In June, global temperatures had surpassed 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels for 12 months straight, encroaching on the goal set in the Paris climate accord. We’ll explain why scientists use 1.5 degrees as a key benchmark and why it’s important to have hard conversations about climate change. Then, we’ll get into an investigation revealing how insurers profited from false diagnoses of Medicare patients. And, a billion-dollar donation to a medical school and new developments in textile recycling make us smile.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “In a troubling milestone, Earth surpasses 1.5 degrees C of warming for 12 consecutive months” from LA Times
• “June 2024 marks 12th month of global temperature reaching 1.5°C above pre-industrial” from Copernicus
• “Burning Questions: What’s the deal with 1.5 degrees?” from Marketplace
• “‘We’re Not Dead Yet.’ Baby Boomers’ Good Times Drive the Economy.” from The Wall Street Journal
• “Insurers Pocketed $50 Billion From Medicare for Diseases No Doctor Treated” from The Wall Street Journal
• “How the Journal Analyzed Medicare Advantage Data” from The Wall Street Journal
• “Why scientists think they may finally have found a way to recycle clothes” from The Washington Post
• “Johns Hopkins to offer free medical school tuition from $1 billion Bloomberg Philanthropies grant” from The Baltimore Banner
• “$1 Billion Donation Will Provide Free Tuition at a Bronx Medical School” from The New York Times

We love to hear from you. Send your questions and comments to [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.