Category: Virginia Mercury

After years of bipartisan deliberation, U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., has introduced legislation to strengthen and protect a federal drug pricing program.  Known as 340B, the program has helped Virginia hospitals and clinics and others nationwide care for underserved patients by requiring pharmaceutical companies offer prescription discounts to qualifying providers. 

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is urging Republican senators to “release their holds” and pass a measure making daylight saving time permanent nationwide.   A bipartisan bill passed the House in July but faces hurdles in the Senate, where members from both parties have pushed back against ending the semiannual clock changes.  “People

• “Virginia girds for data center-focused House races.” — E&E News by Politico • “VDH investigating dengue virus in Northern Virginia, first-ever documented case of virus being acquired locally.” — WSLS • “​​Gov. Spanberger opens applications for new Virginia corrections advisory council.” — WCYB • “Petersburg area residents fight back

Virginia is closer to regulating self-driving vehicles, which have steadily increased nationwide despite continued concerns over safety.   Despite crashes that have led to restrictions in some areas, other states, such as Arizona and Texas, have continued to permit testing and deployment. With interest in the technology growing in Virginia, lawmakers

More of the cost to build the high-voltage transmission lines that serve as power highways across the state could soon be covered by data centers, after a recent decision by state regulators. The State Corporation Commission has ordered Dominion Energy to develop a policy to directly assign the cost of

Virginians cast their ballots Tuesday in an unusually-timed primary that settled a statewide Republican contest for the U.S. Senate and determined several of Virginia’s most closely watched congressional matchups for the November election. Retired U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Bert Mizusawa won the GOP’s nomination to challenge longtime Democratic U.S. Senator

• “As $43 million for Southwest flood relief remains unspent, residents who can’t afford to fix their homes wait for help.” — Cardinal News • “Former Virginia Sen. Janet Howell, trailblazing Reston lawmaker, dies at 82.” — Patch.com • “AP Decision Notes: What to expect in Virginia’s state primary.” —

Virginia’s sales tax holiday begins on Friday and runs through Sunday, offering deals on qualifying school supplies, clothing and footwear sales tax. Certain emergency preparedness items also qualify. The sales tax holiday starts Aug. 7 at 12:01 a.m. and ends Aug. 9 at 11:59 p.m., and could save consumers 5.3%

Among the many environmental, energy and economic concerns about the unconstrained spread of data centers in Virginia, the impact on drinking water supplies has ranked fairly low. That changed suddenly last week, with the release of a report that the administration of Gov. Abigail Spanberger seems to have tried to

By Yiqing Wang/WHRO Cardiovascular care has become more advanced over the past two decades, giving doctors new ways to prevent deaths from heart attacks, strokes and other conditions. But a new national study found those advances have come with rapidly rising costs while improvements in cardiovascular death rates have largely stalled. The