The Growing Number of Patients Without Health Insurance Is Costing Hospitals

SPEAKER_1 (0:00)

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Anna Wilde Mathews (0:03)

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Alex Ossola (0:05)

Okay, the secret is in the timing.

SPEAKER_1 (0:06)

Don't rush it. Built-in content settings limit what teens can see. Messages from strangers just don't show up, and automatic nudges tell them when it's time to get off their phone.

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Alex Ossola (0:22)

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Anna Wilde Mathews (0:27)

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Alex Ossola (0:28)

Safer from the start. The growing number of uninsured patients is hurting hospital profits.

Anna Wilde Mathews (0:38)

Hospitals are legally required to treat and stabilize people when they show up in the emergency room, whether or not they can pay, whether or not they have insurance.

Alex Ossola (0:46)

Plus, SpaceX's revenue rose 92% in its first quarter as a public company.

And McDonald shakes up its US business after the latest quarter fell short of expectations. It's Tuesday, August 4th. I'm Alex Ossola for the Wall Street Journal. This is the PM Edition of What's News, the top headlines and business stories that move the world today.

We begin tonight's show with the latest developments on the Iran War. Negotiations over reopening the Strait of Hormuz have run into issues over fees. Iran has demanded the right to charge ships for passage, while the US and regional governments have rejected that demand. The Trump administration maintains that a deal is close, as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on CNBC this morning.

SPEAKER_4 (1:31)

We are in talks with the Iranians, and I think there is a chance we may have a deal today or tomorrow to open the strait and move towards a more normalized position in this conflict.

Alex Ossola (1:46)

Later, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that talks to reopen the strait have made progress but hadn't reached a final agreement.

Voters are going to the polls today for primary elections in Michigan, Missouri and three other states as you heard this morning. In Missouri, they're also voting on what could be a big change to the state's tax laws. The ballot measure would phase out the state's income tax, which tops out at 4.7 percent. To make up the lost revenue, the state could jack up its sales taxes and also expand the sales tax so that it covers things like streaming and auto repairs. Those are services that Missouri doesn't tax right now. Journal Economics reporter Jean Whalen says Missouri is one of a number of Republican-led states looking to get rid of income taxes.

SPEAKER_1 (2:29)

Mississippi and Oklahoma have put themselves on paths to eliminate personal income taxes over time.

South Carolina is setting a course this year to drop its top income tax rate to 1.99 percent. Republican states argue that this makes their states a more attractive place to live and work, particularly at a time when housing is becoming so much more expensive. They also argue that it could spark more economic growth by leaving more money in the pockets of residents and businesses. Democrats would argue that it won't leave more money in people's pockets because sales tax will increase.

Alex Ossola (3:10)

Critics of the Missouri measure argued that it would mean a shift in who's paying most taxes.

SPEAKER_1 (3:15)

Economists say that an increase in sales tax tends to hit lower and middle-income people harder than it does wealthier people. So such a shift could potentially increase the tax burden on people making less money and ease it on wealthier people.

Alex Ossola (3:36)

In Washington, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted along party lines to advance Todd Blanche's nomination to be attorney general. It's not clear whether Blanche has enough support in the full Senate for confirmation or when a final vote might happen. And in Washington state, authorities have charged a 37-year-old man with arson for starting one of the wildfires burning in the eastern part of the state. Authorities said he used matches or a lighter to start the fire. The fires have burned more than 10,000 acres and tens of thousands of people have had to evacuate their homes.

The latest earnings report for several hospital companies show how the growing number of people without insurance is hitting hospital profits, sometimes by hundreds of millions of dollars. What's News producer Danny Lewis has the story.

Anna Wilde Mathews (4:23)

Millions of Americans are now going without health insurance after the enhanced federal subsidies for plans purchased through the Affordable Care Act ended at the start of this year.

Lane Floresheim (4:32)

Now, hospitals are beginning to get stuck with the bill.