Neighbors tell CBS News Miami about the intensity of the tornado

By Wednesday, homeowners were assessing the damage left behind—downed fences, fallen trees, and scattered debris across several properties.

Many residents told CBS News Miami the storm felt far more intense than typical South Florida weather.

"It felt like a hurricane," neighbors said, adding that the confirmation of a tornado helped explain what they experienced.

Bobby Suarez captured the moment on surveillance video, where his family can be heard reacting in panic as strong winds tore through the area.

"Oh my God… all of our furniture is flying!" voices shouted in the footage.

Suarez said heavy outdoor items—including umbrellas and patio chairs—were pushed across his yard.

"It looked like we were on the ocean, with white caps on top," he said. "People's debris were flying into the lake."

The National Weather Service assessed the area and determined that an 85 mph tornado did touch down

The NWS sent a storm survey team to the Palm Springs North community near Miami Lakes on Wednesday morning to tour the damage left behind and later determined that a tornado did indeed touch down.

According to the NWS, the EF-0 tornado had winds estimated to be about 85 mph when it touched down around 4:45 p.m. Tuesday afternoon northwest of Miami Lakes.

The tornado was on the ground for less than a minute and for just over about a half-mile, the NWS said.

Neighbors say when they saw the destruction, they knew it was a tornado 

Erick Delgado, another resident, said he immediately suspected a tornado when he returned home and saw the destruction.

"I found my fence on the floor and figured it was a tornado," Delgado said.

Delgado, who has lived in the neighborhood for more than 20 years, said some homes nearby suffered more significant damage, including roof losses and damaged vehicles.

In another case, a large tree fell onto a car parked outside Jose Gamba's parents' home.

"It's not actually that bad—it's fixable," Gamba said, remaining optimistic despite the damage.

He added that several trees on the property were knocked down, but the home itself was not seriously affected.

Gamba's father, Carlos Gamba, described the moment in Spanish, saying he noticed debris flying everywhere as the storm moved through.

"I saw things flying all over… fortunately nothing happened to the house," he said. "But I will miss my tree."

Some residents whose fences were destroyed said they are now considering rebuilding with stronger materials, such as concrete.

Despite the damage, most neighbors say they plan to stay, with only one resident indicating they may leave the area following the storm.

The tornado uprooted trees and caused damage to some homes and cars, but luckily no injuries were reported.

The city's police department posted on X that they responded to a reported bank robbery at TD Bank located at 1 N. State Road 7 at approximately 4:26 p.m. 

They said that preliminary information revealed that a black male suspect entered the bank, presented a note demanding money, and fled the scene after receiving cash. 

Plantation PD said they were able to locate the subject's car in the Fort Lauderdale area with assistance from the Broward Sheriff's Office and other agencies. 

This led to a police pursuit that ended in a crash at a barrier wall near NW 2nd Street and 31st Avenue. Chopper 4 was over the scene where the vehicle, a red Kia Soul, was driving erratically around Broward before the Lauderhill crash. 

The suspect, whom they identified as 56-year-old Tommy Duwayne Dennis, was taken into custody without further incident. He was taken to a local hospital for evaluation. 

Neighbors living in the area of NW 31st Avenue say the street is a haven for speeders, causing a safety concern under normal conditions 

"I live in constant fear here on this corner. The other day in that same spot, a car ended up spinning around five or six times. It went like this (makes hand gestures about the car going in circles), and it could've easily crashed in here," a neighbor spoke to CBS News Miami in Spanish. 

Plantation Police say that the FBI also responded to the scene to continue the investigation with their detectives. 

No other injuries have been reported. It is unclear what charges Dennis will face. 

The Royal Bahamas Police Force is not releasing his name, citing the organization's policy. The arrest comes as the search for Lynette Hooker continues near Elbow Cay in the Abaco Islands of the Bahamas, which the Royal Bahamian Defense Force said has turned into a search and recovery operation.

The U.S. Coast Guard has also launched a criminal investigation into the case, a U.S. official told CBS News on Wednesday. The Coast Guard is taking the lead on the investigative efforts in coordination with the U.S. Attorney's Office, according to the official.

The Coast Guard's Criminal Investigative Service handles crimes on U.S.-flagged vessels in international waters. The investigation remains in its early stages, the U.S. official said.

The Royal Bahamian Defense Force on Wednesday said the rescue effort for Hooker has turned into a recovery operation, though the local authority has not requested the U.S. Coast Guard for assistance.

