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In Mississippi
Wicker, Hyde-Smith reintroduce CONNECT for Health Act
U.S. Senators Roger Wicker and Cindy Hyde-Smith, along with Brian Schatz of Hawaii on Wednesday reintroduced the Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies (CONNECT) for Health Act.
The officials say the CONNECT for Health Act would expand telehealth services under Medicare, make COVID-19-related telehealth flexibilities permanent, improve health outcomes, and make it easier for patients to connect with their health care providers. In 2024, more than half of American patients utilized telehealth services, highlighting the importance of expanded access to this form of care.
First introduced in 2016, the officials said the CONNECT for Health Act remains the most comprehensive telehealth legislation in Congress. Several provisions of the bill have since been enacted into law or adopted by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), particularly in response to the COVID pandemic. These include provisions to remove restrictions on telehealth services for mental health, stroke care, and home dialysis.
If passed in the 119th Congress, this version of the CONNECT for Health Act would build on this progress, the officials said, including new and revised provisions designed to expand access to telehealth. Specifically, the legislation would:
- Permanently define originating sites as the location of the patient
- Permanently allow health centers and rural health clinics to provide telehealth services
- Expand eligibility for health care professionals to use telehealth services
- Remove unnecessary in-person visit requirements for telemental health services
- Allow for the waiver of telehealth restrictions during public health emergencies
- Require more published data to understand how telehealth is being used, its impact on quality of care, and how it can be improved to support patients and healthcare providers
National News & Foreign Policy
1. House, Senate GOP at odds over Trump agenda
Intra-party fighting over President Donald Trump agenda has House and Senate Republicans at odds.
“The Senate GOP budget plan designed to usher President Trump’s sweeping domestic priorities into law is getting an ice-cold reception from Republicans in the House, where conservatives are balking at the low levels of mandated spending cuts and the heightened deficits that could result,” as reported by The Hill. “But after Trump’s endorsement of the plan, House Republicans face enormous pressure to give the president a victory on his top campaign promises, including an extension of tax cuts, new limits on immigration and a boost in domestic energy production. That pressure will likely grow in the face of the fallout from Trump’s new tariffs, which sent markets plummeting on Thursday and threatened a global recession.”
One Congressman was quoted by The Hill as saying, “‘The Senate budget bill is really offensive; quite frankly, it’s a joke,’ Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) said Thursday. ‘[T]his is offensive and so I’m a hard no on this junk.'”
2. China retaliates, slaps 34% tariff on U.S. goods
President Trump’s tariffs are causing global markets to fall while countries are scrambling to respond.
The Wall Street Journal reports that “China lashed back at President Trump’s tariffs, applying 34% levies on all imported goods from the U.S. Beijing said the levies would come into effect next Thursday, the day after a big part of Trump’s promised tariffs go live.”
“The market selloff continued Friday, with the China retaliation and recession fears pushing investors to sell stocks and hide in the safety of government bonds. S&P 500 futures fell nearly 3% and overseas markets took fresh hits, with European stocks tumbling more than 4%,” WSJ reported. “Markets took little comfort from President Trump’s willingness to negotiate over the tariffs. The levies announced late Wednesday were deeper and more aggressive than the business world expected. And even as Trump left the door open to making deals, he vowed new tariffs on drugs and microchips.”
Sports
1. Big 3 weekend college baseball slate
Here’s your weekend look at the games on tap for the Big 3 college baseball teams in Mississippi:
- Weather in Kentucky pushed back the series with No. 9 Ole Miss on Thursday. Now the teams will play a doubleheader Friday starting at 2 p.m. and then finish the series at 1 p.m. on Saturday for Game 3.
- No. 13 Southern Miss travels to Marshall in a three-game series. The two start play on Friday at 5 p.m. and then play on Saturday at 3 p.m. and Sunday at 11 a.m.
- Mississippi State hosts South Carolina in the weekend series that starts Friday at 6 p.m. Games continue on Saturday at 2 p.m. and conclude on Sunday at 1 p.m.
2. Jackson State Blue & White spring football game cancelled
Due to potential inclement weather for central Mississippi, the Jackson State spring football Blue & White game scheduled for Saturday afternoon has been canceled.
The schedule has been adjusted, and football will hold an open scrimmage beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the Walter Payton Cener on Saturday morning.
The scrimmage will be open to the public.
3. Mud Monster baseball tickets going on sale Monday
Mississippi Mud Monsters have announced that single game tickets for the team’s inaugural season go on sale Monday, April 8 at 2:00 p.m., available online through Tixr or in person at the Trustmark Park box office.
Tickets start at just $10 for General Admission, $15 for Reserved seating, and $55 for All-You-Can-Eat Reserved. Fans can also upgrade any ticket to All-You-Can-Eat for $45 on game day, based on availability. For a premium experience, the all-inclusive BCI Club starts at $75 and features in-seat service and top-tier food and drink options.
The team says parking is free for every game.
“We’ve got monster baseball, weird giveaways, and the kind of off-the-wall fun you can only find right here in Central Mississippi,” said General Manager Andrew Seymour. “And now, with Tixr, it’s easier than ever to grab your tickets and get in on the chaos.”
Markets & Business
1. Stock futures dim ahead of Friday opening
CNBC reports that the stock market “was headed for another pounding Friday after China retaliated with new tariffs on U.S. goods, raising fears a trade war will tip the globe into a recession.”
“Futures tied to the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1,146 points, or 2.7%. Futures levels indicated the Dow would open official trading about 1,100 points lower. This follows a 1,679.39 point decline on Thursday. S&P 500 futures lost 2.6% after the benchmark shed 4.84% on Thursday,” CNBC reported. “Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 3.1% as many tech companies have exposure to China.”
CNBC added, “The 10-year Treasury yield fell back below 4% Friday as investors flooded into bonds for safety, pushing prices up and rates lower. JPMorgan late Thursday raised the odds of a recession this year to 60% from 40%.”
2. Automaker pausing production after latest round of tariffs
FoxBusiness reports that automaker “Stellantis is pausing some production in Mexico and Canada and temporarily laying off hundreds of workers in the U.S. as the automaker tries to navigate President Donald Trump’s latest round of auto tariffs.”
“The company will be temporarily pausing production at the Toluca Assembly Plant in Mexico on April 7. It will simultaneously pause production at its Windsor Assembly Plant in Canada for two weeks. Those operations are expected to resume the week of April 21,” FoxBusiness reported. “The Toluca plant produces the Jeep Compass and Jeep Wagoneer S. The Windsor plant manufactures the Chrysler Pacifica, Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid and Dodge Charger Daytona. It also produces the Chrysler Voyager for the U.S. market and the Chrysler Grand Caravan for the Canadian market.”
FoxBusiness also noted, “There will be about 900 temporary layoffs at its Warren Stamping and Sterling Stamping plants in Michigan as well as at its Indiana Transmission Plant and Kokomo Transmission and Kokomo Casting plants, also located in Indiana.”
Magnolia Tribune
