Friday Afternoon Update: OTC Overdose Drug Reversal, Obama In Georgia, Oakland’s New Form Of Political Funding

This article is a companion piece to today’s Morning Wire Afternoon Update. To listen to the podcast version, click here.

Oregon Gun Control Law Faces Lawsuit

A gun control law that narrowly passed in Oregon now faces a lawsuit that could put it on hold just days before it’s supposed to take effect. A judge in Portland heard arguments Friday on whether Measure 114 violates the Second Amendment right of Americans.

Rhode Island Starts Selling Grass

Rhode Island has officially begun to allow recreational marijuana to be sold in stores. Customers began lining up at stores across the state on Thursday, just six months after Governor Dan McKee (D) signed the legislation making pot legal for those 21 and older. Currently, only five stores are allowed to sell cannabis products in The Ocean State, but the state could eventually have as many as 33.

Google Appeals $4 Billion Antitrust Fine

Google has filed an appeal against a more than $4 billion antitrust fine for the Android operating system’s alleged role in restricting mobile competition and consumer choice. The company said they made the filing because there are several areas that require legal clarification from the EU’s top court.

Over-The-Counter Overdose Reversal May Be Coming

A startup working to produce one of the first overdose reversal drugs that can be bought over-the-counter says they’ve submitted their data to the FDA. Officials at Naloxone Corp say a randomized trial of 60 healthy volunteers shows its drug works more quickly than prescription drugs.

The Orient Express Returns

A French firm is reportedly restoring 17 of the original Orient Express carriages dating from the 1920s and 30s. The train service is expected to launch in 2024 in Paris. The service was made famous by Agatha Christie’s 1934 novel “Murder On The Orient Express.”

Oakland Residents To Receive $100 From Taxpayers For Political Funds

Adult residents in Oakland, California, will each receive $100, funded by taxpayers, to donate to a political campaign of their choice. The move is a bid to increase civic participation among voters and to seed funding to candidates who lack financial resources. Voters passed the measure by a margin of 74% in November.

Obama Stumps For Warnock

Former President Barack Obama arrived in Georgia Thursday to campaign with Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) ahead of the U.S. Senate runoff.

On December 6, Georgia voters will choose between Warnock and challenger Herschel Walker. So far, voters in the state have cast over 1 million ballots in the runoff.

Russia Accuses The West Of Direct War Involvement

Russia’s foreign minister accused the West this week of becoming directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine by supplying the country with weapons and training for its soldiers. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also said that Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities and other key infrastructure were intended to weaken Ukraine’s military potential and derail the shipments of Western weapons.

China Easing Lockdowns?

Chinese authorities are reportedly moving to ease COVID measures in the wake of historic protests over the last month. Lockdowns have been lifted in multiple cities, including Beijing, and some mandatory mass testing requirements have also been lifted.

Starbucks Suspends Worker Over “Monkey” Drink Label

A Maryland Starbucks worker has been suspended after a black female customer received a drink labeled “monkey.” The customer’s name is Monique. In an effort to make amends for the incident, the store has promised to provide additional DEI training for the staff and will add the word “monkey” to the list of blocked words in the computer system.

American Soccer Battles The Dutch

And, finally, the U.S. Men’s soccer team faces off against the Netherlands Saturday morning in their first match in the Round of 16 knockout stage.

To listen to the audio version of this podcast, click here. And for more in-depth discussion of the biggest stories of the day, listen to the latest full episode of Morning Wire every morning.

Biden Administration Finally Announces End Of Emergency Declaration For … Monkeypox

The Biden administration has announced its plans to finally end the emergency declaration for … monkeypox.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced Friday that it would not renew the emergency declaration for the monkeypox epidemic when it expires on January 31. HHS cited a continuing declining trend in total case counts as the reason it was not renewing the emergency. The news comes even as the Biden administration reportedly has no plans to lift the COVID emergency declaration.

“From the outset of the mpox outbreak, the Administration pulled every lever to stop the spread of this virus,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement Friday announcing the decision. “In August, the Department of Health and Human Services declared a Public Health Emergency that further strengthened and accelerated the response to produce results. Given the low number of cases today, HHS does not expect that it needs to renew the emergency declaration when it ends on January 31, 2023.” Becerra said that public health officials would continue to work with state and local officials to monitor trends, and encouraged at-risk individuals to get vaccinated.

Case counts of monkeypox have steadily trended downward since the peak of the outbreak in August, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). So far this week, a total of 31 new cases were reported, with a seven-day rolling average of just seven. Just a single new case was reported on Sunday; 13 cases were reported on Monday; just five on Tuesday; and 16 on Wednesday.

At the height of the epidemic in July and August, several hundred new cases were being reported every day, at an average of about 450 per day. The highest single-day number of new cases reported was 638 on August 1. HHS declared an emergency on August 4. The declaration was renewed earlier this month.

Just days ago, the White House backed the World Health Organization’s move to rename the virus from monkeypox to “mpox” in order to remove racist “stigma” against Africans, since the virus is endemic to Africa.

“We welcome the change by the World Health Organization,” Becerra said in a press release Monday. “We must do all we can to break down barriers to public health, and reducing stigma associated with disease is one critical step in our work to end mpox.”

In response to the name change, all federal public health agencies would adopt the “mpox” name in their correspondence with medical professionals and the public. HHS said that changing the name of the virus would “help enhance the U.S. response to mpox by using a term that does not conjure bias or stigma,” and “aid efforts to reach the most impacted communities with a term for the disease that doesn’t act to marginalize individuals from accessing the care, resources, and support they need to protect themselves and others.”

Meanwhile, the Biden administration has no plans to revoke the COVID emergency declaration. According to a report from The Hill, HHS is supposed to inform stakeholders 60 days beforehand that the administration will not renew the emergency declaration. That deadline passed on November 14. The latest declaration will last until January 11.

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