Lynette Hooker's husband, Brian Hooker, reported that he and his wife, who are both U.S. nationals, set sail aboard an 8-foot hard-bottom dinghy from Elbow Cay on Saturday night, according to the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

Brian Hooker told police that his wife fell overboard with the keys to the boat, causing its engine to turn off. He said that strong currents carried her out to sea, and he lost sight of her, according to police. Brian Hooker paddled the dinghy to shore, arriving hours later at the Marsh Harbor Boat Yard at 4 a.m. Sunday morning, police said.

Lynette Hooker was wearing a black bathing suit at the time, officials said.

The criminal investigation into the incident comes as Lynette Hooker's daughter, Karli Aylesworth, seeks answers about what happened on the dinghy. 

In an interview with CBS News, Aylesworth described her mother as an experienced swimmer who has been sailing for more than 10 years. She said she wants authorities to thoroughly investigate the incident, saying she doesn't believe the sequence of events described by Brian Hooker.

"For one, I don't understand how she got the key," Aylesworth said. "Brian's always driving. So he basically is in charge of the key. So the fact that my mom had it doesn't make any sense."

Aylesworth told CBS News that Brian and Lynette Hooker had split up and gotten back together in recent years. Brian Hooker declined to answer questions about the investigation when approached by CBS News on Tuesday but has since addressed his wife's disappearance in a social media statement.

"I am heartbroken over the recent boat accident in unpredictable seas and high winds that caused my beloved Lynette to fall from our small dinghy near Elbow Cay in the Bahamas," he said Wednesday. "Despite desperate attempts to reach her, the winds and currents drove us further apart. We continue to search for her and that is my sole focus."

Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen planned to hold a news conference late Wednesday, answering reporters' questions about the flight, the first piloted trip around the moon in more than a half century.

The crew had planned to take another turn at manually piloting their Orion capsule, testing their ability, as pilots and non-pilots, to precisely maneuver the spacecraft. NASA is considering opening up commander and pilot positions to a wider range of astronauts.

But Wednesday's test, the second to involve all four crew members, was called off to give flight controllers time to troubleshoot an oxygen pressurization issue in the crew ship's service module that cropped up shortly after launch.

Otherwise, the ground team reviewed the re-entry timeline and Navy recovery crews headed to the splashdown site off the southern California coast near San Diego where the Orion capsule is expected to splash down at 8:07 p.m. EDT Friday. Favorable weather is expected with light winds and moderate seas.

Back at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, scientists continued poring over thousands of photographs captured by the astronauts as they passed over the far side of the moon Monday, along with video and recorded audio descriptions of various high-priority targets.

Nine three-man Apollo crews flew over the moon's far side between 1968 and 1972, but those flights were launched when the near side was fully illuminated and the far side was in shadow.

The Artemis II astronauts were the first humans to see, with their own eyes, large swaths of the far side in daylight, giving researchers insights that could lead to a better understanding of the moon's evolution.

So far, NASA's first piloted moon mission since the final Apollo landing in 1972 has gone off like clockwork with only a small number of anomalies. One of those involved the ship's toilet, which has had problems dumping liquid waste overboard as required.

While an annoyance at times for the crew, it's been a relatively minor issue given the technical challenges of safely flying to the moon and back.

Ana Maria Knezevich's brother, Felipe Henao, expressed gratitude for the new reward.

"It's been very hard on us, especially on my mother," Henao said. "I really appreciate the FBI for keeping on the case and keep looking for my sister."

Knezevich was reported missing on Feb. 4, 2024, while living in Madrid, Spain. Investigators believe she was murdered two days before that date.

Tim Agustyniak, an FBI official, said the search for the remains is ongoing.

"We've explored several different investigative options with the FBI and our foreign partners so far," Agustyniak said. "I won't go into specifics about that, but to date, we have not been able to locate her remains."

Investigators say her estranged husband, David Knezevich, followed her to Spain in the midst of their divorce. David Knezevich was allegedly seen spray painting the surveillance camera in her apartment building. The FBI says he was then seen leaving with a rolling suitcase, which they believe contained Ana Maria's body.

"He entered a vehicle and traveled from Spain back to Serbia, where David had been before," Agustyniak said. "The FBI believes that Anna's remains were disposed of along that route heading back to Serbia."

David Knezevich was taken into custody at Miami International Airport and was later found dead in prison. Despite the subject being deceased, the FBI is continuing the case.

