A $109,751 transfer with the memo line “baptism” wired to a luxurious Beverly Hills hotel. A lease payment to a BMW dealership for a Rolls-Royce. Millions squirreled away to a family trust fund.  These are among the corporate transfers an NC hospital executive allegedly made.

Local politicians were so desperate to save Asheboro’s only hospital that they supported a for-profit buyer with a spotty track record. Now they say he hasn’t kept his promises. @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...

Documents reveal WakeMed snubbed its rival’s offer to merge, despite UNC Health offering $3 billion more than Charlotte-based Atrium Health. @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...

"North Carolina Medicaid opened an investigation into the chain after The Times shared its findings."

UNC Health made an offer after learning Atrium had struck a merger deal with its Triangle neighbor. @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...

absolutely wild scoop by my @indyweek.bsky.social colleague @ccourtneybohl.bsky.social on the Town of Cary’s $330k spend on “documentary-style videos about town projects and culture”—including a mini doc about the leadup to a staff flash dance—for internal use.

A Reckoning Emerges In Proposed WakeMed-Atrium Hospital Deal As costs soar, the proposed partnership has energized a bipartisan effort to block monster mergers.

Patient distress serves as leverage in these standoffs, one health policy researcher said, until one party buckles to make a deal. “If patients weren’t affected, it wouldn’t work.”

Patients Are Caught in Contract Crossfire Between Hospitals and Insurers Clashes between large medical providers and insurance companies are on the rise, and patients are stuck in the middle.

My stories rarely spark immediate tangible reforms. So it was gratifying when our investigation of the dollar-store industry, published by @theguardian.com, led the Utah legislature to pass a new law cracking down on chronic overchargers. With @jocelynzuck.bsky.social, @michaelwhudson.bsky.social.

Join us for our new All-Access Q&A this Wednesday. This week our guest is Johanna F. Still (@j-still.bsky.social). Johanna covers healthcare for The Assembly.

“The way NRP developed in the U.S. was just careless,” surgeon Claire Morgan said. “It was hubris and carelessness.” www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...

The demand for organ transplants has prompted an innovative procedure that reanimates a dead body. A North Carolina surgeon worries that when it’s done incorrectly, donors might feel pain in their last moments. For @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...

Jane, a state employee, received her pre-approval letter for gender-affirming surgery in October. Nine days later, the State Health Plan canceled the care. www.theassemblync.com/news/transge...

North Carolina's state health insurance plan no longer covers gender-affirming care. As @j-still.bsky.social reports in @theassemblync.bsky.social, that has left some #transgender employees in limbo. #ncpol

Several organizations that coordinate organ procurement across the country argue new federal rules will throw the system into chaos. Others say the rules are desperately needed. @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...

Facing an uphill legal battle, the Stein administration reversed its cuts to Medicaid providers last week. But the governor’s attempt to steamroll the deadlocked legislature could make a still-looming crisis harder to fix. www.theassemblync.com/news/politic...

“It’s almost like it’s an open secret how messed up this is.” — an outside legal expert on the NC Board of Massage and Bodywork Therapy’s legal arrangements @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/news/health/...

Demand for autism services for children has never been higher. Meanwhile, the state is looking to cut back as Medicaid spending for those services has soared.

“I dare them to retaliate” – Wilmington distillery owner who says he just opened the state's first private liquor store

Finger-pointing ensues as state’s Medicaid cuts deadline arrives @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/health/medic...

“They’re trying to scare our members,” State Treasurer Brad Briner, who oversees the State Health Plan, told @theassemblync.bsky.social He said Duke has been “incredibly tone deaf in this situation.” www.theassemblync.com/health/duke-...

Shital Patel’s husband died while undergoing a routine dental procedure. After she advocated for safety reforms, the governor’s office told her it had named her to the state dental board–then dentists intervened. @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/politics/den...

Myrtle Beach officials shot down the potential for a Shibumi trial run this summer. Horry County is expected to vote soon on whether to temporarily lift its ban. The outlook is far from sunny @theassemblync.bsky.social

Pender County is blood red GOP territory so the decision to moderate its relationship with ICE was definitely *not* any kind of sanctuary gesture. (They just don’t like doing Uncle Sam’s work for free). Also, DEI is still on the menu at The Endowment. For now. Latest from @j-still.bsky.social and me

As of the latest data available, North Carolina's six FAA-staffed air towers had just 178 certified air traffic controllers. Combined, that's 57 air traffic controllers short of meeting an industry agreed-upon standard. @theassemblync.bsky.social www.theassemblync.com/business/nor...

Trump’s new executive order halts any new federal offshore wind leases and stops further permitting. Projects already underway in North Carolina–Kitty Hawk South and Carolina Long Bay–will likely hit speedbumps as a result. www.theassemblync.com/newsletter/t...

I look forward to my Wilmington Deep Dive every week. If you’re in the Cape Fear region, I recommend following these local treasures @schachtman.bsky.social @rachelkwhqr.bsky.social @j-still.bsky.social www.whqr.org/local/2025-0...

FUBAR meter getting up there 😂

His use of the online handle minisoldr haunted Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson this year, but he's still using it, @joekilliannc.bsky.social reports. www.theassemblync.com/politics/mar... #ncpol

This Cyber Monday, give yourself the gift of excellent journalism. Our subscriptions are now HALF OFF — get our archives for a year for $30, or go Premium for just $75. Act now: there's less than 12 hours left of this sale. theassemblync.com/subscriptions/

A few months ago, I started hearing from former employees of the Hunt Institute that the venerable education nonprofit was plagued by high turnover and low morale. Today, @theassemblync.bsky.social is publishing our investigation. It’s a wild ride. www.theassemblync.com/education/hu...

Earlier this month, a wrecking crew crushed the historic and dilapidated home of The Wilmington Journal–one of the state’s oldest Black papers. www.theassemblync.com/media/wilmin...

Why did the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office post, then delete, a recent tribute to a former sheriff who served in the 50s-70s? In short, he was a member of the Ku Klux Klan. www.whqr.org/local/2024-1...

for…reasons!

NEW: An audit finds Charlotte-based U.S. Performance Center misspent $6.2M in state tax dollars; 1 in 4 dollars of $25M it was awarded. #ncpol How? -buying alcohol -double billing grant -contributions to political orgs -inadequate documentation, etc www.theassemblync.com/politics/oly...

Check out our Starter Pack and follow our reporters, editors, and staff as we do deep coverage of North Carolina. go.bsky.app/D31XM91

Tew said some people misunderstand her and the Moms for Liberty group’s advocacy. “I think they see our passion and they mistake it for extremism,” she said. “It’s our children.” @theassemblync.bsky.social

*sigh* t.co/tkTazHcKOq

“Ticket splitting isn’t a one-off in North Carolina, it’s as consistent a trend as you can find in the Old North State,” @chriscooperwcu.bsky.social told @j-still.bsky.social. But still, there have been plenty of conspiracy theories. #ncpol www.theassemblync.com/politics/tic...

*depressed DJ Khalid* another one

After all the ballot hoopla the winners remain the same in New Hanover County. BOE counted ~3K ballots over a 9-hour meeting Thurs. www.whqr.org/local/2024-1...

Ticket-Splitting is Part of Our DNA North Carolina is home to a “rare political animal”: the split-ticket voter. Though the state’s electoral outcomes may seem head-scratching to some, it’s par for the course. #NCPol #NC www.theassemblync.com/politics/tic...

Ticket-splitting is in our DNA, as @bowtiepolitics.bsky.social puts it #ncpol