KTOE Noon News 2-20-25
Top Stories for Noon 2-20-25
- UnitedHealth Group is starting to offer buyouts to several workers with an expectation of layoffs. The Eden Prairie-based healthcare giant calls the action a voluntary resignation separation program. For those who take the buyout, additional severance would be included based on their tenure with UnitedHealth Group. The company faces pressure due to rising medical costs, and there are questions about whether the health insurance industry needs reform to address patient concerns over denials of health insurance coverage.
- Attorney General Keith Ellison and 22 other AGs are defending the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) after President Donald Trump attempted to defund and disband it. On February 9th, Trump directed the CFPB to stop all ongoing work and not begin any new investigations. The CFPB oversees big banks, lenders, credit card companies, and mortgage servicers to ensure they follow federal consumer protection laws. Ellison and other state attorneys argue that Trump’s actions could prevent consumers from reporting issues of fraud or deception and would reduce the oversight of massive banks.
- Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar and Iowa’s Chuck Grassley are co-sponsoring a bill allowing people to import prescription drugs from Canada. Klobuchar says Americans pay the highest prices worldwide for medications, and this plan would lower costs and increase consumer access. Klobuchar and Grassley partnered on two other bipartisan bills to promote competition and reduce prescription drug prices that passed in 2023.
