Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

U.S. Democratic hopeful Amy Klobuchar proposes drug cost plan aimed at seniors

Democratic presidential hopeful Amy Klobuchar unveiled a new plan on Friday to help lower the cost of pharmaceuticals purchased by seniors in the wake of the White House scrapping its own ambitious drug cost plan. Klobuchar's proposal, which is also designed to invest in research for a cure for Alzheimer’s disease and improving the stability of Social Security, would allow the government to negotiate Medicare Part D costs, which cover prescriptions for seniors.

Hawaii's Maui Island wildfire forces evacuations

Thousands of residents and visitors on Hawaii's Maui Island were ordered to evacuate two communities on Thursday as a spreading wildfire sent smoke billowing high into the sky, officials and local media said. The 3,000 acre brush fire in Maui's central valley was uncontrolled Thursday night, Maui Mayor Mike Victorino told a news conference. He said firefighters would monitor it overnight but that it was too dangerous to battle the blaze in the dark.

Lawmakers seek scientific review of plan to tightly regulate all fentanyl copycats

Lawmakers on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee have urged the Trump administration to conduct a scientific review of a Justice Department-backed bill to classify all illicit chemical knockoffs of the potent painkiller fentanyl in the same legal category as heroin. The sweeping legislation may "deter valid, critical medical research aimed at responses to the opioid crisis," the senators said in a July 10 letter to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar seen by Reuters on Thursday.

As U.S. debt, deficits mount, presidential candidates sweep them under the rug

In four hours of debate among Democratic contenders for the U.S. presidency, the word "deficit" was never uttered and the government's debt was mentioned only once. The reality is that Democrats are reluctant to make a campaign issue out of one of America's most vexing problems -- the ballooning annual budget deficits and overall debt under President Donald Trump.

U.S. conference to host victims of religious persecution

The U.S. State Department said on Thursday it would host a conference in Washington next week to highlight the problem of religious persecution, and has invited victims of recent attacks at a synagogue in San Diego, mosques in New Zealand and an Easter Day bombing in Sri Lanka. U.S. ambassador for religious freedom, Sam Brownback, told reporters the second Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom will include more than a dozen government ministers. He said he hoped countries, which he declined to identify, would sign a U.S. statement calling for an end to religious persecution.

Jailed financier Epstein seeks house arrest in Manhattan mansion

American financier Jeffrey Epstein on Thursday asked a federal judge to let him out of jail and allow him to remain under house arrest in his Manhattan mansion while he awaits trial on charges of sex trafficking underage girls. In a filing in federal court in Manhattan, Epstein's lawyers argued that home confinement, along with electronic monitoring, surveillance and a bond secured by a mortgage on the Upper East Side home which they valued at $77 million, would ensure that he does not flee the country.

Tropical Storm Barry lands first blow on coastal Louisiana, New Orleans hunkers down

Coastal Louisiana felt the first blow from Tropical Storm Barry's winds early on Friday as the slow-moving tempest was forecast to become the first Atlantic hurricane of 2019 threatening to bring rain and flooding to New Orleans later in the day. U.S. President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency for Louisiana late Thursday, hours after the region's oil production was cut in half as energy companies evacuated offshore drilling facilities and a coastal refinery.

Trump drops census citizenship question, vows to get data from government

U.S. President Donald Trump retreated on Thursday from adding a contentious question on citizenship to the 2020 census, but insisted he was not giving up his fight to count how many non-citizens are in the country and ordered government agencies to mine their databases. Trump's plan to add the question to the census hit a roadblock two weeks ago when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against his administration, which had said new data on citizenship would help to better enforce the Voting Rights Act, which protects minority rights.

Trump declares state of emergency in Louisiana ahead of Tropical Storm Barry: White House

U.S. President Donald Trump declared a State of Emergency in Louisiana ahead of Tropical Storm Barry, the White House said in a statement late on Thursday. The declaration frees up money and federal resources that the state can use in coping with the storm and its aftermath.

California lawmakers approve legislation for $21 billion wildfire fund

California lawmakers approved legislation on Thursday to create a $21 billion fund to help utilities in the state pay for claims arising from future wildfires sparked by their equipment, tackling a top issue for the state. The approval came after power provider PG&E Corp filed for bankruptcy in anticipation of more than $30 billion in wildfire liabilities.