NEWS OF THE DAY
From Across the Nation
1 Bryant family statement: Vanessa Bryant made her first public comment since the helicopter crash that killed husband Kobe Bryant, daughter Gianna and seven other people, thanking people on Instagram for the global outpouring of support. She also announced the formation of a fund to support the other families affected by the crash. “Thank you for all the prayers. We definitely need them,” she wrote from Los Angeles. “We are completely devastated by the sudden loss of my adoring husband, Kobe — the amazing father of our children; and my beautiful, sweet Gianna — a loving, thoughtful, and wonderful daughter.”
2 Pelvic mesh judgment: A San Diego judge ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay nearly $344 million in penalties for deceptively marketing pelvic mesh devices for women. Superior Court Judge Eddie Sturgeon ruled Thursday against the medical giant in a lawsuit brought by the California Department of Justice in 2016. The California attorney general’s office said it was the first time a court has ruled that the company engaged in false and deceptive business practices. “Johnson & Johnson knew the danger of its mesh products but put profits ahead of the health of millions of women,” California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said.
3 Priest apology: A Minnesota Roman Catholic priest apologized this week for saying in a sermon that Islam was “the greatest threat in the world” to the U.S. and Christianity. The Rev. Nick VanDenBroeke apologized in a statement issued by the St. PaulMinnesota Catholic archdiocese. He had made the comments in a Jan. 5 sermon at the Lonsdale church where he serves as pastor. VanDenBroeke said his homily “contained words that were hurtful to Muslims. I’m sorry for this. I realize that my comments were not fully reflective of the Catholic Church’s teaching on Islam.”
4 University endowments: Most U.S. universities made money on their financial investments last year, but their returns were tempered by a global economic slowdown fueled by America’s trade war with China, according to an annual survey by the National Association of College and University Business Officers. The survey, released Thursday, found that college and university endowments returned an average of 5.3% in fiscal year 2019, down from the previous year’s returns of 8.2% and 12.2% the year before that. Harvard University remained the wealthiest school in the U.S., the survey found, with an endowment valued at nearly $40 billion. The median endowment was valued at $144 million.
5 Medicaid grants: The Trump administration said Thursday that it would start allowing states to seek fixed amounts of money for most poor workingage adults who receive Medicaid coverage, a major shift that would limit federal contributions to a program that has always been an openended entitlement. Democrats, health care providers and consumer groups warned that capping federal funding and giving states more freedom to decide whom and what Medicaid covers would jeopardize medical access and care for the poorest Americans.