Governor of New Mexico sees progress on health, poverty
May 5, 2023 GMTSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham provided an exuberant overview Friday of her approach to improving public health during a second term in office, touching on initiatives ranging from children's nutrition to reproductive health care and the regulation of oilfield pollution.
Indiana public health boost smaller than governor sought
April 24, 2023 GMTINDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Republican legislators are poised to direct only about two-thirds of the money that Indiana Gov.
Indiana public health expansion clears key legislative vote
April 17, 2023 GMTINDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana lawmakers gave a key sign of support Monday for the governor’s proposal that would broadly expand the state’s support for county-level public health programs toward improving the state's poor national rankings in areas such as smoking, obesity and life expectancy.
Thai officials trace missing radioactive cylinder to foundry
March 20, 2023 GMTBANGKOK (AP) — Thai officials said Monday they have traced to a recycling foundry a metal cylinder with radioactive contents that was discovered earlier this month missing from a power plant, but advised that there appeared to be no public health hazard.
What’s happening at Fukushima plant 12 years after meltdown?
March 10, 2023 GMTOKUMA, Japan (AP) — Twelve years after the triple reactor meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, Japan is preparing to release a massive amount of treated radioactive wastewater into the sea.
Latest Ohio derailment poses no public risk, officials say
March 6, 2023 GMTSPRINGFIELD, Ohio (AP) — Authorities in Ohio say there is no indication of any risk to public health from the derailment of a Norfolk Southern cargo train between Dayton and Columbus, the second derailment of a company train in the state in a month.
Can the dogs of Chernobyl teach us new tricks on survival?
March 3, 2023 GMTMore than 35 years after the world's worst nuclear accident, the dogs of Chernobyl roam among decaying, abandoned buildings in and around the closed plant – somehow still able to find food, breed and survive.
New Mexico’s COVID-19 public health orders to end March 31
March 3, 2023 GMTSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico is extending health orders related to COVID-19 one final time through the end of the month.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham made the announcement Friday that she is renewing an executive order but will let it expire after March 31.
Group urges radiation tests for 900 North Korean escapees
February 21, 2023 GMTSEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Human rights advocates on Tuesday urged South Korea to offer radiation exposure tests to hundreds of North Korean escapees who had lived near the country’s nuclear testing ground.
Supreme Court won’t hear arguments Title 42 case as planned
February 16, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court says it will not hear arguments as planned March 1 in a case involving a Trump-era immigration policy used several millions of times over the past three years to quickly turn away migrants at the border.
Hobbs withdraws nomination of Arizona health services leader
February 15, 2023 GMTPHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs on Tuesday withdrew her nomination of Dr. Theresa Cullen to lead the state Department of Health Services.
Hobbs said she made the decision because Cullen didn’t want to proceed as the nominee.
Court denies aid for Hiroshima A-bomb survivors’ children
February 7, 2023 GMTTOKYO (AP) — A Japanese court on Tuesday rejected a damage suit filed by a group of children of Hiroshima atomic bombing survivors seeking government support for medical costs, saying the hereditary impact of radiation exposure is still unknown.
Evers appoints former Milwaukee health leader to head DHS
February 6, 2023 GMTMADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers on Monday appointed the former public health leader in Milwaukee as secretary of the state Department of Health Services.
Kirsten Johnson, who formerly served as Milwaukee's health commissioner for two years until resigning in January, will become the third secretary of the state agency under Evers when she takes the position on Feb.
Indiana public health program boost clears legislative panel
February 1, 2023 GMTINDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana governor’s proposal for a broad expansion of county-level public health programs won its first endorsement from state legislators on Wednesday.
How will life change once the COVID-19 emergency ends?
January 31, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The declaration of a COVID-19 public health emergency three years ago changed the lives of millions of Americans by offering increased health care coverage, beefed-up food assistance and universal access to coronavirus vaccines and tests.
President Biden to end COVID-19 emergencies on May 11
January 31, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden informed Congress on Monday that he will end the twin national emergencies for addressing COVID-19 on May 11, as most of the world has returned closer to normalcy nearly three years after they were first declared.