"The main reason, according to us, is to bring justice to the family," Agustyniak said. "The FBI does not quit on a case just because the subject in the case may be deceased."

Henao also spoke about the larger context of the case, saying his sister is not the only victim of violence against women.

"We will always keep on fighting," Henao said. "My sister is not the only victim of violence against women, so we need to keep speaking about it."

If you have any information, contact your local FBI office, the nearest American Embassy Consulate, submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov, or call 1-800-CALL-FBI.

Widespread showers and storms are in the forecast, especially for the afternoon hours. 

Some showers could contain heavy downpours, leading to localized flooding possible in the metro areas of Broward and Miami-Dade counties.

Eastern Broward and Miami-Dade are under a flood watch until 10 p.m., and a level two out of four flood risk on Wednesday.

Coastal showers in the morning will eventually grow scattered to widespread for midday and the early afternoon.

These showers are expected to be slow-moving, and could drop an additional 1-2 inches of rain. Isolated pockets up to 5 inches are possible.

Mild morning temperatures in the lower 70s will lead to a warm afternoon with highs around 80 degrees.

Breezier conditions arrive today and linger through the end of the workweek and weekend.

This brings a high rip current risk at the beach and a small craft advisory for the Atlantic waters.

Looking ahead to the weekend, drier and sunnier weather arrives with only 10-20% isolated shower chances on Saturday and Sunday along with highs around 80 degrees.

Doral police said the single-vehicle crash was reported in the area of Northwest 87th Avenue and 54th Street.

When emergency crews arrived, they said the vehicle was engulfed in flames, and two people inside the vehicle were pronounced dead at the scene.

The two teenagers inside the vehicle were identified as students from the Downtown Doral Charter Upper School.

Jeannette Acevedo-Isenberg, the Head of Schools at Downtown Doral Charter Schools, identified the students as Mateo Dávila and Alessia Tucci in a statement to families on Wednesday morning.

"Our entire community is mourning this unimaginable loss, and our thoughts and prayers are with their families, friends, our faculty, and staff at our elementary school and certainly our upper school, where they currently attended," she said in the statement. "Both students deeply loved their school, their teachers, their coaches, and their peers, leaving a lasting impact on everyone who knew them."

Acevedo-Isenberg said that grief counselors would be offered to support students and staff starting Wednesday.

"We recognize that this news is difficult to process," she said. "We encourage parents to talk openly with their children and monitor their well-being."

Friends say they're in disbelief after hearing news of the crash

Friends of the victims that CBS News Miami spoke with, said they were in shock when they heard the news.

"I was in disbelief," long-time friend of one of the victims, Rubin Abreu, said. "I didn't want to believe it, until one of my other friends had texted me privately, and I don't know, I actually have no words."

Their friends also say that they were a beloved couple. 

"I said you guys are going to get married. I told her you guys are going to get married, and I better be in the wedding," Daniele Borgia, who says she was a close friend of Tucci's, said. 

Dávila was a member of the school's basketball team, who posted a tribute to their beloved teammate on Instagram.

"Rest in peace to our beloved player Mateo Davila," the team said in the Instagram post. "You and your family will always be in our hearts."

The post has since received hundreds of likes and dozens of comments.

"He was just like a jolly person, like he never let bad things like bring him down," Abreu said. 

"She was such a light to so many of her friends, and unfortunately, we are so sad to hear about her loss," former student Camila Calderon said. 

The Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office Traffic Homicide Unit has since taken over the investigation and will determine what led up to the fatal crash.

No other information was immediately available.

"People with Parkinson's should feel more excited than they ever have before," said Dr. Ihtsham ul Haq, a neurologist involved in the research.

Stem cell therapy could change the course of Parkinson's

One of the most promising developments involves using stem cells to create dopamine-producing neurons, the very cells that are lost as Parkinson's progresses. Researchers say replacing those cells could mark a major breakthrough.

"There's a potential here that we are changing the trajectory of the disease, that we're giving people back something that they've lost," Dr. Haq said. "We're giving them back their dopaminergic neurons."

But delivering those cells to the brain presents a major challenge. The brain is protected by a complex defense system that blocks foreign substances, making treatment difficult.

"The problem is, the brain doesn't like stuff to just float into it," Haq explained. "We've got a very elaborate defense system to prevent bacteria, foreign cells, cancers, things like that, from getting to the brain."

