Norway's Equinor responding to 'weaponization' of energy

Equinor's Hammerfest LNG facility. The Norwegian energy company said gas production last year surpassed 2021 levels, providing a layer of energy security for Europe.

 Photo courtesy Ole Jorgen Bratland/Equinor

March 23 (UPI) -- With natural gas production on the rise, Norwegian energy company Equinor said it has the responsibility to ensure adequate supplies to a European economy fighting Russia's "weaponization" of energy.

Equinor on Thursday published an annual review of operations during 2022. Anders Opedal, the president and CEO at Equinor, said through the year, the corporate focus was on reliability.

"The invasion of Ukraine and Russia's weaponization of energy brought further instability to already tight markets, and across the organization we have felt the responsibility that comes with being the single largest supplier of gas to Europe," he said.

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, the nation's energy regulator, reported that crude oil production averaged 1.77 million barrels per day and gas production was 12 billion cubic feet per day.

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Both levels were lower than the government expected, and production is nowhere near levels from the United States, though Norway's proximity to the European economy highlights its importance as a supplier.

Equinor, meanwhile, added that gas production on the Norwegian continental shelf increased by 8% relative to 2021 levels, an increase that came just as the European economy was breaking away from Russia supplies in an effort to rob the Kremlin of the revenue it needs to keep fighting the war.

Elsewhere, the company noted that the resumption of operations from the Hammerfest liquefied natural gas project, idled by a fire in October 2021, and oil from the giant Johan Sverdrup field are among the projects that "are expected to contribute value volumes going forward."

RELATED Norway unveils mostly oil discovery in the North Sea

The company started off the new year with a series of announcements on new discoveries. Equinor reported adjusted net earnings of $74.9 billion last year, boosting by higher oil and gas prices relative to 2021 levels.

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M

Former Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, mayor convicted in bribery scheme

The former mayor of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, has been convicted in connection to a construction bribery scheme, the Justice Department said Thursday. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo

March 23 (UPI) -- The former mayor of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, has been convicted for his role in a construction bribery scheme, the Justice Department said Thursday.

Angel Perez-Otero was convicted of conspiracy, federal bribery, and extortion, the Justice Department said in a press release. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years for extortion and 10 years for bribery.

Court documents show that between 2019 and 2021, Perez-Otero received thousands of dollars in kickbacks from a local construction company in exchange for awarding them local contracts.

The case was prosecuted by attorneys Nicholas Cannon, of the Justice Department's criminal division's public integrity section and Myriam Fernandez-Gonzalez of the District of Puerto Rico.

Perez Otero is scheduled to be sentenced on August 8.

Social media firm fires CEO after putting off merger with Trump's Truth Social

March 22 (UPI) -- Digital World Acquisition Corp. confirmed Wednesday it parted ways with its chief executive as the publicly traded company moved toward a possible merger with former president Donald Trump's social media company.

California-headquartered DWAC said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it fired former CEO Patrick Orlando earlier in the week. Orlando had also served as the company's president.

"Due to the unprecedented headwinds faced by the company, the board agreed it was in the best interest of its shareholders to select a new management team to execute an orderly succession plan and set strategic operating procedures for the company in this new phase," the company said in a statement.

"Mr. Orlando's departure enables the board to appoint new leadership, which it believes will restore confidence to the shareholders."

Orlando remains on the company's board of directors and continues to hold a 10% stake in the specialty acquisition company. He served as president and CEO for the last year and a half.

The Trump Media and Technology Group launched the Truth Social social media platform early last year.

In September, the DWAC deferred a shareholder vote on whether to delay the acquisition of Trump Media and Technology Group, including the Truth Social platform.
RELATEDChina could be harvesting TikTok data, but much of it is already out there

Shareholders voted in November to delay a deadline for any merger by several months. The multiple delays have cost the company $100 million, according to NBC.

The SEC, as well as federal prosecutors in New York, reportedly have been investigating DWAC's financial dealings.

"I know it has been a challenging process for the shareholders. It is important to show that we are working every day to safeguard their interests," newly appointed DWAC interim CEO Eric Swider said in the company's statement Wednesday.

Accenture announces plans to cut 19,000 jobs


Accenture said Thursday it would cut 19,000 jobs due to a lower revenue outlook. 

