Penn State seeks to stay perfect, takes on FordhamJohn Parker Romo made a 29-yard field goal to lift the Minnesota Vikings to a 30-27 overtime win against the host Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon. Romo buried the game-winning kick in his third career game for Minnesota (9-2), which won its fourth game in a row. The score capped a 10-play, 68-yard drive for the Vikings after the Bears went three-and-out on the first overtime possession. Sam Darnold completed 22 of 34 passes for 330 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Vikings. Wideout Jordan Addison finished with eight catches for a career-high 162 yards and a touchdown. The overtime defeat spoiled an impressive performance from rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who completed 32 of 47 passes for 340 yards and two touchdowns for Chicago (4-7). D.J. Moore had seven catches for 106 yards and a touchdown, and Keenan Allen finished with nine catches for 86 yards and a score. Chicago erased an 11-point deficit in the final 22 seconds of regulation to send the game to overtime. Romo had put Minnesota on top 27-16 when he made a 26-yard field goal with 1:56 remaining in the fourth quarter. Williams trimmed the Bears' deficit to 27-24 with 22 seconds to go. He rolled right and found Allen wide open in the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown, and moments later he fired a strike to Moore for a two-point conversion. The Bears recovered an onside kick on the next play to regain possession at their 43-yard line with 21 seconds left. Cairo Santos' onside kick bounced off the foot of Vikings tight end Johnny Mundt, and Tarvarius Moore recovered it. D.J. Moore put the Bears in field-goal position with a 27-yard reception across the middle of the field, and Santos made a 48-yarder as time expired to even the score at 27-all. Minnesota led 24-10 after three quarters. Romo made a 40-yard field goal early in the third quarter, and Aaron Jones punched in a 2-yard run with 1:22 left in the period to put the Vikings on top by two touchdowns. Addison and Jalen Nailor each had receiving touchdowns in the first half for Minnesota. Roschon Johnson scored on a 1-yard run for the Bears' only touchdown of the first half. Chicago trailed 14-10 at the break. --Field Level Media
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork said Thursday that he is "absolutely" confident that Ryan Day will be back as football coach in 2025. Calls to fire the sixth-year coach rose among Ohio State fans after the Buckeyes lost to Michigan for the fourth straight year. Bjork, in an interview on 97.1 The Fan, said Day is the man for the job, regardless of how the Buckeyes perform in the College Football Playoff. They host Tennessee in a first-round game Dec. 21. "Coach Day is awesome," said Bjork, who came from Texas A&M to replace the retiring Gene Smith last summer. "He's great to work with. He totally gets it. He loves being a Buckeye. So, we're going to support him at the highest level." The 13-10 loss to Michigan followed by an ugly melee between the teams put the coach in a precarious spot. He and his team were booed off the field by the home fans. Bjork ended up releasing a statement expressing his support for the coach. "The reason we had to say something after (the Michigan) game is, we're still breathing, we're still alive," Bjork said. "The season's not over. The book is not closed." Thanks to the playoff, Day has a chance to redeem himself with Ohio State's huge fanbase with a win against the Volunteers — and perhaps more in the 12-team tournament. Regardless of what happens, Day will be back next year, according to Bjork. "Coach Day and I just hit it off so well," Bjork said. "I've been really, really impressed. Every single time I talked to him, I learn something. He's innovative. He recruits at the highest level. He's got a great staff." Day wouldn't directly address his job status last weekend. "When you first come off those types of things, there's a lot of emotion," he said, referring to the Michigan loss. "And then as time goes on, you've got to get refocused because you know what you've done in the past does not affect what's going on moving forward. Everything is out in front of us." Failing to consistently beat Michigan is one of the few flaws in Day's coaching record. Hired as a member of coach Urban Meyer's staff in 2017, Day was the hand-picked successor when Meyer retired after the 2018 season. Compiling an overall 66-10 record, he is widely admired in the coaching community. "Great respect for what he's done in his coaching career, what he's done there at Ohio State and the success that they've had year-in and year-out," Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said. Day is in trouble now because losing The Game is considered an unforgiveable sin by Buckeyes fans. "What we have to do is this whole 'championship or bust' mentality, you want that as the goal, but it has to be about the process," Bjork said. "To me, we've got to maybe change some conversations a little bit. I think we need to maybe just approach things a little bit differently." Get local news delivered to your inbox!
