Medicare to cover GLP-1 drugs for weight loss for the first time starting July 1. Here’s what to know.

June 29, 2026 / 3:39 PM EDT / CBS News

Some Medicare patients will be able to access to GLP-1 medication for weight loss for the first time starting July 1, paying a $50 monthly copay through a new program designed to make the drugs more affordable.

Called Medicare GLP-1 Bridge, the pilot program expands access to weight-loss drugs made by Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, including Zepbound, Foundayo and Wegovy.

“Medicare is not changing the law right now,” said Juliette Cubanski, vice president and director of Medicare policy at the health care research nonprofit KFF. “What it’s doing is taking advantage of a specific section of the law that gives the federal government the ability to stand up a temporary program.”

The program marks the first time Medicare will help pay for drugs prescribed solely for obesity, rather than limiting coverage to people taking GLP-1s for conditions such as diabetes or cardiovascular disease. Drugmakers have lowered out-of-pocket costs in recent months, but many patients still pay about $350 a month.

GLP-1 coverage through the bridge program will run between July 1, 2026, and December 31, 2027. After that 18-month trial, patients could lose access to Medicare coverage for GLP-1s used for weight loss unless the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issues an extension or Congress changes the law, according to Cubanski. It’s possible drug manufacturers could also lower their current direct-to-consumer pricing to match the $50 copay, she said.

“In the short term, we have this temporary program, and then no clear path forward yet as to what will happen at the end of 2027,” she said.

Who is eligible?

Medicare beneficiaries with Part D coverage enrolled in an eligible plan can get coverage through the Bridge program.

To qualify, a patient’s provider must submit a prior authorization request showing that the patient is being prescribed a GLP-1 for weight loss. Prior authorization is a process that clears the way for a pharmacy to fill a prescription.

Providers must also demonstrate that their patient meets certain clinical criteria related to their body mass index (BMI) and health conditions when they first start taking a GLP-1. They must either have:

• BMI of at least 35

• BMI of at least 30 plus a history of heart failure, uncontrolled hypertension or chronic kidney disease

• BMI of at least 27 plus prediabetes, a previous heart attack or stroke, or symptomatic peripheral artery disease.

Patients are not eligible for coverage through the Bridge program if they already have a GLP-1 prescription under Medicare Part D for certain conditions, such as Type 2 diabetes and sleep apnea, according to Cubanski.

“Certainly, for patients who may think that they’re eligible for these drugs or are interested in exploring whether they’re eligible, a good first step is to talk to their clinician who can help them,” Cubanski said.

What drugs will Medicare cover?

Eli Lilly’s Foundayo, a daily weight loss pill, as well as Zepbound KwikPen, a weekly weight loss injection, are covered, along with Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy weight loss medication in injection and pill form.

How much will I have to pay?

Medicare recipients who meet the eligibility requirements will have to pay a $50 monthly copay to access the GLP-1 drugs. However, there are a few things to keep in mind. Because the program is being offered outside Medicare Part D coverage, the copay doesn’t count toward a patient’s deductible or yearly out-of-pocket cap.

“The good news is they don’t have to meet their deductible in order to qualify for the $50 copay,” Cubanski said. “But on the other hand, the $50 copay doesn’t count towards their $2,100 out-of-pocket cap.”

In addition, patients aren’t allowed to apply coupons or discounts to lower the price further.

How fear of a market meltdown may have quietly shaped the Supreme Court’s ruling to protect Fed independence

1:25 PM EDT, Mon June 29, 2026 / CNN

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How fear of a market meltdown may have quietly shaped the Supreme Court’s ruling to protect Fed independence

Inside Politics

Manu Raju and the “Inside Politics” panel explain two Supreme Court decisions that prevented President Trump from immediately firing Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook, but expanded his power to fire other independent agency officials. “The idea that the Fed is an arm of the president has the power to upend global markets… I think that’s what’s lurking in the back of their heads,” CNN Legal Analyst Elliot Williams says.

2:44 • Source: CNN

New York Stock Exchange opening bell to be rung from Oval Office for Trump Accounts launch

2026-06-29T16:19:53.939Z / CNN

By Aileen Graef

Updated Jun 29, 2026, 12:21 PM ET

PUBLISHED Jun 29, 2026, 12:19 PM ET

President Donald Trump sits at the Resolute desk after signing an executive order in Washington, DC.

