The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that a person in Louisiana was hospitalized with avian flu, the nation's first serious human H5N1 illness. According to Louisiana Department of Health spokeswoman Emma Herrock, the patient is in serious condition at the hospital and is suffering from a severe respiratory sickness linked to an H5N1 infection. This would be the first time a backyard flock has been linked to a bird flu infection in a U.S. resident, according to the CDC, which also stated that the patient was most likely exposed to the virus from the flock. During a briefing on Wednesday, Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, stated that although an investigation is still underway to determine the origin of this i...

Washington After losing campaigns to Democrats in recent years, in part because of their connections to Trump, president-elect Donald Trump is selecting a group of devoted supporters for high-profile federal government positions. The selections consist of: Two former Georgia senators who lost their races in 2020 after promoting Trump s false claims that he won the last election. David Perdue, who went on to lose the 2022 primary for governor while echoing Trump s election denial, is tapped to be ambassador to China. Kelly Loeffler has been picked to lead the Small Business Administration. Trump's handpicked Georgia Senate candidate in 2022, former football player Herschel Walker , was tapped late Tuesday to be ambassador to the Bahamas. Walker ran as a MAGA prot...

In an attempt to maintain stability in what seems to be a stable but declining economy, the Federal Reserve announced a quarter-point reduction in its key interest rate on Wednesday. This is the third rate cut by the central bank in 2024. The Fed's target rate is now between 4.25% and 4.5% as a result of the action. The Fed now only anticipates two interest rate cuts in 2025, according to its statement announcing the move. The unemployment rate is still low, it said, while the inflation rate "remains somewhat elevated." According to a different paper issued by the Fed on Wednesday, central bankers now think it will take until 2026 to reach their targeted inflation rate of 2%. According to Bloomberg's survey of economists, three cuts were anticipated next year because they thought the econo...

Washington TikTok's appeal against a government law that might ban the well-known social media app by next month will be heard by the Supreme Court, the court announced Wednesday. The court took action a day after TikTok submitted its appeal, and it will decide whether to halt the law after hearing oral arguments on January 10. The matter at hand is a bipartisan bill that was approved by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden. It would take effect on January 19, the day before Donald Trump, the next president, takes office. The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act would force ByteDance, the Chinese corporation that owns TikTok, to sell the platform to an American business or risk being banned. TikTok has contested the regulation, claiming i...

In an attempt to maintain stability in what seems to be a stable but declining economy, the Federal Reserve announced a quarter-point reduction in its key interest rate on Wednesday. This is the third rate cut by the central bank in 2024. The Fed's target rate is now between 4.25% and 4.5% as a result of the action. The Fed now only anticipates two interest rate cuts in 2025, according to its statement announcing the move. The unemployment rate is still low, it said, while the inflation rate "remains somewhat elevated." According to Bloomberg's survey of economists, three cuts were anticipated next year because they thought the economy and price rise would have further cooled by now. The Fed's actions are intended to keep the economy from overheating during periods of rapid expansion or pl...

Despite the Federal Reserve's efforts to reduce interest rates in the economy, a large number of credit cards provided by large retailers still have outrageous annual percentage rates (APRs). According to a recent analysis by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 19% of retail cards had annual percentage rates (APRs) higher than 35%, which is at or close to the maximum amount allowed by the Military Lending Act for active-duty military members. The average private label annual percentage rate (APR) for new cards issued by the top 100 shops in December 2024 was 32.66%. Interest rates are not capped by the federal government. Furthermore, credit card issuers are frequently based in states with more lenient regulations regarding the maximum amount of interest that can be charged on a cred...

In an attempt to maintain stability in what seems to be a stable but declining economy, the Federal Reserve announced a quarter-point reduction in its key interest rate on Wednesday. This is the third rate cut by the central bank in 2024. The Fed's target rate is now between 4.25% and 4.5% as a result of the action. The Fed now only anticipates two interest rate cuts in 2025, according to its statement announcing the move. The unemployment rate is still low, it said, while the inflation rate "remains somewhat elevated." The Fed's actions are intended to keep the economy from overheating during periods of rapid expansion or plunging into a recession during periods of slower development. The question of which is more likely to happen in the future is currently being hotly debated. The rate o...

A 2024 study by the Entertainment Software Association found that 61% of Americans play video games for at least an hour per week, most of them on their smartphones. It makes sense because your phone functions as a portable gaming console that you can carry about in your pocket. Even though I've played some incredible games on my phone, nothing compares to the enjoyment I've had using a portable gaming system like the Nintendo Switch. The top handheld gaming consoles and which one is ideal for you were discussed with professionals in the game industry. GO Ahead and SkipThe top portable gaming consoles for 2024|How to choose a portable gaming system|Get to know our professionals|Why rely on NBC Select? Our top picks Best overall Nintendo Switch ...

Washington, U.S.According to a Senate Democratic report released Wednesday, a vital national security office is still severely understaffed, allowing Russian-made technology to continue to end up in Ukrainian hands. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, is leading the investigation, which was released at the same time as members of the incoming Trump Administration demand significant expenditure cutbacks. The new analysis emphasizes how current capacity shortages in important federal agencies are already harming U.S. interests, despite their arguments centered on reducing government waste. Democratic staff on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations claim in the 30-page study that the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) enforcement of expo...

Convincing Senate Republicans that he does not have radical views on vaccines may be the most difficult task facing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as he meets with them on the Hill this week to seek his confirmation as secretary of health and human services. That would be challenging, though, given Kennedy's decades-long public opposition to vaccines, which includes his affiliation with Children's Health Defense, a prominent anti-vaccine organization, and his repeated fabrications that vaccines cause autism. Concerns over Kennedy's potential use of his position as health secretary have increased in recent days. The New York Times revealed this week that Kennedy's attorney, who is vetting applicants for HHS positions, petitioned the Food and Drug Administration in 2022 to rescind the polio vaccine's...