‘The freedom to be’ – USA TODAY

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What the White House is doing about gas prices, a debate about the war on drugs and the pandemic's impacton teen mental health.

It's Nicole, bringing you all the news you need to know Thursday.

But first,let me get you a tissue. Allergy season is here, and the severity of your sniffles may have to do with where you live.

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U.S. citizens will be able to select X as the gender marker on their passport application beginning April 11,The White House and State Department said Thursday."Every American deserves the freedom to be themselves," the White House said in itsannouncementon Transgender Day of Visibility. Themarkermeans that travelers will no longer have to provide medical certification if their gender identity does not align with the marker on their birth certificate or other documents.

In an effort to drive down gas prices, President Joe Biden announced Thursday he will release 1 million barrels of oil per day for the next six months from the nations Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The move is the largest release in the reserves nearly 50-year history and is a direct response to skyrocketing gas prices triggered by Russias invasion of Ukraine. The reserve is a stockpile of about 605 million barrels of petroleum designed to preserve oil access in the case of an emergency and is maintained by the Energy Department.

More news:Thursday's latest updates.

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Firefighters battled to contain a wildfire Thursday near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee. Officials hoped overnight rainfall would abate the blaze, but gusty winds sustained the fire, which spread to nearly 4,000 acres by Thursday morning. Only 5% of the fire was contained by Thursday, officials said, as hundreds of people and 70 agencies worked to break down the wildfire. Throughout the day, 11,000 homes were evacuated. One resident described watching the surreal scene: Thats coming from where I live.

More than a third of high school students reported in 2021 their mental health suffered during the pandemic,according to a study published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Using data from the health agencys first national survey of public and private high school students, the CDC found more than half of students reported experiencing emotional abuse at home, and nearly 30% reported a parent or another adult in their home lost a job. Poor mental health, emotional abuse and attempted suicide was reported among LGBTQ youth more than other groups. The study found some solutions, concluding that students who felt connected to adults and peers at school were far less likely to report feelings of sadness or hopelessness.

A soaring number of deaths related to illicit fentanyl use have stirred a debate about the future of the war on drugs.Some argue the priority should be focusing on criminal activity while others want more harm-reduction programs that emphasize clean needles and education to users. After 2021 marked the most overdose deathsrecorded in the USA 100,000 the search for an answer is increasingly urgent. Critics of enforcement tactics say this approach punishes people with substance use disorders and does not make them quit. Opponents say government dollars shouldnt be spent on allowing people to use drugs.

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'The freedom to be' - USA TODAY