USA Outlook, June 20 to June 24, 2022

USA OUTLOOK Weekly newsletter June 20 to June 24

/amchamguate

@AmchamGT

Amcham Guatemala

Amcham Guatemala

AmChamGT

www.amchamguate.com

June 20, 2022

June 22, 2022

Biden calls for 3-month suspension of gas and diesel taxes President Joe Biden on Wednesday called on Congress to suspend federal gasoline and diesel taxes for three months — an election-year move meant to ease financial pressures that was greeted with doubts by many lawmakers.

The Democratic president also called on states to suspend their own gas taxes or provide similar relief, and he delivered a public critique of the energy industry for prioritizing profits over production. It would take action by lawmakers in Washington and in statehouses across the country to actually bring relief to consumers.

“It doesn’t reduce all the pain but it will be a big help,” Biden said, using the bully pulpit when his administration believes it has run out of direct levers to address soaring gas prices. “I’m doing my part. I want Congress, states and industry to do their part as well.”

Average US gas price dips below $5 a gallon US drivers got a slight — very slight — break on prices this weekend as the AAA average for a gallon of unleaded gas fell below the $5 mark.

The average price Sunday was $4.98 a gallon, down from $4.99 in Saturday’s reading. The average gas price had been $5 or above for the previous seven days, the first time on record prices crossed that mark. It hit a high of $5.02 a gallon on Tuesday and has declined by a fraction of a penny each day since then.

But drivers shouldn’t get too excited. Beyond the fact that the drop from $5.02 a gallon to $4.98 saves only 80 cents on a 20 gallon fill-up, it’s very likely this is only a temporary retreat in gas prices.

Photo: AP Photo / Evan Vucci Fuente Source

Fuente Source

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/06/19/energy/gas-prices-fall-below-5-dollars/ index.html

https://apnews.com/article/biden-barack-obama-holidays-221ce44407c35e38 cd8007e77095eeb4

June 23, 2022

June 23, 2022

FDA bans Juul e-cigarettes as U.S. pursues broader crackdown on nicotine products The Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday that it is banning the sale of Juul e-cigarettes in the U.S. Juul intends to seek a stay on the decision and is exploring options, which include appealing the decision or engaging with the FDA, Chief Regulatory Officer Joe Murillo said in a statement.

The ban is part of the FDA’s broader review of the vaping industry following years of pressure from politicians and public health groups to regulate the segment as strictly as other tobacco products after vaping became more common among high schoolers.

Photo: Haiyun Jian - The New York Times

Senate Breaks Decades-Long Impasse on Gun Safety

Juul had sought approval from the agency for its vaping device and tobacco- and mentholflavored pods, which are available at 5% and 3% nicotine strengths. The flavors were not subject to a 2020 agency ban on mint- and fruit-flavored vaping products that were popular with teens.

The 65-33 vote late Thursday was aimed at keeping firearms out of the hands of dangerous people. Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court struck down New York’s gun law, likely limiting the ability of other state and local governments to restrict guns outside the home.

The Senate approved bipartisan legislation on Thursday aimed at keeping firearms out of the hands of dangerous people, after a small group of Republicans joined Democrats to break through their party’s longstanding blockade of gun safety measures and shatter nearly three decades of congressional paralysis on toughening the nation’s gun laws.

Spurred to action by a mass shooting that killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, the Senate passed the measure 65 to 33, with 15 Republicans, including Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the minority leader, breaking ranks to side with Democrats in support of the measure. Two Republican senators were absent.

Photo: DAvid Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Fuente Source

Fuente Source

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/06/23/us/gun-control-senate-supreme-court

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/23/fda-bans-juul-e-cigarettes-as-us-cracksdown-on-nicotine-products.html

June 24, 2022

Photo: cbc new

As New York City rolls out monkeypox vaccinations, CDC works to expand access New York City announced Thursday it had become the first jurisdiction in the country to roll out monkeypox vaccinations to a wider group of people at risk of the illness. The city is offering shots to any “gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men” who are 18 or over and have had “multiple or anonymous sex partners in the last 14 days.”

That mirrors decisions from health authorities abroad, including in the United Kingdom and Canada, which have also broadened monkeypox vaccinations. While most of the cases identified in the recent global outbreak have been in men who have sex with men, authorities caution that anyone can catch the disease through close physical contact with an infected person. At least five women are among the U.S. cases so far.

Fuente Source https://www.cbsnews.com/news/monkeypox-vaccine-new-york-city-cdc/

Hundreds of people lined up for shots Thursday, CBS New York reported, and there was such high demand that the city had to close its vaccination clinic to walk-ins. (Appointments can be made at nyc.gov/health/monkeypox.)

Just 1,000 doses of the Jynneos vaccine were in the city’s supply, though local officials say they are working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to request more from the national stockpile.

The CDC is now working with several state and local health departments around the country to broaden eligibility for monkeypox vaccinations, federal health officials said Thursday, amid a growing number of cases in the U.S. that cannot be traced back to a source.