Chase Artopoeus has two TD passes, TD run as Chattanooga tops Austin Peay 24-17 in season finale
BOONE, N.C. (AP) — Myles Tate led Appalachian State with 20 points and Dior Conners hit the game-winning 3-pointer with one second left as the Mountaineers defeated William & Mary 79-76 on Sunday. Tate had five rebounds and 10 assists for the Mountaineers (3-2). Conners went 5 of 9 from the field (5 for 8 from 3-point range) to add 15 points. CJ Huntley shot 6 of 9 from the field and 1 for 4 from the line to finish with 14 points. Noah Collier led the Tribe (3-5) in scoring, finishing with 19 points and eight rebounds. William & Mary also got 13 points from Malachi Ndur. Kyle Pulliam also had 12 points. Appalachian State went into the half leading William & Mary 42-30. Jamil Muttilib put up 12 points in the half. Tate led Appalachian State with 15 points in the second half. NEXT UP Appalachian State plays Wednesday against Sam Houston, and William & Mary visits Old Dominion on Monday. ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by and data from . The Associated Press
Former EastEnders actress Jacqueline Jossa is battling a nasty bug and opened up to fans saying she 'cannot cope. ' On Instagram Stories, amid the cosy Christmas setting of her home, Jacqueline, 32, shared: "Feeling so rough, the bug has got me good. "Hoping to be over the worst by tomorrow because I cannot copeeeeeeeee. Feeling sorry for myself." Only recently, she also confessed to almost 'ruining Christmas,' following an unfortunate incident with her Christmas tree that she attempted to move. Recovering from mishaps, Jacqueline later posted delightful photos with daughters Ella, aged nine, and Mia, five, in matching pink pyjamas, declaring: "WE ARE EXCITED! Osborne ladies are ready. I hope everyone has a fabulous Christmas, eats all the food and plays all the games! Wishing you all a very very merry Christmas." Read more The Weakest Link viewers stunned as Janette Manrara gives 'worst answer ever' In response to the pictures showing them huddled together by an impressive tree, fans were quick to express their affection, with one remarking: "Wow, your girls look so much like you, Jacqueline can't believe how big Mia's got happy Christmas to you and your lovely family. I'm waiting to see you on EastEnders tonight," while another commented on the growth spurts of her children: "When did ur girls get so tall! And so grown up! Wow! ". Fans have been buzzing about the massive EastEnders Christmas episode, with Jacqueline, also known as Lauren Branning, at the centre of the drama. One fan excitedly posted: "I am so glad you exposed cindy beale! ! ! ! " In the unforgettable Christmas special in Albert Square, Lauren revealed Cindy Beale's affair with Junior by presenting Ian with a USB containing a recording of her confessing her feelings to David Wicks during his short return to the show, reports OK! . The bombshell led to a major showdown at the Queen Vic and resulted in Ian throwing Cindy out of the house. But the drama didn't stop there; as Cindy was leaving Walford, she was struck on the head with a shovel. Following the episode, Jac expressed her gratitude, saying: "Thank you for the DMs and kind words. I love being back on the square causing much chaos. I love slipping Lauren's boots on and ruining Christmas hehehe. Watching with my family and having them all guessing along etc will never get old and I'm extremely proud. I always say it and will continue to. I bloody love EastEnders." She also teased her followers with a sneak peek at what lies ahead, hinting on her social media: "Wait till you see what's in store for the next few months ... as you guys know it's the 40th anniversary [in] Feb 2025 and it's EPIC! " while expressing thanks for the fans' ongoing support.
