Deborah Sontag’s New York Times story about the murder of 25-year-old mental health worker Stephanie Moulton, allegedly at the hands of schizophrenic patient DeShawn Chappell, is a moving exploration of two grieving families and the many challenges facing the mental health care system. Deborah Sontag’s New York Times story about the murder of 25-year-old mental […]
Rhetoric has been flying this year, especially in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, about the “burdens” of federal regulations. Many of these members seem to despise EPA rules, CSPS rules, healthcare rules, and OSHA rules. Many of their talking points come from groups like the Heritage Foundation with their reports “Red Tape Rising: Obama’s Torrent […]
Cancer
Department of Health and Human Services releases 12th Report on Carcinogens, adding formaldehyde and styrene to the list
by Elizabeth Grossman On June 10th the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the National Toxicology Program released the department’s 12th Report on Carcinogens, adding eight new substances to the overall list that now includes 240 compounds (or classes of compounds) known or reasonably anticipated to be human carcinogens. Two of these […]
In a post on May 5, I predicted that Labor Secretary Hilda Solis would be publishing within a few days her semi-annual regulatory plan for new worker health and safety rules. I made that projection based on requirements in the Regulatory Flexibility Act and Executive Order 12866, which suggest these plans be published every April […]
A few of the recent pieces I’ve liked: Julie Appleby and Jordan Rau at Kaiser Health News: ‘Double’ Chest Scans Increase Costs and Exposure to Radiation Evan Bush in iWatch News: Obama administration signals higher gas royalties on public lands — and anticipated industry resistance Alix Spiegel for NPR: Why Seeing (The Unexpected) Is Often […]
Injury Control & Violence
Still no day in court for worker safety violations at Crandall Canyon coal mine
NPR’s Howard Berkes reported this week on the disposition of criminal and civil charges stemming from the disaster nearly four years ago at the Crandal Canyon mine in Utah. The makings of the catastrophe began months earlier, (previous posts here, here, here) but came to a deadly denouement in the early morning hours of August […]
Addiction & Substance Abuse
Third time’s the charm?: Passage of Texas Smoke-free Workplace Law down to the wire
by Kim Krisberg Don’t mess with Texas. The iconic phrase was actually created as part of an anti-littering campaign more than 20 years ago, however it could be as easily applied to the state’s notorious anti-regulatory attitude and penchant for bucking convention. But despite its reputation, the Lone Star State is poised to join 29 […]
It’s wonderful to hear what substantial progress US Representative Gabrielle Giffords has made in recovering from the traumatic brain injury she sustained from being shot in the head in January. As the Associated Press reported this morning, Giffords has spent the past five months in a rehabilitation facility and has regained some of her speaking […]
Massey Energy’s Upper Big Branch Mine was, as an independent investigation team documented in the report released last month, a dangerous place to work. In the immediate aftermath of the massive explosion on April 5, 2010, which killed 29 miners, it was also a dangerous place for rescue operations. A scathing editorial in the Charleston […]
When I decided yesterday to watch the Republican candidates debate, I created a scorecard to use while I observed the two-hour event. I was interested particularly in exchanges related to public health topics, such as access to health care, and clean air and safe drinking water. Within minutes of first tuning in, I remembered how […]