Photo courtesy Robert Fiadone/Wikimedia Commons

March 23 (UPI) -- Tech services company Accenture said Thursday it plans to cut 19,000 jobs worldwide after lower annual revenue and profit forecasts.

The cutbacks will cost the Irish-American company $1.2 billion in severance over the next 18 months. More than half of the roles that are cut will be among back-office staff.

It also plans to spend another $300 million to consolidate its office space.

Accenture, which currently has 738,000 employees globally, said that it expects annual revenue growth for the 2023 fiscal year to be between 8% to 10%, down from 8% to 11%.

"There continues to be significant economic and geopolitical uncertainty in many markets around the world, which has impacted and may continue to impact our business, particularly with regard to wage inflation and volatility in foreign currency exchange rates," Accenture said, according to TechCrunch. "In some cases, these conditions have slowed the pace and level of client spending."

CNN Business reported that thousands of workers in the tech industry have been laid off in recent months as higher interest rates, inflation and recession fears have led to a pullback in advertising and consumer spending.

CRIMINAL CRYPTO CAPITALI$M
Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon arrested at Montenegro airport


Do Kwon, the creator of the now-defunct Terra blockchain, has been arrested at an airport in Montenegro. File photo by Dave Hunt/EPA-EFE

March 23 (UPI) -- Do Kwon, the creator of the now-defunct Terra blockchain, has been arrested at an airport in Montenegro.

The founder of Terraform Labs was taken into custody by the Montenegrin police, Filip Adzic, Montenegro's minister of the interior, tweeted on Thursday.

Kwon has reportedly been at the center of several investigations for alleged fraud and tax evasion since the collapse of Terra nearly a year ago, CoinDesk reported. The cryptocurrency was discontinued in November.

"Montenegrin police have detained a person suspected of being one of the most wanted fugitives, South Korean citizen Do Kwon, co-founder and CEO of Singapore-based Terraform Labs," Adzic tweeted.

The arrest took place in Montenegro's capital city Podgorica on Thursday morning. Kwon was allegedly in possession of falsified documents at the time, TechCrunch reported.

There was initial hesitation about the identity of the person in custody but Korean news agency Yonhap reported that authorities have confirmed the suspect's passport name, age and country of birth are a match.

The stablecoin Terra was created in 2018. When it failed, an estimated $40 billion in cryptocurrency was lost, TechCrunch said.

Kwon's whereabouts had been difficult to track for international agencies in recent months, leading Interpol to reportedly place a "red notice" for any law enforcement agencies who may encounter him to detain him. Kwon meanwhile disputed claims that he was running or hiding from law enforcement.

"I am not 'on the run' or anything similar -- for any government agency that has shown interest to communicate, we are in full cooperation and we don't have anything to hide," Kwon tweeted in September.

In February, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charged Terraform and Kwon for allegedly defrauding investors in "crypto schemes."

"We allege that Terraform and Do Kwon failed to provide the public with full, fair, and truthful disclosure as required for a host of crypto asset securities, most notably for LUNA and Terra USD," SEC Chair Gary Gensler said in a statement.

"We also allege that they committed fraud by repeating false and misleading statements to build trust before causing devastating losses for investors."

ITS THE DUTY OF THE POW TO ESCAPE
Escape-artist Missouri bear heads to Texas zoo with moat

This 2021 photo provided by the St. Louis Zoo shows the zoo's Andean bear named Ben. The St. Louis Zoo announced Tuesday, March 21, 2023, that the escape-artist bear from Missouri is headed to a Texas zoo with a moat in hopes it will put an end to his wandering. (JoEllen Toler/St. Louis Zoo via AP, File)


ST. LOUIS (AP) — An escape-artist bear from Missouri is headed to a Texas zoo with a moat in hopes that it will put an end to his wandering.

The St. Louis Zoo cited the “specific and unique personality” of the Andean bear named Ben in announcing the move Tuesday. His soon-to-be home at the Gladys Porter Zoo near South Padre Island in Brownsville, Texas, has a long history of working with Andean bears. But it’s still adding some extra security measures.

“We’re confident it’s going to be good for Ben,” said Walter Dupree, the Texas zoo’s curator of mammals.

