Robert Benincasa

Robert Benincasa appears in the following:

Many people living in the 'Diabetes Belt' are plagued with medical debt

Tuesday, May 09, 2023

More than half of the counties in the nation's so-called Diabetes Belt also have high rates of medical debt among their residents, an NPR analysis found.

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Funeral homes could soon have to post prices online

Wednesday, October 26, 2022

A 2017 NPR investigation found that many funeral businesses failed to disclose prices to consumers. The FTC may modernize the existing rule to make such information more transparent.

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From floods to slime: Mobile home residents say landlords make millions, neglect them

Sunday, August 21, 2022

Elderly homeowners in Florida are suing the billion dollar company that owns their mobile home park. Big companies are buying up parks around the country, but critics say residents pay the price.

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There's a massive housing shortage across the U.S. Here's how bad it is where you live

Thursday, July 14, 2022

Hundreds of cities and towns are seriously short of housing, both homes to buy and rentals, according to a new study. It's the main reason that home prices and rents are so high.

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Researchers say they've linked silica dust directly to severe black lung disease

Wednesday, April 13, 2022

A new study links the epidemic of severe lung disease among coal miners to toxic silica dust. The findings echo a 2018 investigation by NPR and the PBS show Frontline.

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How the government helps investors buy mobile home parks, raise rent and evict people

Saturday, December 18, 2021

Investors and companies are swooping in to buy mobile home parks. They raise fees and rents, and evict people who can't pay — using billions of dollars' worth of low interest, government-backed loans.

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Heat Is Killing Workers In The U.S. — And There Are No Federal Rules To Protect Them

Tuesday, August 17, 2021

Heat has killed hundreds of workers in the U.S., many in construction or agriculture, an investigation by NPR and Columbia Journalism Investigations found. Federal standards might have prevented them.

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Your Trash Is Emitting Methane In The Landfill. Here's Why It Matters For The Climate

Tuesday, July 13, 2021

Landfills are among the nation's largest sources of methane, a greenhouse gas far more potent than carbon dioxide. But accurately measuring methane is a major challenge to reducing it.

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Next Administration Could Mean New Safety Regulations For Coal Mines

Tuesday, December 01, 2020

A recent government report called the mine safety standard regulating deadly silica dust "out of date," and difficult to enforce. The Biden administration may finally change that standard.

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Political Divisions Drive Police Brutality Lawsuit Settlements

Wednesday, September 09, 2020

Most of the largest civil settlements for police killings were in liberal areas in the year after the Ferguson unrest. Now, lawyers say current protests are hardening political divisions on policing.

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Congress Is Investigating Contracts Tied To Mask And PPE Shortages

Wednesday, July 15, 2020

Seven multi-million-dollar contracts are at the center of a House subcommittee probe. Investigators say the companies lacked experience and some had political connections to the Trump administration.

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As Americans Avoided Restaurants And Doctors' Offices, Those Businesses Got Loans

Monday, July 06, 2020

The small business sectors that received the largest share of federal loans from the coronavirus relief package known as PPP include restaurants, doctors' offices, car dealerships and law firms.

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Feds Spend Billions On COVID-19 Contracts, Often Without Fully Competitive Bidding

Tuesday, June 09, 2020

In the government's hurried pandemic response, more than 250 companies, some with little or no medical supply experience, got contracts worth more than $1 million without fully competitive bidding.

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Traffic Is Way Down Because Of Lockdown, But Air Pollution? Not So Much

Tuesday, May 19, 2020

Car traffic took a big dip beginning in late March, and headlines celebrated clean air around the U.S. But an NPR analysis of EPA data tells a more troubling story.

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As Hospitals Lose Revenue, More Than A Million Health Care Workers Lose Jobs

Friday, May 08, 2020

Faced with lost revenue from canceled elective procedures, hospitals laid off 1.4 million health care workers in April, including nearly 135,000 from hospitals.

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In New York Nursing Homes, Death Comes To Facilities With More People Of Color

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

In an analysis of 78 nursing homes in New York where six or more residents have died from COVID-19, NPR found nursing homes with more people of color were more likely to have more deaths.

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Company With Ties To Trump Receives Millions From Small Business Loan Program

Monday, April 20, 2020

Many businesses have struggled to get any money from the Paycheck Protection Program. But a company owned by a prominent Chicago family received a $5.5 million loan.

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A Month After Emergency Declaration, Trump's Promises Largely Unfulfilled

Monday, April 13, 2020

On March 13, President Trump promised to mobilize private and public resources to respond to the coronavirus. NPR followed up on each promise and found little action had been taken.

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Companies Tied To W.Va. Governor To Pay $5 Million In Mining Violations

Friday, April 03, 2020

Coal mining companies linked to billionaire Gov. Jim Justice and his family have agreed to pay the government more than $5 million in delinquent mine safety fines.

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ICU Bed Capacity Varies Widely Nationwide

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

An NPR analysis of the nation's 100,000 ICU beds finds some communities can accommodate far more critically ill patients than others, signaling potential disparities in care in the COVID-19 pandemic.

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