NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-11-2025 7AM EST

Episode Date: November 11, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Corva Coleman. The Senate has passed spending legislation that would fund the government until January 30th. The measure now goes to the House, but it's not clear when the government's shutdown might end. Meanwhile, the federal judge is accusing the Trump administration of playing vindictive games when it comes to snap food benefits. NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports, a court hearing yesterday examined whether states must essentially take back payments they made to snap recipients over the weekend. A court order to issue full snap payments late last week, some states rushed to get the benefits to people. But when the Supreme Court then paused the order, the Agriculture Department said states must immediately undo those payments and threatened penalties. New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Placken says this makes no sense, especially given new moves to possibly end the shutdown. This administration is still going to the Supreme Court to fight for the right to starve Americans. A Trump administration attorney says states jumped. the gun and should only send partial payments for now. Once the shutdown does end, we'll issue

full benefits in 24 hours, he told the judge. Jennifer Lutton and Pierre News, Washington. The Federal Aviation Administration is still moving to slow air travel in the U.S. because of the shutdown. Air traffic controllers are supposed to report to work, even though they have not been paid in weeks. Michael McCormick is with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. He previously ran the FAA's air traffic control system for New York. After this shutdown is over, there is a lot of work to be done in order to hire and replace the air traffic controllers to a level where they need to be. And that will continue to be a problem and to be a long-term problem that will cause a lot

of heartache and a lot of delays. President Trump criticized air traffic controllers yesterday who have taken time off and told them to go back to work. He said he would offer bonuses to those who stayed on the job. The Food and Drug Administration is removing stringent warnings about risks from hormone therapy products. These are used to ease symptoms of menopause and perimenopause. And Pierre Sidney Lubkin reports on the change in the agency's stance. Black Box warnings on hormone therapies are the FDA's strongest.

They're used to inform doctors and patients that a drug can cause serious or life-threatening side effects. The warnings had been on hormone therapies from, more than 20 years and say the drugs increase the risk of certain cancers, strokes, and heart attacks. Now the FDA is removing the warnings, saying those risks were overstated. It's a change many doctors have urged the FDA to make, but they say the agency didn't follow its usual procedure for doing so. The FDA convened a special expert panel in July, instead of using an existing advisory committee, which follows a stricter process for reviewing evidence and making recommendations. Sydney Lubkin, NPR News.

This is NPR. Many governments around the world give people cash in an effort to reduce poverty. As NPR's Jonathan Lambert reports, a new study published in The Lancet finds those programs can substantially improve maternal and child health. In recent years, there's been loads of research showing cash transfers can have significant benefits for households, but there's been less research looking at countrywide effects. To get a broader view, a team of researchers analyzed different. health outcomes across 37 low- and middle-income countries with government-sponsored cash aid programs.

The benefits were big. Cash transfers helped about 10% more pregnant women get better care, which in turn improved child mortality. Slightly older kids were more likely to get vaccinated, be fed nutritious food, and about 40% less likely to get diarrheal diseases in places with cash transfers. Programs that benefited bigger chunks of the population were associated with greater health improvements. Jonathan Lambert, NPR News.

freeze warnings are up in the southern U.S. this morning. The National Weather Service has issued winter weather advisories for some southern states. There's a winter storm warning now posted for parts of West Virginia. A tropical storm is approaching Taiwan. Taiwanese officials have evacuated thousands of people away from the island's southern coast. The tropical storm was previously super typhoon fangwang, and it has already crashed through the Philippines. That's where it killed at least 18 people. The Philippines has had to face two strong typhoons in just a few days. Last week, a typhoon in the Philippines killed around 200 people. I'm Corva Coleman. NPR News.