Wednesday, July 8, 2026
CMS scraps ‘fast-track’ process for certain Medicaid waivers
CMS has rescinded a decade-old “fast-track” review process for certain Medicaid Section 1115 demonstration waiver extensions as the agency prepares to implement new federal budget neutrality requirements that take effect in 2027.
The July 7 informational bulletin formally withdraws 2015 guidance that allowed eligible states to use an expedited review process when renewing some Section 1115 demonstrations. CMS said the change is necessary because new statutory requirements will require the agency’s chief actuary to certify that Medicaid demonstrations will not increase federal spending before they can be approved, renewed or amended beginning Jan. 1, 2027.
Six things to know:
1. The 2015 “fast-track” guidance has been rescinded. CMS formally withdrew its July 24, 2015, guidance and accompanying application templates that created an expedited federal review process for certain Section 1115 Medicaid and CHIP demonstration extensions.
2. New budget neutrality rules prompted the change. CMS said the current fast-track process “could make it difficult” to evaluate demonstration renewal applications under new budget neutrality requirements established under HR 1, which CMS refers to as the “Working Families Tax Cut Legislation.” Under the law, the CMS chief actuary must certify that a demonstration is not expected to increase federal Medicaid spending.
3. The new requirements take effect Jan. 1, 2027. Beginning Jan. 1, 2027, CMS may not approve, renew or amend a Medicaid Section 1115 demonstration unless the chief actuary certifies that the project is budget neutral compared with what federal spending would have been without the demonstration. The requirement applies to all states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories.
4. States will still be able to renew demonstrations. CMS emphasized that it will continue reviewing all Section 1115 demonstration renewal applications under existing statutory and regulatory requirements. However, the agency said the expanded review process means it is “no longer feasible” to offer a fast-track option for renewals.
5. Additional guidance and rulemaking are expected. CMS previously notified state Medicaid directors that it intends to propose new budget neutrality policies and expects to issue additional implementation guidance. The agency said it remains committed to working with states to support Medicaid and CHIP innovation while complying with the new statutory requirements.
6. The practical effect is slower, tighter reviews. Longer adjudication timelines will apply to the extension applications the rescinded guidance once expedited. Under the coming framework, there would be no hard spending caps, but demonstrations projected to raise federal Medicaid spending would not move forward, and states would face corrective action if actual expenditures do not closely track projections. The treatment of savings also tightens: only savings from a demonstration’s current period — or its most recent five years — could carry to the next renewal, not to later ones. CMS would also remove the 15% cap on rollover savings during the transition.
Canada Considered Suing Citizens Over "False And Misleading" Social Media Posts
by Cindy Harper via ReclaimTheNet.org,
The Canadian government drew up a plan to take individual citizens to court over what they post online. That plan sat inside a 35-page internal memo from the Department of Industry, most of it blacked out before the public could see it.
Blacklock's Reporter pried the document loose through an Access to Information request. Dated March 31 and titled "Misinformation And Disinformation Strategy," it belongs to the department run by Minister Melanie Joly, known as ISED. The memo weighs "legal action" against people who post what the government calls "false and misleading information" on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
What kind of legal action? The redactions hide that. What survives the black ink is the logic. "This strategy seeks to uphold the integrity of and public trust in government information," the memo says. The department is appointing itself guardian of its own reputation, with lawsuits as one available tool.
Here is who would decide. ISED itself would judge whether a post is "factually incorrect, misleading or out of context." The same department that dislikes a post gets to rule on whether the post is true. No court makes that call first and no independent reviewer checks the work. The government writes the definition of misinformation and then enforces it against the people it defines.
The memo describes any punishment as "proportionate and subject to senior level approval." That language reassures no one. Proportion gets measured by the same officials pushing the complaint, and senior approval means a manager signs off, not a judge.
Officials already watch. Managers "already monitor the department's official social media channels and media outlets on a daily basis for comments and recurring inaccuracies," the memo says. The strategy would push that surveillance from reaction toward "prevention and early detection," catching disfavored speech earlier in its life.
