Republicans in Washington state assailed Gov. Jay Inslee’s proposed 2022 supplemental budget for not including any tax relief. Given that the state is flush with revenues, Republicans questioned why Inslee’s nearly $62 billion budget didn’t return some of that money to taxpayers in the form of a tax cut. Revenue projections show overall revenues have increase $3.6 […]
After a couple of years of mask-wearing, social distancing and hand sanitising, the common cold is back. And – according to some people – back with a vengeance. Some are calling it a “super cold” – others, “the worst cold ever”. Fortunately, there may be a way to reduce the duration of a cold: vitamin […]
COVID-19 has made food access more challenging for many communities. In Michigan State University’s Fall 2021 Food Literacy and Engagement Poll, 31% of the people we talked to said the pandemic had affected their household’s ability to obtain food. This included 28% of households earning less than $25,000, and 38% of those earning more than $75,000 […]
Almost half of U.S. congregations participate in some kind of food distribution program. While the government’s Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program was helping nearly 42 million Americans purchase groceries in mid-2021, those benefits often don’t cover the full food costs of people facing economic hardship. And not everyone who needs food is eligible for those benefits. Food banks, food pantries, […]
Maricopa County signed a national opioid settlement with manufacturers and distributors of prescription opioids. According to a news release from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, the agreement is expected to bring approximately $80 million in relief money to county residents, as well as approximately $580 million dollars to the state of Arizona, “The impact of […]
The price of gas and electricity has been increasing sharply on the back of energy shortages. This is mainly due to a squeeze on gas supplies at a time when manufacturing, commuting and socialising have been reviving with the end of lockdowns. Prices are set to continue to increase this winter, so many of us are expecting to see higher […]
Opioid overdoses in Nevada grew by 55% and accounted for 788 total deaths in 2020, according to a state report. Nevada’s Overdose Data to Action (OD2A) program, which oversees the surveillance of opioid overdoses in the state, compiled the report using data from the Nevada Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting System. According to the report, half […]
Different people taking the same drug can have markedly different responses to the same dose. While many people will get the intended effects, some may get little to no benefit, and others may get unwanted side effects. As a pharmacist who researches the safety and effectiveness of drugs, I know there are several reasons why this occurs, including individual physical […]
The U.S. Department of Agriculture adjusts Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program benefits to reflect changes in food prices once a year. The government agency will take two other factors into account when it increases those benefits, which help people buy food, on Oct. 1, 2021. One is an unprecedented update of the Thrifty Food Plan – an estimate of the minimum cost of […]
The big idea A new combination treatment for HIV can strengthen a patient’s immune response against the virus even after they stop taking traditional medications, according to a study published in the journal Science Immunology we co-led at the Amara Lab at Emory Univeristy. People with HIV take a combination of HIV medications to reduce the amount of virus […]
Within a day of testing positive for covid-19 in June, Miranda Kelly was sick enough to be scared. At 44, with diabetes and high blood pressure, Kelly, a certified nursing assistant, was having trouble breathing, symptoms serious enough to send her to the emergency room. When her husband, Joe, 46, fell ill with the virus, […]
Many hopes have been pinned on repurposing existing drugs, such as ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine, to treat COVID-19. However, we shouldn’t be too surprised these drugs haven’t yet lived up to the hype. Our study, published today in Science Translational Medicine, shows it’s notoriously difficult to repurpose existing drugs for new diseases or for new uses. Here’s […]
