In the Nation

WASHINGTON

Insurance for people

at high risk extended

The expiring insurance program for sick Americans who have been refused coverage by private carriers will be extended for one month, as the U.S. government continues to fix the Obamacare health exchange intended as an alternative.

The federal government's Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan was due to expire Dec. 31. People in the program who haven't obtained new coverage will be able to stay through the end of January, Aaron Albright, a spokesman for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said Thursday in an e-mail.

The reprieve for these "high-risk" pools that cover the sickest is among at least a half dozen delays in Obamacare provisions as President Obama seeks to give consumers more time and options to enroll in plans under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. - Bloomberg News
MONTANA

Newlywed enters plea

A newlywed accused of killing her husband in Glacier National Park pleaded guilty Thursday to second-degree murder after four days of trial. Jordan Linn Graham, 22, accepted a plea bargain in the July death of Cody L. Johnson, 25. The plea was announced in federal court in Missoula, Mont., before the case could go to the jury, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Sentencing is March 27. - L.A. Times

ALASKA

Dog aids a survival

Alaska State Troopers say a small dog helped a woman survive nearly three nights in below-zero temperatures after her snowmobile broke down along the Denali Highway. Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters says Vivian Mayo, 57, was able to share body heat with her dog, Elvis, and Peters says the dog probably helped save Mayo's life as temperatures reached minus 20. Mayo also burned her snowmobile to stay warm. - AP