Melissa Block

Melissa Block appears in the following:

Health insurers are now required to post prices they pay to hospitals

Saturday, July 02, 2022

The federal government says insurers must publicly post the amounts they pay hospitals and doctors. It's another step toward price transparency in the country's complicated health care system.

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Americans are deeply divided on transgender rights, a poll shows

Wednesday, June 29, 2022

An NPR/Ipsos poll shows a stark partisan split on laws that prevent transgender youth from accessing medical care for gender transition.

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Students and teachers spoke on gender and race classroom discussion bans in hearing

Thursday, May 19, 2022

Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., chaired a hearing on new laws that restrict classroom discussion of gender, sexual orientation and race. Students, parents and teachers are among those who spoke.

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Accusations of 'grooming' are the latest political attack — with homophobic origins

Wednesday, May 11, 2022

Old accusations of LGBTQ people "grooming" and "recruiting" children have gained new traction. When have we heard this before? What counternarrative are activists using to win over public opinion?

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The buzzword grooming is an age-old trope that feeds off fear

Tuesday, May 10, 2022

Old accusations of LGBTQ people "grooming" and "recruiting" children have gained new traction. When have we heard this before? What's the most persuasive counter-narrative to win over public opinion?

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Hundreds of anti-LGBTQ bills have already been introduced this year. Here may be why

Thursday, April 14, 2022

2022 is set to break records for anti-LGBTQ legislation, with hundreds of bills introduced across the U.S. Who's behind this wave of legislation, and why is this becoming such a potent wedge issue?

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The White House announces moves to gender neutral passports

Friday, April 01, 2022

The Biden administration soon will allow people to indicate their gender as X on U.S. passports. Until now, non-binary, intersex and gender non-conforming people had to choose male or female.

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Teachers fear the chilling effect of Florida's so-called 'Don't Say Gay' law

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

Now that Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed the Parental Rights in Education bill into law, teachers fear it will muzzle speech and further stigmatize LGBTQ youth.

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How Florida teachers plan to deal with 'Don't Say Gay' rules

Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Florida's governor has signed what critics call the "Don't Say Gay" bill. Teachers share how they plan to comply and how it will affect classroom discussions on sexual orientation and gender identity.

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Nonbinary students push for changes to Hollins University's admissions policies

Tuesday, January 18, 2022

Women's colleges have changed policies for a generation that increasingly identifies as nonbinary, but Hollins University in Roanoke has not. (Story originally aired on ATC on Nov. 26, 2021.)

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A pill to treat COVID patients gets the FDA's emergency authorization

Thursday, December 23, 2021

Pfizer has received emergency use authorization for a COVID-19 pill, giving doctors a new tool for treating the virus. Who qualifies to take it and is it expected to work against the omicron variant?

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News brief: antiviral pill for COVID, Jan. 6 probe, Putin's news conference

Thursday, December 23, 2021

The FDA authorizes the first antiviral pill to treat COVID-19 at home. The House Jan. 6 panel wants to talk to Trump ally Rep. Jordan. Russian President Putin holds his annual year-end new conference.

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The House panel probing the Jan. 6 attack wants to talk to Trump ally Rep. Jordan

Thursday, December 23, 2021

The House committee investigating the attack on the U.S. Capitol has requested that Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, a longtime ally of ex-President Trump, voluntarily provide information to the panel.

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The clear and present danger of Trump's enduring 'Big Lie'

Thursday, December 23, 2021

Fueling the Jan. 6 insurrection was the "Big Lie" that Donald Trump won the election. One year later, many warn that lie has metastasized and now poses an even graver threat to American democracy.

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Hundreds of migrants remain trapped at the Belarus-Poland border

Wednesday, December 22, 2021

Migrants from the Middle East and elsewhere are stranded in Belarus, still hoping for asylum in the European Union. They are living in squalid conditions near the Polish border.

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News brief: COVID testing, omicron disruptions, stranded migrants

Wednesday, December 22, 2021

President Biden announces more measures to make free at-home rapid tests available. Because of COVID, the NHL is pausing games. Hundreds of migrants remain trapped at the Belarus-Poland border.

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Who belongs at a women's college in 2021? Students want admissions policies to change

Friday, November 26, 2021

Women's colleges have adapted admissions policies for a generation that increasingly identifies as nonbinary. Hollins University's exclusion of nonbinary applicants has raised hackles.

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The national reckoning over race and history is playing out in the world of birds

Monday, November 15, 2021

The Audubon Naturalist Society is dropping the name Audubon. John James Audubon was a famous ornithologist, who was also an enslaver and a grave robber who seized the skulls of Native Americans.

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They Don't Remember Their Parents Dying On 9/11. But They'll Never Forget

Sunday, September 05, 2021

Many children of 9/11 victims were too young to remember their parents who died. They've grown up living with the tension between having a personal connection to the day but few, if any memories.

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Olympic Runner Caster Semenya Wants To Compete, Not Defend Her Womanhood

Wednesday, July 28, 2021

Rules on testosterone levels for women athletes have kept star runner Caster Semenya out of the Tokyo Olympics. At the heart of this heated debate: Who should be considered a woman in sport?

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