Ben gained notoriety in February by busting out of his habitat twice.

The first time, the 4-year-old, 280-pound (127-kilogram) bear tore apart clips that attached stainless steel mesh to the frame of a door. But he was recaptured before the zoo opened for the day.

Zoo workers then added zip tie-like attachments made of stainless steel that had 450 pounds (204 kilograms) of tensile strength. But Ben managed to escape through those about two weeks later. The zoo was open this time, but he was captured less than an hour later on a public path.

Ben now lives in a nonpublic area of the St. Louis Zoo, where he can move indoors and out — and even splash in a pool — while he awaits his move.

“He’s so fun, he’s so playful — we would love to be able to keep him here,” said Regina Mossotti, the St. Louis Zoo’s vice president of animal care.

U.N. Secretary-General Guterres calls for an end to the 'war on nature'

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says it's time to stop "tinkering" in the global energy landscape and take the radical steps necessary to slow climate change. 

John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo

March 23 (UPI) -- Pointing to long-term trends that could make the planet uninhabitable for humans, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Thursday it was time to end the "war on nature."

Friday marks World Meteorological Day. Speaking ahead of the day, Guterres said the damage already done to the climate since the industrial age is "making our planet uninhabitable."

His comments come on the heels of a report from the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which said the continued use of fossil fuels, along with the "unequal and unsustainable" use of energy and land, has led to a general increase in average temperatures.

"This has resulted in more frequent and more intense extreme weather events that have caused increasingly dangerous impacts on nature and people in every region of the world," the IPCC said.

During the so-called energy transition, economies of scale are pursuing non-fossil fuel alternatives to avoid emissions, while at the same time advancing technology that can capture some of those pollutants. From the CEO of BP, to U.S. President Joe Biden, meanwhile, there's a growing sense that oil and natural gas will be part of the economy while cleaner technologies develop.

In the U.S. economy, the world's largest, natural gas accounts for 39% of the total mix for electricity generation this year and 37% for 2024. Renewables climb from 24% to 26% next year, though overall emissions of CO2, a potent greenhouse gas, increase by 0.6% from the 2023 forecast.

Guterres said it's time for "transformation, not tinkering" in the energy landscape. A radical transformation may be necessary to avoid further, and potentially irreversible, climate damage.

"It's time to end the relentless -- and senseless -- war on nature and deliver the sustainable future that our climate needs, and our children and grandchildren deserve," he said.

ABOLISH THE DEATH PENALTY
Court: Arizona governor not required to carry out execution

By JACQUES BILLEAUD

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This undated photo provided by the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry shows Aaron Brian Gunches, who was convicted of murder in the 2002 killing of Ted Price in Maricopa County, Ariz. On Thursday, March 2, 2023, the Arizona Supreme Court scheduled Gunches' execution for April 6, 2023. (Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry via AP)

PHOENIX (AP) — The Arizona Supreme Court has ruled that state law doesn’t require Gov. Katie Hobbs to carry out the April 6 execution of a prisoner who was convicted of murder.

The decision issued Wednesday marks a legal victory for the newly elected Democratic governor whose office said the state isn’t currently prepared to carry out the death penalty. The high court had set the April execution date for Aaron Gunches, who fatally shot Ted Price near Mesa, Arizona, in 2002.

The order came after Hobbs said executions will not be carried out until Arizonans can be confident that the state isn’t violating constitutional rights when it enforces the death penalty.

The governor vowed two weeks ago that she wouldn’t carry out the court’s order while the state reviews death penalty protocols that she ordered because of Arizona’s history of mismanaging executions.

Gunches took part in a brief hearing Thursday before Arizona’s clemency board, which can recommend to the governor that prisoners’ sentences be lessened and that they be given reprieves of execution. He voluntarily gave up his right to ask for clemency.

The five-minute meeting was held to double-check that Gunches had waived his chance at relief. “Yes, ma’am,” Gunches said through a video conferencing link, confirming his decision to Mina Mendez, who chairs the board.

Lawyers for Hobbs said the corrections department lacks staff with proper expertise and does not have a current contract for a pharmacist to compound the pentobarbital needed for an execution. They also said corrections officials are unable to find out the identity of the state’s prior compounding pharmacist, who primarily had contact with an official no longer with the department.