How doctors plan to deliver new neurons to the brain

To get around that barrier, doctors are developing a procedure that involves injecting the lab-grown neurons directly into a specific area of the brain known as the striatum.

"This is where the cells actually get injected into this part of the brain called the striatum," Haq said while pointing to an MRI. "And it's just a matter of getting the needle there and slowly injecting the cells and withdrawing. That's the entirety of the procedure."

While the treatment is still under development, it is already offering hope to patients like Alejandro Caceres, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's at just 29 years old.

"I'm 37 years old and I have Parkinson's," he said.

Caceres, a husband, father and stepfather, said the disease has already changed his daily life. He struggles with movement on the left side of his body and can no longer write with his left hand. Medication helps manage some symptoms, but only temporarily.

"My issue is my left part of my body. I can't write with this hand now," he said, adding that symptoms improve somewhat when he is fully medicated.

As researchers push forward, patients like Caceres say the possibility of new treatments is fueling optimism.

"As a young guy, I feel excited," he said. "I want things to happen quick so I can try the new method that they have right now. I wish I could try as soon as possible."

The missing woman was identified Monday as Lynette Hooker from Michigan, according to Hope Town Volunteer Fire and Rescue. Her husband, Brian Hooker, reported that he and his wife, who are both U.S. nationals, left Hope Town for Elbow Cay on the Bahamian island of Abaco at around 7:30 p.m. local time on Saturday, according to the Royal Bahamas Police Force. They had set sail aboard an 8-foot hard-bottom dinghy, police said.

The search and rescue efforts have turned into a search and recovery operation, the Royal Bahamas Police Force said Wednesday. 

Brian Hooker told police that his wife fell overboard with the keys to the boat, causing its engine to turn off. He said that strong currents carried her out to sea, and he lost sight of her, according to police. Brian Hooker paddled the dinghy to shore, arriving hours later at the Marsh Harbor Boat Yard at 4 a.m. Sunday morning. 

"She apparently bounced out of the boat," Hope Town Volunteer Fire and Rescue chief Troy Pritchard told CBS News on Monday.

Lynette Hooker was wearing a black bathing suit at the time, officials said.

Karli Aylesworth, Lynette Hooker's daughter, said she has "been privy to very little information" about her mother's case and called for "an intensive review of the facts and circumstances" surrounding it.

"My sole concern is to find out what happened to my mother and make sure a full and complete investigation is performed into her disappearance," Aylesworth told CBS News.

"There have been prior issues brought to my attention, which may be important for any thorough investigation," she said. "If this truly was an accident, I can understand and live with it. However, there needs to be an intensive review of the facts and circumstances of this tragic incident before that can be determined."

Aylesworth told CBS News that Brian and Lynette Hooker had split up and gotten back together in recent years. Brian Hooker declined to answer questions about the investigation when approached by CBS News on Tuesday but has since addressed his wife's disappearance in a social media statement.

"I am heartbroken over the recent boat accident in unpredictable seas and high winds that caused my beloved Lynette to fall from our small dinghy near Elbow Cay in the Bahamas," he said. "Despite desperate attempts to reach her, the winds and currents drove us further apart. We continue to search for her and that is my sole focus."

He also thanked authorities and volunteers involved in the search effort.

Police said Brian Hooker told someone his wife was missing once he made it to the boat yard, and that person informed authorities. Officers proceeded to search the surrounding area, with help from members of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force and Hope Town fire officials.

"U.S. counterparts, volunteers, the Royal Bahamas Police Force and the Royal Bahamas Defence Force are assisting with this," the Royal Bahamas Police Force told CBS News in a statement. The U.S. Coast Guard Miami Sector also provided air support to Bahamian authorities in their search Sunday.

Police have asked people in the community who may have information relevant to the probe to report what they know to law enforcement, or submit anonymous tips through Crime Stoppers.

The U.S. State Department warned of potentially deadly boating issues in the Bahamas in a travel advisory issued in March 2025, which said "boating is not well regulated" on the islands, and "injuries and deaths have occurred." The advisory also warned that watercraft, like jet skis, may come from unlicensed operators who "sometimes ignore weather forecasts." It encouraged travelers to "always follow local weather and marine alerts."

Jason Banegas pleaded guilty last October in the shooting death of Officer Yandy Chirino, who was responding to reports of someone breaking into cars at the time of his killing.

During the trial, prosecutors said Chirino spotted Banegas armed with a gun and the two got into a struggle. That's when Banegas shot Chirino in the face twice.