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Thousands of people took to the streets of the Slovakia capital Thursday to protest against Culture Minister Martina Simkovicova who has dismissed several heads of major cultural institutions and halted projects steered by LGBT+ associations under the pretext of promoting "Slovak culture". Simkovicova, a 53-year-old former television anchor, has been a controversial figure since taking office in October 2023. "I am frustrated and very angry about the way culture is being destroyed and organizations are falling apart," Svetlana Fialova, a 39-year-old visual artist and lecturer, told AFP. "What is happening in Slovakia is ... what is happening in Georgia, Hungary and other countries, where people who collaborate and play to Russian tunes are coming to power and trying to suppress democracy and culture," she said. "The culture of the Slovaks should be Slovak -- Slovak and none else," Simkovicova said in one early speech. Nominated by the nationalist Slovak National Party (SNS), she has also slammed "LGBT+ ideology" for causing Europe to "die out". Her views have appealed to Prime Minister Robert Fico from the centrist Smer party, whose objections to liberal values echo Viktor Orban, the prime minister of neighbouring Hungary. Simkovicova had worked notably for the Slovan TV channel, known for spreading conspiracy theories, xenophobia and pro-Russian views. Slovak National Gallery director Alexandra Kusa lost her job in August in what opponents said was part of Simkovicova's purge. "Culture ministry staff accompanied by a lawyer showed up in my office one day with a bunch of flowers and a notice," she told AFP. Kusa, who has been reduced to the post of exhibition curator, said the ministry had launched a derogatory campaign against her. She says she was punished for backing Matej Drlicka, the National Theatre director, who was sacked a day earlier. The head of the country's heritage institute was dismissed this week. "We are not compatible with the ministry. Their idea of culture is completely different from ours," Kusa said. She accuses the ministry of launching "an era of bullying and intimidation". "It's pure destruction and demonstration of power. It's terrible." The ministry did not respond to AFP's request to comment. Simkovicova also targets public media. In June, she pushed through a law reforming the state-run RTVS broadcaster into a new company, STVR, which is under her control. Analyst Pavol Hardos told AFP that wielding political influence over cultural institutions had a precedent in Slovakia. "This is something we experienced in the 1990s during the illiberal regime of Vladimir Meciar, when there were ideological tests and tests ... of who is a good nationalist, a good Slovak, and who isn't," he said. What is new is the government's "commitment to purge cultural institutions from anyone who is in any way perceived as potentially a political enemy", Hardos said. Open-minded and liberal people are "being targeted as a potential troublemaker, and people who are often enough real experts in their areas are being sidelined or thrown out," he added. Hardos said that while it was premature to talk about "an illiberal regime", Fico is walking in Orban's footsteps. The government is also targeting LGBT+ rights organisations. Early this year, Simkovicova said they would not get "a cent" from her ministry. She has recently curbed public subsidies for LGBT+ groups. "This concerns any project with links to LGBT+," said Martin Macko, head of the Iniciativa Inakost NGO. He said attacks on the minority were growing, as were the number of people being treated by the NGO's therapists. The situation has incited protests among artists, cultural institution staff and the public, who turn their backs on directors named by Simkovicova or read protest statements on theatre stages. Large rallies were held this year, mobilising tens of thousands of people. Two petitions written by artists have solicited 400,000 signatures in the EU member country of 5.4 million people. In the Slovak parliament, the opposition initiated a vote to dismiss Simkovicova, but the attempt fell through. "No culture ministry employee prevents anyone from being creative or expressing themselves," Simkovicova told the press. sc-anb-frj-kym/tw
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Philippe Clement couldn't help but feel a little bit disappointed despite Rangers securing a credible draw against Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League . Striker Hamza Igamane put the hosts ahead just 81 seconds into the second half, expertly converting a cross from captain James Tavernier . However, Spurs' Dejan Kulusevski levelled the score with a well-placed left-footed shot following an impressive team build-up with 15 minutes left to play. Both teams created opportunities to secure a victory. One of the closest calls came when substitute Cyriel Dessers was thwarted by former Celtic shot-stopper Fraser Forster in the dying moments. Despite several chances, resolute defending and excellent goalkeeping ensured the game ended in a 1-1 draw. With this result, both teams now sit on 11 points, placing Rangers in eighth and Tottenham in ninth in the Europa League league phase standings as they vie for an automatic spot in the competition's last 16. Read more: Ally McCoist in shock at former England striker's Rangers confession Prospect of Rangers return gave retired defender the 'fear' "The grabbed the challenge with both hands and they showed what we want them to show everybody," the Rangers manager told TNT Sports. "But I still leave now after this game thinking we should have won this game. We deserved to win this game. "I think it was a very good advertisement for Scottish football and for sure Rangers to compete against a Premier League team at full strength. Okay, they had some injuries but there was still a lot of quality players on the pitch. "Our young guys, our experienced guys, everyone together showed a lot of quality today. "I want that mentality every week. I saw that they were