Hospital construction underway, medical office project in final stages

The Republican-controlled North Carolina legislature has given final approval to a Medicaid expansion agreement. Thursday's state House vote reverses longstanding opposition to the measure, which now goes to expansion advocate and Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper for his signature. GOP legislative leaders reached a deal earlier this month, capping years of debate over whether the politically closely divided state should accept the federal government’s coverage for hundreds of thousands of low-income adults. North Carolina was one of 11 states that hadn't yet adopted expansion. The bill contains one caveat: A state budget law must be passed before expansion can be carried out.

Proposals in several states would allow or require schools to deadname transgender students or out them to their parents without consent. Transgender kids and their families say the proposals could eliminate K-12 public schools as one of the last remaining havens to explore their identities. The stated aim of the bills is to give parents greater control over their childrens' education. Some parents and teachers argue they have a right to know. But others warn the proposals could jeopardize children's health and safety. And some teachers say the reporting requirements force educators to betray the trust of their students or risk losing their job.

An agreement to expand Medicaid in North Carolina has reached the cusp of final legislative approval following a state House vote. The House chamber voted 95-21 on Wednesday for legislation that would direct state health officials to accept Medicaid coverage for potentially 600,000 low-income adults. One more affirmative House vote is needed Thursday before it goes to the desk of longtime expansion advocate Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper. The Senate voted last week for the agreement reached between Republican lawmakers three weeks ago. GOP lawmakers had been skeptical for nearly a decade about accepting expansion, which originated from the 2010 federal Affordable Care Act.

North Carolina’s Republican-controlled House has advanced a previously vetoed proposal to restrict how teachers can discuss certain racial topics that some lawmakers equate to “critical race theory.” The House voted 68-49 along party lines Wednesday for legislation banning public school teachers from compelling students to believe they should feel guilty or responsible for past actions committed by people of the same race or sex. House Democrats challenged Republican claims that the bill would reduce discrimination and argued that a comprehensive history education should make students uncomfortable. Republicans are one seat short of a veto-proof supermajority and will likely need some Democratic support for the measure to become law.

Authorities in South Carolina say a former soldier shot and killed three children as they slept in their home while their mother frantically sought help. The ex-soldier then killed himself. Sumter Police Chief Russell Roark says Charles Slacks Jr. also killed an Army solider who worked with the children’s mother and happened to be at the home. Slacks and the woman were divorced, but he still had a key and let himself in around 10 p.m. Tuesday. Slacks shot the co-worker in the backyard, pushed past the mother and shot the children upstairs. They were a 5-year-old, 6-year-old and an 11-year-old.

The specter of missing GoPro camera footage documenting the 2016 ski collision between Gwyneth Paltrow and a retired optometrist has been raised at trial in Park City. The daughter of a man suing Paltrow has testified Thursday that her father Terry Sanderson's health and cognitive function deteriorated after the collision, when he broke his ribs and suffered from a concussion. Paltrow has claimed that Sanderson was actually the culprit for the collision, and her attorneys also questioned the daughter about her father's mentions of Paltrow's wealth and celebrity. Paltrow is likely to be called to testify Friday or early next week.

Utah has become the first state to sign into law legislation that attempts to limit teenagers’ access to social media sites. Republican Gov. Spencer Cox signed a pair of measures Thursday require parental consent before kids can sign up for sites like TikTok and Instagram. The two bills Cox signed into law also prohibit kids under 18 from using social media between the hours of 10:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m. They also require age verification for anyone who wants to use social media in the state and seek to prevent tech companies from luring kids to their apps using addictive features. Other states, such as Arkansas, Texas, Ohio and Louisiana have similar bills in the works.

The Republican-controlled North Carolina legislature has given final approval to a Medicaid expansion agreement. Thursday's state House vote reverses longstanding opposition to the measure, which now goes to expansion advocate and Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper for his signature. GOP legislative leaders reached a deal earlier this month, capping years of debate over whether the politically closely divided state should accept the federal government’s coverage for hundreds of thousands of low-income adults. North Carolina was one of 11 states that hadn't yet adopted expansion. The bill contains one caveat: A state budget law must be passed before expansion can be carried out.

A federal appeals court has blocked President Joe Biden’s order that federal employees get vaccinated against COVID-19. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans rejected arguments that Biden, as the nation’s chief executive, has the same authority as the CEO of a private corporation to require that employees be vaccinated. The ruling from the full appeals court — 16 judges at the time — reversed an earlier ruling by a three-judge appellate panel that had upheld the vaccination requirement. Opponents of the policy said it was an encroachment on federal workers’ lives that neither the Constitution nor federal statutes authorize.