A top corrections leadership position critical to planning executions remains unfilled.

Corrections Director Ryan Thornell has said he was unable to find enough documentation to understand key elements of the execution process and instead has had to piece it together through conversations with employees on what might have occurred in past executions.

Hobbs maintained that while the court authorized Gunches’ execution, its order doesn’t require the state to carry it out.

Karen Price, whose brother was the victim in Gunches’ case, had asked the court to order Hobbs to carry out the execution. Colleen Clase, an attorney for Karen Price, didn’t immediately return a call seeking comment on Wednesday evening.

Gunches pleaded guilty to murdering Ted Price, who was his girlfriend’s ex-husband.

Arizona, which currently has 110 prisoners on death row, carried out three executions last year after a nearly eight-year hiatus brought on by criticism that a 2014 execution was botched and because of difficulties obtaining execution drugs.

Since then, the state has been criticized for taking too long to insert an IV for lethal injection into a condemned prisoner’s body and for denying the Arizona Republic permission to witness the three executions.

Gunches, who is not a lawyer, represented himself in November when he asked the Supreme Court to issue his execution warrant so that, he said, justice could be served and the victim’s families could get closure. In Republican Mark Brnovich’s last month as state attorney general, his office asked the court for a warrant to execute Gunches.

But Gunches then withdrew his request in early January, and newly elected Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes later asked for the warrant to be withdrawn.

The state Supreme Court rejected Mayes’ request, saying that it must grant an execution warrant if certain appellate proceedings have concluded and that those requirements were met in Gunches’ case.

In another reversal, Gunches said in a filing that he still wants to be executed and asked to be transferred to Texas, where, he wrote, “the law is still followed and inmates can still get their sentences carried out.” Arizona’s high court denied the transfer.

NO! BANKS, BOMBS, BOSSES, BORDERS

 

Eager young Albanians risk everything for new future in UK

By LLAZAR SEMINI

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A welcome sign is seen at the entrance of Bajram Curri town, 240 kilometers (150 miles) northern of Tirana, Albania, Tuesday, March 14, 2023. Thousands of young Albanians have crossed the English Channel in recent years to seek a new life in the U.K. Their dangerous journey in small boats or inflatable dinghies reflects Albania's anemic economy and a younger generation’s longing for fresh opportunities. (AP Photo/Franc Zhurda)

BAJRAM CURRI, Albania (AP) — Monika Mulaj’s son was in his second year of college in Albania, studying to become a mechanical engineer, when he resolved to make a daring change: He told his parents he would leave his lifelong home for a new future in Britain.

“We had tried to fulfil all his requests, for books and clothing, food and a bit of entertaining. But he was still dissatisfied,” said Mulaj, a high school teacher in the northeastern town of Bajram Curri, which is in one of the country’s poorest regions.

Five years later, her now 25-year-old son is working two jobs in Britain and hardly thinks of returning to his homeland. “Albania is in regress,” he complains to his mother.

His path has been shared in recent years by thousands of young Albanians who have crossed the English Channel in small boats or inflatable dinghies to seek work in the U.K. Their odyssey reflects the country’s anemic economy and a younger generation’s longing for fresh opportunities.

In 2018, only 300 people reached Britain by crossing the channel in small boats. The number rose to 45,000 in 2022, in part because of arrivals from Albania, a country in southern Europe that is negotiating for membership in the European Union.

Other migrants were from Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Syria. Unlike many countries that fuel migration, Albania is considered safe by U.K. officials.

Britain is attractive to Albanians because it has a better economy and higher-paying jobs than neighboring countries such as Greece or Italy. Many Albanians also have family ties in the U.K. Birmingham, for instance, has a large immigrant population from the Albanian town of Kukes, on the border with Kosovo.

The deputy mayor of Bajram Curri, Abedin Kernaja, said young people leave because of low wages and the difficulty of building “a comfortable family life.” His two sons are in the U.K.

Xhemile Tafaj, who owns a restaurant on a scenic plateau outside town, said “young people have no money to follow school, no job to work, no revenue at all.”

In such an environment, “only old men have remained and soon there will be empty houses,” Tafaj said.

