Wednesday, May 6, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1851, John Gorrie received a patent for the first ice-making “refrigeration machine,” which he devised to help treat patients with tropical diseases. You can see images of his invention here.

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Don't forget: Mother's Day is right around the corner. If you haven't started shopping, start here: our 2026 Gift Guide has thoughtful, practical, and indulgent picks for every kind of mom.

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Hantavirus Cruise Ship Remains Stranded

The World Health Organization said Tuesday it suspects there was human-to-human transmission of hantavirus on the MV Hondius, a Dutch cruise ship stranded off Cape Verde, where so far three passengers have died, and four others are sick.

Footage from the ship shows deserted decks and medical teams in protective gear while its nearly 150 passengers and crew waited another day off the coast of West Africa for evacuation.

Cape Verde has refused to allow the ship to dock, but Spain has agreed to welcome the ship at one of the Canary Islands, with the specific port still to be determined, where health officials would conduct a full disinfection of the ship.

Hantavirus typically spreads through rodent droppings and was the same illness that killed actor Gene Hackman's wife, Betsy Arakawa, last year. Symptoms include fever, pneumonia, and respiratory distress.

UnitedHealth Cuts Prior Approvals 30%

UnitedHealthcare announced Tuesday it will eliminate prior authorization for 30% of applicable medical services by the end of 2026, easing a process long criticized for delaying patient care.

The change covers select outpatient surgeries, echocardiograms, certain outpatient therapies, and some chiropractic care, the nation's largest health insurer said.

Doctors' offices spend roughly 13 hours a week on prior authorizations, the American Medical Association reports, and 93% of physicians said the delays harmed patient care last year.

Major insurers, including Humana and Kaiser Permanente, made similar pledges last year to streamline prior authorization, but no further announcements from those insurers have been made.

1,500 Beagles Leave Wisconsin Facility

Roughly 1,500 beagles bred for medical research at Ridglan Farms in Wisconsin are being released to rescues, with hundreds already transferred to shelters in Florida, Wisconsin, New Jersey, and beyond.

Big Dog Ranch Rescue and the Center for a Humane Economy paid an undisclosed sum for the dogs. See the video of the rescued beagles touching grass for the first time.

About 500 beagles remain at Ridglan, which is set to lose its breeding license on July 1, but can still experiment on the dogs inside.

Ridglan has bred beagles for research for more than 60 years and is surrendering its license to avoid animal cruelty charges.

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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes. Clicking the links will take you directly to these stories:

➤ President Trump has scrapped Michelle Obama's school health program and reinstated the Presidential Fitness Test. (Hear Details)

➤ Degree hacking is a new trend where students finish online bachelor's degrees in months for a few thousand dollars. (Hear Episode)

➤ Scammers spoofing a Chase fraud line convinced a customer to walk into her own branch and hand over nearly $40,000. (Listen Now)

➤ Secretary of State Marco Rubio took a rare turn Tuesday at the White House press briefing podium, the first since press secretary Karoline Leavitt began maternity leave, to brief reporters on the Iran war. (More)

➤ Indiana Republicans faced Trump-backed primary challengers Tuesday in state Senate races viewed as a test of the president's clout, after Trump challenged incumbents who voted against redrawing Indiana’s congressional maps last year. (See Details)

➤ An FAA employee was arrested after allegedly emailing the White House to threaten President Trump's life and researching how to bring a gun into a federal facility. (More)

➤ Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Tuesday called for Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), to be indicted for allegedly lying under oath about gain-of-function research implicated in the Covid pandemic. (More)

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➤ Top tennis players issued a joint statement expressing “deep disappointment” with prize money at the French Open, and No. 1 ranked women’s player Aryna Sabalenka said a boycott may even be necessary. (More)

➤ Victor Wembanyama set the NBA's single-game playoff blocks record with 12 against the Timberwolves, surpassing the previous mark of 10 shared by Mark Eaton, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Andrew Bynum. (More)

➤ Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow, which could sideline the two-time Cy Young winner for two to five months. (More)

➤ Tina Charles, the WNBA's all-time leader in rebounds and field goals, announced her retirement yesterday after 14 seasons. The former MVP and three-time Olympic gold medalist retires as the league’s second-leading scorer. (More)

Daily Market Report 05/05/2026

▲	NASDAQ National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations	25,326.12	1.03%
▲	SPX S&P 500	7,259.23	0.81%
▲	DJI Dow Jones Industrial Average	49,298.25	0.73%
▲	BTC Bitcoin	$81,688.03	2.33%
▲	GOLD Per Ounce	$4,566.00	1.03%
▲	SILVER Per Ounce	$73.34	0.37%
▼	OIL West Texas Intermediate Crude	$102.84	-3.36%
▲	INTC Intel Corp	$108.18	+12.95%

Bitcoin, gold, silver, and oil are traded 24 hours a day.

➤ Big Stock Move: Intel shares jumped 13% to a new all-time high Tuesday on reports that it's in talks with Apple to make iPhone processors in the U.S. (More)

➤ U.S. debt has surpassed national GDP for the first time since World War II, hitting $31.27 trillion at the end of April, edging above the U.S. GDP of $31.22 trillion. Annual interest payments now exceed $1 trillion. (More)

➤ Home foreclosures hit a six-year high in the first quarter, with nearly 119,000 filings, up 26% from last year, as rising insurance and property tax costs squeeze homeowners. (More)

➤ Alphabet is closing in on Nvidia as the world's most valuable company, fueled by AI and cloud growth, with the Google parent up 24% this year to $4.67 trillion. Nvidia’s market cap has dropped to $4.79 trillion. (More)

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➤ Roomba founder Colin Angle unveiled an AI pet robot called the Familiar, a four-legged plush companion the size of a bulldog designed to follow owners and respond to their voices. (More)

➤ Pennsylvania is suing Character AI after one of its chatbots allegedly posed as a licensed psychiatrist, providing an invalid medical license number and offering health advice to a state investigator. (More)

➤ Blue Origin's Blue Moon lander, named Endurance, finished environmental testing in NASA's vacuum chamber, clearing a key hurdle before this year's uncrewed cargo mission to the lunar South Pole. (See Details)

Wisdom Wednesday is brought to you by:

➤ Psychologists who studied 40,000 couples found that one short phrase is the biggest predictor of a lasting relationship. Couples who say it often are far less likely to split. (See Phrase)

➤ Sir David Attenborough turns 100 this week, and researchers say a mix of genetics, lifestyle, and one underrated factor explains why so few people reach that milestone. (See Secret)

➤ Formula 1 drivers train one specific muscle group that desk workers neglect, and doing it just 10 to 15 minutes a few times a week can ease "tech neck" pain. (See Trick)

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➤ Doris Fisher, who co-founded Gap with her husband in 1969 after he couldn't find jeans that fit, died Saturday at age 94. The brand grew into a $15 billion global empire. (More)

➤ The U.S. Postal Service released eight new Forever stamps Tuesday, celebrating Route 66's 100th anniversary, with each stamp featuring a site from one of the eight states the legendary highway runs through. (See Stamps)

➤ ESPN NFL analyst Mina Kimes will host the Scripps National Spelling Bee for the first time this year, headlining a reimagined broadcast as the 101-year-old competition runs May 26-28 in Washington. (More)

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