NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-17-2025 3PM EST

Episode Date: November 17, 2025

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Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. The head of the agency that spearheads the federal government's disaster response is resigning, only six months after he started. David Richardson is the second person under the current Trump administration to leave the top post at the Federal Emergency Management Agency. President Trump's reverse course on the Jeffrey Epstein matter after resisting for months, Trump's now encouraging House Republicans to vote in favor of having the Justice Department release all files related to the late financier and convicted sex offender. NPR's Luke Garrett has more. A source familiar but not authorized to share the House scheduled publicly confirmed

that Speaker Johnson would bring this vote up on Tuesday. This teed up a really difficult vote for Republicans who had to decide whether to vote with Trump and against the bill or vote to release the Epstein files. And this was also tough for Trump himself who faced dozens of potential defectors. And PR's Luke Garrett. France and Ukraine have signed a 10-year defense agreement that paves the law. way for Ukraine to receive more than 100 multi-role fighter jets, air defense systems, missiles, and anti-drone technology. NPR's Eleanor Beardsley reports French President of Maniouacrope said

Ukraine is defending the front lines of Europe. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was given the red carpet treatment on his ninth visit to France since Russia's full-scale invasion. In a joint press conference, Macron said France has supported Ukraine from the beginning. Our support is not only a moral obligation, said Macron. It is a deep engagement for the collective security of our continent. Macron said Russia alone had started the war with its, quote, disregard for the truth and its inability to come to terms with its own history and imperialist neo-colonial instincts. The deal is also meant to send a message to the Kremlin that Europe

will not back down. Eleanor Beardsley and Pierre News, Paris. Novo Nordisk is dropping the price of its blockbuster obesity drug Wagovi again, at least for patients paying without using their insurance. And P.R. Sidney Lubkin has more. People buying Wagovi directly from Novo Nordisk will now be able to get it for around $350 a month. Until the end of next March, the company will offer the first two months doses at around $200 a month. That's down from about $500 a month. And patients can get the same discount from Costco, Good RX, Weight Watchers, and Roe, according to the company. The lower price is only available to patients not using their health insurance. Novo Nordisk's

announcement follows the Trump administration's deals with Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly earlier this month. The deals included lower direct-to-consumer costs of the company's blockbuster obesity drugs. But even the discounted prices will still be too high for many patients. Sidney Lubkin and PR News. Major market indices are now down 1.3% to roughly 1.5%. This is a NPR News. For more than two decades, Alaska has been trying to offload responsibility for aging school buildings onto rural districts where there's no local tax revenue to help pay for education. Emily Schwing of member station KYUK reports.

The state is requiring school districts to take on legal and financial liability they may not be able to handle. In most states, public schools, are owned locally. But in Alaska, the Education Department owns nearly half of more than 120 rural school buildings that are falling apart. That means the department is responsible for everything from leaking sewer lines to faulty foundations. Since 2003, Alaska has required local districts to accept ownership of buildings if they do come by state funds to fix problems. Attorney Howard Tricky represents some rural school districts. The facility burns down and children are injured.

If the state owned it, the state would be liable for those injuries. There's never been a court case, then's tested the state's liability. But rural superintendents say it's not a matter of if, but when. For NPR News, I'm Emily Schweng in Anchorage. The Century Foundation says its latest analysis of consumer data shows more people falling behind on their utility bills in last year, and it's likely to get worse this winter. liberal think tank release and analysis saying shows the average overdue balance on utility bills increased from just under $600 in 2022 to $789. You're listening to NPR News.