nd a huge difference. prevagen. at stores everywhere without a prescription. there are new questions this morning about what caused about azerijan airlines flight to crash in kazakhstan.emlin warns against that kind of

speculation. as the president-elect prepar to enact mass deportations, nbc news sits down with the incoming border czar, what he says about the plans and the possibility of renewed family detention. twisters touch down in texas. the weather threat continuing into today. meteorologist denise isaac is here tracking it all. we're going inside the battle some cancer patients are facing when their insurance denies life-saving treatment recommended by their own doctors. and, how one florida rescue center is trying to save the state's precious coral reefs. good morning, and thanks for joining us. i'm jessica layton. there are growing questions about that christmas day crash that killed nearly 30 people. there is a possibility this tragedwas no accident. russian authorities say the plane was likely struck by

birds, but, a u.s. official says it may have been hit by a russia be defense system. here's nbc's daniel hamamdjian. >> reporter: the airlines aircraft that crashed in kazakhstan killing 38 people might have been caught in the moment that russia was launching its air defenses to shoot down a ukrainian drone. this has been the subject of much speculation but is now being supported by industry experts. nbc news spoke to the chief intelligence officer of the aviation security firm os prey. and he says the firm reviewed the footage of the wreckage, which appears to show holes and damage-potentially caused by shrapnel. they also looked at the footage filmed by passengers while the plane was still in the air. they examined the airspace at the time of the event, and they also listened to the testimonies of some of the survivors who said that there was a loud

explosion and that they saw shrapnel pass through the fuselage in the cabin area. and it has led the firm to conclude that this wasn't the result of weather or bird strike as had been suggested by russian state media. but this was in fact caused by a russian military air defense system. now the question was put to the kremlin, and its spokesperson says they should wait for the results of the investigation, and i quote dmitry peskov here. he says it would be incorrect to make any hypothesis before the investigation is complete. nbc news, london. let's turn now to the latest on the incoming trump administration. the man chosen to be the new border czar spoke with nbc news. tom homan explains to sam brock that there could be a battle coming between the federal government and local authorities over the planned mass deportation of undocumented immigrants. >> reporter: the impending clash between the incoming administration and sanctuary cities looks closer to

combustion, after san diego's board of supervisors approved a measure requiring the feds obtain a judicial warrant for undocumented migrants already in their jails. >> bottom line is, i'm shocked what san diego did. bottom line, we're still coming to san diego and doing our job. look, it's more difficult, but we're still doing it. >> reporter: thomas homan is president-elect's border czar and the former director of i.c.e. you see san diego's recent actions as having no legal muster, and you're going to move right through that? >> i think san diego's legal action will be in litigation. >> reporter: it's the latest salvo in a showdown over immigration policy that also affects cities like san francisco, chicago and new york. >> it's unfathomable to hear the incoming administration wants to devastate over 20 million american families in this country who live in hispanic households. >> reporter: president of the new york immigration coalition is also concerned that trump's controversial family detention

policy may be back on the table. >> they need to understand, we say detention, but it's not in a jail setting. it's actually an open-air campus, family, a family-type facility that is open air. we're not talking about razor wire and a penal institution, things like that, to have childcare, education programs. >> there is no such thing as a soft detention site. there is no humane way of detaining children in prison. that's what it ends up being. >> reporter: president-elect trump has promised deportation on a mass scale, starting as soon as he steps into office, as concerns over family separations remain high. do you worry that you will actually be separating children from their parents and punishing children for the actions of their parents? >> we have no plan to separate children from parents. the parents will have to make a decision. that's parenting 101. if you choose to have a child here in the united states while you know you're here illegally,

and you know you're on a court order to deport, that's on you. >> reporter: a 2023 consent decree between the biden department of justice and aclu banned family separations for eight years. do you believe the decree needs to be re-examined? >> i think, yeah. we need to re-examine that and see if it makes sense from a national security perspective. >> reporter: homan also says that a decades-old agreement that prevents the detention of children for more than 20 days needs to be looked at again and potentially relitigated. sam brock, nbc news, new york. marianne williamson has launched a campaign to lead the democratic national committee. she wants to replace jamie harrison. williamson says she's been talking to democratic voters, and too many of them don't feel supported by the party. she is the first woman to jump into the race. there is already a wide field of candidates, including former maryland governor martin o'malley. new this morning, a judge

