ioning sponsored by cbs ♪ ♪ ♪ >> o'donnell: tonight, we begin with the state of the american economy. the new worries as the stock market plunges and the breaking news out of the white house tonight: president biden a drastic steps to try and end the baby formula crisis. operation 'fly formula': the plan to use defense department planes to bring in formula from overseas as the president invokes the defense production act, the same measure used to get vaccines into arms quickly. plus, we talk to a mother who was scammed when desperately trying to find formula. wall street's biggest decline in nearly two years as target and walmart face their worst sell-offs in decades. the concern tonight from c.e.o.s that a recession is coming. trump's mixed results: tonight,

what we learned about the power of the former president's support after voters went to the polls in five states. tonight's other top headlines: the c.d.c.'s summer travel warning about testing. the latest from ukraine as the u.s. embassy opens in kyiv, even as war rages on. plus, "eye on america": why these women are taking a leap of faith to raise awareness about mental health issues facing female veterans. and one nation, one team, one pay: the game-changer as a deal is reached to make sure the women's national soccer team is finally paid the same as the men. ♪ ♪ ♪ this is the "cbs evening news" with norah o'donnell reporting tonight from new york ♪ ♪ ♪ >> o'donnell: good evening, to our viewers in the west and thank you for joining us on this wednesday night. we want to begin tonight with some breaking news; the president just announcing new actions to try and ease the pain of the baby formula shortage. there are two major measures,

first, to help with supply chain issues president biden is invoking the defense production act to get ingredients to manufacturers. that means suppliers will be required to give resources to infant formula plants before other customers. and in hopes of speeding up the import of formula from other countries, president biden is directing his administration to use government planes to go overseas and bring formula home. meanwhile, house lawmakers are voting on a bill tonight that would make it easier for low- income families to get formula. americans who take part in a nutrition program called wic usually have to get a specific brand of formula. well, this bill would allow them to get a different brand that is actually in stock. we have a lot of news to get to tonight. we'll start with cbs' jamie yuccas. good evening, jamie. >> reporter: good evening, norah. the president's late-day announcement is the administration's latest move to try and ease the baby formula shortage. more than half of states say they have 40% of formula now out of stock. it's a full court press to ease the stress of frustrated

parents. this indiana baby formula facility is operating 24/7 trying to boost its output by 30%. but for many desperate families, the relief will not come fast enough. the federal nutritional service that helps low-income women, infants and children, known as wic, says more than half of the formula in the u.s. is bought by wic families, feeding 1.4 million babies. >> parents are in an incredibly desperate situation. when you don't know how to feed your child, that creates a lot of shame, a lot of guilt. families don't necessarily have the time or resources to go around to five or six different stores. >> reporter: the largest maker, abbott, controls about 40% of infant formula here in the u.s.. the f.d.a. reached an agreement to reopen its largest plant in michigan, but that still leaves a gap on store shelves for at least the next two months. is this something that we should have been paying attention to?

>> i think this whole situation really pulled back the curtain on the infant formula manufacturing sector. we have four companies that control 90% of the domestic infant formula supply. >> reporter: and now bad actors are starting to prey on parents, like kimberly williams, who turned to a facebook group for help. >> i just thought that this was a group of moms that were helping moms. >> reporter: the new mom to three-month-old babying harper spent $168 on five cans of formula she never received. you felt that desperate that you still were like, i'm going to try to do this. >> until someone is in your position, trying to find baby formula, and they can't, i don't think that they will truly understand it until they actually have to deal with it. >> reporter: wic is advising parents to first look at retail stores, but they can also try food banks, charities or even their pediatrician. the store behind me has had such a rush, they are now limiting sales to one can per parent.

norah. >> o'donnell: wow. hopefully this new plan will help. jamie yuccas with all the details, thank you so much. we turn now to the economy and the panic on wall street as the country's largest retailers warn of rising inflation costs and fears of a recession grow. all three major indexes posted big losses with the dow falling more than 1100 points or more than 3.5% purpose both the nasdaq and s&p 500 were off more than 4%, with the s&p having its worst day since june of 2020. cbs' ed o'keefe has more from the white house. >> reporter: it was the biggest one-day point drop in two years two year on wall street as the nation's top retailers warn price spikes are affecting their bottom line. target announced a 52% drop in profits last quarter, blaming the growing costs of gas and transportation. its stock lost a quarter of its value. other retailers took double- digit hits, following walmart's stock performance yesterday, the worst in more than 30 years. the global economic slowdown caused by covid-related factory closures in china and the war in