In December, a jury recommended that he be sentenced to life in prison, avoiding the death penalty.

Then in early 2026, Banegas claimed that his attorneys coerced him into pleading guilty and wanted to change his plea.

A judge denied that request in March, and scheduled his formal sentencing for April 8.

The judge also sentenced Banegas to more than 160 years for additional charges to run consecutively following the life sentence 

Dozens of Hollywood police officers crowded the hallway and courtroom in support of Yandy Chirino, who was a much-loved friend, brother, son, and fiancé 

Police Chief Jeffrey Devlin says the tragedy has been difficult for the Chirino family, and the mission continues to never forget Yandy.

Banegas has 30 days to appeal his sentence 

Lynette Hooker's daughter, Karli Aylesworth, describes her mother as an experienced swimmer who has been sailing for more than 10 years. Aylesworth tells CBS News she wants authorities to thoroughly investigate the incident, saying she doesn't believe the sequence of events described by Hooker's husband, Brian Hooker.

Royal Bahamian police said Brian Hooker told investigators that his wife fell over from an 8-foot hard-bottom dinghy — along with the keys to the boat — and she was carried away by strong rip currents. Brian Hooker reported that the couple left Hope Town for Elbow Cay on the Bahamian island of Abaco at around 7:30 p.m. local time Saturday, according to the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

With the boat's engine turned off without the keys, Brian Hooker paddled the dinghy to shore, arriving hours later at the Marsh Harbor Boat Yard at 4 a.m. Sunday morning, authorities said.

"For one, I don't understand how she got the key," Aylesworth said. "Brian's always driving. So he basically is in charge of the key. So the fact that my mom had it doesn't make any sense."

Brian Hooker later left Aylesworth a voicemail message, which she played for CBS News, where he spoke about a floating device he said he threw to Lynette.

"Hello, honey, it's Dad. I just got a call from Hope Town Search and Rescue, and they found the flotation device that I threw to Mom when she fell overboard," he can be heard saying in the voicemail.

When approached by CBS News on Tuesday, Brian Hooker declined to answer questions about the investigation.

Aylesworth said Brian and Lynette had split up in recent years but got back together.

Bahamian authorities told CBS News that Brian Hooker has not been accused of any wrongdoing. The search and rescue mission is now a search and recovery operation, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force said Wednesday. 

In a statement shared Wednesday, Hooker said he was "heartbroken" and thanked the authorities and volunteers supporting the ongoing search.

"I am heartbroken over the recent boat accident in unpredictable seas and high winds that caused by beloved Lynette to fall from our small dinghy near Elbow Cay in the Bahamas," he said. "Despite desperate attempts to reach her, the winds and currents drove us further apart. We continue to search for her and that is my sole focus."

The crash happened Monday morning along Highway 65 in Franklin County, Florida, involving four teens from Georgia who were headed to St. George Island to visit family and friends. 

According to the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, three teens — Jackson Mobley, 18; Jaylyn Fehr, 17; and Charlotte Martin, 16 — died in the crash. A fourth passenger, Jamison Mobley, 17, survived and was airlifted to a hospital, where she remains in recovery. 

All four students attended Horizon Christian Academy in Cumming, Georgia, a private school serving roughly 300 students from kindergarten through 12th grade. 

In a statement, the school said it is mourning the loss of three "amazing, kind, smart, and loved students," while asking for continued prayers for the hospitalized teen and the families affected.

"Please join us in lifting up these students' families, and their friends in prayer," the school said.

Community remembers victims

Two of the teens who died, Fehr and Martin, were also athletes with A5 Gwinnett Volleyball Club.

Their coach, April Mifflin, described them as more than just players.

"They were teammates, friends, daughters, and bright lights within our community," Mifflin said. "Their impact reached far beyond the court."

The club said the loss has deeply impacted teammates, coaches, and families across the organization, calling it an "unimaginable loss." 

Crash remains under investigation

Authorities say the teens were traveling together when the vehicle went off the road and crashed. Investigators are still working to determine what caused the wreck.

Officials also noted that not all of the teens were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash. 

Good Samaritans and an off-duty law enforcement officer stopped to help at the scene, actions officials say helped save the life of the surviving teen.

A community in mourning

Back in Cumming, Horizon Christian Academy has opened its chapel to students and families seeking space to grieve, as the community rallies around those affected.

