captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> woodruff: good evening. i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight: scott pruitt is out. the environmental protection chief resigns after a cascade of allegations about his ethical conduct. euen, as the u.s. government says it plans tote families, meeting the imposed court deadline, lawsuits over the mistreatment of children in custody. and, "behind rebel lines," in yemen. just who are the rebels, and whe are embers of congress so concerned about the war? >> in fact, this war i unauthorized, and it is in fact unconstitutional. >> woodruff: all that and more,t on tonig's pbs newshour.

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ty. at carnegie.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions: and individuals. >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs stion from viewers like yo thank you. >> woodruff: scott pruitt, the controversial and embattled head of the u.s. environmental protection agency, is out. president trump announced his resignation this afternoon. ruitts departing letter, said he was leaving because of penrelenting attacks on me onally, my family" that "are unprecedented and have taken a sizable toll on all of us." he also praised mr. trump for

the agenda they had jointly pursued to "get results for the american people, both with improved environmental outcomess ell as historical regulatory reform, at an unprecedented pace." as william brangham explains, pruitt's agenda was the source of deep debate, but increasingly, so was his personal conduct in the office. >> brangham: for months, scott pruitt survived one scandal after another. he brushed off calls from members of both parties for his firing. but just a month ago, the president still said he backed his e.p.a. chief. >> scott pruitt is doing a great job within the walls of the e.p.a. i mean, wetting records. outside, he's being attacked m ry viciously by the press. and t saying that he's blameless, but we'll see what happens. rs brangham: that was before the lust recent contros emerged, which incded allegations that pruitd an aide to find a high-paying job for his wife. pruitt was under at le

dozen federal investigations-- by the e.p.a.'s inspector general, by congree , and the whuse-- over questions of extravagant spending, security t actices and potential conflicts of interd abuse of power. one probe is looking into how pruitt secured a $50-per-night deal on a bedroom in a capitol hill condo co-owned by the wife of an energy industry lobbyist. he drew scrutiny for luxury travel during his first year in office, with trips totaling over $100,000, including many first- class flights. uitt also was criticized for giving some of his aides unauthorized pay raises, which pruitt initially denied. >> i found out this yesterday and i corrected the action, and we are in the process of finng out how it took place and correcting it. >> brangham: when some staff at the e.p.a. questioned his practices, pruitt allegedly retaliating against them with demotions and reassignments. in congressional testimony thist spring, prushed back against his critics. >> those who have attacked the e.p.a. and attacked me are doing so because they want to derail the president's agenda.

i'm not going to let that happen. >> brangham: on the policy front, during his tenure as p.a. administrator, pruitt erearheaded the president's promised agenda ofulation of key industries like oil, gas and chemicals.ea in his firstin office, auitt reversed or started the process of undoileast 40 regulations, and was instrumental in urgito the presidenithdraw from the paris climate accord. according to the president, former coalobbyist, and current deputy administrator of the e.p.a. andrew wheeler will take over acting head of the agency on monday. for the pbs newshour, i'm william brangham., >> woodruff: nr more on pruitt's resignation and his impact, juliet eilperin of the "washington post" has been breaking several stories about the e.p.a. adminstrator and is lc the "post" newsroom. e back to the program, juliet. so there have been so many accusations about scott pruitt. do we know what finally made the

tfference? >>nk it was a combination of the fact two of his top aidec testified behised doors, two staffers before the house oversight and government reform committee, and really confirmed much of whnt "the washing post" and other outlets have been reporting in terms of . pruitt's approach in terms of spending, management decisions, so that was really instrumental. white house chief of staff john kelly had been pushg for months as well as other white house officials to try to get mr. trump to replace his e.p.a. administrator, and that coupled with the story just posted byme the "new york this afternoon detailing alterations to the calendar, expanding on something that other outlets had reported earlerier in th week, really contributed to his parture. >> woodruff: quickly remind us, paint a portrait of what he did as ep.a. administrator. >> in terms of policy or management? >> woodruff: in terms of management. >> so in terms of management

there's a whole slew of things mr. pruitt did. first, he reallspent lavishly the taxpayers funds on his own -- you know, his own purposes including consistently traveling first classying in high-end hotels, eating at fancy restaurand expanding his security detail to the extent that, again, that and, you know, retaining higher-end suvs for hior trantion, a whole slew of expenses related to his own operations. on top of that, h he entered into, for example, a controversial rental arrangement for the first six months of his ten your he wife of a lobbyist, herself a lobbyist o capitol hill where he only paid $50 a night on the nights he stayed there and that reallyue raisedions especially as over time it emerged that the husband of this lobbyist who was the chairman of the law firm williams and jensen had

