7 things to know now: Zika update; Honda recall; prescription drug prices

Credit: Andrew Burton

Credit: Andrew Burton

Here's a roundup of news trending across the nation and world today.

What to know now:

1. Donald vs. Ted: The brawl between Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump and Ted Cruz ramped up a bit Wednesday when Trump accused the Texas senator of voter fraud after Cruz's win in the Iowa caucuses. Trump also said there should be an election do-over in that state.  Cruz took shots at the New York billionaire at most every campaign stop in New Hampshire, saying Trump was a sore loser.

2. Zika update: A state of public health emergency now exists in Florida as several cases of the Zika virus have been diagnosed there. Gov. Rick Scott declared the public health emergency when people in four counties were sickened with the disease. Meanwhile, scientists are looking into the case of a person in Dallas whom they beleive caught the disease through sexual contact with a person exposed to Zika.

3. Cosby case: A Pennsylvania judge has declined to throw out a sexual assault case against Bill Cosby. Cosby's attorneys tried to convince the judge that they had a deal with the former district attorney that would have kept Cosby from being prosecuted for charges of sexual assault. The judge also ruled that current district attorney Kevin Steele did not have to recuse himself from the case. Cosby's lawyers said Steele used Cosby's situation as a "political football" and that he should not be allowed to prosecute him. More than 50 women have come forward in the past year claiming Cosby assaulted them.

4. Out  of the race: Two candidates on the Republican side of the 2016 presidential race have officially dropped out. Former Sen. Rick Santorum announced late Tuesday that he is quitting and throwing his support to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. Earlier in the day, Rand Paul, a senator from Kentucky, also threw in the towel.

5. Honda recall: Honda has issued a recall for more than 2 million Honda and Acura vehicles because of issues with air bags. The air bags, made by the embattled company Takata, can explode sending shrapnel into the driver's face and body.  The recall includes models manufactured between 2005 and 2016.

And one more

Congress will  hear testimony over why the prices of prescription drugs have risen so sharply in recent years. Martin Shkreli, the CEO who became infamous for hiking the price of an HIV drug more than 5,000 percent in one day, has been subpoenaed to testify, but is expected to invoke the Fifth Amendment. Three-fourths of the Americans surveyed say they believe drug prices are too high.

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