Judge halts law mandating the Ten Commandments in Texas schools
(NYT) — A federal judge in Texas temporarily halted Wednesday a state law that would have required the Ten Commandments to be visibly displayed in every public school classroom by Sept. 1.
The law, passed this year by the Republican-controlled Legislature, mirrors one in Louisiana that was declared “plainly unconstitutional” in June by a panel of judges from the conservative 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans. A federal judge also blocked a nearly identical measure in Arkansas this month.
In Texas, 16 families from different faith backgrounds brought the legal challenge. They argued that the law would pressure students to adopt a state-favored religious Scripture and that it amounted to a clear violation of the separation of church and state.
The version of the Ten Commandments that the law would have required was drawn from the King James Bible, the families said, and it would not have reflected other religious groups’ interpretations of the Ten Commandments.
Some parents also argued that portions of the commandments are inappropriate for young children, including the lines “thou shalt not commit adultery” and “thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife.”
Ken Paxton, the state attorney general, whose office represented most of the school districts that were sued, called the Ten Commandments a “cornerstone of our moral and legal heritage” and vowed to appeal the decision.
The Texas law requires the Ten Commandments be displayed in a “conspicuous” location in each classroom on a typeface visible from anywhere in the classroom. The law mandated that a poster of the commandments be at least 16 inches wide and 20 inches tall and only include the text of the Ten Commandments. Under the law, school districts would be required to accept donations of Ten Commandments posters, and they would be allowed to use district funds to purchase posters.
PlayStation 5 prices up as tariff uncertainty weighs
(Reuters) — Sony will raise prices of its PlayStation 5 consoles in the United States by around $50 from Thursday, as the Japanese conglomerate navigates a slow recovery in the videogame market while U.S. tariffs threaten to raise costs.
All three PlayStation 5 consoles will see a similar price hike, with the most expensive PS5 Pro version expected to cost $749.99, the company said in a blog post on Wednesday.
The price changes come after U.S. President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs on imports from global manufacturing hubs such as China and Japan, leading to fears of supply chain disruptions and high material costs.
Sony had raised prices of its consoles in various European markets in April. Rival Xbox also hiked sticker prices of its consoles and accessories in the U.S., Europe, Australia and the UK a month later.
Consoles were expected to be a major driver of videogame market growth this year due to the launch of premium titles such as Take-Two Interactive’s “Grand Theft Auto VI” and Nintendo’s Switch 2.
But console price hikes and the delay of highly-anticipated “GTA VI” to next year have cast some doubt on the pace of growth in the industry.
On Wednesday, Sony said there are no price changes for other markets and prices of PlayStation 5 accessories remain unchanged.
CVS unit must pay $290 million in drug whistleblower lawsuit, judge rules
(Reuters) — A federal judge ordered CVS Health’s pharmacy benefit manager unit to pay $289.9 million in damages and penalties after it overcharged Medicare for prescription drugs. In a Tuesday decision, Chief Judge Mitchell Goldberg in Philadelphia federal court tripled to $285 million the damages he had ordered CVS Caremark to pay in June, citing the federal False Claims Act. He added a $4.87 million civil fine.
Goldberg rejected CVS’ request to pay less, saying that while CVS Caremark was liable for only two years of overbilling, evidence at trial “made clear that the fraud was financially motivated, not the result of some innocent or mistaken belief.”
CVS, based in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, said on Wednesday it plans to appeal. Last month, a Manhattan federal judge ordered CVS’ Omnicare unit to pay $948.8 million in a separate whistleblower lawsuit alleging fraudulent billing. CVS plans to appeal that judgment.
Goldberg presided in March over a non-jury trial in the whistleblower case brought by Sarah Behnke, a former head actuary for Medicare Part D at Aetna.
She accused CVS Caremark of having caused health insurers such as Aetna to submit inflated claims since 2010 to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), while pharmacies such as Rite Aid and Walgreens were paid less.
CVS argued that the original $95 million in damages was substantial, and punitive damages should be limited to $95 million.
But the judge said CVS Caremark’s fraud not only financially harmed the government, but diminished public confidence in it.
“CMS relies on companies like Caremark to truthfully and accurately report Part D drug prices,” he wrote. “Caremark’s conduct broke CMS’s trust, and as a result, the public’s trust in CMS.”
Behnke sued in 2014. CVS bought Aetna four years later.
The False Claims Act lets whistleblowers sue on behalf of the government and share in recoveries, typically 15% to 30%.