NEW: Meta reviewed, approved, and ran more than 50 ads containing AI-generated child sexual abuse material across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and Threads. They ran for nine months. Some were live this week. After WIRED asked about them, researchers found ~30 more

Meta Ran Ads That Contained AI-Generated Child Sexual Abuse Imagery

More than 50 offending image and video ads were published across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, or Threads, according to Meta’s ad library data. Some ran as recently as this week.

wired.com

An analysis finds that New Mexico's measles outbreak cost $5.4 million last year. NM had 100 cases. AZ outbreak is more than 3x larger; Utah's is more than 7x larger. TX and SC are each 10x larger. Welcoming back measles is going to be very expensive. www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/...

Economic Impact of the 2025 New Mexico Measles Outbreak: Highlighting the Cost of Efforts to Prevent Future Outbreaks | Annals of Internal Medicine

Background: In 2025, the United States experienced its highest measles case count since 1992. In New Mexico, 100 confirmed measles cases (99 outbreak-related cases), including 1 death, occurred across...

acpjournals.org

Kansas voters rejected a ballot measure that would have made members of the state’s Supreme Court electable by popular vote — a seemingly technical issue that had become a proxy battle for the future of abortion rights in the state, Decision Desk HQ projects. https://bit.ly/4c3fG0d

Kansas voters reject another attempt to reshape the state’s abortion landscape

Reproductive rights supporters framed the ballot measure to elect state justices as an attempt to weaken abortion rights.

19thnews.org

After this story and the (excellent but gross) @kffhealthnews.org cyclospora contact tracers story I don't want to read about poop again for a long long time 🤢

Ben Collins@bencollins.bsky.social · 21h ago

Regretfully, full story here:

BREAKING: Susan Collins cited our report on Blanche's promise on a private call with religious activists to restrict abortion pills in announcing today she will not vote to confirm him. www.newscentermaine.com/article/news...

Alice Miranda Ollstein@alicemiranda.bsky.social · 2d ago

NEW from @joshgerstein.bsky.social & me: As his confirmation to lead DOJ hung by a thread last week, acting AG Todd Blanche told faith leaders on a private call that he was preparing to take action to roll back abortion access nationwide. www.politico.com/news/2026/08...

In the meantime, read POLITICO—which first broke the news about this call www.politico.com/news/2026/08...

Blanche assures anti-abortion supporters that Dobbs will be ‘permanent in every single state’

The acting attorney general made the remarks during a private call with faith leaders.

politico.com

NEWS: A Kansas court just struck down laws requiring mandatory waiting periods and counseling sessions before a patient can have an abortion, along with other restrictions. The state has become a haven for people traveling from surrounding states with bans. reproductiverights.org/wp-content/u...

The US host cities for the 2026 men's World Cup claim that they were *verbally* promised $1 million each by Gianni Infantino and that FIFA hasn't paid up. Truly incredible stuff. www.nytimes.com/athletic/749...

The Senate Judiciary Committee is voting imminently on Blanche's confirmation --> www.c-span.org/event/senate...

Alice Miranda Ollstein@alicemiranda.bsky.social · 2d ago

NEW from @joshgerstein.bsky.social & me: As his confirmation to lead DOJ hung by a thread last week, acting AG Todd Blanche told faith leaders on a private call that he was preparing to take action to roll back abortion access nationwide. www.politico.com/news/2026/08...

As record heat waves were felt across the country this year, Trump and his allies rolled back policies that protect workers from the extreme heat.

Trump Administration Is Undoing Plans to Boost Workplace Heat Protections

The Biden administration took steps to shield workers from extreme temperatures. The Trump administration is taking a gentler approach with employers.

nytimes.com

"The Trump administration admitted that it terminated nearly 300 federal research grants 'solely because' the projects were connected to states that voted against Donald Trump in 2024 and had two Democratic senators in office, according to court filings." www.nbcnews.com/politics/tru...

Trump administration concedes it canceled research grants in blue states

The administration said 284 research grants were canceled because they were in states that voted against Donald Trump in 2024.

nbcnews.com

Blanche’s remarks “go far beyond the actions on abortion he promised during his confirmation hearing. They also conflict with promises President Donald Trump made on the campaign trail to keep the federal government from enforcing restrictions on the pills.”

Blanche assures anti-abortion supporters that Dobbs will be ‘permanent in every single state’

The acting attorney general made the remarks during a private call with faith leaders.

politico.com

NEW: Amid AG confirmation battle, Todd Blanche assured anti-abortion activists that he's working to make Dobbs 'permanent in every single state.' Admin will act 'soon' to limit mail-order abortion drugs. w/ @alicemiranda.bsky.social www.politico.com/news/2026/08...

Blanche assures anti-abortion supporters that Dobbs will be ‘permanent in every single state’

The acting attorney general made the remarks during a private call with faith leaders.

politico.com

NEW from @joshgerstein.bsky.social & me: As his confirmation to lead DOJ hung by a thread last week, acting AG Todd Blanche told faith leaders on a private call that he was preparing to take action to roll back abortion access nationwide. www.politico.com/news/2026/08...

Blanche pledged abortion pill crackdown in private religious call: ‘We’re putting practices and policies in place’

The acting attorney general made the remarks during a private call with faith leaders.

politico.com

The van hands out food, water, clothes, first aid and free HIV tests. Locals recognize "Thrivey" as it drives across the Twin Cities. The van, and everything in it, is funded by federal money that has been suddenly revoked, as the government reroutes grants from nonprofits to state health agencies.

Running on empty: Can a red HIV outreach van outlast federal cuts?