Brazil declares public health emergency for Yanomami people
January 21, 2023 GMTBRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva visited Brazil's northern state of Roraima on Saturday after the government declared a public health emergency for the Yanomami people in the Amazon, who are suffering from malnutrition and diseases such as malaria as a consequence of illegal mining.
Spaniards spending record high on private health insurance
January 18, 2023 GMTMADRID (AP) — Spaniards spent a record high amount on private health insurance last year, according to data released Wednesday, amid growing discontent with the country’s once-prized public health system.
Spanish health workers march against Madrid regional govt
January 15, 2023 GMTMADRID (AP) — Several thousand health workers returned to the streets of Spain’s capital Sunday to protest what they claim is the dismantling of Madrid's public health care system by its conservative regional government.
New York eyes nixed COVID-19 vaccine rule for health workers
January 14, 2023 GMTSYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — The New York State Department of Health is “exploring its options” after a state Supreme Court judge struck down a statewide mandate requiring health care workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19, the agency said Saturday.
Nevada GOP governor orders review, freeze of new regulations
January 13, 2023 GMTRENO, Nev. (AP) — Nevada's new Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo signed executive orders Thursday indefinitely freezing implementation of new state regulations or occupational licensing requirements, with some exceptions in areas such as public health and safety.
US launches online system to seek asylum on Mexican border
January 13, 2023 GMTSAN DIEGO (AP) — The Biden administration on Thursday launched an online appointment system as the only way for migrants to get exceptions from pandemic-era limits on asylum — the U.S. government's latest major step in eight days to overhaul border enforcement.
UK ambulance workers walk out, joining wave of strike action
January 11, 2023 GMTLONDON (AP) — Around 25,000 U.K. ambulance workers went on strike Wednesday, walking out for the second time since December in an ongoing dispute with the government over pay.
The industrial action by paramedics, drivers and call handlers was the latest in a wave of strikes in recent months that has crippled the country's rail network on some days and strained the U.K.'s overburdened public health system.
Indiana governor pushes big spending plan in annual address
January 11, 2023 GMTINDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb urged skeptical state legislators Tuesday to support funding for several big-ticket spending plans, arguing that the state needed to take action on multiple fronts.
W.R. Grace offers $18.5M to settle Montana asbestos claims
January 11, 2023 GMTHELENA, Mont. (AP) — The owner of a former vermiculite mine in northwestern Montana that spread harmful asbestos in and around the town of Libby has offered $18.5 million to settle the last of the state's claims for environmental damages, Gov.
Mpox has faded in the US. Who deserves the credit?
January 10, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Less than six months ago, mpox was an exploding health crisis. What had been an obscure disease from Africa was ripping through European and U.S. gay communities. Precious doses of an unproven vaccine were in short supply.
EPA moves to toughen standards for deadly soot pollution
January 6, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is proposing tougher standards for a deadly air pollutant, saying that reducing soot from tailpipes, smokestacks and wildfires could prevent thousands of premature deaths a year.
West Virginia names new state health officer, commissioner
January 4, 2023 GMTCHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Dr. Matthew Christiansen, director of West Virginia's office of drug control policy, is now the new state health officer.
Effective immediately, Christiansen will also serve as commissioner of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources' Bureau for Public Health, Interim Cabinet Secretary of DHHR Jeffrey Coben and Republican Gov.
UK’s Sunak vows to halve inflation, tackle illegal migration
January 4, 2023 GMTLONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged to halve inflation, grow the U.K. economy and stop illegal immigration Wednesday as he set out his Conservative government's priorities in his first major speech of 2023.
EXPLAINER: What happens if COVID asylum restrictions end?
December 28, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — Since the pandemic began, the United States has been using a public health rule designed to limit the spread of disease to expel asylum-seekers on the southern border.
Title 42, as it’s called, has been used more than 2.5 million times to expel migrants since March 2020, although that number includes people who repeatedly attempted to cross the border.
EXPLAINER: Will immigration surge as asylum rule ends?