has ruled jay z's accuser can remain anonymous for now. court documents show the judge said that while the alabama woman can keep her identity hidden in the early stages of the case, she may have to reveal herself at a later date. the judge citing the woman's alleged mental health struggles and the nature of her allegations as some of the reasons for the decision. earlier this month an attorney for jay z whose real name is shawn carter, asked a judge to deny the request to remain anonymous and asked to have the case dismissed completely, a request the judge also denied. now the woman has accused both carter and rap mogul sean "diddy" combs of raping her in 2000 when she was just 13 years old. both men have denied the claims. carter called the allegations heinous and idiotic, while lawyers for combs called suits against him shameless publicity stunts designed to extract payments from celebrities. now to the severe storms hitting texas several tornados

were reported in the state. some caught on camera. wharton county officials say there are no reports of injuries or major damage yet. but this all comes as heavy rain and widespread flooding created a post-christmas challenge on the ground and in the skies. in the dallas-ft. worth area, hundreds of flights were delayed or canceled as many returned from the holidays. for more on this, let's go to meteorologist denise isaac. good morning to you. we need to know, are those southern storms still a threat today? >> good morning, jessica. well, the storm's not as intense as yesterday because we had a few tornados spawn near lake charles and houston. but they'll continue their trek east as they are expected to impact areas of alabama and mississippi later on this afternoon. we also have dense fog advisory across the midwest. 27 million people affected with low visibility from fargo down towards wichita falls, where wichita falls is reporting quarter of a mile visibility.

half a mile in des moines and a quarter of a milin green bay. make sure to use your low beams and driver carefully. on this busiest travel day, december 27th. we'll be dealing with widespread showers from wisconsin to the panhandle of florida. still cold and dry around the northeast, while the pacific northwest, we do have travel impact today once again with more rain and snow falling across the the southeast, orlan 79 degrees, tampa 80, while storms are possible this morning around new orleans, with highs in the upper 70s. well, that was a look at what we can expect across the nation today, jessica, back to you. >> denise, thanks so much.

new york is preparing for new year's eve with a special ball revamp. it have new crystal triangles installed just in time for the celebration. the ball weighs nearly 12,000 pounds. an installation ceremony will take place this morning with rapper pitbull. another stowaway incident on delta airlines. but first, why some cancer patients are fighting their insurance. hank used to suffer from what felt like

a cold & flu medicine hangover in the morning. ha ha. haha! then he switched to mucinex nightshift. mucinex is uniquely formulated to leave your system faster, so you wake up ready to go. uhh, hank! try mucinex nightshift and feel the difference. (♪♪) skincare can start in the laundry room. that's why i always recommend all free clear for sensitive skin. it's free of dyes and perfumes. it's a key part of my self-care routine. and is gentle for my skin, and her's too. for an effective clean that's gentle on skin, all you need is all free clear. we're back now with the battle against insurance companies and the difficulty situations cancer patients are finding themselves in even with a doctor's note. here's stephanie gosk. >> reporter: kay sue has been battling cancer for nearly a decade. one of the hardest moments was

in 2018. stage four metastatic. did it feel like a death sentence in that moment? >> absolutely, and it still does. it's almost like being on death row and just waiting. all of my off-label drugs. >> reporter: remarkably, she was able to battle the cancer back, but her oncologist said it could return again, and pet scans were key to detecting it. how often do you have to get the pet scans? >> should be four to five months. >> reporter: a schedule she followed until her private health insurance changed to cigna and the company wouldn't pay for the screening. >> they thought it was not medically necessary. >> reporter: does your oncologist think it's medically necessary? >> yes. >> reporter: so does dr. ashley sumrall from the american society of clinical oncology. >> pet scans are all part of accepted guidelines. that means multiple experts agree that a pet scan is appropriate. >> reporter: but cigna refused to pay for the scans, which can cost $10,000 to $15,000 each. sue's doctor appealed and was denied. with the delay in her screening,

sue worried the cancer would return. angela pike understands that struggle well. her husband tracey was diagnosed with stage four stomach cancer in 2023. >> he was so sick, he went from a 250-pound man to about 130 pounds. >> reporter: tracey's doctors in louisville ran out of strategies to help him. they said he needed a kind of chemotherapy that a cancer center in houston agreed to perform. >> it was about 10:00 or 11:00 at night before the surgery where we got a phone call from the surgeon himself that the insurance had actually denied the surgery. >> reporter: in the denial letter, blue cross blue shield of illinois said the surgery was experimental. but here's what the american society of clinical oncology said. >> it is no longer considered experimental. it has crossed the threshold into widely-available treatment. >> reporter: but not for the pike family, whose surgeon appealed, only to be denied. at one point, the mother of three took to tiktok with her

