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The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that students eligible for free or reduced price school meals cannot be charged processing fees beginning in 2027. School districts currently work with processing companies to offer cashless payment systems for families. But the companies can charge “processing fees” for each transaction. By law, students who are eligible for reduced price meals cannot be charged more than 30 cents for breakfast and 40 cents for lunch. With processing fees, however, families can end up paying 10 times that amount. (Morga and Lewis, 11/5)

The number of Florida resident deaths linked to COVID-19 this year is nearing 5,500, according to data posted on the state Department of Health website. Meanwhile, cases are the lowest since the pandemic began in 2020. The data showed 5,484 deaths had been reported, a total that has steadily increased during the year. (Cone, 11/5)

Mandy Cohen, the former head of the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services who is now director of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, returned to North Carolina Monday for a roundtable discussion about the factors that shape people’s health. The outcome of yesterday’s election could determine how much the nation focuses on things such as access to transportation, jobs and housing — things that have a larger influence on health care outcomes than realized in the past. (Baxley, 11/6)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: In Vermont, Where Almost Everyone Has Insurance, Many Can’t Find Or Afford Care

On a warm autumn morning, Roger Brown walked through a grove of towering trees whose sap fuels his maple syrup business. He was checking for damage after recent flooding. But these days, his workers’ health worries him more than his trees’. The cost of Slopeside Syrup’s employee health insurance premiums spiked 24% this year. Next year it will rise 14%. The jumps mean less money to pay workers, and expensive insurance coverage that doesn’t ensure employees can get care, Brown said. “Vermont is seen as the most progressive state, so how is health care here so screwed up?” (Galewitz, 11/6)