NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-30-2025 6PM EST

Episode Date: December 30, 2025

NPR News: 12-30-2025 6PM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Rylan Barton. Israel is barring 37 more aid organizations from operating in Gaza, including internationally recognized groups that have been on the ground for decades, like Doctors Without Borders. NPR's Aibatrowi reports Israel says these aid groups failed to meet security standards. Israel's decision revokes the permits of groups like Oxfam, the Norwegian Refugee Council, Mercy Corps, and Doctors Without Borders, or MSF. These aid groups work respectively on issues related to water and desalination, tents and shelter supplies, food distribution, and health care. And they have also

documented in detail. Israel's war in Gaza, criticizing the breadth of destruction and killing by Israeli forces, while also providing firsthand accounts from Gaza at a time when international media remains banned. Humanity and inclusion, which handles unexploded bombs left by the military, is also among the banned groups now. Israel says staff of some groups were involved in terrorist activity and that the 37 aid groups did not meet security and transparency requirements. MSF says this prevents organizations from providing essential services to people in both Gaza and the West Bank. Ayel-Beltrawi, NPR News, Dubai. Cases of the flu are surging in the United States.

That's according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. NPR's Gabriela Emmanuel has more. The latest data comes from the period before people gathered for Christmas. It shows a steep increase in cases and more than 19,000 people were hospitalized for flu in that one week, almost twice as many as the previous week. Andrew Peckosch, with Johns Hopkins University, says the surge started in the northeast. All across the Midwest, you're seeing massive increases in activity as well as to the south. A couple of states out in the West have been spared the activity yet.

The strain of flu driving up cases is not a great match for this year's flu vaccine. But experts say the shot provides more protection than no vaccine at all. Gabriela Emmanuel and PR News. The Federal Reserve decided to lower interest rates earlier this month to prop up a sagging job market. Minutes from that Fed meeting released today suggest the central bank may wait a while before cutting rates any further. NPR's Scott Horsley explains. Minutes show most members of the Fed's rate-setting committee think interest rates will continue to come down so long as inflation moderates, but the timing of the next rate cut remains uncertain.

Some Fed policymakers say it will likely be appropriate to hold rates steady for some time. after cutting rates by a quarter percentage point at each of the last three Fed meetings. The vote to cut rates in December was not unanimous. Two members of the committee wanted to stand pat, while a third voted for a supersized half-point rate cut. The central banks caught between worries about a softening job market, with unemployment climbing to 4.6 percent, and inflation that remains stubbornly above the Fed's 2 percent target.

Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. Stocks fell slightly on Wall Street today, the S&P 500 slipped a tenth of a percent. This is NPR News. More artists have canceled performances at the Kennedy Center after President Trump's name was added to the facility. Saxophone player Billy Harper criticized the venue's association with Trump, citing concerns over racism and cultural destruction. Kennedy Center President Richard Grinnell says the cancellations are politically motivated

and that the center has received inquiries from artists wanting to perform. President Trump's move to reschedule pot is being welcomed by marijuana companies, but as NPR's Bill Chapel reports, questions remain. For state-licensed marijuana retailers like Sam Brill, moving pot from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3 could let them claim basic business tax deductions. I'm paying a full tax bill on my gross margin, which no other company does except for people in our industry. Brill, the CEO of Assin Wellness, says the change would free up millions of dollars for his company. The Trump administration says,

scheduling will also boost research. But Jillian Schauer of the Cannabis Regulators Association says some key details are in limbo. There's a lot that will still be challenging in researching cannabis unless we see a lot of agency policies change and adjust. For example, she says scientists need more sources for acquiring marijuana that can research. Bill Chappell, NPR News. Three more dog breeds are joining the American Kennel Club's roster of recognized breeds. The newcomers include the Teddy Roosevelt Terrier and a centuries old French hunting hound called the

the Basset the Basse Fove de Britannia. This is NPR News from Washington.