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217 Today: ‘Junk patents’ by big pharma lead to soaring drugs prices, FTC says

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  • Photo: Etactics / Unsplash

Wednesday, May 29, 2024

Today’s headlines:

  • The Illinois House approved a $53 billion state budget early this morning – but passing the revenue package to help pay for it was difficult.
  • Urbana is considering whether to expand its police force, based on a public safety study it commissioned.
  • State lawmakers have approved a measure to pause the development of carbon dioxide pipelines in Illinois.  
  • The Illini men’s basketball team saw Lithuanian guard Kasparas Jakucionis commit to play for the team this upcoming season.

In today’s deep dive, we’ll listen to a conversation with Health Reporter Elizabeth Gabriel about why it’s difficult to lower drug costs.

217 Today is produced by Stephanie Mosqueda. Reporting contributed by Mae Antar, Alex Degman, Colin Hislope and Elizabeth Gabriel.

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Stephanie Mosqueda

Stephanie Mosqueda is a senior majoring in journalism at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign with minors in Spanish and public relations. She is the 217 Today producer and a reporter for the Illinois Student Newsroom.