December 15, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — Since the pandemic began, the United States has been using a public health rule designed to limit the spread of disease to expel asylum-seekers on the southern border.
Title 42, as it's called, has been used more than 2.5 million times to expel migrants since March 2020, although that number includes people who repeatedly attempted to cross the border.
Panel calls for stronger leadership of FDA foods program
December 6, 2022 GMTA panel on Tuesday called for changes at the federal agency that oversees most of the nation's food supply, saying revamped leadership, a clear mission and more urgency are needed to prevent illness outbreaks and to promote good health.
Boston establishing 11 wastewater COVID-19 testing sites
December 6, 2022 GMTBOSTON (AP) — Boston is planning to establish 11 wastewater testing sites across the city to help monitor for spikes in the COVID-19 virus.
The head of the Boston Public Health Commission said the city is partnering with vendors to create the sites as COVID-19 levels in wastewater across the region have begun rising.
NY state health commissioner resigning to return to Harvard
December 3, 2022 GMTALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York's state health commissioner will resign Jan. 1 after 13 months in the job to return to Harvard University's T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Mary Bassett said in a statement Friday that she was “leaving now so the next commissioner can have the chance to lead this great department for a full 4-year term under the leadership of Gov.
US plans end to mpox public health emergency in January
December 2, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government plans to end in January the public health emergency it declared earlier this year after an outbreak of mpox infected more than 29,000 people across the U.S.
New Mexico visits new political landscape in four-day trip
December 2, 2022 GMTSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is traveling to a convention of Democratic governors in New Orleans on the heels of her reelection victory, with additional engagements in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
New Mexico issues public health order amid RSV case surge
December 2, 2022 GMTSANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico health officials are mandating hospitals revert to a “hub-and-spoke” model to ensure patients get the care they need amid an alarming rise in respiratory infections among children.
African continent finally to receive 1st mpox vaccines
December 1, 2022 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Africa's top public health body says the continent is set to receive its first batch of mpox vaccines as a donation from South Korea.
The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday the 50,000 doses will be used first for health workers and people living in the hardest-hit areas.
Twitter ends enforcement of COVID misinformation policy
November 29, 2022 GMTTwitter will no longer enforce its policy against COVID-19 misinformation, raising concerns among public health experts and social media researchers that the change could have serious consequences if it discourages vaccination and other efforts to combat the still-spreading virus.
Mexico: Deadly meningitis outbreak caused by anesthetics
November 25, 2022 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s Public Health Department said Thursday that a worrisome outbreak of 61 meningitis cases in the northern state of Durango this month was linked to anesthetic procedures used at local hospitals.
States move to keep court from lifting Trump asylum policy
November 22, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — A coalition of conservative-leaning states is making a last-ditch effort to keep in place a Trump-era public health rule that allows many asylum seekers to be turned away at the southern U.S.
Africa CDC chief urges more COVID-19 testing as cases rise
November 17, 2022 GMTKAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — The head of Africa's top public health institute is urging authorities across the continent to step up COVID-19 testing amid a concerning rise in new cases in some countries.
Environmental justice leader named in northern Mississippi
November 4, 2022 GMTJACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Mississippi announced Friday that it has designated a federal attorney to focus on environmental justice and public health.
Alcohol death toll is growing, US government reports say
November 4, 2022 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — The rate of deaths that can be directly attributed to alcohol rose nearly 30% in the U.S. during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new government data.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had already said the overall number of such deaths rose in 2020 and 2021.
US agency softens opioid prescribing guidelines for doctors
November 3, 2022 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — The nation’s top public health agency on Thursday softened its guidelines for U.S. doctors prescribing oxycodone and other opioid painkillers.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention new recommendations are an update to 2016 guidelines that added momentum to a decline in opioid painkiller prescriptions.
Qatar details World Cup preparedness for health emergencies
November 2, 2022 GMTGENEVA (AP) — After a fatal crowd crush in South Korea and deaths at a soccer game in Indonesia, Qatar’s readiness for a health emergency at the World Cup was detailed Wednesday.