Rodrigo Duterte's Violent Legacy Lives On With His VP Daughter Threatening To Kill President MarcosNEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes drifted amid mixed trading Monday, ahead of this week’s upcoming meeting by the Federal Reserve that could set Wall Street’s direction into next year. The S&P 500 rose 0.4%, coming off its first losing week in the last four . The Nasdaq composite climbed 1.2% to a record, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was a laggard and fell 110 points, or 0.3%. Broadcom leaped 11.2% to help lead the S&P 500 for a second straight day after delivering a profit report last week that beat analysts’ expectations. The technology company is riding a wave of enthusiasm about its artificial-intelligence offerings in particular. The market’s main event, though, will arrive on Wednesday when the Federal Reserve will announce its last move on interest rates for the year. The widespread expectation is that it will cut its main rate for a third straight time, as it tries to boost the slowing job market after getting inflation nearly all the way down to its target of 2%. The question is how much more it will cut rates next year, and Fed officials will release projections for where they see the federal funds rate ending 2025, along with other economic indicators, once their meeting concludes. Fed Chair Jerome Powell will also answer questions in a press conference following the meeting. For now, the general expectation among traders is that the Fed may cut a couple more times in 2025, according to data from CME Group. But such expectations have been shrinking following reports suggesting inflation may be tougher to get all the way down to 2% from here. Besides last month’s slight acceleration in inflation, another worry is that President-elect Donald Trump’s preferences for tariffs and other policies could lead to higher inflation down the line. Goldman Sachs economist David Mericle has dropped his earlier forecast of a cut by the Fed in January, for example. Beyond the possibility of tariffs, he said Fed officials may also want to slow their cuts because of uncertainty about exactly how low rates need to go so that they no longer press the brakes on the economy. Expectations for a series of cuts to rates by the Fed have been one of the main reasons the S&P 500 has set an all-time high 57 times so far this year and is heading for one of its best years of the millennium . The economy has held up better than many feared, continuing to grow even after the Fed hiked the federal funds rate to a two-decade high in hopes of grinding down on inflation, which topped 9% two summers ago. On Wall Street, MicroStrategy jumped as much as 7% during the day as it continues to benefit from the surging price for bitcoin , which set another all-time high. But its stock ended the day down by les than 0.1% after bitcoin’s price pulled back below $106,000 after setting a record above $107,700, according to CoinDesk. The software company has been building its hoard of the cryptocurrency, and its stock price has more than sextupled this year. It will also soon join the Nasdaq 100 index. Bitcoin’s price has catapulted from roughly $44,000 at the start of the year, riding a recent wave of enthusiasm that Trump will create a system that’s more favorable to digital currencies . Honeywell rose 3.7% after saying it’s still considering a spin-off or sale of its aerospace business, as part of a review of its overall business. It said it plans to give an update with the release of its fourth-quarter results. They helped offset a drop for Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the world’s move into AI. Its stock fell 1.7%. Because it’s grown so massive, with a total value topping $3 trillion, it was the single heaviest weight on the S&P 500. All told, the S&P 500 rose 22.99 points to 6,074.08. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 110.58 to 43,717.48, and the Nasdaq composite rose 247.17 to 20,173.89. In the bond market, Treasury yields held relatively steady. The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged down to 4.39% from 4.40% late Friday. The two-year yield, which more closely tracks expectations for the Fed, eased to 4.24% from 4.25%. In stock markets abroad, indexes fell modestly across much of Europe and Asia. They sank 0.9% in Hong Kong and 0.2% in Shanghai after China reported lackluster economic indicators for November despite attempts to strengthen the world’s second-largest economy. South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.2% as law enforcement authorities pushed to summon impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol for questioning over his short-lived martial law decree, and the Constitutional Court met to discuss whether to remove him from office or reinstate him. AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.Kansas City Chiefs back to winning ways against Carolina Panthers
Stock market today: Wall Street drifts higher in mixed trading as Nasdaq hits a record7 reasons to opt for a knockdown rebuild in Melbourne in 2025
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 16, 2024-- GoodRx Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: GDRX), the leading prescription savings platform in the U.S., today announced that Wendy Barnes has been appointed as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective January 1, 2025. Wendy brings more than 30 years of leadership experience across the pharmacy and medical benefit industry to her new role. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241216730604/en/ Wendy Barnes (Photo: Business Wire) Wendy will join GoodRx following her role as CEO of RxBenefits, where she led the company in providing pharmacy benefit support to more than 2,000 self-insured clients comprised of more than three million lives. Under her guidance, RxBenefits became a leading entity providing tailored pharmacy benefit solutions that promote affordability and transparency. Before that, as President of Express Scripts Pharmacy, Wendy oversaw the service, operation, and financial success of the organization’s multiple pharmacies on behalf of 100 million members. Wendy also served as Group Vice President at Rite Aid, where she was responsible for all aspects of managed care, including contracting, enhancing relationships with managed care organizations, overseeing pharmacy benefit managers and third-party payers, and developing strategic partnerships. “Wendy is joining GoodRx at a pivotal moment – both for the healthcare industry and for GoodRx. In a world where conventional insurance coverage is increasingly restrictive, and patients and healthcare professionals are bearing increasing costs and time burdens, GoodRx offers a complement to insurance that fills the gaps that existing systems don’t cover and helps Americans save both time and money,” said Scott Wagner, Interim CEO at GoodRx. “Wendy has the expertise, vision, and leadership to help GoodRx grow in unique and valuable ways, both for our customers and as a business. I’m excited for Wendy and I’m particularly excited for GoodRx.” Wendy's career highlights include her effective leadership roles at RxBenefits, Express Scripts, Rite Aid and Pfizer, leading extensive pharmacy operations and simplifying and improving patient healthcare experiences. Wendy also served for 10 years as a Medical Service Corps Officer in the United States Air Force. "I am thrilled to join GoodRx and