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By Sallee Ann Harrison

May 13, 2026

By Sallee Ann Harrison

May 13, 2026

 
 

Hello and welcome to your afternoon news update from The Associated Press. Today, the FDA chief’s resignation widens a leadership gap at the nation’s health department; prosecutors plan to retry Alex Murdaugh after high court overturned convictions; and foreign ticket holders from World Cup qualifying countries won’t have to pay bonds to enter the U.S.

 

UP FIRST

Dr. Marty Makary, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, speaks while, from left, National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Donald Trump, Joe Rogan and CEO of Americans for Ibogaine W. Bryan Hubbard listen in the Oval Office in April. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Dr. Marty Makary, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, speaks while, from left, National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Donald Trump, Joe Rogan and CEO of Americans for Ibogaine W. Bryan Hubbard listen in the Oval Office in April. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

FDA chief’s resignation widens a leadership gap at the nation’s health department

Dr. Marty Makary's Tuesday departure from his post atop the Food and Drug Administration leaves the agency with only an acting commissioner. Meanwhile, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also has an acting director. And there's no Senate-confirmed surgeon general a year and a half into President Donald Trump's second term. Read more.

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TOP STORIES

Prosecutors to retry Alex Murdaugh in deaths of wife and son after high court overturned convictions 

Prosecutors said they plan to retry disgraced lawyer Alex Murdaugh on murder charges in the shooting deaths of his wife and younger son after the state Supreme Court on Wednesday overturned his conviction and life sentence. State Attorney General Alan Wilson said his office respected the court’s decision, but no one is above the law. Read more.

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  • Missouri man charged after bomb-making tutorials were allegedly used in New Orleans attack
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Foreign ticket holders from World Cup qualifying countries won’t have to pay bonds to enter US

The Trump administration is suspending a requirement that foreign visitors from countries that have qualified for the World Cup and have bought tickets for the soccer tournament pay as much as $15,000 in bonds to enter the United States, the State Department said Wednesday. The department imposed the bond requirement last year for countries that it said had high rates of people overstaying their visas and other security issues as part of the Republican administration’s broader crackdown on immigration. Read more.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

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  • At 42, Qatar forward Sebastián Soria could become oldest outfield player at a World Cup
 

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