Northeastern Albania is known for its natural Alpine beauty and green sloping landscape. The region is also famous for chestnuts, blueberries, blackberries and medicinal plants, as well as wool carpets and other handmade goods.

But those products offer scant job opportunities. The only jobs are at town halls, schools and hospitals, plus a few more at cafes and restaurants.

Petrit Lleshi, who owns a motel in Kukes, has struggled to find waiters for two years.

“I would not blame a 25-year-old leaving because of the low salaries here,” Lleshi said. “What our country offers is not enough to build a proper life.”

Few migrants seek a visa. They generally pay smugglers 5,000 to 20,000 euros ($5,300 to $21,200) for the dangerous, illegal crossing.

Many migrants undertake the trip with the expectation of a secure job, only to find after arriving in the U.K. that they must work in cannabis-growing houses for up to two years to pay back the trafficking money, according to reports by Albanian news outlets.

The steady stream of migrants has provoked clashes between British and Albanian leaders in recent months.

U.K. interior minister Suella Braverman has described the arrivals as an “invasion on our southern coast” — words that Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama blasted as a “crazy narrative” and an attempt to cover up for the U.K.’s failed border policies.

Albania also publicly protested what it called a “verbal lynching” by another U.K. official who made comments about Albanian immigrants. Rama accused the new U.K. Cabinet of scapegoating Albanians because it “has gone down a blind alley with its new policy resulting from Brexit.”

Rama was is in London Thursday for talks on immigration with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and accused U.K. officials of “singling out” Albanians for political purposes. “It has been a very, very disgraceful moment for British politics,” he told the BBC.

Sunak’s spokesman has said the U.K. welcomes and values Albanian migrants who come to the country legally, but that large numbers making illegal boat journeys to the U.K. are straining the asylum system.

Rama argues that easing visa requirements would help reduce the number of people arriving illegally.

In response to the spike in migration, some agencies are investing in programs that aim to offer opportunities to both countries — jobs for eager Albanians and a supply of remote workers for businesses in the U.K.

Elias Mazloum of Albania’s Social Development Investment group said that immigration is “a cancer.”

“We are offering chemotherapy after a lot of morphine used so far only has delayed immigration,” he said.

Under his project, 10 companies in Ireland will employ 10 young Albanians to work remotely in an apprenticeship paying 500 euros ($530) per month in the first year. Participants get a certificate from Ireland’s Digital Marketing Institute and then are hired remotely for 1,000 euros ($1,060) per month.

The vision is for the project to help establish a remote-work ecosystem in the region.

“Albania, and in particular the northeast region, has the advantage of working from a blank canvas” to attract digital nomads and encourage its young people to stay, said Declan Droney, a business trainer and consultant in Galway, in the west of Ireland.

A British project in Kukes supports small and midsize businesses in tourism and agriculture and will open a school teaching different professions.

The Albanian government has also offered incentives. Young couples who launch a small business will be exempt from taxes for up to three years, and couples who return from the U.K. will receive 5,000 euros ($5,300).

Mazloum’s organization has negotiated with Vodafone Albania to offer free high-speed internet to remote workers.

“The eyes cannot get enough from the beauty of this place — the food, the fresh air. This added to very hospitable people, ambitious youth who like to work hard,” Mazloum said. “Imagine if you give a little hope to the people here, what they could make this place.”

From left, Fiorela Hoxhaj, 18, Aldina Demiraj, 17, Marsida Qelia, 17, Jetlir Halucaj, 16, pose for a picture in Bajram Curri town, 240 kilometers (150 miles) northern of Tirana, Albania, Tuesday, March 14, 2023. Thousands of young Albanians have crossed the English Channel in recent years to seek a new life in the U.K. Their dangerous journey in small boats or inflatable dinghies reflects Albania's anemic economy and a younger generation’s longing for fresh opportunities. (AP Photo/Franc Zhurda)

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Sylvia Hui in London contributed to this story.

