January 2, 2026 5:08 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Enhanced tax credits that have helped Americans offset the cost of Affordable Care Act health insurance for the last four years expired overnight. The arrival of the New Year’s Day deadline with no fix from Congress cemented higher health costs for millions of Americans, including many self-employed workers, small business owners, farmers and ranchers. The change represents a failure by lawmakers to address an affordability issue that many Americans have raised as a top concern ahead of the 2026 midterms. On average, the more than 20 million subsidized enrollees in the Affordable Care Act program are seeing their premium costs rise by 114% in 2026, according to an analysis by the health care research nonprofit KFF.
January 2, 2026 3:31 pm
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The FBI says it disrupted a New Year’s Eve attack plot in North Carolina, arresting an 18-year-old who allegedly pledged loyalty to the Islamic State group. Christian Sturdivant is charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. Authorities say he shared attack plans with an undercover FBI employee. Sturdivant was arrested Wednesday and remains in custody. Searches of his home uncovered what authorities call a manifesto detailing plans for an attack with knives and a hammer. The investigation began last month after authorities linked Sturdivant to a social media account that posted content supportive of IS.
January 2, 2026 4:48 am
A car and a tractor-trailer crashed on the Pennsylvania Turnpike Thursday night. The Mt. Pleasant Volunteer Fire Department said the crash happened at the 87.7-mile marker at 8:23 p.m. When crews arrived, they found the car pinned underneath the trailer. The driver of the car was able to get out on their own. The vehicle was removed by firefighters, who were back in service around two hours after they were called to the scene. (Photo: Mt. Pleasant VFD)
January 2, 2026 4:57 am
PITTSBURGH — A new law, changing penalties for driving under the influence, signed by Governor Josh Shapiro in December, is now in effect. Prosecutors believe it holds drunk drivers accountable, but defense lawyers say it may be too harsh. For years, if someone was arrested and charged with a DUI, prosecuting attorneys could allow first-time offenders to enter what’s called an ARD, or Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition. “ARD, for years, was always considered a clean slate,” said Attorney Phil DiLucente. “It gave people the opportunity to start anew.” But a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling last April changed that. “Now the Supreme Court, it’s the law of the land, and they decided an ARD is not a conviction,” said Beaver County District Attorney Nate Bible. That meant that district attorneys and judges could no longer look at someone who was charged with DUI a second time as a repeat offender if they successfully completed a diversion program after their first DUI. “We’re okay with sort of the clean slate and people getting a fresh start, but when you have somebody who’s on their second, third, fourth DUI, that fourth DUI shouldn’t be counted as a third,” Bible said. So, the Pennsylvania District Attorney Association worked with lawmakers to change the law. “This is how people get killed, so they wanted to put a stop to that and try to have some accountability,” Bible said. As an example, if you were charged with your first DUI last year and successfully went through a diversion program. But then, 5 years from now, you get a second DUI. Even though the PA Supreme Court said that first DUI wasn’t a conviction on your record — because of the new state law — you can now face penalties as if it were a conviction.
January 2, 2026 5:02 am
PITTSBURGH — The flu is surging nationwide. For the next several weeks, Dr. Amesh Adalja expects to see an increase in flu cases locally, with illnesses not leveling off until after February. “It’s finding a population that has little immunity. It’s able to spread very quickly and rapidly through that population because of this new variant that is dominant,” said Infectious Disease Doctor Amesh Adalja. He recommends still getting a flu shot if you haven’t yet. “It’s not too late to get the flu shot because the flu peaks in February traditionally and remember the flu vaccine covers three different strains of flu. Later in the season, other types of flu might dominate,” Adalja said. According to the CDC, Pennsylvania is currently in the “moderate” activity level for the flu, with some of the highest states being New York, South Carolina, and Louisiana. “Cases are increasing in the Pittsburgh area. They don’t seem to be translating into more ICU or severe cases, but there are people hospitalized,” Adalja said. Even though there have been hospitalizations, the good news is, Dr. Adalja doesn’t predict a major strain on hospitals, like there was with COVID. His biggest advice is to stay home if you get it.
January 2, 2026 5:05 am
CRANS-MONTANA, Switzerland (AP) — Investigators say they believe sparkling candles atop Champagne bottles ignited the fatal fire at a Swiss ski resort when they came too close to the ceiling of a bar crowded with New Year’s Eve revelers. Investigators said Friday that they planned to look into whether the material on the ceiling that was designed to muffle sound conformed with regulations. The candles, which give off a stream of upward-shooting sparks, are a type that are commonly available for parties, officials said. Forty people were killed and another 119 injured in the blaze as it ripped through the busy Le Constellation bar at the ski resort of Crans-Montana.
January 2, 2026 5:04 am
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump and a top Iranian security official have exchanged dueling threats as widening economic protests swept across parts of the Islamic Republic. Trump initially wrote on his Truth Social platform, warning Iran that if it “violently kills peaceful protesters,” the United States “will come to their rescue.” At least seven people have been killed so far in violence surrounding demonstrations. Trump wrote that “We are locked and loaded and ready to go.” Shortly after, Ali Larijani, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said U.S. intervention will lead to “chaos in the entire region and the destruction of the U.S. interests.”
January 1, 2026 5:07 am
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela is open to reaching an agreement with the United States to combat drug trafficking, according to President Nicolás Maduro. In a pretaped interview aired Thursday, Maduro expressed readiness to discuss serious agreements with the U.S. He also mentioned that Venezuela is open to U.S. investment in its oil industry. The interview was recorded on New Year’s Eve, the same day the U.S. military announced strikes against several alleged drug-smuggling boats. The CIA was reportedly behind a recent drone strike at a Venezuelan docking area. Maduro declined to comment on that operation, stating he could discuss it later.
January 2, 2026 5:06 am
A woman was killed in a suspected mountain lion attack while she was hiking alone in the mountains of northern Colorado. Authorities said the woman’s body was found late Thursday morning by other hikers along a remote section of a trail south of the small community of Glen Haven. Two mountain lions were later located in the area and shot by wildlife officials. A Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson says it’s unknown if one or both of the lions that were killed were involved in the attack. If confirmed, it would mark the first fatal attack by a mountain lion in Colorado in more than 25 years.
January 1, 2026 11:38 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump defended his energy and health in an interview with The Wall Street Journal and disclosed that he had a CT scan, not an MRI scan, during an October examination about which he and the White House delayed offering details. Trump, in the interview, said he regretted undergoing the advanced imaging on his heart and abdomen during an October visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center because it raised public questions about his health. His physician said in a memo the White House released in December that he had “advanced imaging” as a preventative screening for men his age.
