Trump is meeting privately with House Republicans for a policy forum at the Kennedy Center, while Democrats are holding a hearing and gathering on the Capitol steps to mark the day. The events come as lawmakers and the public reflect on the deadly attack that left five people dead, including law enforcement officers.
A jury has been seated in the trial of a former school police officer accused of mishandling the law enforcement response to the 2022 Uvalde school shooting.
Former Uvalde schools officer Adrian Gonzales faces charges of failing to protect children after authorities waited more than an hour to confront the gunman at Robb Elementary. Gonzales is one of two officers charged in connection with the attack that left 19 students and two teachers dead.
The trial is expected to draw close attention as it examines the actions of law enforcement during one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history.
U.S. flu infections surged over the holidays, and health officials are calling it a severe season that is likely to get worse.
New government data posted Monday — for flu activity through the week of Christmas — showed that by some measures this season is already surpassing the flu epidemic of last winter, one of the harshest in recent history.
The data was released the same day that the Trump administration said it will no longer recommend flu shots and some other types of vaccines for all children.
Forty-five states were reporting high or very high flu activity during the week of Christmas, up from 30 states the week before.
The higher numbers appear to be driven by the type of flu that’s been spreading, public health experts say.
One type of flu virus, called A H3N2, historically has caused the most hospitalizations and deaths in older people. So far this season, that’s the type most frequently reported. Even more concerning, more than 90% of the H3N2 infections analyzed were a new version — known as the subclade K variant — that differs from the strain in this year’s flu shots.
Flu seasons often don’t peak until January or February, so it’s too early to know how big a problem that mismatch will be.
“The fact that we’ve seen steady increases over the last several weeks without much of a decline or even a flattening would suggest to me that we’ve got the peak ahead of us,” said Dr. Robert Hopkins, medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases.
Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk is launching its once-daily Wegovy pill in the United States on Monday, offering doses of 1.5 milligrams and 4 mg at $149 per month for self-paying patients in an intensely competitive weight-loss drug market.
The pill was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last month, a boon to Novo Nordisk as it looks to regain ground lost to U.S. rival Eli Lilly. Lilly has previously said it expects a decision in March for its own weight-loss pill.
Novo's pill will also be sold in 9 mg and a higher long-term dose of 25 mg. The two higher doses will be priced at $299 for a month's supply, while the 4 mg dose will rise to $199 from April 15, the drugmaker's website shows.
The Wegovy pill could attract new consumers as Novo looks to revive its fortunes after profit warnings and sliding shares last year. The treatment offers more flexibility and an alternative for those who dislike needles used in injectable medication.
The once-daily pill is also under review by other regulators, with a UK decision due by year-end.
Denmark-listed shares of the drugmaker closed 5% higher on Monday. U.S.-listed shares of Novo were up 4.6%, while Lilly slipped 3.5% in afternoon trading.
The success of Novo's pill will be tied to attracting cash-paying consumers who cannot get insurance coverage, a stark shift from the dominant business model where drug pricing is managed through health insurance plans.
Novo said the treatment would be available through U.S. pharmacies CVS and Costco, as well as through telehealth providers including Ro, LifeMD, WeightWatchers, GoodRx and its own NovoCare Pharmacy.
Shares of the telehealth firms rose between 3% and 14% in afternoon trading.
The low 1.5 mg dose is the starter dose for the Wegovy pill, which is made up of semaglutide, the same active ingredient found in its blockbuster injectable weight-loss and diabetes treatments marketed under the brand names Wegovy and Ozempic.
Novo also offers the 1.5 mg dose for its oral semaglutide drug for type 2 diabetes, sold as Rybelsus.
The remaining doses of the Wegovy pill will be available for patients by the end of this week, Novo said.
Lilly plans to cap higher doses of its obesity pill, if approved, at $399 a month for repeat cash buyers. Lilly's injectable drug Zepbound has largely been ahead of Novo's Wegovy in weekly U.S. prescriptions over the past year.
U.S. list prices for the injectables are about $1,000 per month or more. Both companies have reduced prices of their injectables for customers paying in cash rather than using health insurance.
Novo began selling its Wegovy injection at $349 a month to cash payers in November.
Under a deal with U.S. President Donald Trump, Novo and Lilly also agreed to offer starter doses of their weight-loss pills at $149 per month for Medicare and Medicaid enrollees, and to cash payers via the White House's new direct-to-consumer TrumpRx site, which is expected to be launched this month.
Novo had faced repeated supply shortages after launching its Wegovy injection in the U.S. But having built up supplies for its new pill for some time to prevent similar challenges, Novo said it was confident it could meet supply needs.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is censuring Democratic Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona. In November, Kelly joined five other lawmakers in a video that called on troops to uphold the Constitution and not follow “illegal orders.” Defense Secretary Hegseth said the censure was a “necessary” step toward proceedings that could result in a demotion from Kelly’s retired rank of captain. Kelly responded by calling the move “outrageous” and “wrong.” He said it sends “the message to every single retired servicemember that if they say something [Hegseth] or Donald Trump doesn’t like, they will come after them the same way.”
Deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro declared himself “innocent” and a “decent man” as he pleaded not guilty to federal drug trafficking charges in a U.S. courtroom on Monday.
“I’m innocent. I am not guilty. I am a decent man, the president of my country,” Maduro told a judge.
Maduro made his first appearance in an American courtroom Monday on the narco-terrorism charges the Trump administration used to justify capturing him and bringing him to New York.
Maduro, wearing a blue jail uniform, and his wife were led into court around noon for a brief, but required, legal proceeding that will likely kick off a prolonged legal fight over whether he can be put on trial in the U.S.
His next court date is set for March 17.
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