News Roundup 10/06/2017
By Brody Salazar
1. Obama-era Birth Control Requirements Rolled Back:
On Friday, Trump established a new policy that allows health insurance providers to not have to pay for an employee's birth control if the the provider shows that it objects due to religious beliefs. This is in contrast to an Obama-era rule, brought about by the Affordable Care Act, which did not allow for any provider to refuse paying. Schools and universities, nonprofits and for-profit companies, as well as other organizations run outside of the government, will be immediately effected by the new regulation.
Source: NBC News
2. Trump Expected to Back Out of Iran Deal:
Next week Donald Trump will have to make a decision concerning the Iran deal. It is believed Trump will decertify the deal, according to the LA Times. Aides are working on speeches described as harsh that Trump is considering delivering on Wednesday or Thursday to explain his choice in action. U.S. law demands the White House alert Congress every 90 days if Iran is obeying the rules of the deal, and if it is still in the best interest of the United State's national security. Trump has already certified it twice, but may still change his stance by the Oct. 15 deadline.
Source: Los Angeles Times
3. Knowingly Exposing Others to HIV No Longer Felony in California:
On Friday, California Gov. Jerry Brown approved of a bill that reclassifies the act of knowingly exposing someone to HIV without making the partner aware of the condition from a felony to a misdemeanor. The new bill effects anyone who exposes HIV to another through sexual acts, as well as those who donate blood without informing the blood bank they are infected.
"We are going to end new HIV infections, and we will do so not by threatening people with state prison time, but rather by getting people to test and providing them access to care," said state Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco.
Source: Los Angeles Times
4. Tropical Storm Nate Due to Hit New Orleans:
The National Hurricane Center changed the tropical storm warning for New Orleans to a hurricane warning. The warning includes the states from Louisiana to Florida. So far Tropical Storm Nate has killed at least 24 people when it reached Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras. As of late Friday, Nate has been classified as a category 1 hurricane. Nate is predicted to reach land near New Orleans on Sunday.
Source: CNN
5. Anti-Nuclear Weapons Group Awarded Nobel Peace Prize:
The Norwegian Nobel Committee granted the 2017 Nobel Peace Price to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). The committee said ICAN was given the award for its attempts at bringing to light the "catastrophic humanitarian consequences" that are brought about by the use of nuclear weapons.
"Nuclear weapons pose a constant threat to humanity and all life on earth. Through binding international agreements, the international community has previously adopted prohibitions against land mines, cluster munitions and biological and chemical weapons. Nuclear weapons are even more destructive, but have not yet been made the object of a similar international legal prohibition," said Nobel committee president Berit Reiss-Andersen.
Source: CNN