Georgia Today: Carter visits Ga. pharmacy; Disaster Mitigation Committee; New food bank in Atlanta

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast. Here we bring you the latest reports from the GPB newsroom. On today's episode, U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter visits an Atlanta pharmacy to learn about rising drug costs. Athens hosts a conference of experts from around the country focused on mitigating natural disasters, and a new community food center opens in Atlanta.

Kyle Wade: As a community, we've got to come together. We have too many kids and families and seniors who need more access. It's on us to make sure that all of our neighbors have what they need.

Peter Biello: Today is Tuesday, Aug. 26. I'm Peter Biello, and this is Georgia Today.

Caption

U.S. Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter presides over Georgia’s First District.

Credit: Courtesy of buddycarter.house.gov

Story 1:

Peter Biello: U.S. Representative and Senate candidate Buddy Carter visited a pharmacy in Atlanta today to learn more about how pharmacists are coping with rising drug costs. GPB's Sarah Kallis reports.

Sarah Kallis: Jonathan Marquess, the owner of Briarcliff Pharmacy, told Carter he regularly has to take losses when insurance companies don't fully cover the cost of prescriptions. He used the example of a prescription they recently filled for an asthma inhaler.

Jonathan Marquess: In our pharmacy, we paid $12, and the insurance came back and said "We'll pay you $7.41." And this man or woman standing there having trouble breathing, it's hard to say no to that.

Sarah Kallis: Marquess says those losses threaten the livelihood of independent pharmacies. Carter says rising costs can be partially attributed to pharmacy benefit managers, also known as PBMs. He touted his recent bipartisan bill that aims to place more regulations on PBMs, which negotiate prices between pharmaceutical manufacturers and insurance companies. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis in Atlanta.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: President Donald Trump's attempt to fire one of the seven Federal Reserve governors, one with deep roots in Georgia, will likely end up in court. Trump's claim that he can fire Lisa Cook is legally dubious, legal experts say. Trump's announced firing of Cook has rattled financial markets. The Republican president said yesterday he was removing Cook because of allegations she committed mortgage fraud. Cook was appointed by Democratic President Joe Biden in 2022 and says she won't step down. Her lawyer says Trump has no authority to remove her. She hails from Milledgeville in Middle Georgia, and she has strong family connections to Baldwin County and Georgia College and State University.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: A Georgia state representative who spearheaded a study committee on recovery from natural disasters met with mitigation experts from around the country today. WUGA's Emma Auer has more from the conference in Athens.

Emma Auer: Rep. Clint Crowe, a Republican from Jackson, led the Disaster Mitigation and Resilience Study Committee in 2024. The group found that Georgia needs a statewide office to coordinate disaster mitigation efforts. Crowe spoke with, quote, "resiliency planners" from across the U.S. to learn about best practices for disaster response.

Clint Crowe: We have opportunity or occasion for storms to come from either side, from the Gulf or the Atlantic. We're not just looking at hurricanes, we're looking at all natural and man-made disasters, for that matter — anything we can be prepared for, for any kind of large-scale emergency response.

Emma Auer: The event was sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trust, which convened disaster mitigation specialists from 20 U.S. states. For GBB News, I'm Emma Auer in Athens.

Story 4:

Peter Biello: As prices rise, more families are turning to food banks. A new community food center opened in Atlanta yesterday to meet the need. GPB's Amanda Andrews has more from the grand opening.

Amanda Andrews: This is Atlanta Community Food Bank's fourth food center, this time in the Adamsville neighborhood. It's stocked with fresh and frozen food — and even baby food. Funding for the center came from Fulton County, Atlanta City Council, and Invest Atlanta. Kyle Wade is the president of the food bank. He says they've been seeing higher demand.

Kyle Wade: As a community, we've got to come together and increase access for our neighbors. We have too many kids and families and seniors who need more access, so it's on us to make sure that all of our neighbors, all the families in metro Atlanta and North Georgia have what they need.

Amanda Andrews: The new food center already has 700 families signed up to receive food and plans to expand to 1,000. For GPB News, I'm Amanda Andrews.

​​​​​​​Story 5:

Peter Biello: If you've ever had your car booted, you may sympathize with the recent proposal before the Sandy Springs City Council. City Attorney Dan Lee is proposing to change the size of the sign warning people about being booted to 4 x 3 feet. The idea is that the bigger sign would be a more prominent warning to drivers that cars improperly parked would have their tires placed in a locked clamp. The city ordinance already requires a contract with the property owner where cars would booted. Lee proposed having those contracts delivered to the city so that booting sites could be listed publicly. Lee was told to bring the ordinance back to a regular meeting of the City Council.

