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Bernie Parent, who led the Philadelphia Flyers to two Stanley Cup titles, dies at 80

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Bernie Parent, the Hall of Famer who anchored the net for the Philadelphia Flyers' only two Stanley Cup championships in the 1970s, has died. He was 80.

The Flyers made the announcement Sunday but provided no details. Parent died overnight in his sleep, former teammate Joe Watson said.

Watson, a star defenseman on the Stanley Cup teams, said by phone that when he saw Parent and other former Flyers players at a function Friday night in Delaware, the man known as one of the greatest goalies of all time was suffering from a bad back.

How to get a COVID-19 shot and ensure it's covered by your insurance

Drugstores are ready to deliver updated COVID-19 vaccines this fall, and insurers plan to pay for them, even though the shots no longer come recommended by an important government committee.

On Friday, vaccine advisers picked by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declined to specifically recommend the shots but said people could make individual decisions on whether to get them.

ICE broadens immigration arrests in Chicago

PARK RIDGE, Ill. (AP) — It was 3:30 a.m. when 10 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers gathered in a parking lot in the Chicago suburbs for a briefing about a suspect they were hoping to arrest. They went over a description of the person, made sure their radios were on the same channel and discussed where the closest hospital was in case something went wrong.

“Let's plan on not being there,” said one of the officers, before they climbed into their vehicles and headed out.

Senate rejects bills to fund government, increasing risk of shutdown

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate rejected competing measures on Friday to fund federal agencies for a few weeks when the new budget year begins on Oct. 1, increasing prospects for a partial government shutdown on that date.

Leaders of the two parties each blamed the other side for the standoff. Democrats accused Republicans of not negotiating with them to address some of their priorities on health care as part of the funding measure, even though they knew Democratic votes would be needed to get a bill to the president's desk.

Trump signs proclamation adding $100K annual fee for H-1B visa applications

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation that will require a $100,000 annual visa fee for highly-skilled foreign workers and rolled out a $1 million “gold card” visa as a pathway to U.S. citizenship for wealthy individuals, moves that face near-certain legal challenges amid widespread criticism he is sidestepping Congress.

If the moves survive legal muster, the visa fee for skilled workers would jump from $215. The fee for investor visas, which are common in many European countries, would climb from $10,000-$20,000 a year.

Florida federal judge tosses Trump's $15B defamation lawsuit against The New York Times

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — A Florida federal judge on Friday tossed out a $15 billion defamation lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump against The New York Times.

U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday ruled that Trump’s 85-page lawsuit was overly long and full of “tedious and burdensome” language that had no bearing on the legal case. The judge gave Trump 28 days to file an amended complaint that should not exceed 40 pages.

Kennedy's advisory panel recommends new restrictions on MMRV vaccines

ATLANTA (AP) — U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s hand-picked vaccine advisory committee on Thursday recommended the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention adopt new restrictions on a combination shot that protects against chickenpox as well as measles, mumps and rubella.

The panel advised that the vaccine known as MMRV not be given before age 4 and that children in this age group instead get separate vaccines — one against MMR and another for varicella, or chickenpox. The vote was 8-3, with one member abstaining.

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