Remarks by the President in Eulogy for the Honorable Reverend Clementa Pinckney

Read the full text of President Barack Obama's eulogy of South Carolina Senator Clementa Pinckney in Charleston, South Carolina, June 26, 2015
Senator Clementa Pinckney eulogy

EEOC Issues Updated Pregnancy Discrimination Guidance

"The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today issued an update of its Enforcement Guidance on Pregnancy Discrimination and Related Issues (Guidance), along with a question and answer document and a fact sheet for small businesses.  All are available on the EEOC's website at http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement_guidance.cfm.

The updates to the Guidance are limited to several pages about the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Young v. UPS, issued in March 2015. The updated Guidance reflects the Supreme Court's conclusion that women may be able to prove unlawful pregnancy discrimination if the employer accommodated some workers but refused to accommodate pregnant women. The Court explained that employer policies that are not intended to discriminate on the basis of pregnancy may still violate the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) if the policy imposes significant burdens on pregnant employees without a sufficiently strong justification..."

Pregnancy discrimination

OBERGEFELL ET AL. v. HODGES, DIRECTOR, OHIO DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, ET AL.

"Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee define marriage as a union between one man and one woman. The petitioners, 14 same-sex couples and two men whose same-sex partners are deceased, filed suits in Federal District Courts in their home States, claiming that respondent state officials violate the Fourteenth Amendment by denying them the right to marry or to have marriages lawfully performed in another State given full recognition. Each District Court ruled in petitioners’ favor, but the Sixth Circuit consolidated the cases and reversed.
Held: The Fourteenth Amendment requires a State to license a marriage between two people of the same sex and to recognize a marriage between two people of the same sex when their marriage was lawfully licensed and performed out-of-State. Pp. 3–28. (a) Before turning to the governing principles and precedents, it is appropriate to note the history of the subject now before the Court. Pp. 3–10.
(1) The history of marriage as a union between two persons of the opposite sex marks the beginning of these cases. To the respondents, it would demean a timeless institution if marriage were extended to same-sex couples. But the petitioners, far from seeking to devalue marriage, seek it for themselves because of their respect—and need—for its privileges and responsibilities, as illustrated by the petitioners’ own experiences..."
Supreme Court and same sex marriage

KING ET AL. v. BURWELL, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, ET AL.

"The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act grew out of a long history of failed health insurance reform. In the 1990s, several States sought to expand access to coverage by imposing a pair of insurance market regulations—a “guaranteed issue” requirement, which bars insurers from denying coverage to any person because of his health, and a “community rating” requirement, which bars insurers from charging a person higher premiums for the same reason. The reforms achieved the goal of expanding access to coverage, but they also encouraged people to wait until they got sick to buy insurance. The result was an economic “death spiral”: premiums rose, the number of people buying insurance declined, and insurers left the market entirely. In 2006, however, Massachusetts discovered a way to make the guaranteed issue and community rating requirements work—by requiring individuals to buy insurance and by providing tax credits to certain individuals to make insurance more affordable. The combination of these three reforms—insurance market regulations, a coverage mandate, and tax credits—enabled Massachusetts to drastically reduce its uninsured rate.

The Affordable Care Act adopts a version of the three key reforms that made the Massachusetts system successful. First, the Act adopts the guaranteed issue and community rating requirements. 42 U. S. C. §§300gg, 300gg–1. Second, the Act generally requires individuals to maintain health insurance coverage or make a payment to the IRS, unless the cost of buying insurance would exceed eight percent of that individual’s income. 26 U. S. C. §5000A. And third, the Act seeks to make insurance more affordable by giving refundable tax credits to individuals with household incomes between 100 per cent and 400 percent of the federal poverty line..."
Affordable Care Act

Today we begin to share the story of your complaints

"Every day, we hear directly from the American public about your experiences in the consumer financial marketplace. We hear from consumers in their own words about the pain of having a home in foreclosure, the frustration of trying to correct an inaccurate credit report, or their helplessness in dealing with an abusive debt collector.