African health official: Ebola in Uganda is under control
October 27, 2022 GMTKAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Uganda's Ebola outbreak is under control, a top public health official in Africa said Thursday, noting that local health authorities are doing well to trace most contacts.
“The situation is not getting out of control,” said Dr.
Doctors say ‘fossil fuel addiction’ kills, starves millions
October 25, 2022 GMTExtreme weather from climate change triggered hunger in nearly 100 million people and increased heat deaths by 68% in vulnerable populations worldwide as the world’s “fossil fuel addiction” degrades public health each year, doctors reported in a new study.
Japan steps up push to get public buy-in to digital IDs
October 25, 2022 GMTTOKYO (AP) — Japan has stepped up its push to catch up on digitization by telling a reluctant public they have to sign up for digital IDs or possibly lose access to their public health insurance.
As the naming implies, the initiative is about assigning numbers to people, similar to Social Security numbers in the U.S.
Worker who lowered Vermont town’s fluoride for years resigns
October 21, 2022 GMTA town employee who quietly lowered the fluoride in a Vermont community's drinking water for years has resigned — and is asserting that the levels had actually been low for much longer than believed.
Biden administration extends COVID public health emergency
October 13, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration said Thursday that the COVID-19 public health emergency will continue through Jan. 11 as officials brace for a spike in cases this winter.
Large flu outbreak suspected at San Diego high school
October 13, 2022 GMTSAN DIEGO (AP) — Respiratory and flu-like symptoms among a large number of students at a San Diego County high school are under investigation by health authorities, the county said.
‘Africa on its own’: Little help in epidemics, says official
October 12, 2022 GMTKAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Africa must plan to respond effectively to disease outbreaks without international help, a top public health official said Wednesday, warning that the continent of 1.3 billion people is “on its own” during pandemics.
Seattle to end COVID-19 emergency proclamation
October 12, 2022 GMTSEATTLE (AP) — The City of Seattle will end its COVID-19 emergency proclamation at the end of October.
Mayor Bruce Harrell said in a statement Tuesday that Seattle will lift its remaining COVID emergency order to align with Gov.
Boston officials report elevated virus levels in wastewater
October 8, 2022 GMTBOSTON (AP) — Boston health officials said Friday they're concerned about elevated levels of the coronavirus in the city's wastewater.
The concentration of the virus in local wastewater has increased by 3.1% over the past week and by nearly 100% over the past two weeks, according to new data from this week from the Boston Public Health Commission.
COVID mobile vaccination clinics, home visits resume in NH
October 4, 2022 GMTCONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire has resumed COVID-19 mobile vaccination clinics and a homebased vaccination program.
“As we move into the fall and winter, we want to make sure everyone has access to the updated COVID-19 booster doses that better protect against the most recently circulating COVID-19 variants,” Patricia Tilley, the state's director of Public Health Services, said in a statement Tuesday.
$500M-plus from opioid deal starts heading to Washington
October 3, 2022 GMTSEATTLE (AP) — The first payments from a $518 million settlement with the nation's three largest opioid distributors will begin reaching Washington communities in December, providing much-needed cash officials can use to hire first responders or direct toward prevention, treatment and other services, Attorney General Bob Ferguson said Monday.
States spend federal COVID aid on roads, buildings, seawalls
September 29, 2022 GMTStanding 14 stories tall, the Docking State Office Building is one of Kansas' largest and oldest state workplaces. It's also largely vacant, despite a prime location across from the Capitol.
So Kansas officials are planning to spend $60 million of federal pandemic relief funds to help finance its demolition and replace it with a slimmed-down, three-story building designed to host meetings and events.
Vaccine appears to protect against monkeypox, CDC says
September 28, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — At-risk people who received a single dose of the monkeypox vaccine in U.S. efforts against the virus appeared to be significantly less likely to get sick, public health officials announced Wednesday, even as they urged a second dose for full protection.
Insider Q&A: FDA official on vaping’s “promise or peril”
September 26, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — There’s been no honeymoon period for the Food and Drug Administration’s new tobacco chief, Brian King, the public health scientist now responsible for regulating the nation’s multibillion-dollar cigarette and vaping industry.