The Trump administration proposed a rule to expand employers’ ability to offer fertility benefits, as part of its effort to expand access to fertility treatments, including in vitro fertilization. The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury announced the proposed rule Sunday that would establish a new category of limited excepted benefits — the same category as dental and vis...
The Trump administration proposed a rule to expand employers’ ability to offer fertility benefits, as part of its effort to expand access to fertility treatments, including in vitro fertilization. The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury announced the proposed rule Sunday that would establish a new category of limited excepted benefits — the same category as dental and vision benefit coverage — to cover fertility. Similar to dental and vision coverage, the proposed rule could exempt employer-sponsored fertility benefits from Affordable Care Act requirements and certain other federal healthcare coverage laws, according to the Department of Labor. The employer-sponsored fertility benefits would have the same structural principles as other limited excepted benefits, under the proposed rule, including a lifetime benefit cap of $120,000 and notice requirements. The aim is to expand employers’ offerings and lower the cost of fertility treatments, though the proposed rule does not entirely eliminate costs to the recipient. This move aims to build on an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in February 2025 requesting policy recommendations on “protecting IVF access” and “aggressively reducing out-of-pocket and health plan costs for IVF treatment.” This measure comes at a time when the Republican Party and “Make America Healthy Again,” or MAHA, movement enthusiasts have raised concerns about the birth rate hitting record lows in the US in recent years, and while states continue their push to curtail abortion access. Read More: Trump’s ‘MAHA’ Blitz Loses Momentum as Midterm Dilemmas Grow
TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump (L) and China's President Xi Jinping arrive for talks at the Gimhae Air Base, located next to the Gimhae International Airport in Busan on October 30, 2025. Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will seek a truce in their bruising trade war on October 30, with the US president predicting a "great meeting" but Beijing being more circumspect. (Photo by ANDREW...
TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump (L) and China's President Xi Jinping arrive for talks at the Gimhae Air Base, located next to the Gimhae International Airport in Busan on October 30, 2025. Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will seek a truce in their bruising trade war on October 30, with the US president predicting a "great meeting" but Beijing being more circumspect. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP) (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images) Andrew Caballero-reynolds | Afp | Getty Images SINGAPORE – When U.S. President Donald Trump and China's Xi Jinping meet in Beijing on Thursday, they and their teams will seal outcomes on potentially a huge range of issues. The agenda spans trade, technology, rare earth export controls, Taiwan, the Iran war, and artificial intelligence. China's decision to suspend exports of a wide range of rare earths and related magnets, and its ban on semiconductors from Nexperia China, upended supply chains central to global automakers , with political and economic consequences across Europe, Japan, and South Korea. "Virtually everyone has a stake in the outcome of this meeting," said Chad Bown, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. That also means other world leaders and interested parties will likely be paying close attention — even if they won't be in the room when decisions are made that might have far-reaching consequences for them. Leading up to the summit, both sides have been ratcheting up pressure, with Washington accusing Beijing of running "industrial-scale" campaigns to steal American AI technology, and China ordering companies not to comply with U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil as well as hosting Iran's foreign minister for a visit. The future trajectory of the relationship — whether toward cooperation or confrontation — will have massive consequences for the global economy. "The entire world will be hoping that the two leaders can reach agreement on at least a ...
More States Enact New Laws Curbing Teachers Unions Authored by Aaron Gifford via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), New organized labor reforms signed into law by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis last week require a majority of members to be present for teachers union certification or recertification votes, increase fines for illegal strikes, and establish merit-based pay for educators. Students join strik...
More States Enact New Laws Curbing Teachers Unions Authored by Aaron Gifford via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), New organized labor reforms signed into law by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis last week require a majority of members to be present for teachers union certification or recertification votes, increase fines for illegal strikes, and establish merit-based pay for educators. Students join striking teachers as they demand higher pay and smaller class sizes outside Oakland Technical High School in Oakland, Calif., on Feb. 21, 2019. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images In Idaho, after July 1, teachers unions will be prohibited from collecting dues directly from members’ paychecks, using paid time off for union activities, or recruiting new members during school hours. A similar law in Arizona, which also bans teacher strikes and prohibits organized labor members from using any school property—even email addresses—for union activities, will be decided on by voters in the November election. “They can’t consume taxpayer-funded resources during the school day,” said Rusty Brown, special projects director for the Freedom Foundation policy organization, which assisted state legislators with those measures and helps teachers opt out of union membership. These ideas are expected to gain ground throughout the nation in the months and years ahead, Brown told The Epoch Times. Individually, the Freedom Foundation’s Teacher Freedom Alliance has so far helped more than 272,535 teachers opt out of union membership, including more than 50,000 in 2025 alone, according to data provided to The Epoch Times. This includes educators in red and blue states. At the state level, Oklahoma lawmakers have advanced legislation that would allow teachers to withdraw from a union at any time and would terminate “closed shop” provisions that prevent teachers from accessing alternative labor or professional organizations, such as the Teacher Freedom Alliance. Brown calls this an “equal access and an end to ...
Nintendo Co. ’s shares plunged the most in three months after the company forecast hardware and software sales declines, a sign that the Switch 2 has yet to create a self-sustaining demand cycle. The Kyoto-based company’s stock price fell 10% in Tokyo on Monday to its lowest since August 2024. Nintendo says it expects Switch 2 unit sales to fall 17% and software sales to fall 11% in the fiscal yea...
Nintendo Co. ’s shares plunged the most in three months after the company forecast hardware and software sales declines, a sign that the Switch 2 has yet to create a self-sustaining demand cycle. The Kyoto-based company’s stock price fell 10% in Tokyo on Monday to its lowest since August 2024. Nintendo says it expects Switch 2 unit sales to fall 17% and software sales to fall 11% in the fiscal year to March. That’s as the rising cost of memory chips and other materials forced the company to announce price hikes for the Switch 2, the original Switch, online subscriptions and playing cards. The company said it expects a ¥100 billion ($640 million) impact on profit from high memory prices and US tariffs this year. Nintendo shares had shed close to 30% this year through Friday, with concerns growing about the slow pace of game launches since the Switch 2’s debut in June. Consumers in Japan rushed to electronics stores to buy the Switch 2 following Nintendo’s price announcement, with stock at many online and physical retailers evaporating over the weekend. Demand for the hardware remains robust, with analysts saying that Nintendo is perhaps being overly conservative. “Why would Nintendo issue guidance for declining software sales when they should be ramping up user activity in the console’s crucial second year?” Morningstar analyst Kazunori Ito said. “It’s baffling.”
Actor and comedian speaks for the first time since his 42-year-old daughter died by suicide in February Martin Short has spoken for the first time about the death of his daughter, Katherine Short, saying her death has been “a nightmare for the family”. Katherine died in February aged 42, at her home in the Hollywood Hills. The County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner’s office confirmed she died by s...
Actor and comedian speaks for the first time since his 42-year-old daughter died by suicide in February Martin Short has spoken for the first time about the death of his daughter, Katherine Short, saying her death has been “a nightmare for the family”. Katherine died in February aged 42, at her home in the Hollywood Hills. The County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner’s office confirmed she died by suicide. In the US, you can call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org . In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie . In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org Continue reading...