A spate of illnesses involving a Virginia lake highlight the need for outdoor swimmers to be cautious about diseases lurking in water. The unanimous Supreme Court said the anti-abortion doctors who challenged the FDA’s rules for abortion pill mifepristone lacked a legitimate basis to bring their suit. Game 4 of the NBA Final Friday promises to be historic.
🙋🏼♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author.What's the song of summer 2024?
Should you worry about getting sick from a lake?
An alarming spate of infections at a lake offers a stark reminder for swimmers to use caution and good hygiene at outdoor water spots this summer. Health officials are investigating after nearly two dozen cases of illnesses have been reported in Virginia involving people, mainly children, who visited the same lake over Memorial Day weekend. As of Thursday, there were no swimming advisories at Lake Anna, but health officials said more tests on the lake water are underway this week to determine whether a public health risk may be ongoing. The case highlights the need to be vigilant of key water-borne threats that may not be visible to the naked eye — including brain-eating amoebas.
Abortion pill access stays the same — for now
Two years aftererasing the constitutional right to an abortion, the Supreme Court went the other direction. The justices tossed out a challenge on Thursday to the widely usedabortion drug mifepristonethat would have curbed access to the drug and jeopardized the independence of the Food and Drug Administration.
Despite the court’s deep ideological split over abortion, the decision was unanimous.The justices ruled that the anti-abortion group which brought the case, the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, didn’t have standing to sue.
- The group's lawyers couldn’t provide an example of their argument that by making mifepristone widely available, the FDA had increased the chance of complications.
- Celebration among abortion advocates was cautious: While the court said the anti-abortion doctors hadn’t shown sufficient cause for a suit, the justices didn’t rule out the possibility that someone else could make a better case.
- The abortion battle will soon return to the high court: A decision is expected on whether doctorscan provide emergency abortionsin states that banned the procedure after the court overturned Roe v. Wade.
More news to know now
- A push to protect IVFfailed in the Senate.
- Be "alert but not alarmed"about bird flu.
- A 10-year U.S. pact with Ukraine could be upended if Donald Trump wins.
- Phoenix police violated civil rights, used illegal excessive force, DOJ finds.
- Time for a break! Play today’s USA TODAY Crossword. Our expert, Sally, breaks it down.
What's the weather today?Check your local forecast here.
South Florida faces days of record-breaking rain
South Florida is recovering Friday after thunderstorms reemergedover the rain-soaked region, further inundating it with floodwaters, forcing road closures and disrupting hundreds of flights as a dayslong stretch of severe weather rages on. Experts said the storms pummeled South Florida with upwards of 20 inches of rain drenching some areas. Read more
Biden won't commute son's sentence
President Joe Biden said he won't commute any sentence given to his son Hunter Biden for threefederal gun feloniesafter a White House officialdid not rule out the possibilityof a reprieve the previous day. In his first public remarks on his son's guilty verdict, Biden also reiterated that he won't pardon Hunter Biden, who a federal jury in Wilmington, Delaware, found guilty Tuesday of three gun felonies, making him thefirst childof a sitting president to be convicted of a crime. Read more
Keep scrolling
- The Supreme Court sided with Starbucks in a high-profile labor dispute.
- A shift in global climate patterns -from El Niño to La Niña- is unfolding.
- The Sphere in Las Vegas really is a "quantum leap" for live music.
- TheFlorida Panthershold a 2-0 leadover theEdmonton Oilersin the 2024 Stanley Cup Final.
- TheKansas City Chiefs'Super Bowl 58 championship ring is their gaudiest yet.
Celtics or Mavericks? Either way it's historic
Both teams now have a chance to write history as they head into Game 4 Friday evening. If Boston clinches the Game 4 win Thursday, the Celtics will join the Warriors as the only other team to have recorded two NBA Finals sweeps. If the Dallas Mavericks can win the next four games, they will secure their place in history with the strongest NBA Finals comeback ever. The Boston Celticssurviveda fourth-quarter comeback attempt by the Dallas Mavericks to win game 3 of theNBA Finalsand now lead the series 3-0.Read more
Photo of the day:'...'Cause it's all over now'
Sorry Swifties,Taylor Swiftwill not extend her record-breaking, behemothEras Tourto 2025.
Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note?Shoother an email atNFallert@usatoday.com.