repeatedly contacted the e.p.a. on official business, raising questions about conflict of interest. there were other expenses, edcluding the fact that mr. pruitt insta a $43,000 soundproof phone booth in hisof ce, and there were charges of retaliation against both career and polical aides who raised concerns about some of these decisions. so it really was a combination of all of these factors that ultimately put him in anon untenable posiith more than a dozen investigations on capitol hill, within e.p.a.'s inspector general's office and elsewhere. >> woodruff: but through all of that, until today, he e maintained the confide have the president. the president still said very favorable things about him in extending his resignation. why did the president stick with him for so long? >> the two men had a personal rapport, something mr. pruitt tultivated over time. you know, usually e.p.a. administrator is not one of the most influential cabinet members, but mr. pruitt was

quite skillful in terms of reng out to the president, carrying through with many of ine policy items he wanted, but also just spetime with him. he would eat frequently in the white house mess so that he could swing by the oval office periodically. he commiserated with ffpresident trump about sts who leaked and the problems in the media and the russia investigion and how that was unfair. so the fact is that the two, they actually hitit off when they first met and when mr. trump decided hshould be his e.p.a. administrator and, over time, that tieeepened, which is what really sustained him until today. >> woodruff: when all of said and done what work of his is long-lasting? what is his legacy? at portion of it may be up to be changed because it's being challenged? >> mr. pruitt as e.p.a. administrator set in motion af serieslicy rolebacks on everything including, you know, a slew of cmate policies

enacted by the obama administration, as well as other things having to do with ho -- you know, what happens with regulation of water bodies andot r air pollution and pesticides and you name it. all of these poicy proposals, some of which were quite rushed ing challenged in court by environmental groups and others, and the jury is really out on how that litigation is going to play out over time. so i think we won't know for several months, maybe even a year or so, in terms of what is the actual policy impact that scott pruitt will have exercised as e.p.a. administrator. >> woodruff: and the mo has been named as his acting -- the next acting administrator pretty much follows along the same line of views >> absolutely. he emplaces all the same priorities in terms of the regulatory rollbacks. andrew wheeler is a former e.p.a.mployee as well as a top aide for senator james enhoff of oklahoma and a former lobbyist

for coal compans and other firms, and, so, there's no question he's equally committed to the policy agenda that scott pruitt and president trump have pursued, and he's quite skilled in terms of being a policy exnrt, so there's no quest that e.p.a. will continue on the same policy trajectory and hitow lays o over time is something that we'll be covering. woodruff: juliet eilperin doing excellent reporting for so many months now. juliet, thank you very much. >> thank you, judy. >> woodruff: in the day's other news, the trump administrationki says it is w to reunite families separated at the border, ahead of a court-ordered deadline. the department of health and human services says it now has fewer than 3,000 children in its custody, including 100 under the age of five. meanwhile, president trump repeated hisalls to send people who cross the border back without a trial.lo we will take ar look at the president's immigration

policies, right after the news summary. in california, a district judge rejected president trump's request to block two state law that protect undocumented immigrants, but pupart of a third sanctuary law on hold.e dge upheld one law that limits police communications with federal agents when an inmate is about to be ed. the other requires the state to inspect immigrant detention facilities. the judge blocked part of the law that says immigration officials must have a warrant t. enter premis president trump said he has narrowed down his short list of is supreme to be court nominee. speaking to reporters aboard air force one, he said, "of the four people, i have it down to three or two." he plans to ma his announcement monday night. mr. trump also voiced support for republicanongressman jim jordan. the lawmaker is accused of knowing about alleged sexual abuse at ohio state university, when he was the assistanth

wrestling cocades ago. jordan denies all charges. british investigators are searching for answers, after two people fell critically ill from exposure to the nerve agent novichok.ne it hapin amesbury, just miles from where a former russian spand his daughter were poisoned by the same substance in march. dan rivers of independent television news has our report. >> reporter: she looks just like any other shopper, browsing the wine on a summer's afternoon ahead of a friday night out with friends. dawn strugess looks relaxed and happy, and pays for it in the shop just a few hundred meters from the spot where a russian spy seregei skripal d his daughter were found overcome by a nerve agent. dawn sturgess is completelyat unaware oon, she too will be incapacitated by the very same chemical weapon. less than 24 hours later, she was being loaded into an ambulance in a critical condion, having been exposed

to a nerve agent. a few hours later, her boriend, charlie rowley, h also collapsed. both suffering from the same symptoms of disorientation, breathing difficulties and eventually a loss of conscisness. both charlie and dawn are now in a critical condition in salisbury hospital. today, even the police seem be dismayed that, once again, salisbury is at the center of a nerve agisoning. a put simply, it is unbelievable that here today to talk about another novichok nerve agent incident that has happened across our county. >> reporter: officials are stressing the risk to public health is minimal, but the home secretary was not pulling any punches in his message to the russian government today. >> it is completely unacceptable for our people to be either deliberate or accidental targets, or for our streets, our parks, our towns to be dumping grounds for poison. >> reporter: as the area around charlie rowley's flat continued

to be secured, the russian government issued a statement gsaying the u.k. should n involved in dirty political games.we e told the risk of further contamination is minimal, but there are still so many unanswered questions abbot how dawn and charlie ended up fighting for their lives. >> woodruff: that report from dan rivers, of iependent television news. in northern thailand, rescuers continued their efforts to free eee 12 boys and their soccer coach who have btrapped in a cave for almost two weeks. more thai navy seals arrived at the mouth of the cave to pump out water in hopes of clearing an escape route. if that fails, the team y have to stay in the cave until the water recedes-- as long as four months. more heavy rains are expected this weekend. in southwest syria, russian air strikes bolstered a government offensive against opposition forces. rebel negotiators agreed to resume stalled peace talks with russia to end the fighting.