Today, for the first time, we are making consumers’ complaint narratives – the heart and soul of the complaints we receive – public. These narratives are important because they tell the story of what happened in the consumers’ own words. Making these consumer narratives public, amplifies the voice of the consumer..."
Consumer finance complaints

HHS launches GIS-based tool for health disaster readiness

"The HHS emPOWER Map, an interactive online tool, launched today to aid community health agencies and emergency management officials in disaster preparedness as they plan ahead to meet the emergency needs of community residents who rely on electrically powered medical and assistive equipment to live independently at home.

The new tool is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) in its ongoing efforts to support community resilience and build national health security..."
Health disasters

Budgetary and Economic Effects of Repealing the Affordable Care Act

"What Would Be the Major Effects of Repealing the ACA?
CBO and JCT estimate that repealing the ACA would have several major effects, relative to the projections under current law:
 Including the budgetary effects of macroeconomic feedback, repealing the ACA would increase federal budget deficits by $137 billion over the 2016–2025 period (see Table 1). That estimate takes into account the proposal’s impact on federal revenues and direct (or mandatory) spending, incorporating the net effects of two components:
• Excluding the effects of macroeconomic feedback—as has been done for previous estimates related to the ACA (and most other CBO cost estimates)—CBO and JCT estimate that federal deficits would increase by $353 billion over the 2016–2025 period if the ACA was repealed.
• Repeal of the ACA would raise economic output, mainly by boosting the supply of labor; the resulting increase in GDP is projected to average about 0.7 percent over the 2021–2025 period. Alone, those effects would reduce federal deficits by $216 billion over the 2016–2025 period, CBO and JCT estimate, mostly because of increased federal revenues
Affordable Care Act

The 2015 Long-Term Budget Outlook

"The long-term outlook for the federal budget has worsened dramatically over the past several years, in the wake of the 2007–2009 recession and slow recovery. Between 2008 and 2012, financial turmoil and a severe drop in economic activity, combined with various policies implemented in response to those conditions, sharply reduced federal revenues and increased spending. As a result, budget deficits rose: They totaled $5.6 trillion in those five years, and in four of the five years, they were larger relative to the size of the economy than they had been in any year since 1946. Because of the large deficits, federal debt held by the public soared, nearly doubling during the period. It is now equivalent to about 74 percent of the economy’s annual output, or gross domestic product (GDP)—a higher percentage than at any point in U.S. history except a seven-year period around World War II..."
Federal budget

Persons with Disabilities: Labor Force Characteristics-- 2014

"In 2014, 17.1 percent of persons with a disability were employed, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. In contrast, the employment-population ratio for those without a disability was 64.6 percent. The ratio for persons with a disability declined by 0.5 percentage point from 2013 to 2014, while the ratio for those with no disability increased by 0.6 percentage point. The unemployment rate of persons with a disability edged down to 12.5 percent from 2013 to 2014, while the rate for those without a disability declined to 5.9 percent..."
Disability data

Preventing Melanoma

"Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the US. In 2011, there were more than 65,000 cases of melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Melanoma can spread to other parts of the body and causes over 9,000 deaths every year. People who die of melanoma lose an average of 20 years of life expectancy. Melanoma can be caused by too much exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays from sun or sources such as indoor tanning. Without additional prevention efforts, melanoma will continue to increase in the next 15 years. Communities and policy makers play a major role in these skin cancer prevention efforts.

Communities and policymakers can:

• Increase shade at playgrounds, public pools, and other public spaces.
• Promote sun protection in recreation areas, including the use or purchase of hats, sunscreen, and sunglasses.
• Encourage employers, childcare centers, schools, and colleges to educate employees and students about sun safety and skin protection.
• Restrict the availability and use of indoor tanning by minors...:

Melanoma

Health Care Fraud Takedown

"More than 240 individuals—including doctors, nurses, and other licensed professionals—were arrested this week for their alleged participation in Medicare fraud schemes involving approximately $712 million in false billings.

