In The News

Washingtonians’ medical debt will not be included in their credit reports, under a bill that Gov. Bob Ferguson signed into law on Tuesday. Having medical debt can create a spiraling effect and prevent people from getting approved for car or home loans or apartment rentals. Medical debt can also cause providers to deny services to patients with outstanding bills or dissuade ...

Washington is experiencing a tough budget deficit, inflation is easing but still high as people feel pinched at the grocery store, and financial institutions nationwide are forecasting a recession closer to the end of this year, all of which could have real impacts on the average Washingtonian. Goldman Sachs, a multinational investment bank and financial services company, forecasts a 35% chance ...

SEATTLE (AP) — Lawmakers in Oregon and Washington are considering whether striking workers should receive unemployment benefits, following recent walkouts by Boeing factory workers, hospital nurses and teachers in the Pacific Northwest that highlighted a new era of American labor activism. Oregon’s measure would make it the first state to provide pay for picketing public employees — who aren’t allowed to ...

A bill in the Washington Legislature to make hospital pricing more transparent for consumers is still in play, but its scope has narrowed during the legislative process. “I don’t think this bill really, frankly, does anything anymore,” said Steve Fenberg, a patient rights advocate who supported the original bill. “I think it’s a shame.” Senate Bill 5493 intended to give the state’s ...

All Washington students would have access to free school lunches under a proposed law that was heard in committee Tuesday morning. Sponsored by state Sen. Marcus Riccelli, Senate Bill 5352 would expand the state’s program for free school lunches to all of Washington’s 1.1 million public school students. Riccelli, a Spokane Democrat and Senate majority floor leader, referenced how during the ...