as the bombings intensified, herian gund forces are massing nearorder with jordan. the campaign has forced more than 320,000 syrians from their homes. the united nations has appealed to jordan, to open its borders to those fleeing the violence. china says the trump administration is "opening fire" toward beijing, as the u.s. trepares to enact punishing new e barriers. tariffs on $34 billion worth of chinese imports are set to go into effect at midnight.ma a spokfor china's commerce department promised immediate countermeasures. >> ( translated s kind of trade bullying, by raising up the big stick of tariffs to blackmail others around the world, is against the trend of the times. b china will n in the face of threats and blackmail, nor will it waver in its determination of safing globalization and the multilateral trade system.hi

>> woodruff: says it plans to target american products like soybeans and whiskey. president trump has threatened additional duties on up to $450 billion worth of chese imports if beijing retaliates. the department of homelandty secuas extended temporary protected status for yemenis who sought safety in the u.s. after fleeing a brutal civil war. the 18-month extension applies to some 1,250 people who left yemen since 2015, but no new applicants will be accepted. special correspondent jane ferguson has our third and final report on the war in yemen, later in the program. former fox news executive bill shine has a new high-level job at the white house.he ill serve as the president's deputy chief of staff for communications.ed shine resirom fox news last year, after he was accused of mishandling sexual harassmenc dals at the network. the white house has been without a communications director since the departure of hope hicks in

march. in colorado, firefighters struggled to battle one of the largest wildfires in the state's history today. 200 miles south of denver, the largy uncontained fire has destroyed more than 100 homes and forced over 2,000 people to evacuate. at least 60 wildfires are roaring through the western u.s. amid tinder-dry conditions.et and on wall stoday, the dow jones industrial average gained 182 points to close at ,356. e nasdaq rose 83 points, and the s&p 500 gained 23. still to come on the newshour: f details on teral government's plan to reunite imigrant families. u.s. officials check in on north korea. are the country's nuclear assets expanding? "behind rebel lines." a rare look at thengilitants fighhe saudi-led and u.s.-backed coalition. and, much more.

>> woodruff: as we reported earlier, u.s. secretary of health and human services, alex azar, said today that the trump administration is working to comply with a federal court order to reunite immigrantes famiho've been separated at the border. on a press briefing call today, lisa djardins asked the secretary about the children still in the government's care,w and can repot we have learned. lisa, you were o dthe call. wh you learn? >> i think there were to headlines here, one the trump adnistration is saying it will comply with the latest court order saying chihaldren wh been separated must be reunited with parents within 30 days or 14 days if they're under five. the 14-daindeais next tuesday. h.h.s. says, in some cases, thel way they wo that, however, is to send children to parents who are in detention and detain them together.

the other thing we learned is, in some cases, h.h.s. is not sure about whether a child was separated from a parent or came on their own. that's a real breakdown in the process and a problem for reuniting the families. >> woodruff: lisa, separately from all that, there's a set of leocuments, legal filings from a number of states. they're suing the federal government. tell us about what you see there. >> right. this is an extraordinary trove of firsthand accounts from people who have experienced this policy. atrst, let's talk about th lawsuit. 17 states and the district of columbia have filed a lawsuit. they want a few things, a court to order the policy is uncotitutional and stop permanently, and that asylum seekers be processed and go through the border undetained. as the process wks out the state filed nearly 1,000 pages of documentation of people who have experienced this process oa have knowledut it, poring through those documents is the

firsthand accounts of things we have been trying to get our hands o long and we see many parents separated with ltle or no notice they would be separated. sometimes they were ta away to a hey, returned to filed their child had beetaken. >> woodruff: what are the families saying? >> first, we learned a lot about what these families in this legal documentation says how the physical situation was for them. first of all, 15 by 15 size cells with 30 to 50 adts, sometimes children in with them as well with one toilet for those people share, usually. usually, some privacy, however, it's in m,e same rond children and adults sharing the space. they're called iboxes. many people refer them as so cold they had to huddle together on cement floors. we also have grippg and frankly difficult to read personal testimonies. i want to point to one of them. this is from a mother whose 14-month-old child was separated from her and from the father. they were reunited after 85