The arrests, which began Tuesday, were part of a coordinated operation in 17 cities by Medicare Fraud Strike Force teams, which include personnel from the FBI, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Justice (DOJ), and local law enforcement. The Strike Force’s mission is to combat health care fraud, waste, and abuse...."
Health care fraud

Keep Your Cool in Hot Weather

"Now is the time to prepare for the high temperatures that kill hundreds of people every year. Extreme heat caused 7,415 heat-related deaths in the United States from 1999 to 2010 . Heat-related deaths and illness are preventable, yet annually many people succumb to extreme heat.

Take measures to stay cool, remain hydrated and to keep informed. Getting too hot can make you sick. You can become ill from the heat if your body can't compensate for it and properly cool you off. The main things affecting your body's ability to cool itself during extremely hot weather are:

• High humidity. When the humidity is high, sweat won't evaporate as quickly, which keeps your body from releasing heat as fast as it may need to.
• Personal factors. Age, obesity, fever, dehydration, heart disease, mental illness, poor circulation, sunburn, and prescription drug and alcohol use can play a role in whether a person can cool off enough in very hot weather..."
  Extreme heat

Invasive Species: Issues in Brief

"For the first few centuries after the arrival of Europeans in North America, plants and animals of many species were sent between the two continents. The transfer of non-natives consisted not only of intentional westbound species ranging from pigs to dandelions but also of intentional eastbound species, such as gray squirrels and tomatoes. And for those centuries, the remaining non-native species crossing the Atlantic, uninvited and often unwelcome, were ignored if they were noticed at all. They were joined by various species arriving deliberately or accidentally from Asia and Africa. The national focus on invasive species arose in the 19th century, primarily owing to losses in agriculture (due to weeds or plant diseases), the leading industry of the time. A few recently arrived invasive species, and estimates of adverse economic impacts exceeding $100 billion annually, have sharpened that focus..."
Invasive species

2013 American Housing Survey Factsheets

Find the latest metropolitan housing statistics on the physical condition of owner-occupied and renter -occupied units.In addition, data is presented on mortgage payments, property insurance, real estate taxes, and electricity,
Housing statistics

Your Health and Our Environment: How Can We Protect Both?

"On Tuesday, the White House will convene a Summit to bring together health and medical professionals, academics, and other stakeholders to empower people and communities with the information and tools they need to protect public health in the face of climate change..."
 
Public health and climate

President Obama Delivers a Statement on the Shooting in South Carolina

"Last night, a gunman opened fire at the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, killing nine people including pastor and state senator Clementa Pinckney. The Department of Justice is opening a hate crime investigation into this tragedy. 
The President delivered the following statement from the White House Briefing Room:..."
  
Charleston Shooting

Final Determination Regarding Partially Hydrogenated Oils

" Based on the available scientific evidence and the findings of expert scientific panels, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA or we) has made a final determination that there is no longer a consensus among qualified experts that partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs), which are the primary dietary source of industrially-produced trans fatty acids (IP-TFA) are generally recognized as safe (GRAS) for any use in human food. This action responds, in part, to citizen petitions we received, and we base our determination on available scientific evidence and the findings of expert scientific panels establishing the health risks associated with the consumption of trans fat..."
Hydrogenated Oils

JACKIE ROBINSON TO PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY JUNE 15, 1963

The National Archives is making available a facsimile of a telegram from Jackie Robinson to President John F. Kennedy on the death of Medgar Edgars and selected other Robinson correspondence.
Jackie Robinson and civil rights

Declassified Documents Related to 9/11 Attacks

"Today, CIA has released to the public declassified versions of five internal documents related to the Agency’s performance in the lead-up to the attacks of September 11, 2001. The documents can be found at CIA’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) online reading room at http://www.foia.cia.gov/collection/declassified-documents-related-911-attacks.