ukraine has led to record gas prices and a worldwide food shortage since ukraine's grain can't be shipped out. >> everyone is struggling with the gas prices. >> reporter: treasury secretary janet yellen says it's the cost of trying to stop vladimir putin. >> there would be spillover effects and that we are prepared to pay. >> reporter: president biden had hoped the federal reserve could raise interest rates to ease inflation, but chairman jerome powell now warns, that might not do it. >> whether we can execute a soft landing or not, it may actually depend on factors that we don't control. >> reporter: it all presents yet another big challenge for the president and his party, hoping to retain control in the fall's midterm elections. the white house today tried to brush off the stock market plunge. >> that's not something that we keep an eye on every day. >> reporter: now, one day of bad stock prices is one thing, but polling consistently shows most americans disapprove of how the president is handling inflation. one way he now plans to tackle it, is by announcing new economic partnerships with asian

countries when he travels to south korea and japan starting later this week. norah. >> o'donnell: ed o'keefe from the white house, thank you. we want to turn now to the election and a primary that turned out to be a mixed bag for candidates backed by former president trump. it is still too close to call in pennsylvania, one of the most closely watched senate races, and it centers on celebrity doctor mehmet oz. cbs' robert costa has been following the latest developments and joins us from philadelphia. from phil good evening, rob. >> reporter: good evening, norah. dr. oz was hoping the trump endorsement would be enough to carry him to victory in pennsylvania and it still might be, but david mccormick was able to make inroads with traditional republicans citing his business experience and his military service. here's what's interesting-- both dr. oz and mccormack both embraced the trump agenda, but it's evident voters are not necessarily taking all of their

cues from candidates from former president trump. >> o'donnell: how did other trump-backed candidates do? >> reporter: doug mastriano won pennsylvania's republican primary race for governor. he attended the stop the steal rally in washington on january 6, 2021, and has worked to overturn president biden's victory. but in north carolina, madison cawthorn, the first-term republican congressman, he was defeated in his primary, even though he had the trump endorsement, but he has been mired in scandals for months. norah. >> o'donnell: robert costa, thank you so much. all right, in buffalo, residents are still reeling from saturday's mass shooting that targeted the predominantly black east side neighborhood. community members are not only dealing with the racially motivated hate crime. they are also without the only grocery store for miles as the

supermarket remains closed during the investigation. cbs' jericka duncan is there for us again tonight. >> reporter: buffalo bills quarterback josh allen's shirt said it all-- "choose love." today, allen and his teammates traveled to the site of the massacre, bringing a bit of joy to those in pain. >> it's a motto that i think maybe i think we should start adopting as a country. >> reporter: they joined city officials, community organizations, and volunteers to donate food, diapers, and other necessities, providing emergency relief while tops supermarket remains an active crime scene. for many, it is the only market for miles. now free bus rides are being provided to take residents to another grocery store. 67-year-old lodina clyburn grew up in the neighborhood. this wasn't just a supermarket. >> this is the sunday place when you don't want to cook dinner, we come here, we socialize, we run into each other. >> reporter: the majority of people who live in this section of buffalo are black. it's why the accused gunman targeted this community and why jeremy hoyle and his family felt the need to pay their respects.

>> just want to be supportive. i want to be an ally. i think we all have to do that. >> reporter: not far from that memorial site, we spotted sandra fleming leaving a counseling session. fleming was friends with celestine chaney, one of the 10 victims killed. what do you say to people who say they are fine and they think they can handle this on their own. >> go and get help and don't sit in the house as i did. go out and get it. i think you'll feel better. >> reporter: today, new york's attorney general announced she is launching investigations into social media companies in connection to the attack. those companies include twitch, 4chan, 8chan, and discord, where the accused gunman posted plans about this mass shooting about 30 minutes before he entered this area. tomorrow morning, norah, he's expected in court. >> o'donnell: the crackdown on social media. jericka duncan, thank you. tonight, with news of a covid spike, there's new guidance from the c.d.c. ahead of memorial day's unofficial start of the summer travel season. the c.d.c. recommends air

travelers get a covid test as close to their departure as possible. that's for both domestic and international trips. that's new. all right, turning now to ukraine, the u.s. embassy in kyiv officially reopened today, flying the american flag for the first time since diplomats and staff left months ago. cbs' debora patta is in battle- scarred kharkiv, where departed russian troops left a path of destruction and despair. >> reporter: a mother's naked grief and a wife's anguished tears. in malaya rohan, this family has gathered to bury the man they loved for a second time. just two days earlier, war crimes prosecutors came to lyudilla yerchenko's home to exhume her husband's body. mikhayl yerchenko was killed when russian troops deliberately aimed their tanks at his village. their humble backyard now a crime scene.