The Aliveness Project says that nobody else can replicate what they do for the high-risk communities they reach. They're still being defunded.

19thnews.org

"Massachusetts is on the way to giving doctors the final say on whether an abortion should be allowed late in pregnancy, a move expected to affect few cases but that supporters say is needed because hospitals are now turning away women they should be serving." apnews.com/article/mass...

Massachusetts is close to giving doctors the final word on whether to perform late abortions

Massachusetts is close to giving doctors the final say on whether to perform late abortions. Lawmakers have sent a bill to Democratic Gov.

apnews.com

Michigan reports two deaths in ongoing cyclosporiasis outbreak reut.rs/4w4bd4E

Michigan reports two deaths in ongoing cyclosporiasis outbreak

Two deaths have been identified ​as part of a cyclosporiasis outbreak affecting Michigan, ‌the state's health department said on Monday.

reut.rs

NEW: Federal insurance plans cover about 8.3 million people in America – and in January, they stopped covering gender-affirming care by order of the Trump administration. Trans employees are suing for sex discrimination: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

Trump administration sued for blocking insurance coverage of gender-affirming healthcare

Coverage for gender-affirming care is no longer covered by federal plans, and workers must pay out of pocket

theguardian.com

A must read - a preview of what’s to come en masse when Medicaid work reporting requirements start nationwide. A pregnant woman loses coverage by mistake.. long waits lines for the call center.. People are scared. nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news/news...

Nebraska becomes first state to disenroll Medicaid recipients under new work requirements

The first work requirement-related disenrollments begin in Nebraska on Saturday. While the state Medicaid director estimates this will impact 200 Nebraskans, advocates are concerned that the number wi...

nebraskapublicmedia.org

“We have a generation of rabid, incompetent idiots.” www.politico.com/news/magazin...

GOP Staffers Say the Party Has a Groyper Problem

Party veterans are concerned that the pipeline of young Republican talent is veering off course — and into terminally online extremism.

politico.com

.@arielwittenberg.bsky.social from Memphis: "Multiple environmental groups who are now suing xAI have estimated that the machines could emit more than 2,500 tons of smog-forming pollution annually into an area that already leads Tennessee in rates of emergency room visits for asthma."

Anger Over Data Centers Is Fueling a New Political Movement

Justin Pearson, a Tennessee lawmaker, has become one of the loudest voices amid a growing national backlash against the pollution and politics of America's AI buildout.

politico.com

New: We found 50 cops who misused Flock cameras and other license-plate readers for personal purposes, often to spy on their girlfriends or ex-wives. He "watched every single move I made. ... Who do you turn the chief of police in to?" wapo.st/3S6rTuo

She left her ex. He secretly tracked her through a network of policing cameras.

Flock’s array of license-plate cameras was built to fight crime. But at least 50 law enforcement officers were charged with or accused of misusing it and other systems.

wapo.st

Great reporting from @emilybregel.bsky.social about a gay man who’s been in the US since he was four, imprisoned in a “hotel” in Equatorial Guinea since April. He says he’s being denied soap and toilet paper in retaliation for filing a complaint w African Commission. 1/ tucson.com/news/local/b...

Arizona man languishes in African hotel after third-country deportation

A 30-year-old man, Ahmed Soliman, is confined in a decommissioned hotel in Equatorial Guinea after being deported there by ICE without warning. He faces the threat of return to Egypt, where he may fac...

tucson.com

Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee defeated an effort by Democrats to block the Trump admin plan to shield Trump from IRS audits.

Finance Republicans kill bid to stop Trump IRS audit-immunity deal

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a vocal critic of the immunity plan, sided against a Democratic amendment to block it outright.

politico.com

This week: Nursing homes terminated hundreds of Haitian workers with TPS. Major airports fired Haitian janitors, cabin cleaners and wheelchair attendants. Schools let go of drivers and landscapers. My reporting on the fallout of Haiti TPS termination. t.co/vCyqrl7hK3

NEW from me: A new study examining pollution levels found that while general pollution levels have significantly declined, recent increases in wildfire smoke air pollution have offset those gains and could be contributing to negative outcomes for pregnant women and babies.

Wildfire smoke is now the primary pollutant affecting pregnancy, study shows • Stateline

A new study examining pollution levels across a 16-year span found that while general pollution levels from sources such as cars and industry have significantly declined, recent increases in wildfire ...

stateline.org

New York sues Kalshi, says prediction market is running 'illegal gambling operation'

New York sues Kalshi, says prediction market is running 'illegal gambling operation'

It comes after a federal judge earlier this month denied Kalshi's attempts to intervene against the state's Gaming Commission.

cnb.cx

Medical groups warn the rules will force doctors to “sit as judge and jury on their [sick Medicaid patients’] ability to work” and “violate nearly every core principle of medical ethics.” www.politico.com/news/2026/07...

Judge declines to block strict work rule for sick patients on Medicaid

The case challenging Mehmet Oz's "faithfulness to Congressional intent” will continue.

politico.com

Full story here: www.politico.com/news/2026/07...

Judge declines to block strict work rule for sick patients on Medicaid

The case challenging Mehmet Oz's "faithfulness to Congressional intent” will continue.

politico.com

Alice Miranda Ollstein@alicemiranda.bsky.social · 6d ago

OVERNIGHT BREAKING NEWS: A federal judge has DECLINED to stop the Trump admin from requiring that chronically ill Medicaid patients prove that they are physically unable to work in order to keep their insurance. The underlying case could still block the policy before the Jan. 1 implementation date.