Marketplace All-in-One

With midterm elections just months away, the top economic concern for voters is the cost of healthcare. That's according to a recent poll from the health policy nonprofit KFF.

With that in mind, the “Marketplace Morning Report” team traveled to southwest Alabama to learn more about how policy decisions at the national level lead to consequences for health care access in local communities across rural America.

Many of the people we met often have to travel hours for basic healthcare needs. And experts say that’s a fate that lies ahead for even more communities because of changing federal policies.

In the absence of action to address health care shortages, many communities are turning within, leaning on each other and their own resilience to navigate the complicated landscape of what services remain.

“Marketplace Morning Report” host Kimberly Adams is back in the “Make Me Smart” podcast feed to share some reporting from a trip to southwest Alabama. It’s a deep dive on rural health care access — about 700 rural hospitals nationwide are at risk of closure, according to the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform.

Many of the headwinds are longstanding, but recent federal policy changes from the big Republican tax and spending law signed last year threaten to make the challenges more intense.

As those changes kick in, the “Marketplace Morning Report” wanted to better understand what that will mean for communities all around the country.

In this episode, we share the lessons learned from Alabama, starting with how hard a hospital closure can hit a community.

As high interest rates tamp down homebuying demand, more homebuilders are offering free appliances or upgraded hardware to sweeten the deal. Throwing in a free dishwasher is one thing, but how are they able to offer lower mortgage interest rates? In this episode, we check on the homebuilding sector. Plus: Hotel housekeepers say AI-driven app makes work more difficult, scientists design sunshades built for space, and a “talking book” nonprofit brings news and books to blind people.

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Marketplace is more than a radio show. Check out our original reporting and financial literacy content at marketplace.org — and consider making an investment in our future.

Read the stories from today’s episode:

Builders offer incentives to attract homebuyers as high interest rates persist
Nebraska nonprofit brings local news and opportunities to blind and low-vision listeners
More stress, fewer breaks: Hotel housekeepers reveal what it’s like working for an app
A climate change solution from science fiction

A planned summit in Switzerland between the U.S. and Iran was postponed due to a fresh round of Israeli strikes in Lebanon. Though Israel and Hezbollah have reportedly agreed to a ceasefire, the developments are leading to skepticism of a longer-term fix for the Middle East conflict. How are global markets taking this news, and how long might it take to get back to business as usual? Also: the EEOC eliminates federal workforce demographic-tracking requirements, and California buildings must limit "embodied carbon."

Every story has an economic angle. Want some in your inbox? Subscribe to our daily or weekly newsletter.

Marketplace Morning Report is more than a radio show. Check out our original reporting and financial literacy content at marketplace.org — and consider making an investment in our future.

Stories featured in this episode:

California buildings must limit "embodied carbon." Here's what that means

This Juneteenth, we're checking in on the state of higher education among Black Americans. In 2024, the percentage of Black adults in the U.S. over the age of 25 who’d earned a bachelor's degree or a higher credential hit nearly 28%. That’s almost double what it was in the year 2000. Will the anti-DEI era change that trend? Then, brands have been spending big to reach U.S. Latino audiences during the World Cup.

Every story has an economic angle. Want some in your inbox? Subscribe to our daily or weekly newsletter.

Marketplace Morning Report is more than a radio show. Check out our original reporting and financial literacy content at marketplace.org — and consider making an investment in our future.

Stories featured in this episode:

The number of degree-holding Black adults doubled 2000-2024. Will the anti-DEI era change that trend?
The World Cup offers a huge opportunity for advertisers to reach U.S. Spanish speakers