NPR News Now - NPR News: 07-01-2025 3AM EDT

Episode Date: July 1, 2025

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Terri Gross, host of Fresh Air. Hey, take a break from the 24-hour news cycle with us and listen to long-form interviews with your favorite authors, actors, filmmakers, comedians, and musicians, the people making the art that nourishes us and speaks to our times. So listen to the Fresh Air podcast from NPR and WHYY. Shea Stevens, NPR News. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shea Stevens. Senate Republicans are still pushing for final passage of the tax and spending bill containing

President Trump's legislative priorities. Democrats have introduced a series of amendments and motions to delay the process. And NPR's Elena Moore reports that they are especially concerned about proposed cuts to Medicaid. Elena Moore We're talking about the Joint Federal and State Health Care Program for Low-Income Elderly and Disabled Americans. That's what Medicaid is. A handful of Republicans, particularly those who represent large rural areas, have been

hesitant to support big changes to Medicaid. You know, they say it could seriously hurt, for one, rural hospitals. But at the same time, there's a group of, you know, hard-right fiscal conservatives who still want to see more cuts to the program because they say it'll help the government just offset the costs of this big bill. You know, Senator from Florida, Rick Scott, is introducing an amendment that would reduce how much the federal government contributes to individuals on Medicaid expansion, and that could bring in hundreds of millions in savings. NPR's Elena Moore. Republicans in Congress are considering an even faster phase out of

tax credits for electric vehicles than they had previously planned. That's according to the latest version of the Senate's tax and spending plan. NPR's Kamila Domenoski explains. The credits are worth up to $4,000 for used EVs or $7,500 for new vehicles. House Republicans voted to phase them out starting at the end of this year, but the Senate suggested a cutoff of September 30th, three months from now. One EV trade group called that a significant step backward that would help China. Republicans have called the tax credits wasteful. Auto dealers, meanwhile, are lobbying to keep the credits longer.

Despite years of questioning the push toward EVs, the major dealer trade group now says ending credits abruptly would cause confusion and disruption. Camila Dominovski, NPR News. An early heat wave could bring record highs to parts of Europe this week. NPR's Eleanor Beerslie reports that many homes and public buildings on the continent are not air-conditioned. Eleanor Beerslie, NPR News. Temperatures will soar over 100 degrees in much of France by Wednesday.

Heat plans have been put in place across the country with emergency services on high alert. In 2003, a similar heat wave caused nearly 15,000 excess deaths in France, especially amongst older people living alone. French authorities have since improved coordination of social and health services. Cool rooms and fountains have been set up in cities across the country for old and young alike. Thousands of schools remain closed Monday amid the dangerous temperatures. Traffic is also being restricted to curb pollution and increased heat.

Eleanor Beardsley, NPR News, Samira Noxwa, Burgundy. U.S. futures are flat and after hours trading on Wall Street. You're listening to NPR. For the first time in nearly four decades, Philadelphia's largest municipal employees union is on strike. Roughly 9,000 members of District Council 33 of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees walked off their jobs at midnight in a dispute over pay and work rules. City officials say they have made contingency plans for emergency 911 call centers and set

up trance drop-off sites. A new study estimates that the U.S. Agency for International Development has helped save tens of millions of lives over the past two decades. As NPR's Jonathan Lambert reports, the study is also predicting that millions of preventable deaths will occur if the funding cuts continue. For decades, USAID has been the biggest government player in foreign aid, funding a range of initiatives from feeding hungry children to distributing HIV drugs. Assessing the total impact of those programs is tricky, but a new study in the Lancet took

a comprehensive approach. It found that USAID programs were associated with a 15% reduction in deaths from any cause. That translates to about 91 million lives saved between 2001 and 2021. In March, the Trump administration announced that 83% of USAID programs would be canceled. If those cuts to health and disease prevention programs remain, the team of international researchers project that more than 14 million preventable deaths could occur by 2030. Jonathan Lambert, NPR News. When Asia-Pacific market shares are mostly lower, down 1% in Tokyo, up a fraction in News.