The first of these documents is a redacted version of the 2005 CIA Office of Inspector General (OIG) Report on Central Intelligence Agency Accountability Regarding Findings and Conclusions of the Report of the Joint Inquiry into Intelligence Community Activities Before and After the Terrorist Attacks of September 11, 2001. In 2005, then-CIA Director Porter Goss issued a public statement on the OIG report. In 2007, CIA publicly released a redacted executive summary of the report along with a statement from then-Director Michael Hayden. In response to FOIA requests for the full 2005 OIG report, CIA and other agencies conducted an extensive review of the nearly 500-page document in order to release information that no longer needed to be protected in the interests of national security...:

911 attacks

HHS selects nine regional Ebola and other special pathogen treatment centers

"To further strengthen the nation’s infectious disease response capability, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has selected nine health departments and associated partner hospitals to become special regional treatment centers for patients with Ebola or other severe, highly infectious diseases.

The nine awardees and their partner hospitals are:

• Massachusetts Department of Public Health in partnership with Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts
• New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene in partnership with New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation/HHC Bellevue Hospital Center in New York City
• Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene in partnership with Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland
• Georgia Department of Public Health in partnership with Emory University Hospital and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta/Egleston Children’s Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia
• Minnesota Department of Health in partnership with the University of Minnesota Medical Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota
• Texas Department of State Health Services in partnership with the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston in Galveston, Texas
• Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services in partnership with Nebraska Medicine - Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska
• Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment in partnership with Denver Health Medical Center in Denver, Colorado
• Washington State Department of Health in partnership with Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children’s Hospital in Spokane, Washington.."

Ebola centers

Measuring America: How Ready Are We?

 
As part of the 2013 American Housing Survey, Americans were asked how prepared they are for disasters.
Emergency preparedness

2015 White House Conference on Aging

"2015 marks the 50th anniversary of Medicare, Medicaid, and the Older Americans Act, as well as the 80th anniversary of Social Security. The 2015 White House Conference on Aging is an opportunity to recognize the importance of these key programs as well as to look ahead to the issues that will help shape the landscape for older Americans for the next decade.

In the past, conference processes were determined by statute with the form and structure directed by Congress through legislation authorizing the Older Americans Act. To date, Congress has not reauthorized the Older Americans Act, and the pending bill does not include a statutory requirement or framework for the 2015 conference.."
Conference on Aging

Arthritis and Quality of Life

"A new CDC study of adults aged 18 years or older reports that having multiple chronic conditions was associated with poorer outcomes for important life domains (i.e., social participation restriction, serious psychological distress, and work disability). Having arthritis as one of those multiple chronic conditions made things even worse. Because arthritis is a common condition (affects more than 1 of 5 adults) and often occurs with other chronic conditions, it is important to highlight the possible role of arthritis when discussing the negative effects of having multiple chronic conditions and the interventions needed to address those impacts..."
Arthritis

A look at pay at the top, the bottom, and in between

"Policymakers and the public have given much attention to economic inequality in the past few years. In general terms, inequality refers to the differences between people with the highest levels of wealth, income, or earnings and those with the lowest levels. How big are these differences? Have they grown over time? What other ways do these groups differ besides how much money they earn?

This Spotlight on Statistics looks at measures of earnings and wages. The Spotlight examines how these measures have changed over time and how they differ within a geographic area, industry, or occupation. The Spotlight also looks at how participation in employee benefit plans differs across wage categories. Finally, the Spotlight looks at how people in different income or earnings categories spend their time and their money..."
Wages and pay

NASA releases detailed global climate change projections

"NASA has released data showing how temperature and rainfall patterns worldwide may change through the year 2100 because of growing concentrations of greenhouse gases in Earth’s atmosphere.

The dataset, which is available to the public, shows projected changes worldwide on a regional level in response to different scenarios of increasing carbon dioxide simulated by 21 climate models. The high-resolution data, which can be viewed on a daily timescale at the scale of individual cities and towns, will help scientists and planners conduct climate risk assessments to better understand local and global effects of hazards, such as severe drought, floods, heat waves and losses in agriculture productivity..."
Climate change

Improving Antibiotic Use

"Combat antibiotic resistance and practice antibiotic stewardship principles: ask your doctor if antibiotics are necessary, take your antibiotics exactly as your doctor tells you, and don’t share or save antibiotics.

