US maternal death rate rose slightly last year, health officials say

NEW YORK (AP) — New U.S. government data shows that more U.S. women died around the time of childbirth last year, reversing two years of decline. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted the provisional data Wednesday. The CDC says 688 women died last year during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth. That’s up from 669 deaths in 2023. It’s still lower than it was in 2022 and 2021, when it was the highest level in more than 50 years. That’s when COVID-19 was causing more deaths among pregnant women. The U.S. has one of the highest maternal mortality rate among wealthy nations. Excessive bleeding, blood vessel blockages and infections are leading causes.

Storm leaves 3 dead in Pennsylvania and about 500K customers without power

(AP ) — Officials are reporting at least three deaths amid a storm system that downed trees and power lines and left about half a million customers in the dark across Pennsylvania, Ohio and neighboring states. The majority of the more than 500,000 outages Wednesday were reported in Pennsylvania. Police in State College say a man was electrocuted Tuesday while trying to put out a mulch fire near a utility pole. Pittsburgh officials say first responders were called to the South Side Slopes area for reports of a person electrocuted by live wires. A man also died when a tree fell on his home in Ross Township, just outside Pittsburgh.

Investigators don’t know who leaked a Wis. Supreme Court draft abortion order

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Investigators have concluded that the leak of a Wisconsin Supreme Court abortion order last year was likely deliberate, but they were unable to determine who was responsible. The investigation was called by Chief Justice Annette Ziegler. It came after the June leak of a draft order showed the court would take a case brought by Planned Parenthood, which seeks to declare access to abortion a right protected by the state constitution. A week after the leak, the court issued the order accepting the case. An investigator’s report released Wednesday failed to identify who was responsible for the leak, despite interviewing all seven justices and dozens of others.

Trump officials must report efforts, if any, to return Kilmar Abrego Garcia, judge rules

(AP) — A federal judge on Wednesday again directed the Trump administration to provide information about its efforts so far, if any, to comply with her order to retrieve Kilmar Abrego Garcia from an El Salvador prison. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Maryland temporarily halted her directive for information at the administration’s request last week. She set May deadlines for officials to provide sworn testimony on anything they have done to return him to the U.S. Abrego Garcia, 29, has been imprisoned in his native El Salvador for nearly seven weeks, while his mistaken deportation has become a flash point for President Donald Trump’s immigration policies and his increasing friction with the U.S. courts.