​​​​​​​Story 6:

Peter Biello: Earlier this year, Out Atlanta artist, Freddie Styles, suffered an unimaginable tragedy. Styles, who's 81, lost his home along with all of his own artwork and the art he had collected to a fire. Now some of his friends and colleagues are helping him raise money to get back on his feet. Tomorrow night, Out on Film will host a fundraising screening of the documentary Making Sweet Tea at the Landmark Midtown Arts Cinema in Atlanta. The film is based on E. Patrick Johnson's book, Sweet Tea: Black Gay Men of the South, which features more than 60 life stories from Black gay men who were born, raised, and continue to live in the South. Styles is one of the subjects. The film premiered at Out On Film in 2019. Styles, Johnson, and some of the other subjects will be present for the screening. All money raised will go to Styles. A GoFundMe page has already raised almost $40,000 for Styles, and an auction at Hammond's House netted more than $30,000.

​​​​​​​Story 7:

Peter Biello: The economic impact of trade through Georgia's ports is rising. The Georgia Ports Authority said today it supported 650,000 jobs across the state in the fiscal year that ended in June. The numbers come from the Sea League Center for Economic Growth at the University of Georgia.

​​​​​​​Story 8:

The Brookhaven Arts and Culture Commission has taken on the task of what to do with the colorful tiles originally meant for the new city center dome. In June, the city said the tiles would be removed after installation because they were, quote, "brighter than expected." The city would like to return the tiles for a refund, but there's a chance that won't come through. Some early ideas for repurposing the tiles include a community art project with the police department or schools and creating an art installation at a city-owned building.

​​​​​​​Story 9:

Peter Biello: A game shop in Albany reopened yesterday in a new, less expensive location. The Nerd Store sells trading cards, hosts tabletop gaming events, and serves as a safe space for the LGBTQ community in Southwest Georgia. It announced the need to move earlier this month, citing high rent costs, and began a search for a new location. Co-owner Daniel Vanoteghem says the new space, just 2 miles away from its first location, cuts more than two-thirds of their overhead costs.

Daniel Vanoteghem: We're still trying to raise money via the GoFundMe to work on paying down some of the expenses from the move and work on accumulating money for a down payment on a mortgage. Because at the end of our three years here in this space, we do want to have the option to buy.

Peter Biello: Vanoteghem says with only three weeks without a home, the gaming community kept in touch via Discord with the occasional game night at private homes and on one occasion, a Waffle House.

​​​​​​​Story 10:

Peter Biello: Rising costs and fewer sponsorships are threatening one of Georgia's longest-running arts and music festivals. Officials with the 90-year-old Atlanta Dogwood Festival said today they need to raise a quarter million dollars by November or there won't be another festival. The director of the annual three-day spring event, Brian Hill, is appealing to city officials, corporations, and some of the 200,000 people estimated to attend each year.

Brian Hill: We've been around longer than Gone with the Wind. And it looks so successful, everything looks great at the Dogwood Festival. So people probably felt, and I'm sure they felt that it was successful, it didn't need help.

Peter Biello: He says financial troubles started with the pandemic and they haven't fully recovered. The festival started in 1936, aiming to make Atlanta internationally known for its blooming dogwood trees.

​​​​​​​Story 11:

Peter Biello: Braves will host the season opener next year at Truist Park. Major League Baseball released schedules for the 2026 season, which will begin on Thursday, March 26 next year as the Braves face the Kansas City Royals at home. The Braves follow that three-game series with another against the Athletics. It is the first time the Braves have had a season opener at home since 2022. Other notable home dates include a three-game series versus the Washington Nationals over Memorial Day weekend, a Father's Day matchup against the Milwaukee Brewers on June 21, and an Independence Day game against the Mets. The Braves will play one three-game series against each American League team except the Boston Red Sox. They'll play two three-games against the Sox: one at home, and one in Boston. And this is a preliminary schedule; it is subject to change.

And that is it for this edition of Georgia Today. And that is it for me hosting this podcast for the next six weeks: I'm gonna take some parental leave to be with my son, who I am happy to say is happy and healthy and who I hope will enjoy having Dad around the house a bit more often. Georgia Today will be in the capable hands of a few different members of the GPB News team. Subscribe now and hear their lovely voices through your podcast app of choice every weekday afternoon. If you wanna learn more about any of the stories you heard today, go to GPB.org/news. And remember, your feedback is always welcome. Send it to us by email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

---

For more on these stories and more, go to GPB.org/news