Fighting Antibiotic Resistance with Antibiotic Stewardship

Antibiotics can be miracle drugs but they also have risks. Poor prescribing and use practices are putting patients at unnecessary risk for preventable allergic reactions, super-resistant infections, and C.difficile infections (deadly diarrhea). Antibiotics can fight infections and save lives when used at the right place, at the right time, and for the right duration. However, the overuse and misuse of antibiotics in our country is contributing to antibiotic resistance—when bacteria stop responding to the drugs designed to kill them..."
Antibiotics

Tourette Syndrome: Eve

"June is Tourette syndrome month. Learn how everyone, including CDC, can play a role to improve the lives of people with Tourette syndrome.

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a neurological condition that causes people to have tics, which are sudden twitches, movements, or sounds that people do repeatedly. Having TS can have a serious impact on individuals and their families.

What we know about TS

Symptoms usually begin when a child is 5 to 10 years of age. Tic symptoms can vary from mild to severe, and can change over time. Often, tics decrease during adolescence and early adulthood, and sometimes disappear entirely. However, many people with TS experience tics into adulthood..."
Tourette-syndrome

Raw Pet Food

"Pet owners have a variety of food choices to give their pets, even raw food. But some germs have been found in raw pet foods that can make pets and people sick, including Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes. Learn how to protect your pets and yourself from disease.

What is raw pet food?

Raw pet food consists primarily of meat, bones, organs, and eggs that have not been cooked or treated to remove harmful germs, like Salmonella andListeria monocytogenes. Raw pet food products are generally sold as frozen packages and ask the owner to thaw before serving.
According to a recent study done by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, raw pet food is more likely than other types of pet food to have these harmful germs. These germs can cause serious illness in both pets and people..."
Pet food

An Overview of the Employment-Population Ratio

"The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) defines the employment-population ratio as the ratio of total civilian employment to the civilian noninstitutional population. Simply put, it is the portion of the population that is employed. The ratio is used primarily as a measure of job holders and to track the pace of job creation, relative to the adult population, over time.
The employment-population ratio has several properties that make it an attractive indicator for labor market analysis. It is easy to interpret and can be used to make meaningful comparisons across time and groups with dissimilar population size. Because it takes into account both the impacts of labor force participation and unemployment, it is a useful summary measure when those forces place countervailing pressures on employment. Like all labor market indicators, it has limits. For example, it does not distinguish between part-time and full-time employment, and it is silent on wages, benefits, and job conditions. Trends in the employment-population ratio also do not provide information about job flows (i.e., whether a drop in employment represents more people exiting employment or fewer new entrants).."
Employment and population

The Violence Against Women Act: Overview, Legislation, and Federal Funding

"The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) has been of ongoing interest to Congress since its enactment in 1994 (P.L. 103-322). The original act was intended to change attitudes toward domestic violence, foster awareness of domestic violence, improve services and provisions for victims, and revise the manner in which the criminal justice system responds to domestic violence and sex crimes. The legislation created new programs within the Departments of Justice (DOJ) and Health and Human Services (HHS) that aimed to reduce domestic violence and improve response to and recovery from domestic violence incidents. VAWA primarily addresses certain types of violent crime through grant programs to state, tribal, and local governments; nonprofit organizations; and universities. VAWA programs target the crimes of intimate partner violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking..."
Violence Against Women

Recovering from identity theft is easier with a plan.

"Did someone steal and use your personal information? Act quickly to limit the damage.

Step 1: Call the companies where you know fraud occurred.

Step 2: Place a fraud alert and get your credit report.

Step 3: Report identity theft to the FTC.

Step 4: File a report with your local police department..."
Identity theft

Hydraulic Fracturing Study - Draft Assessment 2015

"The U.S. Congress urged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to study the relationship between hydraulic fracturing and drinking water. This report synthesizes available scientific literature and data to assess the potential for hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas to change the quality or quantity of drinking water resources, and identifies factors affecting the frequency or severity of any potential changes. This report can be used by federal, tribal, state, and local officials; industry; and the public to better understand and address any vulnerabilities of drinking water resources to hydraulic fracturing activities..."
Hydraulic fracturing