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

The New York Stock Exchange will be opened from the Oval Office next week to mark the opening of Trump Accounts, White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said Monday.

“We’re having a big opening bell ceremony next week where Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange are going to ring the bell from the Oval for the first time together, and they’re doing that to celebrate the accounts,” Hassett, the director of the National Economic Council, said on CNBC.

CNN has reached out to the White House for further details.

Families will be able to start contributing to the accounts — which would provide parents of children born between 2025 and 2028 with $1,000 to invest — on July 4.

Hassett praised the accounts, which he said give every child born in the US “a stake in the game,” and suggested there’d be a political effect as well.

“It’s basically, I think, hard to be a socialist if you have capital, and so my view is that the political effect of this dynamic is going to be enormous,” Hassett said.

President Donald Trump and his allies have seized on the recent electoral success of several democratic socialist candidates to create a contrast with the GOP ahead of the November midterms.

Trump Accounts are IRA-style savings accounts for eligible children. They are like traditional IRAs in that money in the accounts will grow tax deferred. But the rules for Trump Accounts differ when it comes to contributions, withdrawals and approved uses of the money. Also, the money may not be tapped before a child turns 18.

The accounts didn’t initially plan for children in foster care — because they must be opened by an “authorized individual,”who is typically a parent or other family member named as a legal guardian — until child welfare advocates brought the issue to first lady Melania Trump’s office.

The first lady, who has used her second term to, in part, shine a light on children in the foster care system, appeared at the Treasury Department earlier this month to announce “Fostering the Future Accounts” and offer updated guidance that allows state child welfare agencies and foster youth representatives to set up the accounts for those children.

CNN’s Jeanne Sahadi and Betsy Klein contributed to this report.

Iran war has cost Americans $1,000 per household, economist estimates

June 29, 2026 2:27 PM EDT / CBS News

The Iran war has cost Americans roughly $1,000 per household in higher fuel, food and other expenses since the start of the conflict in February, according to an estimate shared last week by Moody’s Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi.

Zandi’s analysis comes as government data shows inflation in May hit its highest level in three years, and with the U.S. and Iran yet to broker a lasting peace deal. The two countries exchanged military strikes over the weekend, threatening a fragile ceasefire. The sides will continue talks to end the conflict in Qatar on Tuesday, President Trump said on Monday.

What are Americans paying for?

According to Zandi, the biggest war-related expense for Americans has been gasoline, which peaked at $4.56 a gallon on May 21 before dipping back below $4 a gallon earlier this month. Since the war began on Feb. 28, Americans have shelled out an additional $300 on average to fill up their tanks, he found, an estimate that only factors in the higher cost of regular gas.

Higher diesel costs have also increased the cost of transporting products from farms, factories and seaports, leading to higher retail costs, Zandi said. He estimates the typical U.S. household has spent an extra $200 on groceries due to higher fuel costs since the start of the war.

Other war-related costs facing American households since the conflict started in February, according to Zandi:

• Higher interest rates —an estimated $150 on average inadded costs.As of January, many investors expected the Federal Reserve to cut its benchmark interest rate. But the surge in inflation stemming from the war has thwarted any plans by the central bank to lower borrowing costs, according to economists, with some forecasters even penciling in a rate hike later this year. That amounts to a missed opportunity for consumers and businesses, Zandi said.

• Higher airfare due to surging jet fuel costs —an estimated $100 on average in added costs. Airlines have partially passed their higher fuel costs onto travelers, Zandi noted.

• Taxpayer costs to support U.S. military operations —an estimated $250 on average in added costs. According to Zandi, the U.S. is spending an additional $50 million per day to conduct the war against Iran. A separate estimate from U.S. officials who spoke to CBS News in April placed the total U.S. price tag for the conflict at $50 billion. A Pentagon official in April put the cost of the Defense Department’s Operation Epic Fury at about $25 billion, although that figure did not fully account for damaged or destroyed equipment or U.S. military installations.

“My estimate that the Iran war has cost the typical American household $1,000 and counting is, if anything, conservative,” Zandi wrote. “The true cost is likely higher — meaningfully higher.”