days. she wrote, the child continued to cry when we go hme and would hold on to my leg and not let me go. when i tok off his clothes, he was full of dirt and lies. it seemed likeothey had n bathed him the 85 days he was away from us.on she weno say she thought her child being so young, he would nt have significant effects from the separation, but she's worried now actually is really feeling and has changed because of the separation. 8 woodrufdays without bathing. >> this is her accusation, and that's t important part. we asked all the government agencies involved to respond, and they sid thy aren't going to respond now to this ongoing litigation. h.h.s. secretary told me on the phone, he said, hey, be carefule you know, don't know if these are all h.h.s. facilities. we checked in this case, and the location that this mother named does sync up with the place where there had been an h.h.s.ch

shelter foldren. >> woodruff: lisa, amidst all this, troublif allegations psychological and verbal abuse. >> throughout this we see allegations of rcial slurs, guards calling some of these immigrants stupid, andm soe very particularly troubling accusations like this one from this mother, she wrote, one of the officers asked me in guatemala larks her home country do, they celebrate mother's day? when ier an yes, then he said, then happy mothers' day because th next sunday was mother's day. i lowered my head, she wrote, so my daughter would not see the tears forming in my eyes.cu that parrly act of cruelty astonished me. these are dozens of stories, all very difficult to read. we just pulled out a few. these are selected by the stryes. they areg to make a case that this is a bad system. this is just 1% of the ttal people who have been affected by this. many of the stories you may never hear a because the folks who have been deported. it's important to say these are

cases selected by those who oppose the system, but they are very gripping. lisa desjardins, thank you. >> woodruff: u.s. and north korean officials will soon be talking again at the highest levels, following last month's historic meeting between president trump and north koream leaderong-un. john yang has the story. ft yang: judy, secretary of state mike pompeo washington early this morning for an asian trip that is to include a day and a half in north korea. he hopes to begin to flesh out details of kim jong-un's broad summit commitment to "work toward denuclearization of the korean peninsula." but, recent reports cast doubt on north korea's intentions. analys of satellite photos of the country's nuclear and missile facilities have led some toonclude that they areui cont to improve their capabilities, and, according to reports, the u.s. intelligence

community has concluded that north korea is concealing some of its nlear program and that the country has no intention of giving up its nuclear weapons. joel wit was on the team that negotiated a nuclear agreement with north korea during the clinton administration. he's the founder and publisher of the website 38 north, which cuses on north korea. thanks for joining us, joel wit. some groups like the middlebury institute of international studies look at thellite images of construction going on at thec nulear research facility at i don'atand they conclude noa has no intentiu of giving p its weapons and capabilities. when you look at the satellite photos, what d do do you conclu? >> i conclude that north kea, like another country, is continuing to improve its weapons capabilities until they have a detailed agreement with

the united states on denuclearization. i think it's wrong to expect them to stop doing that before they have that kind of agreement, and their bavior is like any other country -- the united states, the siet union -- we all continue to build while we weree ngotiating. >> conceivably, the building cability you're willing to negotiate away. >> that's exactly it. what we're doing or what we did during the coldar, what north korea is doing now is building up leverage and, secondly, negotiations may fai , th korea doesn't want to be caught short if the negotiations fail and it stopped doing all its weapons programs. >> in these negotiations, though, could one side ask the other to stop, to halt, to sort of freeze operations as a confidence blding measure? >> well, they could, and, in fact, as you know, the north koreans have stopped

testing their missiles and stopped testing nuclear weapons, so they have done that unilaterally. >> what are the limitations of this analysis of satellite imagery as opposed to hugeen intell on the ground? >> well, you know, all of these means of intelligencanalysis have shortcomings, so if i was in the u.s. government, would have a variety of sources ofn. informat i would put them all together to come up with a conclusion.le the prwith the satellite imagery we use is we don't get it every day and somemes we don't even get it for long priorities. so wehave to surmise from snapshots what's going on. >> there's also been a difference in voices from the administration about the timetable for all of this. within tst week, we heard slightly different versions from e national security advisor john bolton and from the president himself at a rally in north dakota. let's talk a listen and ta about it on the other side. >> with north korean

cooperation, with ful disclosure of all their chemical and biological, nuclear programs, ballistic missis, physically, we would be able to dispant mantel the overwhelming bulk of their programs within a year. >> so we have things cooking now. you're going to be so happy. sbut when people ruh it, it's like rushing the turkey out of the stove, it's not going to be od go the longer we take, the better. >> how do you reconcile thoseng two thi >> well, you know, this isn't capitulation, it'segotiation, and john bolton, i think, would like capitulation and, in that sense, it would take a year. >> capitulating from the north koreans. >> the north koreans would capitulate. ey would tell us about everything they've gotten and built and we would disable and dismantle it. the president is being more realistic here, there's going to be a negotiati and there's got to be give and cake between the two sides, it's going to take time and that's all something we

