January 25 top stories
It is January 25. Here are today’s top stories.
Supreme Court declines to halt first nitrogen gas execution
The Supreme Court on Wednesday refuses to stop Alabama from executing an inmate by nitrogen hypoxia. The method is controversial and untested that has prompted a legal pushback and a rebuke from the United Nations.
During the execution, Alabama officials said Kenneth Eugene Smith will be strapped to a gurney chamber and forced to breathe nitrogen through a gas mask until his body is depleted entirely of oxygen and shuts down.
Although it has never been used before inside the death chamber, the consequences of too much nitrogen inhalation, usually accidentally in industrial settings, are well-documented. Furthermore, veterinarians have refused to use nitrogen asphyxiation to euthanize animals because of its distressing effects and potential risks to people around.
Smith is scheduled for Thursday, Jan 25 which is today, and he will be the first person in the United States to be put to death with nitrogen gas.
California woman rescued after stuck atop car
Just after 10 am Tuesday, a camper called 911 about a car submerged in the water. When fire crews arrived at the scene, they spotted a stranded woman sitting on top of the car in a swift-moving Livermore creek in Bay Area, California, and began planning a rescue.
According to Alameda County Fire, the woman tried to drive through the creek around 7:30pm Monday, but she underestimated how deep it was and was running faster than expected causing her car to overturn.
Thanks to appropriate weather, they were able to have a helicopter to lower a rescue technician and get the woman out of the creek. It could have had a whole different outcome. She would have been swept downstream, but she was strong enough to get up on top of the vehicle. Because the entire cab was submerged, so she was able to swim out of the window and climb herself up on the vehicle, they continued.
She was stranded for about 15 hours before getting rescued. Rescue crews said she would be OK, but she was still taken to a hospital to be evaluated. A video posted on Facebook under the California Highway Patrol (CHP) account showed the dramatic rescue:
[Shows the video from https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=694529682887018 - CREDIT to CHP - Golden Gate Division Air Operations]
French mother left child to live alone for two years
Multiple sources reported that a mother, Alexandra, in France was sentenced to 18 months in prison last week for abandoning her 9-year-old child. The boy had been left to live alone in the family’s apartment in Nersac, central west France for two years, from 2020 to 2022. He appeared to survive on cake, canned goods, and stolen tomatoes.
The child’s mother lived with her partner in another apartment 3.1 miles away and would only visit the child from “time to time”.
Nersac mayor, Barbara Couturier, said the child often did not have hot water or heating. Nevertheless, he continued attending school during this time and was a good student. The mayor also said she was the one who intervened after the child’s mom came to tell them she had financial problems and reports from residents that there was a child living alone, so she connected the two things and called the local police and the national police.
The boy is under the care of social services.
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Obamacare enrollment hits record
The Washington Post reported that a record 21.3 million Americans flocked to the Affordable Care Act as known as Obamacare coverage for 2024, further cementing the law’s place in the nation’s healthcare landscape. This breaks the record for the third consecutive year.
Nearly 5 million more people signed up for Obamacare policies this year compared with last year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversees the Affordable Care Act marketplaces, said Wednesday. About a quarter of people selecting plans were new consumers.
Health and Human Services Secretary Becerra told a news outlet in an exclusive interview that part of it is a really simple recipe – 4 out of 5 people can find plans with premiums of $10 a month or less after federal subsidies.
Former President Trump has revived his promise to repeal Obamacare, saying it “sucks”. He vows to replace it with a better plan but has yet to unveil one. Meanwhile, President Biden said in a statement Wednesday, “The American people have made it clear: they don’t want the Affordable Care Act weakened and repealed – they want it strengthened and protected.”
Alex has a news story to share about the recent development in Ohio politics. Here it is.
Ohio lawmakers ban gender-affirming care for minors
Thanks, Callie. In Ohio, the state Senate voted to ban gender-affirming care for minors and ban transgender athletes from competing on girls’ and women’s sports teams.
The Senate, which is dominated by Republicans, overrode a veto from Ohio’s Republican Gov. Mike DeWine to impose the bans. So it means the Ohio legislature wanted the ban in place, but the governor blocked it, and now the legislature — both the state House and the Senate — overrode the governor’s action because they have enough votes.
Gov. DeWine said he vetoed because he had heard from parents of transgender youth who said gender-affirming care was lifesaving. They didn’t want the ban in place.
A member of the Ohio legislature said they are protecting women and children.
The new law is to take effect in 90 days. It will bar doctors from giving puberty-blocking drugs or performing gender reassignment surgery. It will also prohibit schools and colleges from allowing trans women to participate in women’s sports.
Reuters said this issue of gender-affirming care for trans youth is becoming a nationwide political issue and that the Supreme Court could eventually make a ruling on whether the bans are constitutional.
Thanks for that story. That is all the news stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light!
Nitrogen gas:
https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/24/us/alabama-kenneth-smith-execution/index.html
Woman atop of car:
https://www.kron4.com/news/woman-survives-14-hours-on-top-of-submerged-car-in-california/
French mother:
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/boy-france-nersac-home-alone-mother-b2484100.html
Obamacare:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2024/01/24/obamacare-record-enrollment-biden/
https://thehill.com/homenews/4400342-obamacare-enrollment-breaks-record-for-third-consecutive-year/