Saturday, March 11, 2023

California to end Walgreens contract after abortion dispute Associated Press ADAM BEAM March 9, 2023, 5:16 PM

 

California to end Walgreens contract after abortion dispute

ADAM BEAM

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday withdrew a $54 million contract with Walgreens after the pharmacy giant indicated it would not sell an abortion pill by mail in some conservative-led states.

Newsom on Wednesday ordered state officials to not renew a contract with Walgreens to purchase specialty pharmacy prescription drugs for California's prison health care system, including antiviral and antifungal drugs and medication used for congestive heart failure. Walgreens has gotten about $54 million from the contract, which expires April 30.

Newsom's office said the state will buy the drugs somewhere else.

“California will not stand by as corporations cave to extremists and cut off critical access to reproductive care and freedom,” Newsom said in a news release. “California is on track to be the fourth largest economy in the world and we will leverage our market power to defend the right to choose.”

Walgreens representative Fraser Engerman said the company was “deeply disappointed by the decision by the state of California not to renew our longstanding contract due to false and misleading information."

“Walgreens is facing the same circumstances as all retail pharmacies, and no other pharmacies have said that they would approach this situation differently, so it's unclear where this contract would not be moved,” Engerman said. “Our position has always been that, once we are certified by the FDA, Walgreens plans to dispense Mifepristone in any jurisdiction where it is legally permissible to do so, including the state of California.”

Mifepristone is a pill that when combined with another pill will end a pregnancy. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the pill in 2000 for use in up to the 10th week of pregnancy. Today, more than half of all abortions in the U.S. are done by pills, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights.

After the U.S. Supreme Court last year overturned the federal right to an abortion, more than a dozen states have restricted the use of abortion pills. But those restrictions are being challenged in court.

Attorneys general in 20 states, mostly with Republican governors, have warned Walgreens and CVS they could face legal consequences if they sell abortion pills in their states. Last week, Walgreens confirmed it sent a response to each attorney general saying it would not dispense the drug in their states.

Newsom responded to that news on Monday, posting in a message on Twitter that California won't be doing business with Walgreens “or any company that cowers to the extremists and puts women's lives at risk.”

“We're done,” Newsom said.

Losing the California contract will have a small impact on Walgreens' revenues, as the company reported $132.7 billion in sales for the fiscal year that ended Aug. 31.

But for Newsom, the move is more about solidifying California's role as a leader in what he has called “reproductive freedom.”

Newsom has vowed to make California a sanctuary for people in other states where abortion is illegal or severely restricted. Last year, Newsom signed more than a dozen new laws aiming to protect abortion rights, including signing off on $20 million in new spending to help pay for the travel and lodging expenses for people to come to California from other states to get an abortion.

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Silicon Valley Bank seized after run by depositors Associated Press KEN SWEET March 10, 2023, 2:12 PM

 

Silicon Valley Bank seized after run by depositors

KEN SWEET

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S rushed to seize the assets of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday after a run on the bank, the largest failure of a financial institution since Washington Mutual during the height of the financial crisis more than a decade ago.

Silicon Valley, the nation's 16th largest bank, failed after depositors — mostly technology workers and venture capital-backed companies — hurried to withdraw their money this week as anxiety over the bank's situation spread.

Silicon Valley was heavily exposed to tech industry and there is little chance of contagion in the banking sector similar to the chaos in the months leading up to the Great Recession more than a decade ago.

In 2007, the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression rippled across the globe after mortgage-backed securities tied to ill-advised housing loans rippled from the U.S. to Asia and Europe. The panic on Wall Street led to the collapse of the storied Lehman Brothers, founded in 1847. Because major banks had major exposure to one another, it created a cascading disruption of the global financial system.

Major banks today have sufficient capital to avoid a similar situation, though the sector has been under pressure all week.

Silicon Valley Bank's failure came with incredible speed, with some industry analysts on Friday suggesting it was a good company and still likely a wise investment. Silicon Valley Bank executives were looking to raise capital early Friday or find additional investors. But trading in its shares was halted before the opening bell due to extreme volatility.

Shortly before noon eastern time, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation moved to shutter the bank. Notably, the FDIC did not wait until the close of business to seize the bank, as is typical in an orderly wind down of a financial institution. The FDIC could not immediately find a buyer for the bank's assets, signaling how fast depositors had cashed out. The bank's deposits will now be locked up in receivership.

The bank had $209 billion in assets and $175.4 billion in deposits as the time of failure, the FDIC said in a statement. It was unclear how much of deposits was above the $250,000 insurance limit at the moment, but previous regulatory reports showed that much of Silicon Valley Bank's deposits were above that limit.