need to understand. >> and john bolton also mentioned chemical and biological weapons in addition to nuclear weapons. is that expanding the field a little bit here? >> it's definitely expanding the field. the agreement reads that the summit doesn't include all of thosdifferent types of weapons, so he's looking for everything, and he wants to do it all in one year. so that's not possible. >> and with mike pompeoow n, in your judgment, what are the chances the broad commitment o singapore translates into an evein sven chiewl dinuclearized korean peninsula? >> it may translate into that, but it's not going to translate into that as a result of one trip for two days to. pyongya this is going to be a process. it's going to take time togo ate an agreement. you need negotiators, but you also need the secretary of state and the president to be activeln

lved throughout the process. >> joel wit, founder and co-editor of "38orth," thank you very much. >> thank you. f: >> woodrhis week, we brought you a rare, disturbing, n d important look at the desperate situathind rebel lines in yemen. but just who are those houthi "rebs," and how closely aligned are they to iran? it is that question that has driven american involvement in the war, supporting a saudi-led coalition fighting the rebels. special correspondent jane ferguson smuggled herself across the frontlines in yeme and here, in the third and final report of the series, we look at these important questions behind the world's worst humanitarian disaster. ( chanting )

>> reporter: in the streets of yemen's capital, sana'a, chants of "death to america" are loud d clear. the anger here is runs deep. ( chanting ) these rebels, known as houthis, seized control of sana'a city and much of the north of the country in 2014. they are of yemeni's zaydi sect closest to shiite islam. their growing power caused alarm across the border in sunni saudi arabia, so the saudis formed a coalition of arab countries to defeat them, a coalition backed by the united states. overhe last three years, a campaign of intensive air strikes and a ground war has brought the country to its knees, but hasn't pushed the houthis back. america's help with that campaign has driven bitter resentment here. >> ( translated ): the weapons, they come from the united states. mr. obama or the other preside w said, okay, l help saudi arabia for the war in sanaa. and the new one, trump, he said,

we will support our friend. d whs it mean? he is supporting them to kill us. >> reporter: the u.s. sells the saudis and their coalitine pa billions of dollars worth of bombs and provides intelligence and logistical support. saudi jets are refueled mid-air by american planes between bombing missions. the saudis, and the united states puppets for tehran, a proxy form of iranian military power right on their doorstep. the houthi supporters fervently deny this. the saudis and the americans say, iran is here. this true? >> it's not true. where is iran? he is yemeni, he is yemeni. l of us yemeni. where is iran? iran is a country. let them to go to iran and stara fight with here, yemen. >> reporter: politically, the houthi's most closely alignedfl

t with iran's proxy force in lebanon, hezbollah, and share an intense hatred for israel.e oup denies any formal partnership. since taking control of the capital sana'a, their extrist slogan can been seen everywhere, including here on the ancient walls of the old city: "god is great, death to america, death to israel, curse the jews." hatred of saudi arabia also bonds the houthis to ilan. mie houthirly fire long- range ballistic iles across saudi arabia's southern border and towards the saudi capital. the saudis say those are provided by iran and have imposed a tight blockade on all sea and air surrounding houthi- controlled areas to prevent missiles from coming in. the houthis told the newshour they took the missiles from yemen's military arsenal when they captured sana'a. salim ghalis is a member of the houthis' political wing the >> ( ntranslated ): it's kn

the yemeni people and army have missiles from the past. anthe army and experts wer able to improve and upgrade these missiles, which is necessary. we are able to produce all sorts of arms so they can upgrade the old weons to have longer ranges. >> reporter: beyond the politics, this war has created the world's worst humanitarian disaster. millions are on the brink of starvation, and the worst cholera outbreak in modern history rages on. after three years of war here, people are weary of the airth strikes anblockade, but they also tell us, they believe , erica could end it. in sana'a's markople are hopeful for an end to the crisis soon. >> ( translated ): since america haethe biggest position in u.n., it should have pushed for political and economic resolutions to the conflict. now the people are almos dead. poverty, hunger, disease, death, injuri, the war planes hitting us.>> eporter: meanwhile in

washington, efforts by some to end the u.s.'s support for the saudis continue. isan group of senators, including vermont independent bernie sanders, failed tonget a resoluassed in march, which aimed to limit the whiteor house's auy to get involved in this war. >> we think that, in fact, this war is an authorized, and it isn fact unconstitutional. article 1, section 8 othe constitution is pretty clear. it's thenited states congress that declares war. the president cannot do what he wants unilaterally. e president does not have the authority. >> reporter: president trump enjoys warm relations he saudis, especially the country's powerful crown prince mohammed bin salman. the white house is currently pushing for further arms sales of precision guided missiles to the kingdom. some fellow republicans arguee udis deserve america's support in this war. idaho republican james risch sits on the senate foreign

