On Capitol Hill, separate measures in both Houses of Congress approved cuts in health care and food stamp programs Thursday. The US Senate passed a bill that will trim $10 billion dollars by restructuring Medicare and Medicaid health programs. The Associated Press notes the bill’s $36 billion in overall savings would be dwarfed by the $13.8 trillion expected to be spent under a Republican budget plan approved in April. The approved bill also enables a controversial plan to allow oil drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Meanwhile, the House Budget Committee approved a $844 million dollar cut in food stamp and child welfare programs.