The FDIC said deposits below the $250,000 limit would be available Monday morning.

Silicon Valley Bank on Thursday announced plans to raise up to $1.75 billion in order to strengthen its capital position amid concerns about higher interest rates and the economy. Shares plunged 60% Thursday, and rocketed lower again Friday before the open of the Nasdaq where it is traded.

Silicon Valley is not small, holding $210 billion in assets. It acts as a major financial conduit for venture capital-backed companies, which have been hit hard in the past 18 months as the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates and made riskier tech assets less attractive to investors.

Venture capital-backed companies were reportedly being advised to pull at least two months' worth of “burn” cash out of Silicon Valley Bank to cover their expenses. Typically VC-backed companies are not profitable and how quickly they use the cash they need to run their businesses — their so-called “burn rate” — is a typically important metric for investors.

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Weekend weather forecast: Storms continue to impact West, Northeast before a tranquil Sunday USA TODAY AMANDA LEE MYERS March 11, 2023, 3:05 AM

 

Weekend weather forecast: Storms continue to impact West, Northeast before a tranquil Sunday

AMANDA LEE MYERS
Traffic moves on the Golden Gate Bridge as people carry umbrellas while walking down a path at the Golden Gate Overlook in San Francisco, March 9, 2023. California is bracing for the arrival of an atmospheric river that forecasters warn will bring heavy rain, strong winds, thunderstorms and the threat of flooding even as the state is still digging out from earlier storms.
Traffic moves on the Golden Gate Bridge as people carry umbrellas while walking down a path at the Golden Gate Overlook in San Francisco, March 9, 2023. California is bracing for the arrival of an atmospheric river that forecasters warn will bring heavy rain, strong winds, thunderstorms and the threat of flooding even as the state is still digging out from earlier storms.

Winter storms will continue to hit both sides of the U.S. over the weekend before a brief lull that will quickly be followed by yet another round of storms.

A significant storm that began impacting California continues Saturday before a weather break comes on Sunday. The Northeast will also see a Sunday respite from back-to-back storms before Monday picks right back up again.

"It's kind of a one-two punch," said Bob Larson, senior meteorologist with AccuWeather.

Here's what you need to know about winter weather this weekend:

California

An atmospheric river blasting Californiawill continue to dump rain and heavy snow on much of the state Saturday but the worst should be over.

As a result of the storm, which killed at least two people and prompted widespread evacuation warnings, President Joe Biden declared an emergency in the state to free up federal aid for help responding to flooding and mudslides.

On Saturday, the storm should die down a bit and the state will get a break on Sunday, Larson said.

Atmospheric river: The weather phenomenon extends thousands of miles from the tropics to the western U.S

This photo provided by Palisades Tahoe shows snow cover at Palisades Tahoe ski resort in Olympic Valley, Calif., on Wednesday, March 1, 2023. (Blake Kessler/Palisades Tahoe via AP) ORG XMIT: LA306
This photo provided by Palisades Tahoe shows snow cover at Palisades Tahoe ski resort in Olympic Valley, Calif., on Wednesday, March 1, 2023. (Blake Kessler/Palisades Tahoe via AP) ORG XMIT: LA306

It will be short-lived as another atmospheric river is set to hit the state on Monday.

All the precipitation in California does carry some good news for the state.

About 26 percent of the state is now considered drought-free, up from just 16 percent on Feb. 28, Larson said, adding that new figure doesn't even include the two atmospheric rivers impacting the state Saturday and next week.

"It's not ending the drought but i's absolutely helping," he said. "Although it's causing all kinds of problems short term, the big picture long term is it's a help."

A weird winter winds down: New data details record warmth, strange snow patterns

Winter storm map

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East/Northeast

Like California, the eastern and northeastern part of the U.S. will continue seeing winter storm weather on Saturday before a tranquil Sunday, followed quickly by another storm.

A strip of the region between Buffalo and Binghamton, New York can expect 6-12 inches of snow while New York City may get 1 to 3 inches.

The farther east the storm moves, the "less of a big deal it becomes," Larson said.

Western Massachusetts may get between 2 and 4 inches of snow while Boston seems like it will be spared from any major precipitation this weekend.

Come Monday, that'll change with a nor'easter.

"It won't be a prolonged lull," Larson said. "But all of New England should be dry and tranquil in between for Sunday."

The South

Strong to severe thunderstorms are expected in eastern Oklahoma and most of Arkansas on Saturday before the threat shifts southeast to the southern half of Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia on Sunday.

US weather watches and warnings

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National weather radar

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Storms forecast for West, Northeast Saturday; weather Sunday tranquil

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