relations committee. >> the iranians are in there and they are causing the iculties that's there. if the iranians would back off, i have no doubt that the saudis will bk off, but the saudis have the absolute right to defend themselves. >> reporter: to others, it's not america's job to defend a nation that doesn't reflect its values? i don't know that i've ever participated in a vote which says that the united states must be an ally to saudi's militaristic ambitions. and this is a despotic regime dwhich treats women as th class citizens. there were no elections there.r they have thn goals and their own ambitions. ab reporter: american support for saudi is a major propaganda tool for the houthis, who frame their war here as a form of jihad against the s., a religious battle. but it's a battle that neither side is winning, regardless of who america helps. instead, t conflict is defined most clearly by those who are losing-- the civilians,

ruggling to live with its consequences. for the pbs newshour, i'm jane ferguson in sana'a, yemen. >> woodruff: now, the rising cost of visiting an emergency room.st health care remain a big issue for many americans, and e.r. priceare one part of the problem. in fact, a new analysis found the cost of going to an e.r. has nearly doubled in the last eight years. william brangham looks at ain special repoproject that's chronicling the impact of e.r. prices on individuals andmi es. e stories surrounding some of these e.r. bills are stung. a man in texas with a broken jaw ends up in an e.r., stuck with a nearly $8,000 bill even though they're reer in his insurance

network. parents took a daughter in with a cut on her toe, in and out three hours later, treated with ant botic ointment, $900. or a $629 bill for a band-aid for a baby girl in connecticut. these are some of the 1300 anecdotes vox is collecting, part of a big reporting project blocking at the 140 million e.r visits americans make each year and why they cost so much money. sarah cliff is the journalist behind the project and joins me now. welcome back to the "newshour". >> thanks for having me. you collect 1300 so fare ma nor, e.r. bills from people all over the wasn't and you're trying to discern a pattern in all these bills. what, broadly speaking, have you found thus f? >> i would say there are three big findings from this repprortg ect. the first is basically every emergency room visit has something called acility fee, the price of walking through the door, seeking care. most people don't know about this. i didn't know about this until i

started this reporting project.k w the facility fees are really high. they're usual through majority of the be ll in thcases you were mentioning, and we also know they vary a lot one hospital across the seet from another hospital, may have facility fees that look nothing like each other but it's hard to find information about that. you don't usually know what the facility fee is bfore you receive the bill. >> you can't call ahead and ask. no, these are pritely negotiated between hospitals and insurance companies. so it's a difficult market to be a patient in t actually know how much you're going to pay when you do go tm the eergency room. >> that's one to have the big findings. what were some of the others? w ve seen a lot of issues with out of network building in network emergency rooms. one of our stories looked at this man in texas whak wes up after being unconscious, left in a texas -- >> this is the broken jaw storyw e broken he wakes up with a broken gorks googles is my hospil i woke up in in network, he finds out it is and feels relieved.

then it turns out the surgeon who do his ja surgery is not in network and he receives an $8,000 bill and turns out this is pretty common, especially in texas, to have out of netrk providers workings at in-network emergency rooms and, again, it' really difficult for patients to find that information. you might think you're safe lik this patient did and get a bill a few months later which shows you really weren't safe. >> have these costs been the same all along and we're just now paying attention to it or are they changing over time? >> they ve been going up much faster than general inflation and the economy. one dee factor is the deductibles are rising quickly. most of us who havinsurance at work have a deductible above $1,000 and that means we see our healthcare costs, instead of the insurance kicking in everying, we're expecting to pay for more and we hear from more patients who are paying the facility fee who miffed their insurance cover it in the past. >> in one of the stories in theo series feature several

analysts who argue e.r.s are acting like monopolies. >> it means patients have often little choice when they go to the emergency room. a lieutenant of the cases i wrpee about are le who, you know, it's late at night, the weekend, the holiday, everything else is closed and the emergency room is theiren only option, so they're kind of held, you know, hostere a little bit to what prices the emergency room wants to charge for the care. they don't really n have another option. one of the cases you mentioned earlier about this little girl who got ointment on her toe and ended up with al$900 bill, that was a cae that happened on the weekend when the pediatrician was closed, urgenat care it wouldn't see a pediatric patiene so thr. becomes the only place you go. you can't shop at all whn there's just one option. >> with all the different types of costs, obviously knowing what your insurance does and doesn't cover and what your deductible me part of it, but are there

other things con can do to protect themselves from havingib this incr surprise when the bill shows up in the mail? >> i think askt ing a questions. can be pretty intimidating to be in these situations but asking what is theacility fee. >> sitting in the emergency room? >> if you're capable of it. there are people unous and dealing with severe medical situations, but if it is possible to ask the questions, i wofd say not to be araid to do so. reaching out to the hospital after you receive the bilto ask questions about, well, why was it coded this way, why am i having these fees to protest the bills? doing a lot in writing can be helpful so you actually have a record of those interactions. but i think one of the frustrating things i've seen for a lot of the patients i've cored, a lot of timeshere aren't good ways to protect yourself, it is very, very hard to put this on e so consumer as their reponsibility to be a good shopper in this case.

