Business & Politics News and Discussions

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Walgreens is closing 450 locations
Source: CNN Business

New York CNN — Walgreens expects to close 150 locations in the United States and 300 locations in the United Kingdom, Walgreens Boots Alliance CFO James Kehoe said in the company’s earnings call this week.

The pharmacy chain reported lower earnings on Tuesday compared to the same quarter last year – $118 million, or 14 cents a share, compared to $289 million, or 33 cents a share, a year ago. The company is facing muted consumer spending and a pullback in demand for Covid vaccines.

CEO Rosalind Brewer said the company was increasing its cost-savings efforts to $4.1 billion and “taking immediate actions to optimize profitability for our US healthcare segment.” Kehoe told analysts the company will have saved $3.3 billion by the end of this year, and is projecting to save “at least” $800 million in 2024. These store closures are part of its cost-cutting effort.

The chain operates almost 9,000 stores in the United States and expects to close the 150 US locations by the end of its next fiscal year, Aug 31, 2024, a spokesperson said. Kehoe said the company also eliminated more than 500 roles, or around 10% of its corporate and US office support workforce. Technology and its plans to build the “pharmacy of the future” will further drive savings, he said.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/30/investin ... index.html

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Science Activism is Surging – Which Marks a Culture Shift Among Scientists
by Scott Frickel and Fernando Tormos-Aponte
July 6, 2023

Introduction:

(The Conversation) Hundreds of scientists protested government efforts to restrict educational access to Western science theories, including Darwin’s theory of evolution, in June 2023 in India. Similarly, scientists in Mexico participated in a research strike in May 2023 to protest a national law they claimed would threaten the conditions for basic research. And during the same month in Norway, three scientists were arrested for protesting the nation’s slow-moving climate policy.

As these among many other actions show, scientists today are speaking out on a variety of political and social issues related to their own research fields and in solidarity with other social movements.

Conclusion:

Emerging lessons

Two lessons emerge from our research thus far. First, our findings indicate that science activism may be gaining legitimacy within the scientific community. In this context, social media is helping mobilize and raise visibility among younger researchers. These researchers’ political experiences are informed by the climate justice, Black Lives Matter and #MeToo movements. As this newer generation of science activists moves into the profession, they will continue to shift the cultural norms of science.

Second, because race unevenly structures scientists’ experiences with activism, science activists can build on their current momentum by embracing intersectional solidarity. This means taking actions to center and engage marginalized groups within science. Intersectional solidarity can deepen activist engagement, enhance and diversify recruitment efforts, and increase its impact on social and ecological change.

Read more here: https://theconversation.com/science-ac ... ts-207454

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Aldi to Acquire Winn-Dixie, Harveys Supermarket
Source: Wall Street Journal

Supermarket chain Aldi has agreed to acquire Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket from Southeastern Grocers.

The acquisition is part of a larger divestiture by Southeastern Grocers and includes about 400 Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket locations across Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.

The financial terms of the two private companies’ agreement weren’t disclosed.

The deal builds out Aldi’s presence in the U.S. Southeast and supports its plans to end the year with more than 2,400 stores.

Read more: https://www.wsj.com/articles/aldi-to-ac ... _permalink

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Planned Parenthood resumes offering abortions in Wisconsin after more than a year
Source: ABC News

September 18, 2023, 10:43 AM

MADISON, Wis. -- Planned Parenthood resumed offering abortion services in Wisconsin on Monday after halting them for more than a year since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

Providers across the state stopped offering abortions following the June 2022 decision, fearing enforcement of an 1849 state law that appears to ban the procedure but had previously been nullified by the 1973 Roe ruling. A judge ruled last month that the 144-year-old law doesn't apply to medical abortions.

In light of the ruling, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin began offering abortions at clinics in Madison and Milwaukee again on Monday. The group did not say how many abortions it expected to perform but said appointments at its Milwaukee clinic on Monday were completely filled within 24 hours of announcing that services would resume.

Without access to abortion care in Wisconsin for the past 15 months, many patients have sought assistance in neighboring Illinois, where abortions have remained widely available. According to Planned Parenthood of Illinois, its clinics have seen a seven-fold increase in patients from Wisconsin since the Supreme Court overturned Roe.

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/pla ... -103278233

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California Gov. Gavin Newsom would make an 'interim' choice (re: Dianne Feinstein)

As three high-profile California Democrats vie to replace retiring Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom said in an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press" that he would not appoint any of them to the seat, should it become vacant sooner than expected.

That decision could be a blow to Rep. Barbara Lee, since her allies had reason to believe she was Newsom’s first choice to fill a potential vacancy. But that was before she entered the Senate race, where she is currently trailing in polls behind better-known and better-funded fellow Democratic Reps. Adam Schiff and Katie Porter.