The plan has drawn sharp opposition reaction. Conservative MP Leslyn Lewis, in a post on X, asked who defines misinformation in the first place: "Will government become the arbiter of truth? That is a dangerous path for a free society." Conservative MP Roman Baber argued the direction of fear runs the wrong way, writing that government "should fear citizens at the free press and the ballot box," and that "the reverse, citizens fearing government, gives rise to authoritarianism."
The chilling effect writes itself. A citizen who knows a federal department is reading posts, grading them for accuracy, and holding a lawsuit in reserve thinks twice before typing. The threat does the work a courtroom never has to.
The government's own files admit the problem. Its research found Canadians feel capable of spotting fake news and do not want Ottawa "declaring what is true or not." The memo concedes that answering misinformation can amplify it, and that going after individuals risks "further backlash." The department understood the public would object and mapped the plan anyway.
Compare the tune from four years back. This same Liberal government declared that "the rights and freedoms that individuals have offline must also be protected online." That promise reads differently next to a memo about suing people for their posts. It also sits oddly against the government's own recent history: Canada repealed Section 181 of the Criminal Code, the "false news" offence, in 2019, after the Supreme Court found the provision violated freedom of expression.
The non-profit Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms has since begun asking publicly whether any Canadians have already received notices from the federal government demanding they take down online posts.
Ottawa has not explained how the monitoring runs, how often lawsuits were floated, or what a post must do to land on the department's radar. The memo sets no threshold. It names no outside check. It leaves a federal department free to decide which citizens spoke falsely and what the price should be.
A government sure of its facts answers speech with more speech. This one drafted a plan to answer speech with lawyers.
DOJ Warns State Election Officials Can Be Charged Over Noncitizen Voting
by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times,
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has sent letters to election officials across the country, warning them that they could be charged if they let noncitizens receive ballots or vote in elections.
"Any election officer, including the chief election officer of the state, who knowingly retains noncitizens on the state's [voter list] or facilitates noncitizens in receiving and casting ballots could be subject to criminal liability," Harmeet Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for civil rights, said in the letters, which were sent on July 7.
It is also a crime to prevent people who try to vote from voting, the officials were also told.
Dhillon also outlined various laws that set forth requirements for state and local election officials regarding voter lists.
"We encourage you to contact us to discuss what steps your state should take to maintain clean voter lists as required by law," Dhillon wrote.
A DOJ spokesperson told The Epoch Times in an email, "The Department sent these letters to all 50 states and the District of Columbia, asking for voluntary compliance in a timely manner with their obligations under federal law to ensure only citizens vote in federal elections."
The letters came after the DOJ requested data on registered voters from all states. Several dozen, including Utah, have declined to comply with the request, sparking legal action from the department. Judges have so far ruled against the agency, including a judge who in June said the request sought data that falls outside of records the federal government may require states to produce.
Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson said in a post on Threads that she received one of the letters from Dhillon.
"I'm sure I'm not the only chief election officer of a state who is being targeted for following state and federal laws by resisting DOJ's demands for private voter data that have thus far been ruled illegal by at least a dozen courts," Henderson said. "This is truly bizarre behavior by the federal agency that is supposed to be protecting civil rights."
Dhillon also said Tuesday that the DOJ will send election monitors to six states - Arizona, Michigan, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, and Virginia - during primary elections this year.
The monitors will be focused on issues such as access to polls for disabled voters and whether voting locations are open for the amount of time that is required under federal law.
"It's also important to make sure that our voting is accurate so that every citizen who votes has their vote counted equally without being canceled out by somebody who shouldn't be voting," Dhillon said in a video statement.
Jesus Osete, the DOJ's principal deputy assistant attorney general for civil rights, said in a post on X that federal election monitors "are a routine part of every election."