>> in your series, you quote peopo argue this is largely properties profit seeking ande this is why costs are going up. what are the hospitals arguing inerm? assume they say, no, we're not just trying to make monmore money for ourselves. >> what i hear most from hospital executives is it's expensive to run an emergency room. they have to be on 24-7 to be ready for stroke victims, gunshot victims, an they are required by federal law to see everybody and get everybody to stable condition. they can't have someone die at their dooeytep. rgue we have lots of unpaid bills. we have to keep the lights on and things running in cae of emergencies. i certainly do think there is truth to that argument that emergency rooms are expsive places to run, but the persons i've talkedo who have become skeptical is all of the fees are high. they're charging facility fee to come in the door, $8h fore ear drops, $8,000 for the oral surgery. nctors, are you know, it

that you pay this fee and that you're in, but that there's really high charges even after you pay the fee that's apposedly there to keep the emergency room upd running. >> sara cliff of vox, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> woodruff: online retail giant amazon, which was founded 24 years ago today, plans to announce its pick for a second headquarters later this year. the search for what has been dubbed "amazon hq2" launched an unprecedented bidding war between citiesscnd states. d ale of the project is massive: a propoght million square foot campus that would cost $5 billion and promise up to 50,000 new jobs. last fall, economics correspondent paul solman lo at the costs and the benefits of landing amazon hq2. a reprise of that story is part of our weekly series"making sen$e." >> alexa, where should amazon

locate hq2? >> frisco, texas. c >> reporter:ity officialsth across n america have come up with quirky, some might says desperate, wof getting the attention of amazon, the country's fourth largest company. birmingham, alabama boosters built giant delivery box around the city. southern arizona promoters sent the company a cactus. while other places touted traits they're not usually knowasfor. >> las vs well-positioned to be a catalyst for the most advanced smart city technology in america. >> reporter: dallas' pitch: livability. >> flavor, vibe, margaritas, culture, because it's great for kids, it's great for your homes. >> reporter: detroit's case: make a difference. >> move here, move the world. >> reporter: in january, amazonw na the list of cities and regions in contention to host its second headquarters from 238 to 20. the company focused on finding assets, like the tech lent that drew it to seattle.

so, no surprise that was part of wil reynolds' pitch: >> great university system with a great group of millennials p it's a growiulation here, great arts and culture, affordable. >> reporter: reynolds founded an internet marketing firm here in 2002. not much tech where he was back then. >> today, people have tons of options if they want to work in tech industry, and that's just been in the last 10 years. >> reporter: reynolds is pushing one of the 20 finalists: philadelphia, which has even branded north 3rd street, where reynolds founded his company," nerd street." >> i think the biggest thing that philly has over most other cities is our diversity. it's really big right now for silicon valley and tech start- ups to be focusing more on what they're doing in the community and how they're key to becoming lare diverse. >> reporter: but plphia already is. and that's a huge plus, says reynolds. >> amazon sells stuff to all ands of people, so you got blacks, whites, ri poor. >> reporter: a diverse customer

base is best served, according to reynolds, by a diverse workforce. but wait! amazon has also made it clear it wants downtown real estate, easy access to public transportationy r prayers are answered," says the city's professional booster. >> we are on market street, market west, 30th street station. right here it's the third- busiest rail station in the amtrak system. it's adjacent to bus ternal, trolley stop, and just behind us is university city. ct reporter: as head of se greater philadelphia, it's matt cabrey's job to hawk the city of brotherly love, which is why he's pushing the 14-acre skookill yards, supposedly primed for amazon. >> everything from the size of population to the transportation infrastructure, and the ss transit, this particular with fits perfectly. ec>> reporter: so "pefor amazon," he alleges, and of course, not too bad for t iladelphia. is this the biggch project ever? >> we have not been able to find

another project that comes near it. ns reporter: site selection consultant jay bigwhose own company is based in new jersey, says the economic tonefits amazon would brin philadelphia are ginormous. >> you have $5 billion in payroll that drops into your market now that wasn't there before. you're creating contctor opportunities, the coffee shop and the hair salon, and millions of others that are all generating more activity to themselves. they're all spending more because they're making more. >> reporter: but in any transaction, there are also the sts. forever bidding against each other for new business, cities and states dangle not just prime real estate, but money, mainly me the form of tax breaks. case in point: fnew jersey governor chris christie's newark bid: >> all of the economic incentives put together from the city and the state would realize $7 billion in potential credits against amazon state and city taxes. >> reporter: so what's the cost/benefit bottom line? >> these tax incentives are notd

or taxpayers. >> reporter: brookings scholar amy lew studies regionalev economicopment. >> the bulk of job creation in a ate and city, comes not from business attraction deals-- they only make up 3% of all the jobse crin a community. real job creation comes from enepreneurship, start-ups, helping scale new firms and c helping existipanies grow. >> reporter: lew argues that investments in affordable housing, infrastructure, andn educatuld do a local economy more good than tax lures. >> it creates a perverse incentive of doing the wrong thing. >> there's really nothing at alo perverse that. we revere competition in all other aspects of american economic life. in fact, we insist on it as a matter of law. the only way to really think about incentives in this context is that it's a prici tool. >> reporter: so how much are up to 50,000 jobs worth? philly's tax bid: a reported $3 billion.