The Franklin County Sheriff's Office says memorial crosses will be placed at the crash site to honor the three teens who died.

"When a life is lost in our community, no matter where someone calls home, we feel that loss together," the sheriff's office said. 

As Jamison Mobley continues her recovery, both communities — in Georgia and Florida — are holding onto hope while grappling with devastating loss.

Delta cited "evolving global conditions and industry dynamics" in announcing the change, which takes effect Wednesday. Fees for travelers' first and second checked bags will rise by $10, while it will cost $50 more to check a third piece of luggage on domestic and some short-haul international flights, the airline said. 

The new fee structure is part of "Delta's ongoing review of pricing across its business," the carrier said in a statement to CBS News. The increase represents the first time in two years that Delta has hiked fees for checking bags domestically, the airline noted.

Here are the new rates:

• First bag: $45 
• Second bag: $55
• Third bag: $200

Delta SkyMiles Medallion club members, first-class passengers and other eligible customers will still be able to check bags for free, the airline said. Checked-bag rates on long-haul international flights also remain unchanged.

Southwest Airlines also hiked its checked bag fees, effective Thursday, with the first also going from $35 to $45 and the second from $45 to $55.

Delta and Southwest followed United and JetBlue in raising bag check fees since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. 

Airlines have tried to offset higher fuel costs by raising airfares and, in some cases, adding fuel surcharges to ticket costs. Flight experts encourage travelers to purchase refundable fares for upcoming travel now, in case prices rise further. 

The U.S. airline could face tens of billions of dollars in added fuel costs if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, according to Deutsche Bank analysts. If jet fuel prices remained just $2 per gallon higher for the entire year, airlines would have to boost their fares by roughly 17%, or $50, across the board to fully offset those costs, the investment bank estimates. 

The price of jet fuel was $209 a barrel for the week ending April 3, up 132% from last year's average, according to the International Air Transport Association. 

A brief notice from the Office of Personnel Management could dramatically change which personally identifiable medical information the agency obtains, giving it the power to see prescriptions employees had filled or what treatment they sought from doctors. The regulation would require 65 insurance companies that cover more than 8 million Americans — including federal workers, retired members of Congress, mail carriers, and their immediate family members — to provide monthly reports to OPM with identifiable health data on their members.

The proposal is prompting unease from insurers as well as health policy and legal experts, who are concerned about the legality of OPM acquiring such a sweeping database of sensitive health information, and the agency's ability to safeguard it.

OPM could use the data to analyze costs and improve the system, said Sharona Hoffman, a health law ethicist at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio.

"But," she said, "they are going to get very, very detailed and granular data about everything that happens. The concern here is the more information they have, they could use it to discipline or target people who are not cooperating politically."

OPM spokespeople did not respond to repeated requests for comment. The agency's notice asks insurers that offer Federal Employees Health Benefits or Postal Service Health Benefits plans to furnish "service use and cost data," including "medical claims, pharmacy claims, encounter data, and provider data." It says the data will "ensure they provide competitive, quality, and affordable plans."

The notice, posted and sent to insurers in December, does not instruct them to redact identifying information — a burdensome process that they would need federal guidance to complete.

Instead, it states that insurers are legally permitted to disclose "protected health information" to OPM. Several experts in health policy and law consulted by KFF Health News said they interpreted the request to mean the Trump administration was seeking identifiable data.

The ask comes a year into a Republican administration that has been defined by haphazard mass layoffs and firings of thousands of federal workers, including dozens who say they were targeted in acts of political retaliation or for not embracing the White House's agenda. Under President Donald Trump, the government has also routinely tested the legal bounds of sharing sensitive and personally identifiable tax or health information across government agencies in its efforts to carry out mass immigration arrests or pursue identify fraud.

"You can anticipate a scenario where this information on 8 million Americans is now in the hands of OPM and there's a real concern of how they use it," said Michael Martinez, senior counsel at Democracy Forward, an advocacy organization that filed a public comment opposing OPM's proposal in February. Martinez previously worked at OPM.

"They've given no information about how they would treat that information once they have it," he said.

Among Martinez's concerns is how the administration might use information about employees who have sought abortions — 41 states have some type of abortion ban — or transgender treatment, medical care that the Trump administration has tried to curb.

The American Federation of Government Employees, the largest union representing federal workers, did not respond to requests for comment.

Martinez and others who reviewed the notice for KFF Health News said the proposal was so vague that they were uncertain, exactly, what medical records OPM wants to access.

