Narcan over the counter; Medicaid at risk; coping with mass shooting trauma

Plus, more bivalent boosters could be available this spring. [View this email online]( [NPR]( by Suzanne Nuyen Good morning. Grab some peanuts and Cracker Jacks: It's [MLB opening day]( This season, games might look a little different because of new rules. Here's what else we're following today. 🥇 First up [Two hands hold out opioid overdose reversal drug Narcan. ]( Leah Willingham/AP The FDA has approved the lifesaving, opioid overdose-reversing drug Narcan for over-the-counter sales. The nasal spray could be on store shelves and [ready to buy without a prescription]( by late summer. More widespread access to the drug could help save more lives as the U.S. faces an opioid crisis. More than 100,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2021, mostly from opioids. ➡️ 🎧 Dr. Scott Hadland, a pediatrician and addiction specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital, who testified as an independent expert in favor of approval will tell [Morning Edition]( later today how this decision will affect America's fight against opioids. Taiwan’s president, Tsai Ing-wen, is in New York today as part of a trip to Central America and the U.S. She plans to head to Belize and Guatemala next before stopping in L.A. to meet House Speaker Kevin McCarthy before heading back to Taiwan. 🎧 NPR's Emily Feng tells Up First that [these trips come at a "critical moment for Taiwan.]( The country has a presidential election this year, and Feng says Tsai is under pressure to "show that Taiwan has friends in the world." China is not happy with her scheduled meeting with McCarthy, and is threatening to take "resolute measures" to fight back. Millions of Americans could lose their health insurance over the coming months. A federal rule that protected people from being dropped from Medicaid coverage during the pandemic expires at midnight tomorrow. Now, they'll have to re-enroll to keep their benefits. 🎧 NPR's Maria Godoy tells the Up First podcast this morning, "[There's a real human impact here that I don't want to be missed]( She says sending notices to everyone who needs to re-enroll will be a massive undertaking, and people with limited English or certain disabilities are especially vulnerable. Another round of bivalent COVID boosters could be available for a select few this spring. The FDA was planning an [annual COVID booster campaign]( this fall, with updated vaccines targeting whichever variant is expected to circulate next winter. But vulnerable people don't want to wait, and 🎧 vaccine specialists say the agency should use [the ample supply of the current vaccine]( that would otherwise expire. --------------------------------------------------------------- Newsletter continues after sponsor message --------------------------------------------------------------- 📷 Picture show [ A ukrainian soldier floats in a pool. ]( Claire Harbage/NPR In a rehab center in northeastern Ukraine, at a secret location, soldiers swim, sleep and sit in aromatherapy rooms scented with eucalyptus. It's all part of a [weeklong rehabilitation program]( to help soldiers with PTSD and other mental health issues. 🎧 Doctors say they don't have the luxury of completely rehabilitating them in a week, but soldiers say the program [helps them feel a bit more like themselves again](. --------------------------------------------------------------- 🎧 Today’s listen [Three plush bunnies and some yellow and pink flowers are left at a makeshift memorial at the entrance of the Covenant School after the mass shooting.]( Seth Herald/Getty Images The Nashville school shooting that killed three children and three adults this week is part of what one expert describes as an "[astronomical increase]( in violence on school campuses since the pandemic. According to the K-12 School Shooting Database, 74 people have been killed or injured this year alone. 🎧 On Morning Edition, therapist Michael Davidovitz talks about how even repeatedly hearing news about mass shootings can affect a person's sense of safety. He shares with A Martinez some [strategies on how to cope with trauma](. --------------------------------------------------------------- 🛑 Before You Go [Black spray painted letters on the Madison, Wis., office of Wisconsin Family Action say "if abortions aren't safe then you aren't either." ]( Alex Shur/AP - Forensics and a half-eaten burrito have helped federal authorities find a suspect connected to the [firebombing of an anti-abortion group's Wisconsin office]( nearly a year ago. - Sabrina the teenage witch to the rescue: Actress Melissa Joan Hart says she [helped a class of kindergarteners]( escape the Nashville shooting. - Ritch thought everyone loved his sarcastic sense of humor, until his [friend and unsung hero]( told him otherwise, and helped him change the way he treats people. --------------------------------------------------------------- Stream your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. [Find a Station]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can [sign up here](. Looking for more great content? [Check out all of our newsletter offerings]( — including Music, Politics, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Daily News emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 [Unsubscribe]( | [Privacy Policy]( [NPR logo]