Trump praises Spain, says country was 'very generous today'
United States President Donald Trump praised Spain during remarks to reporters aboard Air Force One, saying the country was "very generous today" after earlier issues.
He said Spain had caused problems in the past but added the country "came back all the way today" at the NATO summit in Ankara.
Asked what Spain did that day, Trump said they honored a request for "lots of payment" and added that without it the US "wouldn't even talk to them."
Trump: NATO made some concessions, came a long way
United States President Donald Trump said members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) showed "tremendous unity" during the alliance summit in Ankara, calling the outcome "very good."
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump dismissed speculation that this could be his final NATO gathering, saying the alliance "came a long way" and "made concessions" during the talks. "A lot is gonna depend on Greenland," he added.
The US president noted that NATO countries expressed willingness to assist on Iran but added that "there's not that much fighting to be done" and that Washington no longer needs the help. "When they had a chance, an opportunity, to help, they chose not to ... But we are sort of forgetting about that," Trump said.
https://breakingthenews.net/Article/Trump:-NATO-made-some-concessions-came-a-long-way/66661482
'Dem Kentucky Gov. Beshear demands health update on hospitalized GOP Sen. McConnell'
Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear demanded a health update from Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) Wednesday after the former Senate GOP leader was found “unconscious” and rushed to a DC hospital last month.
“Over the last several weeks, Kentuckians have grown increasingly concerned about the current state of your health and wellbeing, and ability to hold office in the United States Senate,” Beshear told McConnell’s office.
“As Governor, I request that you fully update Kentuckians regarding the current status of your health,” the governor added. “As public officeholders, we have made a commitment to our constituents to do our best to represent them and to always be transparent.”
“I believe this requires clear communication about one’s ability to serve. We wish you a safe and speedy recovery,” Beshear told the 84-year-old senator.
Unlike some governors, Beshear wouldn’t have a hand in picking McConnell’s replacement should he not be able to complete his Senate term in January.
A 2024 Bluegrass State law requires a special election to be held to fill the remainder of McConnell’s term if he is forced to vacate his seat by Aug. 3. Beshear had vetoed that law but been overruled by the GOP-dominated Kentucky legislature.
A handful of Republicans have said they’ve spoken with McConnell since his hospitalization in mid-June, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and CNN senior political contributor Scott Jennings, a former McConnell adviser.
All three described having lengthy conversations about pressing political issues — including US national security, the conflicts in Iran and Ukraine as well as the US Senate race in Maine, where incumbent Republican Susan Collins is facing a challenge from embattled Democratic candidate Graham Platner.
“Senator McConnell appreciates the outpouring of support he’s receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital,” a spokesperson for McConnell’s office had said in a July 2 statement.
“The Senator continues to improve, and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters while the Senate is out of session.”
On June 14, EMS dispatchers discussed an “unconscious” individual apparently in “cardiac arrest” at McConnell’s longtime residence in Washington and sent an ALS, or Advanced Life Support, ambulance to the home shortly after 9 a.m., according to audio recordings first unearthed by the independent journalist Desireé Townsend.
McConnell’s wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, was on a trip to China that morning, a spokesperson told Fox News Digital on Tuesday.
“The secretary was on a long-planned trip in China to support her family’s philanthropic endeavors,” the rep said. “During the trip, she met with a number of people, including the US ambassador. The Senator’s health did not warrant an immediate return to the US”
Chao, who served as Trump’s transportation secretary during his first term, has since returned stateside.
Right-wing critics of McConnell spread rumors online that he was “brain dead” and that GOP lawmakers were keeping his true condition hidden.
The third-oldest currently serving senator, McConnell had suffered falls that left him concussed as well as freeze-ups at public press conferences in the lead-up to the 2024 election.
The Kentucky Republican stepped down as Senate GOP leader in January 2025 after holding the position for 18 years.
In February, McConnell was briefly hospitalized for flu-like symptoms, but later recovered. Photos had since shown him being driven by staffers around the US Capitol complex in a wheelchair.
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