In his most direct comments on the matter yet, Newsom said in the interview with Chuck Todd for NBC News' "Meet the Press" that airs Sunday that he would instead make an “interim appointment” to replace Feinstein if necessary.

“Yes. Interim appointment. I don’t want to get involved in the primary,” Newsom said. “It would be completely unfair to the Democrats that have worked their tail off. That primary is just a matter of months away. I don’t want to tip the balance of that.”

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-e ... rcna103933

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CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid are closing stores across the U.S. Here's how 'pharmacy deserts' can impact your health.

The national pharmacy chain Rite Aid has filed for bankruptcy in an attempt to close unprofitable stores and deal with debt of about $4 billion. The company said in court filings that it plans to shutter an unspecified number of stores across 17 states.

But Rite Aid is far from the only major pharmacy chain facing closures. Walgreens and CVS have collectively closed more than 1,000 stores across the country since 2018. Independent pharmacies are also struggling to stay afloat: The number of these stores dropped by 50% from 1980 to 2022, according to a report from McKinsey.

This trend has been happening for years: Nearly 1 out of every 8 pharmacies closed between 2009 and 2015, according to a JAMA Internal Medicine study.

What do all these closures mean for people who depend on these pharmacies, and what options do you have if your local pharmacy closes? Doctors break it down.

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https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/cvs-wal ... 01871.html

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Exxon aims to become a top lithium producer for electric vehicles with Arkansas drill operation

Source: CNBC

Published Mon, Nov 13 2023 8:00 AM EST

Exxon Mobil aims to become a leading producer of lithium for electric vehicle batteries through a drilling operation the oil giant is launching in Arkansas, the company announced Monday.

Exxon earlier this year purchased 120,000 acres of a geological site in southern Arkansas called the Smackover Formation that is rich in lithium.

The company will start producing battery-grade lithium at the site as soon as 2027, and aims to supply enough of the mineral to support the manufacture of one million electric vehicles annually by 2030. Discussions with potential customers such as electric vehicle and battery manufacturers are ongoing, Exxon said in a statement.

The lithium operation comes as the the major oil companies are under pressure to address climate change. While Shell and BP have focused on renewables such as wind and solar, Exxon is investing $17 billion through 2027 to reduce emissions with a focus on carbon capture, hydrogen and biofuels.

Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/11/13/exxon-t ... ansas.html

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Next generation of billionaires collect more wealth from inheritance than work, says UBS

Thu 30 Nov 2023 08.00 GMT

Newly minted billionaires have collected more of their wealth from the deaths of relatives than through their own work and entrepreneurship, according to a Swiss bank favoured by the super-rich.

Of the 137 people who became billionaires in the 12 months to this April, 53 inherited a combined $150.8bn (£119bn) from their family, the report by UBS found. This exceeds the combined $140.7bn created by “84 new self-made” billionaires over the same period.

The bank said it was the first time in the nine-year history of its annual report on the fortunes of the richest 0.00004% of society that “the next generation of billionaires accumulated more wealth through inheritance than entrepreneurship”.

Benjamin Cavalli, the head of strategic clients at UBS Global Wealth Management, said: “This is a theme we expect to see more of over the next 20 years, as more than 1,000 billionaires pass an estimated $5.2tn to their children.”

The report said the “growing significance of these families can be seen across all major geographical regions”. In Asia-Pacific, inheritors’ average wealth was $2bn compared with $1.6bn for entrepreneurs. In the Americas, the inheritors were worth $2.2bn versus the entrepreneurs’ $1.5bn. In Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), the inheritors’ average wealth of $4.4bn – twice the entrepreneurs’ $2.2bn.

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2023/n ... n-work-ubs

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Rite Aid closing more locations: 31 additional stores to be shuttered.

Source: USA Today

Published 4:46 p.m. ET Nov. 29, 2023 | Updated 5:40 p.m. ET Nov. 29, 2023

Pharmacy chain Rite Aid is shuttering an additional 31 stores in a dozen states, according to a recent bankruptcy court filing.

The company announced more than 150 other store closures last month when it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. A Wednesday news release said it operates more than 2,300 retail pharmacy locations across 17 states.

Rite Aid spokesperson Catherine Carter said the stores that will be closing have been underperforming and will be closed “to further reduce rent expense and strengthen overall financial performance.” The company plans to give workers at closing stores the option to transfer to other locations.

Rite Aid, one of the largest pharmacy chains in the country, filed for bankruptcy in October as it faced slumping sales and more than a thousand federal, state and local lawsuits accusing it of fueling the opioid epidemic by illegally filling painkiller prescriptions.

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/sh ... 744831007/

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