En las noticias

Neurosurgeons have thrown their support behind a bipartisan letter from 152 members of the U.S. House of Representatives that calls on the Biden administration to update the interim final rule by including a key section from the No Surprises Act.

The office of local Congressman Dr. Raul Ruiz honored two local veterans by bestowing them their earned service medals.

Navy veteran Mike Mrsny served for 30 years. He was honored with the Bronze Star Service Medal which is the nation's fourth-highest award given to service members.

"Mixed feelings you know. Part of you says you don't deserve it and part of you says, you know, thanks for bringing it out," said Mrsny. "It's nice to get the recognition. I think the troops deserve it more than me, but that's the nature of the beast."

Everyone was invited to watch the colorful Palm Springs Pride Parade after pride festivities.

"It was amazing. I mean, look at it, it there's thousands of people here and I couldn't be more proud to be gay and have everybody out here," said visitor Kendall Madsen. "Love is love and you feel it with everybody that you come in contact with."

Madsen has been coming to Palm Springs Pride for nearly 20 years. After a two year pandemic pause, the pride festivities are back.

With negotiations over a $1.75 trillion spending package at a critical point in Washington, U.S. Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Palm Desert, is hopeful that the final version of the legislation will be passed in the House by the end of the week.

The package, known as the Build Back Better Act, would mark a major revamping of the country's social safety net and climate policies, investing hundreds of billions of dollars to expand access to child care and pre-school, extend child tax credits and promote more investment in renewable energy.

Powerful blocs of Democratic lawmakers are fighting to keep a proposed expansion of health coverage for lower-income Americans in President Biden's social spending and climate agenda, hoping to survive a cull of programs as the party trims the package's price tag.

The congressional Black and Hispanic caucuses, as well as civil-rights groups, have given priority to an expansion of health coverage for people in the dozen states that haven't expanded Medicaid eligibility, looking to help people who don't qualify under their states' current rules but can't afford other coverage.

President Biden hosted lawmakers at the White House on Tuesday as Democrats raced to find an agreement on a sweeping climate and social spending package including much of his domestic agenda.

"The president will have more members down here today. He could certainly have more members down here tomorrow," White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at a briefing Tuesday morning before the meeting.

The Board of Supervisors approved the use of a $30 million state grant for efforts to relocate hundreds of people from the hazard-plagued Oasis Mobile Home Park in Thermal, though the process of clearing the 60-acre space is already facing potential hurdles.

"There's nothing to stop the current owners and operators from allowing other people to move in there," County Counsel Greg Priamos told the board ahead of its 4-0 vote. "We may never get off this merry-go-round."

Physician legislators from both parties said that expanding access to medication and therapy for obesity is crucial to turning the tide in one of America's great public health challenges.

Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-CA) and Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH), who are both medical doctors, discussed their proposal to increase prevention and modernize health policy at The Hill's "Improving Obesity Care" event on Wednesday.