her husband came out to see the shrapnel. later they buried him here in this shallow grave. leading the field team, prosecutor oleksandr illenkov. sometimes the work you do is dangerous. >> it is dangerous, yeah. even now, we heard some shelling. it is no problem. >> reporter: it's your job. >> it is our job. >> it's grim work, but deneath that blanket is the love of ldwr ludmilla's life. "he was such a big, wonderful man. i still can't accept that he's dead," she sobs. mikhayl's body was taken for examination. now it's coming home. his 83-year-old mother simply cannot let go. these scenes are repeated across ukraine every day as so many

people are forced to hastily bury loved ones killed in this war because it was impossible to have funerals in towns occupied by russian forces. now it's up to prosecutors to hold those responsible to account. norah. >> o'donnell: seeking justice. debora patta, thank you so much. well, in tonight's "eye on america," we focus our attention on female veterans and mental health. women are the fastest growing demographic in the military, and the v.a. says they're also almost twice as likely to suffer from mental health issues than men. some of the reasons is they're more likely to experience sexual trauma and adjusting to life after the military. as cbs' kris van cleave reports, asking for help is often the hardest part.

>> reporter: sharjuan burgos is taking a leap of faith, skydiving with the army's golden knights parachute team. but it's nothing compared to the leap the retired army major took seeking help for p.t.s.d. after deployments to iraq and afghanistan. >> the hardest part for me was seeking mental health treatment the first time, sometimes making that first step into a facility or even just seeking treatment is the hardest thing you'll ever do. >> reporter: these jumps are about raising awareness of the mental health challenges facing women veterans, something former p.o.w. knows firsthand. was it hard to ask for that help? >> oh, yeah, absolutely. i felt like my story had been so kind of well known that i didn't want to kind of add on top of what i already went through. >> reporter: lynch was taken prisoner after her convoy was ambushed by iraqi troops in 2003. she was rescued by u.s. special forces days later. >> it was probably a good 10 years before i even came out and said i had p.t.s.d. >> reporter: still a decade after you got back, you were still dealing with some of the demons? >> yeah, yeah. i never really spoke about the kind of demons that eat at you. >> reporter: nearly 12% of women veterans experience p.t.s.d.,

almost double the rate of their male counterparts. women also have higher rates of depression and eating disorders. in 2018, the suicide rate for female vets was almost twice that of women who did not serve. since retiring from the army, burgos has focused on helping her fellow vets get the help they need reaching for the cohen veterans network. they have treated more than 30,000 service members, veterans and their families. >> sometimes you may have to reach your hand out and grab them through and let them know it's okay. >> reporter: while women make up about 10% of all veterans they are 30% of the vets treated by cohen. >> we think that's because female veterans are more willing to seek treatment. >> reporter: tracy neil-walden >> r is the veterans officer. >> oftentimes there is more of an emphasis on taking care of those other daily needs and taking care of the other people in the family. so that's why the symptoms may

go untreated for many years. >> reporter: something these women hope their leaps of faith help change. for "eye on america," kris van cleave, maxton, north carolina. >> o'donnell: all right, still ahead right here on tonight's "cbs evening news," the historic victory for u.s. women's soccer players in their long fight for equal pay. ♪♪ we all need a rock we can rely on. to be strong. to overcome anything. ♪♪ to be...unstoppable. that's why millions rely on the strength and financial guidance of prudential to achieve their dreams. who's your rock? ♪♪

- i'm norm. - i'm szasz. [norm] and we live in columbia, missouri. we do consulting, but we also write. [szasz] we take care of ourselves constantly; it's important. we walk three to five times a week, a couple miles at a time. - we've both been taking prevagen for a little more than 11 years now. after about 30 days of taking it, we noticed clarity that we didn't notice before. - it's still helping me. i still notice a difference. prevagen. healthier brain. better life. what could one strand of mrna do? it could change the future of medicine. it could change the lives of millions. see what mrna could do. moderna this changes everything. of course you've seen underwear that fits like this... but never for bladder leaks. moderna new always discreet boutique black. i feel protected all day, in a fit so discreet, you'd never know they're for bladder leaks. always discreet boutique