not satisfied with a point, they wanted to win and they felt also that we were really close to winning this game. We need to keep this hunger and desire for more to become better. "Like I've been saying over the last month's and week's, there's a lot of potential in this squad. It's about working with them and getting experiences for them like evening like this. It helps a lot in that way. "I've said they need to play fast and they need to be more aggressive and react faster, and they all did. It's about keeping this hunger and desire to become better as players." Read more: Rangers sweating over fitness of key defender after Spurs withdrawal Rangers boss keen to watch Nedim Bajrami in his 'best position' The Ibrox crowd were kept on their feet for large parts of the 90 minutes, and after the relationship between supporters and the squad appeared to turn sour earlier in the season, Clement reckons he's got them back on side again with performances like tonight. "The synergy is totally back with our fans," the Belgian commented. "They see all the work the team is doing, they see the way we want to play and the way we want to impose our play. It's going to be a massive final against Celtic at Hampden, 50/50 with supporters so everybody is looking forward to that."DoorDash steps up driver ID checks after traffic safety complaints
Mumbai: Kandivali Police File FIR Against 6 Political Workers For Extortion, Assaulting Road Construction EngineersUnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was gunned down outside of a Manhattan hotel on Wednesday, Dec. 4. Luigi Mangione, 26, has since been arrested and charged in the killing . In the days after Thompson’s death, UnitedHealthcare came under fire on social media over its alleged high rate of health insurance claim denials. A chart shared in many viral posts across social media shows claim denial rates for major insurance companies. UnitedHealthcare’s denial rate is highest at 32%, according to the posts. VERIFY investigated available data to determine whether the viral chart is accurate. THE QUESTION Does UnitedHealthcare deny patients’ claims at the highest rate of any major insurer, like the viral chart claims? THE SOURCES The Affordable Care Act (ACA) ProPublica investigation on health insurers’ denial rates published in June 2023 ValuePenguin , a consumer research site owned by LendingTree VERIFY analysis of available data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Article published by KFF, a nonprofit healthy policy research organization, in May 2023 THE ANSWER The claim that UnitedHealthcare denies patients’ claims at the highest rate of any major insurer is inconclusive. The federal government and private health insurers don’t make data on claim denials for all types of insurance plans available to the public. WHAT WE FOUND We can’t VERIFY that UnitedHealthcare denies claims at the highest rate of any major health insurer. That’s because the federal government and private health insurers, like UnitedHealthcare, don’t make data on claim denials for all types of insurance plans available to the public. Former President Barack Obama signed a comprehensive health care reform law called The Affordable Care Act (ACA) , which is also known as Obamacare, into law in 2010. That law tasked the federal government’s Department of Health and Human Services with “monitoring denials both by health plans on the Obamacare marketplace and those offered through employers and insurers,” Elisabeth Rosenthal reported for KFF Health News , which is part of the nonprofit health policy research and news organization KFF, in May 2023. But HHS “hasn’t fulfilled that assignment,” Rosenthal said. Data the federal government has collected and shared so far isn’t comprehensive and it isn’t audited to ensure it’s accurate, a ProPublica investigation and KFF found. VERIFY reviewed the ACA and found it also tasked the head of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) with conducting a “study on the incidence of denials of coverage for medical services and denials of applications to enroll in health insurance plans.” That GAO report was published in March 2011 but it doesn’t break down denial rates by individual insurers. Where the data in the viral chart comes from VERIFY traced the viral chart back to an article published by ValuePenguin, a consumer research website owned by LendingTree, in May 2024. ValuePenguin has since removed the chart from its article, though the alleged denial rates are still included in the article. The website said on Dec. 6 that it “removed certain data elements” from the piece “at the request of law enforcement.” The chart published by ValuePenguin, which is shown in an archived version of the article here , alleges that UnitedHealthcare denies nearly one-third of claims it receives – or 32% to be exact – the highest rate of any major insurer. It’s followed by Medica at 27% and Anthem at 23%. These rates were based on available data on insurers’ claim denials and appeals from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) public use files, which are available online, ValuePenguin said. ValuePenguin says the CMS data the website used is from the calendar year 2022 and doesn’t include any other years. Medicare and Medicaid data doesn’t include information about employer-sponsored private health plans, which cover the majority of working-age Americans . VERIFY conducted our own analysis of the most recent data from CMS comparing the total number of the in-network claims that health insurers received to their in-network denials. We did not factor in appeals. Our analysis found that UnitedHealthcare did deny claims at a rate of around 33% – the highest rate of any major insurer. This closely mirrors what ValuePenguin found. But there are a handful of caveats to the CMS data that make it impossible to draw conclusions about how often health insurers actually deny patients’ claims. Why it’s impossible to know exactly how many claims health insurers deny The data-gathering on health insurers’ denials is “haphazard and limited to a small