Roblox Settles With Nevada, Will Pay $12M, Increase Protections For Kids
AP reports that Roblox will block access to adult-rated content and expand parental oversight for users under age 16. Also: The number of foods that can be purchased in Florida with SNAP is shrinking; North Carolina legislators recommend fixes to the state鈥檚 intertwined mental health and criminal justice systems; and more.
Roblox, a gaming platform popular with kids, will implement increased protections for young users and pay more than $12 million to the state of Nevada in what state Attorney General Aaron Ford on Wednesday called a first-of-its-kind agreement. 鈥淭his settlement will create a safer environment for our children online, and I hope that it will serve as a bellwether for how online interactive platforms allow our state鈥檚 youth to use their products,鈥 the Democratic attorney general said Wednesday. (Hill, 4/15)
In other health news from across the U.S. 鈥
The list of food items you can buy with SNAP in Florida is shrinking. Starting on April 20, "soda, energy drinks, candy, and ultra-processed shelf-stable prepared desserts will no longer be available for purchase with SNAP benefits in Florida," according to the state agency administering the program. (Paul, 4/16)
黑料吃瓜网 News:
New Federal Medicaid Rules Require One Month Of Work. Some States Demand More
Millions of people who apply for Medicaid in the coming years will have to prove they鈥檝e been working, going to school, or volunteering for at least a month before they can gain or retain health insurance through the government program. But Republican lawmakers in some states think the new rules 鈥 part of the GOP鈥檚 One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed last July by President Donald Trump 鈥 don鈥檛 go far enough. (Liss, 4/16)
After spending six months examining the state鈥檚 involuntary commitment process, a special North Carolina House committee released a list of recommendations on Tuesday aimed at improving the state鈥檚 intertwined mental health and criminal justice systems. (Crumpler and Knopf, 4/16)
A bill to bar state colleges and universities from curbing gun rights on their campuses drew a crowd to Concord Tuesday. Most came to fight the bill, including the president of University of New Hampshire, students from several state colleges, and multiple members of law enforcement. (Rogers, 4/14)
E-bikes and e-scooters led to a growing number of trauma injuries at one New York City hospital, according to a new study published Wednesday. About 7% of all trauma visits between 2018 and 2023 at Bellevue Hospital Center were due to micromobility injuries. Micromobility is the use of small, lightweight and low-speed modes of transportation such as bicycles, e-bikes and e-scooters. The study showed a growing share of patients who sustained these injuries had accidents linked to e-bikes or e-scooters. (Cobern and Benadjaoud, 4/15)
Maria Olivo started serving as her mom's interpreter when she was about five or six years old, whether they were at a bank or a doctor's office. They lived in Rifle, Colo., a desert town of about 10,000 people, where roughly 36% of people speak Spanish at home. Olivo often felt the weight of that responsibility and worried she would get something wrong. "I'm pretty sure that a lot of it I messed up," Olivo said last month at Grand River Health, Rifle's 57-bed hospital. "I wasn't sure half of the time, right? I was just a kid." (Zander, 4/16)
Arizona鈥檚 largest utility has agreed not to cut off electrical service to customers for nonpayment while forecasted high temperatures are 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Celsius) or above as part of a $7 million settlement of a lawsuit prompted in part by the 2024 death of an 82-year-old woman whose power was disconnected, Attorney General Kris Mayes said Wednesday. (4/16)
When Senait Kifle visited her brother at California鈥檚 largest Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility on April 6, she screamed at the sight of him 鈥 he was barely recognizable. In the three weeks since her last visit, he鈥檇 deteriorated to the point where he needed a wheelchair, she said. His eyes were jaundiced, his legs were swollen, his face was so bloated that his chin looked 鈥渃onnected to his chest,鈥 she said, and he told her he hadn鈥檛 been able to pee in some time. (Lyn Cheang, 4/15)