and it offers less obvious enticements as well. >> one of the things tt's often under-recognized is, it's not just the city where it's located, it's where the c.e.o. or c-suite want to live. >> reporter: well, jeff bezos has a connection to washington t d.c., ow "washington post," has a house down there as well. >> he does, and he's a princeton grad and he has family connections in greater philadelphia region, so those kinds of factors might be partt of thacision making. >> reporter: but wiltseynolds adhere will be drawbacks if his city wins. >> i'm going to have more competitio >> reporter: they are going to compete for talent? >> absolutely.ep >>ter: and they're going to drive up prices of houses like yours. >> absolutely. if you look at the capitol hill neighborhood of seattle, where one of my really good friends lives, he n barely afford to live there now. so there's definitelme negatives spillover. but i think the ghsitives outwhe negatives so much in terms of what it would do for this city, for the kids of our

city, i'm willing take the fact that my job is going to get a little bit harder for what's good for the whole city, and to me, it's the whole city.er >> i do think s a silver lining in this bid for amazon hq2, and that is that amazon essentially has ven every single city a playbook on what s matters vive and prosper in this digital economy. >> reporter: to survive and osper with or without seducing the biggest prospective catch in corporate history. this is economics correspondent paul solman reporting from ever- loving philadelphia. >> woodruff: finally, another installment of our weekly "brief but spectacular" series. morgan dixon and vanessa garrison are the founders of the non-profit girltrek, a health movement whose mission iilto community and reduce the leading causes of preventable death among african american women.

>> black women are dying faster and at higheotrates than any r group in american from obesity-related diseases. we carry the trafra in our bones systemic racism, we carry the trauma in our bones fromr serving otople before we serve ourselves, and that has to stop now. so girltrek asks women toai re30 minutes a day to their own personal self-care and to be a freedom fighter for themselves and the communities. >> that. ( laughs ) >> i am grateful, like many black women in this co btry, to han raised by a village of black women. my grandmother and my aunts stepped in when my mother was not available, to care for me. and in thastepping in, they sacrificed so much. and i lost my grandmother at 66 years old to a heart attack. i've lost two aunts before the age of 60. the crisis is taking the women from my family at an age thater just feelsunfair to me. >> girltrek is the largest

health organization in thebl country fok women. we are reclaiming the streets of black neighborhoods, one woman at a time. our goal is to rally 1,000,000 black women to walk to save their lives. >> 80% of black women are over a healthy body weight, 53% are obese, more than two-thirds of black women get little to no leisure time, physical activity, and the most heartbreaking of all, one in two black girls bor in 2000 ojected to get diabetes unless levels of activity or diet changes. >> you know there's a hashtag, trust black women, and i would encourage you to do that, because black women from alabama who climbed the flagpole, all the way back to anita hill, havi been like ch the way forward for social change. for the record, black wothn love the wa look, and black women are extraordinarily beautifu and we come in all shapes and sizes. but black women are oftentimes hiding from a lot of the things that they havexperienced, and

our bodies have experienced a lot of trauma, and we do not have a lot of extra n our lives to exercise. it's not a woman's individual decision to wake up every day and say, "i don't want to exercise." it's actually, i'm working two jobs to put food on the table, i'm being a loving mother, i want to give love to my spouse, and then in all of that, where do i then find the time to prioritize myself? so girltrek, for those women, is instructional. every single day, we give women, first the permission, second the language, and third theti prl instructions: how do you carve out time for yourself every day? how do youommunicate to your friends and your family that you should be a priority? what do you do when you have the 30 minutes for you, for yourself?ou how donit all of those things together so that it benefits you, your family, and your community? >> my name is vanessa garrison. >> and i'm morgan dixon. >> and this is our "brief but speccular" take... >> ...on mobilizing black women to save their own lives.

>> woodruff: and that is the newshour for tonight. we thank you, and we'll see you soon. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> knowlge, it's where innovation begins. it's what leads us to discovery and motivates us to succeed. it's why we ask the tough questions, and what leads us to the answers. at leidos, we're standing behind those working to improve the world's health, safety, and efficiency. leidos. >> kevin. >> kevin! >> kevin. >> advice for life. onfe well-planned. learn more at raymdjames.com. >> babbel.

a language app that teachese real-lnversations in a new language, like spanish, french, german, italian, and more. babbel's ten to 15 minute lessons are available as an app, or online. more information on babbel.com.u >> cr cellular. >> and with the ongoing supporte of institutions >> this program was made possible bthe corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank yo captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org >> you're wat eduardo: tonight on history detectes:

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