Other researchers have also tried to tabulate how much the war has cost American households. Brown University researchers estimate that U.S. consumers have spent an additional $64 billion in total, or $486.41 per household, on gas and diesel alone since the start of the war. The Institute on Tax and Economic Policy, a nonpartisan think tank, puts the higher fuel costs at $427.50 per household.

In recent weeks, motorists have seen some relief. Gas prices are expected to continue to decline, though that hinges on the U.S. and Iran ceasing hostilities. On Monday, the national average for a gallon of gas was $3.86, down from $4.39 a month ago but up from $2.98 before the war started, AAA data shows.

Patrick De Haan, a petroleum expert at GasBuddy, thinks gas prices could fall below $3 by year-end or early next year, assuming the U.S. and Iran end the war.

According to a June Gallup poll, two-thirds of Americans reported experiencing financial hardship due to recent fuel price increases.

Edited by Alain Sherter

Aide who planned JFK Jr.’s secret wedding says Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s rumored MSG plans could be a decoy

June 29, 2026 / 2:23 PM EDT / CBS News

By Kelsie Hoffman

As speculation swirls and new clues emerge about possible plans for Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding, not everyone is convinced by the rumors involving Madison Square Garden.

“I don’t think it’s going to be at MSG,” said RoseMarie Terenzio, who was John F. Kennedy Jr.’s former chief of staff and planned his secret wedding to Carolyn Bessette nearly 30 years ago.

New York City Hall has confirmed an application has been filed for an event in or around Madison Square Garden on July 3. There was also a request for the streets around MSG to be closed around the date.

Terenzio told “CBS Mornings” that while she doesn’t think the wedding is happening at MSG and that it may be a decoy, she could see Swift doing something for her fans there.

“I overheard a girl on the train, she was sitting behind me talking to her mom … and she said, ‘You know, mom, Taylor has to invite us to do something to bring us into her wedding. We’ve been invested in her love life for so long.’

“And I think she has such an emotional connection to her fans and she understands that relationship so well that I think there will be something for the fans,” Terenzio said.

Despite social media, details surrounding the couple’s big day are surprisingly limited, which Terenzio credits to those close to the “Love Story” singer and Kansas City Chiefs star.

“Their effervescence as a couple — they’re always cheering each other on. I just think people are invested in giving them a beautiful wedding,” Terenzio said.

Even so, how do you keep an event of this scale that has garnered so much attention private?

“It’s intimacy. It’s people you know very well and you tell only them. And the other thing is decoys,” Terenzio said.

She explained that before JFK Jr.’s wedding, they left fake itineraries for Ireland around the office. The couple actually wed in a small, private ceremony on Cumberland Island, Georgia.

“The other thing is no text. No emails. Nothing in writing. All by phone or in person,” she said, adding, “While it’s difficult, it’s not impossible.”

She also said she thinks Swift and Kelce are capable of pulling it off, noting that Swift “just has such savvy about everything that she does.”

Terenzio said that if she were in charge of planning the couple’s big day, she would be “reinforcing the privacy aspect” to all guests.

“I would be calling and maybe even showing up in person to every single person’s place and, you know, giving them a little … ‘Keep your mouth shut. Make sure you keep your mouth shut.’”

Police must obtain a warrant when seeking sweep of cellphone location data, Supreme Court rules

2026-06-29T19:08:10.174Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/29/politics/cellphone-location-data-supreme-court

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that the use of a “geofence warrant” to capture location data from cell phones in search of a robbery suspect constituted a search for Fourth Amendment purposes, a decision that means officers will have to obtain a warrant to access such data in the future.

Justice Elena Kagan wrote the opinion for a majority that included both conservative and liberal justices. The court divided 6-3, with three of the court’s conservatives dissenting.

At a time when Americans store vast quantities of personal data in servers controlled by companies, the case raised thorny questions about the ability of police to access that information. In the end, the court steered out of the case with a relatively limited decision that will effectively require police to obtain a warrant when they’re requesting location information from a geolocation database.

“The Fourth Amendment must, as ever, protect against unjustified governmental intrusion on the privacy of the individual,” Kagan wrote.