guitar. hoping someone might be able to help them. >> the surgery was only $42,000. they put a price tag on my husband's life, and they decided he wasn't worth 42 grand. >> reporter: how desperate did you feel in those moments? >> it doesn't get more desperate than opening up your guitar case and standing in front of a hospital in 100 degree weather in houston. >> reporter: he never got the treatment. instead, his cancer spread, and roughly a year after his diagnosis, tracy pike died at the age of 46. are you left wondering what would have happened if he had gotten that procedure? >> definitely there are a the love days where i've thought about that. >> reporter: in a 2022 survey, clinical oncology professionals were asked about the effect health insurance authorization had on patient care. 87% said they resulted in denials of therapy. 80% said they resulted in disease progression. 36% said they resulted in

patient deaths. blue cross and blue shield of illinois, pike's insurance company, declined to comment on her husband's case, adding we are committed to adding increasing access to safe, appropriate healthcare based on the best available information and research. cigna tells nbc news, we strife to do our best that each person gets the appropriate care as quickly and easily as possible. we fell short for ms. sue. cigna contacted sue after nbc news reached out to the company for comment on the story. sue did ultimately get the pet scan this fall, but only after her employer paid for it out of pocket. your health is in the hands of an insurance company. do you feel like they care about your well-being? >> no. i don't think so. as a result of mfighting for that pet scan, i found out that have metastasis to my liver. >> reporter: the screening that has been delayed confirmed her worst fears. her cancer has returned. stephanie gosk, nbc news, new

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thursday's game between toledo and pittsburgh couldn't be decided in regulation. it took six overtime periods. in the end, the rockets got the better of the panthers, scoring their last two-point conversion and keeping pitt out of the end zone to get the win. now to a quarterback who could get two championship rings in just one season. on thursday, teddy bridgewater announced he's coming out of retirement and signing with the detroit lions. the former first-round pick hung up his cleats last year to coach high school football. his jump back to the pros comes weeks after he head the high school to a state championship. he'll be backing up jared goff as the lions continue their quest for a super bowl. when we come back on "early today," delta airlines investigating another stawoway

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we're back on "early today" with what's making headlines this morn. another stowaway incident on a delta airlines flight. this time it was a person without a ticket who snuck onto a plane going from seattle to hawaii. that person was caught before takeoff and arrested, but not before causing a two-hour delay. tsa and delta are now investigating. systane eyedrops are under a recall that travels 25-count on the go single vials with a lot number 10-101. they were sold at publix stores. so far, no reports of any infections, but the fda is advising anyone who bought the drops to stop using them immediately. a very merry christmas for britney spears.

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have the latest. >> reporter: it's been two years since we got an up close look at the coral rescue center in orlando. since then. >> they've been doing extraordinarily well for us. >> reporter: the center's goal is to save coral from the florida reef track and help them reproduce. coral is a living organism that's crucial to our ocean's health. but rising water temperatures and disease are putting coral in jeopardy. in the two yea since i first visited, the rescue center has spawned 22 new coral babies. >> we're learning every day about how these corals reproduce. we're seeing this for the first time. we were the first institution to ever spawn these corals. >> reporter: scientists here say they can raise more coral babies, but the problem is the size. in one night, coral can spawn tens of thousands of larva, but there's no room to raise those babies. no room because the adult coral have been growing.

>> can you see the corals in this aquarium have probably doubled in this surface area. we've moved them to larger tiles. >> reporter: when we first saw the 2,000-square-foot facility, the rescue center housed 700 corals. now there are 850. >> we were able to take some of the surplus corals and moved them onto property to our guests that come into the park can see the coral. the importance of the corals, they can see that. >> reporr: these corals will eventually be returned to the ocean. the question is when. not only are they dealing with rapidly-spreading disease, but last year, record warming destroyed coral. >> unfortunately, last year's event was astronomically a lot warmer than previous limit unfortunately, the corals that had survived previous events, a lot of them have succumbed to

this amount of heat. >> reporter: that's why having a coral nursery like this is more important than ever, as they can successfully spawn a variety of coral that can thrive in the harsh ocean environment. >> the name of the game is genes. and we need to have animals that have genes that make them resistant to these different pressures such as really, really warm water or disease. >> our thanks to cam tran for that report. and of course our thanks to you for getting up and watching "early today." i'm jessica layton. we hope you have a great weekend.

five. another round of wet weather is soaking the bay area this morning. the storm also bringing dangerous conditions along the coast. meteorologist kari hall is tracking the rain and the high surf advisory that is once again in effect. plus a major court reversal. the new