NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-27-2025 10PM EDT

Episode Date: October 28, 2025

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Support for NPR comes from NPR member stations and Eric and Wendy Schmidt through the Schmidt Family Foundation, working toward a healthy, resilient, secure world for all. On the web at theshmit.org. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Giles Snyder. The government shut down and now in its 27th day, and congressional leaders say they are no closer to an agreement to end it. NPR Sam Greenglass has more. This shutdown is now the second longest in U.S. history, but both Republicans and Democrats see coming impacts that could compel the other side to back down. Democrats like House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries think expiring health care subsidies will be harder for Republicans to ignore after November 1st when open enrollment begins for Affordable Care Act marketplace plans. Tens of millions of Americans are going to wake up to the reality that their premiums,

co-pays, and deductibles are about to accept. That same day, funding for the food assistance program, SNAP, is expected to run out. And Republicans are warning of flight cancellations and delays if the shutdown persist through Thanksgiving. Sam Greenglass, NPR News, Washington. The president of the largest federal worker union is calling the shutdown an avoidable crisis. American Federation of Government Employees leader Everett Kelly is calling on Congress to end the shutdown by passing a clean continuing resolution. For decades, the federal government collected. data on the American high school experience. But that long-running effort came to a halt earlier

this year. APM reporter Carmelo Yonone tells us why. The government has been running high school longitudinal studies since the early 1970s. Students answer survey questions during school and then repeatedly in later years. Policymakers used that data to help students be successful. At least Christopher ran these studies for years at the Department of Education. Every single person in this country who's been educated in the past, 50 years has benefited from something that one of these longitudinal surveys has done. In February, the Trump administration scrapped the high school studies contracts. A Department of Education spokesperson said the agency is reviewing the studies, quote,

return on investment for taxpayers. For NPR News, I'm Carmelo Alunone. Another attempt to use a genetically modified pig organ to help a transplant patient has failed. NPR's Rob Stein has that story. The Mass General Brigham Hospital in Boston says surgeons removed a genetically modified pig kidney from a New Hampshire man last week. Doctors say they had to end the experiment because the kidney's function began decreasing. The organ had functioned for 271 days, setting a record for genetically modified pig organs. The recipient will resume dialysis.

Doctors hope pig kidneys, liver, hearts, and other organs will help solve the organ short. But so far, all the recipients have either died or had to have their animal organs removed. Researchers remain hopeful, however, and plan to continue trying pig organs in more patients. Rob Stein, NPR News. This is NPR News. In Jamaica, plywood has been going up over windows ahead of Hurricane Melissa. Hurricane Melissa on track to make landfall in Jamaica by early tomorrow morning, and forecasters say Melissa could be the strongest to hit the island since recordkeeping began in 1851.

Melissa intensified into a Category 5 storm today over the warming Caribbean Sea, which is linked to climate change. The 22-year-old man accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk will be allowed to wear street clothes in court, but will still have to wear shackles. A judge in Utah made that ruling today after Tyler Robinson's lawyers argue that images of him in jail clothing in shackles. could prejudice future jurors. Utah prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty. As birth rates decline across much of the world, Finland is seeing some of the lowest numbers in Europe. Researchers now trying to figure out why because Finland offers generous benefits for new parents. Here's MPR Sarah McCammon. Many European countries are known for providing paid time off and other benefits for new parents, but the region's fertility rate has been falling for more than a

decade well below what's needed to sustain the population. Annali Mietinen with Finland's social insurance agency Kela says the trend raises economic and social concerns. These types of policies may not be enough any longer, but we need to have invent something else to support young adults. Finland's total fertility rate has dropped by about a third since 2010 to the lowest of the Nordic countries. Sarah McCammon, NPR News. And I'm Jail Snyder. This is NPR News from Washington. This message comes from Wise, the app for using money around the globe. When you manage your money with Wise, you'll always get the mid-market exchange rate with no hidden fees. Join millions of customers and visit wise.com. T's and C's Apply.