A Virginia man, Okello Chatrie, appealed to the Supreme Court after police used the procedure to identify him as a suspect in a 2019 bank robbery. After their investigation went cold, police served Google with a geofence warrant to find a handful of people whose cellphones pegged them within 300 meters of the bank at the time of the robbery. Chatrie entered a conditional guilty plea and reserved the right to appeal over the sweeping warrant.

The Supreme Court on Monday didn’t resolve Chatrie’s case. After all, the police in Chatrie’s case did, in fact, obtain a warrant. Instead, the majority concluded only that a warrant was necessary and then charged the lower courts with assessing whether the search police conducted in his case was consistent with the Fourth Amendment.

Writing in dissent, Justice Samuel Alito described the court’s opinion as an “irresponsible escapade.”

“Although today’s decision will send seismic waves through our Fourth Amendment doctrine, not one iota of the majority opinion will affect the outcome of this case,” Alito wrote. “The court knows this and does not claim otherwise. Indeed, by refusing to review the one question that could have at least theoretically given Chatrie some hope of relief, the court carefully set the stage for its planned performance: striking a pose as a great champion of privacy in the digital age.”

The Fourth Amendment not only requires police to obtain a warrant for searches but demands that the warrant be “particularized,” that is, specific enough that it’s not effectively a fishing expedition for police. Chatrie’s attorneys argued that the warrant was not particularized in part because it required Google to parse through location data for millions of people to identify the small subset that were in the vicinity of the bank at the time of the crime.

“The potential for abuse is breathtaking,” Chatrie’s lawyers argued. “The government need only draw a geofence around a church, a political rally, or a gun shop, and it can compel a search of every user’s records to learn who was there.”

Police said Chatrie passed a note urging a bank teller in 2019 to “hand over all the cash” and demanded “at least 100k and nobody will get hurt and your family will be set free.”

After police identified Chatrie, authorities executed federal search warrants and found “robbery-style demand notes” in his bedroom, nearly $100,000 in cash and a 9 mm pistol. Police say Chatrie confessed to the robbery and was ultimately sentenced to more than 11 years in prison.

The Richmond-based 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against him, holding that the warrant didn’t constitute a “search” for Fourth Amendment purposes. After all, the court reasoned, when people allow tech companies to collect data they generally do so voluntarily. It is an argument that the Justice Department, which is defending the warrants, relied on heavily.

Chatrie “took no steps to protect his location from disclosure, such as pausing the Location History feature he had enabled or adjusting, deactivating, or forgoing his cellphone during his crime,” US Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the Supreme Court.

The location data at issue in Chatrie’s case can identify a person’s location within three meters every two minutes.

But Chatrie’s attorneys argue that the logic doesn’t apply to his case, in part because of a 2018 Supreme Court precedent. In that case, Carpenter v. US, a divided court ruled that law enforcement generally needs to establish probable cause before accessing cellphone tower data to identify the movements of suspects. If authorities need a warrant to get cellphone tower data, Chatrie’s attorneys said, then surely they also must obtain one to get data that is far more reliable.

Google, which had received the majority of the warrants, changed its policy to shift how the data is stored.

Speaker Johnson sends housing bill to White House after Trump refused to sign measure

2026-06-29T19:33:50.523Z / CNN

By Ellis Kim, Morgan Rimmer

7 min ago

PUBLISHED Jun 29, 2026, 3:33 PM ET

A signing desk with the presidential seal sits on a stage at the US Capitol after President Donald Trump canceled a signing of a bipartisan housing measure on June 24, 2026.

Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters

Speaker Mike Johnson officially transmitted Congress’ bipartisan housing bill to the White House on Monday, according to a spokesperson, kicking off a 10-day countdown for the bill to become law, even if the president does not sign it.

After setting up for a large signing ceremony in the Capitol on Wednesday, President Donald Trump caught leadership from both the House and Senate off guard when he suddenly declared he would not sign the bill until Congress passes the “SAVE America Act,” a federal elections overhaul bill.

Trump’s fixation on the voter ID and proof-of-citizenship measure has further crippled an already-dysfunctional Congress, leaving Republicans unable to move on critical elements of their agenda.

Despite Senate Majority Leader John Thune and other senior members of the GOP conference insisting to the president that there is no path to pass the SAVE America Act, Trump has continued to demand action. Wednesday’s signing ceremony was only the latest piece of congressional business to be waylaid by the president’s pressure.