subset of plans,” and it “isn’t audited to ensure it is complete,” Karen Pollitz, a retired senior fellow at KFF, said in the 2023 KFF Health News article . When it comes to information that the federal government has collected, it is not standardized or audited, and therefore is “not really meaningful,” Peter Lee, the founding executive director of California’s state marketplace, also told ProPublica. Data “should be actionable” and “this is not by any means right now,” he added. VERIFY reached out to CMS and UnitedHealthcare for comment, but did not receive responses by the time of publication. Related Articles VERIFYING claims related to Luigi Mangione after his arrest in the UnitedHealthcare CEO killing Online manifesto appearing to be penned by Luigi Mangione is fake The VERIFY team works to separate fact from fiction so that you can understand what is true and false. Please consider subscribing to our daily newsletter , text alerts and our YouTube channel . You can also follow us on Snapchat , Instagram , Facebook and TikTok . Learn More » Follow Us YouTube Snapchat Instagram Facebook TikTok Want something VERIFIED? 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Whether governments and local authorities should add fluoride to tap water has always been a politically charged topic. In 1945, Grand Rapids, Michigan, became the first city in the world to take this step, in an effort to promote dental health. "From epidemiological data, it was discovered that there was less decay in children's teeth in some areas versus others," Lucy O'Malley , an applied health scientist at the University of Manchester in the U.K., told Live Science. "They found this was because some areas had water supplies that had natural fluoride levels at around 1 ppm [part per million] and that was beneficial for protecting against caries," better known as cavities. In the decades since, health authorities across the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries have introduced similar levels of fluoride to tap water. But what is the science behind how fluoride actually prevents cavities? It helps to first understand the anatomy of teeth , which are made up of an extremely specialized body tissue, Dr. Alexander Morris , a professor of dental public health at the University of Birmingham in the U.K., told Live Science in an email. Related: How does plaque cause cavities? Teeth have four components: enamel (the hard, shiny outer covering), dentine (the bulk of the tooth), pulp (the inner soft tissue), and cementum (a thin covering of the root to anchor it to the jaw), he explained. The enamel acts as the first line of defense against tooth decay. Composed of a mineral called hydroxyapatite — a tough solid containing charged molecules of calcium, phosphate and hydroxide — enamel is the hardest substance in the human body. The bulky phosphate particles are packed closely together , with the smaller calcium and hydroxide ions sitting in the small spaces between. Strong attraction between the positive and negative particles holds this structure together, creating a continuous and extremely tough mineral. This shield protects the softer and more vulnerable dentine and pulp underneath it from damage and wear. Sign up for the Live Science daily newsletter now Get the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox. However, frequent consumption of refined sugars — such as those in sugary snacks and drinks — can degrade this protective surface. "When you eat sugars, they get broken down by bacteria in your mouth," O'Malley said. "As the bacteria feed off the sugars, they excrete acid, and that acid contributes to the demineralization of enamel." On a chemical level, the acid leaches the negative phosphate and hydroxide ions out of the enamel, weakening the overall structure. As holes in this enamel surface wear through to the dentine, bacteria can invade that inner tooth tissue and accelerate decay. "If the area of tooth affected gets big enough, the tooth structure collapses, forming a cavity," Morris said. Fluoride addresses this problem by facilitating two key protective mechanisms that help safeguard the enamel. "Incorporation [of fluoride] into the tooth enamel makes it more resistant to the acids produced by bacteria, helping prevent tooth decay in the first place," Morris said. "The presence of fluoride can also help repair early decay by creating more resistant enamel during the repair process." Known as remineralization, the tiny fluoride ions replace a portion of the hydroxide within the enamel's structure. Fluoride is much smaller than hydroxide, so these particles fit better in the gaps between the phosphate ions. This creates a stronger and more compact crystal structure, called fluorapatite. The greater attraction between the different ions in this fluorinated mineral means the negative particles are much less likely to leach out of the enamel. This thereby provides greater protection against acid damage and wear. — Should you floss before or after you brush your teeth? — Which teeth fall out? — Are cavities 'contagious'? Tooth-decay yeast can pass from moms to babies The benefit of fluoride for dental health is well established — in fact, the ion has been included as an additive in toothpaste since the 1970s . "It's become more widespread in usage," O'Malley said, "and from about that time, we've seen a really dramatic decline in the rates of caries." Whether through water, toothpaste or dental treatments, "adequate exposure to fluoride in whatever form reduces the risk of tooth decay," Morris concluded. Some jurisdictions, rather than fluoridating their water, provide children fluoride in milk, salt, or mouth rinses that they're given at school. This article is for informational purposes only and is not meant to offer medical advice. Ever wonder why some people build muscle more easily than others or why freckles come out in the sun ? Send us your questions about how the human body works to community@livescience.com with the subject line "Health Desk Q," and you may see your question answered on the website!