As congressional debate on dismantling parts of the Affordable Care Act gathers steam—backed by Donald Trump—over 4.6 million Latinos who gained coverage since 2010 may see it slip away, according to U.S. health data. Florida and Texas, already insurance-challenged, would bear the brunt; advocates warn that rolling back Medicaid expansion and subsidies risks sending uninsured rates back to pre-Obamacare heights—progress proving less than immune to Washington’s recurrent fevers.
New York City in brief
Top five stories in the five boroughs today
After the Trump administration axed over $800 million in Department of Justice antiviolence grants this year—nearly $60 million lost by close to 20 New York City nonprofits—groups like Exodus Transitional Community laid off staff and shrank services. They warn progress may unravel in some harder-hit neighborhoods, but the DOJ prefers to fund "law enforcement operations" over hand-holding; hope springs eternal, though budgets apparently do not.
A peer-reviewed study in *Nature* suggests Manhattan’s congestion pricing—a $9 daily toll rolled out by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority—has cut the borough’s fine airborne particles by 22% over the past year, with smaller gains in surrounding areas. While air in Midtown now hovers just above EPA healthy thresholds, we’re not yet mistaking New York for Lake District pastures—though at least our lungs may find less drama crossing Broadway.
New York City’s economy is holding its nerve, according to the Economic Development Corporation’s latest report, with job growth shifting beyond Manhattan and unemployment dipping to 4.9%. Yet, familiar irritants persist: affordability woes, housing shortages, and those relentlessly climbing bills. While young professionals still flock here, middle-income families decamp for cheaper suburbs—suggesting that even in a “resilient” year, survival in Gotham remains an expensive hobby.
The Trump administration pressed ahead with dismantling protections for young undocumented immigrants, targeting the long-standing Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. U.S. officials announced they will expedite deportations, leaving thousands of children and young adults in legal limbo. As Washington’s wrangling over immigration drags on, it seems the American dream remains a fiercely contested tourist attraction for the world’s hopeful minors.