In the immediate aftermath, Senate and House Republicans expressed hope that the president would ultimately sign the housing bill, especially as vulnerable GOP members up for reelection planned to campaign on its passage ahead of the November midterms.

The housing bill, the “21st Century Road to Housing Act,” aims to tackle the country’s affordability crisis primarily through encouraging more housing supply. The bill also includes a first-of-its-kind limit on private equity by prohibiting large investors from buying single-family homes.

Johnson and Trump had a lengthy meeting Thursday, after which the House speaker said that the pair are “exactly on the same page” and that he would send the housing measure to the White House.

‘We have to have a big tent”: Why this top Democrat says he’s not worried about primary wins by Democratic Socialists

2026-06-29T17:48:10.784Z / CNN Politics

Manu Raju
By Manu Raju, CNN
Published 1:48 PM EDT, Mon June 29, 2026

“We have to have a big tent”: Why this top Democrat says he’s not worried about primary wins by Democratic Socialists

Inside Politics

Rep. Robert Garcia—the top Democrat on the key House Oversight Committee—says it is up to the voters to decide whether they want to send Democratic Socialists to Congress on the Democratic ticket. He says its his job to welcome new Democratic members and work together to win back the majority in November.

2:43 • Source: CNN

https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/29/politics/video/inside-politics-robert-garcia-democratic-socialist-primary-wins

Senate Ethics Committee dismisses misconduct complaint against Gallego

June 29, 2026 1:57 PM EDT / CBS News

By Caitlin Yilek Politics Reporter
Caitlin Yilek is a politics reporter at CBSNews.com, based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked for the Washington Examiner and The Hill, and was a member of the 2022 Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press Foundation.

Read Full Bio

Washington — The Senate Ethics Committee informed Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego that it dismissed a complaint against him in which GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna accused him of misconduct, Gallego’s office said Monday.

In a letter to Gallego on Friday, the bipartisan committee said it “did not find evidence that your actions violated federal law, Senate rules or related standards of conduct.”

Luna made the allegations in April, saying the alleged misconduct was “sexual in nature” and involved campaign finance violations. In an interview with CBS News, the Florida Republican said “there is a woman that allegedly is coming forward with attorneys [and] wants to go on-record about an incident that occurred between the two of them at the same time, and the event was sexual in nature, allegedly.” She added, “I think any time that you are knowingly engaging in purchasing someone for sex, that that is something that should be taken seriously.”

The Senate Ethics Committee said Gallego, who denied any wrongdoing, provided “full cooperation” throughout its investigation. The panel said it considered statements offered by individuals identified in the complaint, Federal Election Commission reports, House and Senate expenditure reports and other information.

“As always, the Committee retains the authority to revisit this matter should additional facts become known to the Committee,” the committee added.

The Arizona Democrat called for an apology from Luna and said the dismissal “reaffirms what I have said about these accusations from the beginning: they were right-wing conspiracies peddled by far-right activists.”

Luna made the allegations as several women accused former Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, who was close with Gallego, of sexual misconduct. Swalwell resigned from Congress in April and ended his bid for California governor. Gallego denied any knowledge of the alleged misconduct and said he was “manipulated” and “lied to” by Swalwell.

Shooting at Germany youth center leaves 5 dead, police say, with 2 people taken into custody

June 29, 2026 / 8:57 AM EDT / CBS/AP

Five people were killed in a shooting Monday at a youth welfare facility in the northern German town of Stade, police said. Two people were arrested, including the suspected shooter.

There were also injuries, police said, but they did not give a figure.

Police said the shooting took place in the facility south of Stade’s town center, and that there was no ongoing danger to the public.

Two suspects were arrested, one of whom is believed to have fired the shots, according to the police, who added that they were working to establish the background to the incident.

Police and rescuers work at the scene where several people were killed in a shooting in Stade, northern Germany, west of Hamburg, June 29, 2026. Fabian HÖFIG/NEWS5/AFP/Getty

Like most of Western Europe, Germany has relatively strict laws on gun ownership, and mass shootings are rare but not unheard of.

Stade has about 50,000 inhabitants and is located about 25 miles west of Hamburg.