At the very least, they said, the proposal would allow the agency to access the medical and pharmaceutical claims of patients with their identifying information, such as names and birth dates. Claims data also includes diagnoses, treatments, visit length, and provider information.

OPM's request to view "encounter data" could allow the agency to look at "anything and everything," Hoffman noted.

That could include detailed medical records, such as a doctor's notes or after-visit summaries.

Jonathan Foley, who worked at OPM advising on the Federal Employees Health Benefits program during the Obama and Biden administrations, said he doubts the agency has the capability to ingest such minutiae.

The agency, however, could easily begin collection of personally identifiable medical and pharmaceutical claims information from insurers, he said.

Foley said he sees a benefit to OPM having broader access to de-identified claims data. In recent years, OPM has ramped up its analysis of claims data, which has allowed it to examine prescription drug costs and encourage plans to offer federal workers cheaper alternatives. He's worried, though, that the Trump administration's proposal goes too far, because it appears to seek identifiable data.

"It's kind of shocking to think of them having protected health information without having strict guardrails," he said.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, or HIPAA, requires certain organizations that maintain identifiable health information — such as hospitals and insurers — to protect it from being disclosed without patient consent.

Those entities can disclose such information without consent only in specific scenarios, with a justification that it is deemed "reasonable" or "necessary." Even then, HIPAA mandates that they provide only the minimum amount of information required.

OPM argues in its notice that it is entitled to the information from insurers "for oversight activities."

But several people who reviewed the notice questioned whether OPM's explanation for requesting the information is sufficient.

"The language in it seems quite broad and encompasses potentially a lot of information and data and is sort of light on justification," said Jodi Daniel, a digital health strategist who helped develop the legal framework for HIPAA privacy rules over two decades ago.

Several major insurers that offer federal employee health plans — including the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Kaiser Permanente, and UnitedHealthcare — declined to comment on their plans to comply with the notice or offer insight on where plans to implement the data sharing stood.

Only one insurer individually weighed in with a public comment on OPM's plan. In March, CVS Health executive Melissa Schulman urged the federal agency to reconsider its proposal.

"OPM's request raises substantial HIPAA compliance issues," Schulman wrote, arguing that federal law allows the agency to examine records but not to collect data. Insurers would be breaking the law by providing personal health information for OPM's "vague and broad general purposes," she added.

Schulman, who did not respond to additional questions from KFF Health News, also raised concerns about a lack of data privacy protections. She noted that insurers could be liable for security breaches or other situations "where consumer health information is inappropriately shared and outside of our control."

In 2015, OPM announced the personal records of roughly 22 million Americans had been stolen from the agency in a data breach that has been blamed on the Chinese government.

The Association of Federal Health Organizations, which represents CVS Health and dozens of other federal health plan carriers, also weighed in with a 122-page comment opposing the notice. In it, AFHO Chair Kari Parsons emphasized that insurance carriers are bound by HIPAA to safeguard personal health information.

Federal law requires carriers "to furnish 'reasonable reports' OPM determines to be necessary," Parsons wrote, "not to furnish the individual claims data of every individual."

This isn't the first time OPM has requested detailed data from insurers. In the AFHO comment, Parsons noted OPM had made a similar proposal in 2010, prompting HIPAA concerns. She described how, after several years of negotiations with AFHO, they discussed — but OPM never finalized — an agreement in 2019 for carriers to share de-identified data with OPM.

But since then, Parsons wrote, OPM has collected such detailed information on enrollees and their families that, with OPM's new request, the agency may be able to trace even de-identified records to individuals.

OPM has not provided any update since closing comments in March. The agency would need to publish a final decision before anything officially changes.

KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism.

And more than 200 munitions were used.

The weapons airman survived nearly two days behind enemy lines, sheltering in a rocky mountain crevice, multiple officials familiar with the rescue said.

The recovery of the downed airman unfolded against the backdrop of escalating tensions between Washington and Tehran over the Strait of Hormuz, a critical channel for global oil trade. President Trump halted other planned U.S. military operations against Iran, redirecting attention and resources in a herculean U.S. government effort toward locating and extracting the stranded American service member, sources told CBS News.

The search zeroed in on the stranded crew member's beacon and eventually brought him to safety Sunday morning local time.

Here's the timeline leading up to the crash and the rescue. The following reporting is based on conversations with multiple officials familiar with the search and rescue mission.

See the full reporting here.