contribute to its mission of making healthcare more affordable for millions of Americans," said Wendy Barnes, the newly appointed President and CEO of GoodRx. "With the evolving challenges in healthcare delivery and management, I look forward to working with our talented executive leadership team to foster growth and innovation at GoodRx and within the industry. We have a tremendous opportunity to free Americans from friction in getting medication.” In her role as CEO, Wendy will focus on advancing GoodRx’s strategic initiatives, with particular attention on bringing all brand affordability programs onto the GoodRx platform, expanding GoodRx’s product experience with healthcare professionals, and enriching partnerships with retail pharmacies, insurers, and pharmaceutical manufacturers to help save Americans time and money. Driven by a steadfast commitment to making healthcare more accessible and affordable, Wendy aims to build a better patient experience and help fill gaps within the existing system. “As we embark on this transition, I want to thank Scott for his hard work and huge impact over the last year and a half as our Interim CEO. His leadership and deep business expertise has been felt both inside and outside the walls of GoodRx,” said Trevor Bezdek, Co-founder and Chairman of GoodRx. “As we look ahead to the next phase of growth, I’m confident and enthusiastic that Wendy’s experience and dedication to improving patient lives will drive GoodRx’s mission forward.” About GoodRx GoodRx is the leading prescription savings platform in the U.S. Trusted by more than 25 million consumers and 750,000 healthcare professionals annually, GoodRx provides access to savings and affordability options for generic and brand-name medications at more than 70,000 pharmacies nationwide, as well as comprehensive healthcare research and information. Since 2011, GoodRx has helped consumers save over $75 billion on the cost of their prescriptions. GoodRx periodically posts information that may be important to investors on its investor relations website at https://investors.goodrx.com . We intend to use our website as a means of disclosing material nonpublic information and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Accordingly, investors and potential investors are encouraged to consult GoodRx’s website regularly for important information, in addition to following GoodRx’s press releases, filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and public conference calls and webcasts. The information contained on, or that may be accessed through, GoodRx’s website is not incorporated by reference into, and is not a part of, this press release. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding anticipated consumer savings, convenience and accessibility; the new CEO appointment and related benefits and values; and our plans, expectations and objectives. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, risks relating to our ability to achieve broad market education and change consumer purchasing habits; changes in medication pricing and pricing structures; our reliance on a limited number of industry participants; and the important factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, and our other filings with the SEC. Any such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, projections and estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change. View source version on businesswire.com : https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241216730604/en/ press@goodrx.com KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: HEALTH TECHNOLOGY TELEMEDICINE/VIRTUAL MEDICINE HEALTH TECHNOLOGY HEALTH INSURANCE PHARMACEUTICAL INTERNET SOURCE: GoodRx Holdings, Inc. Copyright Business Wire 2024. PUB: 12/16/2024 04:05 PM/DISC: 12/16/2024 04:04 PM http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241216730604/en
President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday defended the visa program that allows highly skilled foreign workers to immigrate to the US, marking his first comments on an issue that has divided his supporters this week. Trump said in an interview with The New York Post that he’s “a believer in H-1B,” referring to the visas granted to thousands of foreign workers who immigrate to the US to fill specialized jobs. In his first term, Trump restricted access to foreign worker visas, and he has previously criticized the program. But during the 2024 campaign, Trump signaled openness to giving some foreign-born workers legal status if they graduated from a US university. “I’ve always liked the visas, I have always been in favor of the visas. That’s why we have them,” Trump told The New York Post on Saturday. “I have many H-1B visas on my properties. I’ve been a believer in H-1B. I have used it many times. It’s a great program,” he added. Trump’s comments mark the first time he’s weighed in on the issue since entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, whom Trump has tapped to lead the newly created Department of Government Efficiency , defended the foreign worker visa program, igniting sharp criticism from MAGA loyalists hoping to restrict immigration. Over several days this week, Musk has passionately defended H-1B visas in social media posts, arguing for their importance in allowing tech companies — including his own — to grow their businesses. In a post Friday, Musk said he will “go to war” to protect access to H-1B visas. “The reason I’m in America along with so many critical people who built SpaceX, Tesla and hundreds of other companies that made America strong is because of H1B,” the tech mogul wrote . “I will go to war on this issue the likes of which you cannot possibly comprehend.” Musk, who was born in South Africa and obtained Canadian citizenship through his mother, came to the US as a foreign student and later worked on an H-1B visa. Musk and Ramaswamy’s defense of foreign worker visas has been met with strong pushback from the anti-immigration supporters in Trump’s coalition. Former Trump aide Steve Bannon called H-1B visas a “scam” on an episode of his podcast Saturday, joining a vocal contingent of loyal Trump supporters that includes former Rep. Matt Gaetz and far-right provocateur Laura Loomer . The H-1B visa program allows 65,000 highly skilled workers to immigrate to the US each year to fill specific jobs and grants another 20,000 visas to such workers who have received an advanced degree in the US. Economists have argued the program allows US companies to maintain competitiveness and grow their business, creating more jobs in the US. Trump has previously opposed the H-1B visa program as part of his platform to encourage US companies to prioritize American labor over hiring foreign workers. During his 2016 campaign, Trump accused US companies of using H-1B visas “for the explicit purpose of substituting for American workers at lower pay.” In 2020, Trump restricted access to H-1B visas on several occasions, part of his administration’s effort to curb legal immigration while responding to the changing economic conditions brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic. Trump’s comments siding with Musk represent another instance of the president-elect growing closer to the tech mogul . On Friday, the president-elect posted on social media a private message apparently intended for Musk asking when he plans to pay another visit to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.