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Follow Llazar Semini at https://twitter.com/lsemini

GOP DENIED CITIZENS MEDICAID

NC approves Medicaid expansion, reversing long opposition


 North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper speaks at a primary election night event hosted by the North Carolina Democratic Party in Raleigh, N.C., May 17, 2022. A Medicaid expansion deal in North Carolina received final legislative approval Thursday, March 23, 2023, likely ending a decade of debate over whether the closely politically divided state should accept the federal government's coverage for hundreds of thousands of low-income adults. Cooper, a longtime expansion advocate, is expected to sign the bill, which would leave 10 states in the U.S. that have not adopted expansion. (AP Photo/Ben McKeown, File)


RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A Medicaid expansion deal in North Carolina received final legislative approval on Thursday, capping a decade of debate over whether the closely politically divided state should accept the federal government’s coverage for hundreds of thousands of low-income adults.

North Carolina is one of several Republican-led states that have begun considering expanding Medicaid after years of steadfast opposition. Voters in South Dakota approved expansion in a referendum in November. And in Alabama, advocates are urging lawmakers to take advantage of federal incentives to expand Medicaid in order to provide health insurance to more working people.

When Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, a longtime expansion advocate, signs the bill, it should leave 10 states in the U.S. that haven’t adopted expansion. North Carolina has 2.9 million enrollees in traditional Medicaid coverage. Advocates have estimated that expansion could help 600,000 adults.

“Medicaid Expansion is a once in a generation investment that will make all North Carolina families healthier while strengthening our economy, and I look forward to signing this legislation soon,” Cooper tweeted.

There’s no set start date in the final bill for expansion under the legislation, but it still comes with one caveat: It can’t happen until after a state budget is approved. This usually happens in the early summer. Cooper panned that provision, which could give GOP leaders leverage to include unrelated items he may strongly oppose.

The House voted 87-24 in favor of the deal, after little debate and a preliminary vote on Wednesday. Many Democratic members on the floor stood and clapped after it passed, which is usually not permitted under chamber rules. Almost two-thirds of the House Republicans also voted yes. The Senate already approved the legislation last week in near-unanimous votes.

The final agreement also included provisions scaling back or eliminating regulations that require state health officials to sign off before medical providers open certain new beds or use equipment. Senate Republicans demanded the “certificate of need” changes in any deal.

Republicans in charge of the General Assembly for years had been skeptical about expansion, which originated from the federal Affordable Care Act signed into law by President Barack Obama 13 years ago Thursday.

GOP legislators passed a law in 2013 specifically preventing a governor’s administration from seeking expansion without express approval by the General Assembly. But interest in expansion grew over the past year as lawmakers concluded that Congress was neither likely to repeal the law nor raise the low 10% state match that coverage requires.

A financial sweetener contained in a COVID-19 recovery law means North Carolina also would get an estimated extra $1.75 billion in cash over two years if it expands Medicaid. Legislators hope to use much of that money on mental health services.

A turning point came last May when Senate leader Phil Berger, a longtime expansion opponent, publicly explained his reversal, which was based largely on fiscal terms.

In a news conference, Berger also described the situation faced by a single mother who didn’t make enough money to cover insurance for both her and her children, which he said meant that she would either end up in the emergency room or not get care. Expansion covers people who make too much money for conventional Medicaid but not enough to benefit from heavily subsidized private insurance.

“We need coverage in North Carolina for the working poor,” Berger said at the time.

The Senate and House approved competing measures in 2022 but negotiations stalled over certificate of need changes. Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore announced an agreement three weeks ago.

In 2019, Cooper’s insistence on advancing expansion contributed to a state budget impasse with GOP legislators that never got fully resolved.

House Minority Leader Robert Reives of Chatham County wished the budget passage requirement was left out of the expansion measure but remained celebratory.

“I’m just really happy because health care means everything,” Reives said. “Now the onus is on all of us to put together a budgetary document that everybody can live with.”

The state’s 10% share of expenses for Medicaid expansion recipients would be paid through hospital assessments. Hospitals also are expected to receive larger reimbursements for treating Medicaid patients through a federal program that the legislation tells the state to participate in.

The program’s proceeds should help shore up rural hospitals in a state where several have closed.

“This landmark legislation will have lasting benefits for our state by helping hardworking North Carolina families, stabilizing rural health providers and improving the overall health of our communities,” said Steve Lawler with the North Carolina Healthcare Association, which represents hospitals and hospital systems.

In a news release, Moore called Thursday’s passage a “historic step forward to increase access to healthcare for our rural communities” and he said he looked forward to passing “a strong conservative budget” so expansion can begin.