public health

A stressed patient confers with a doctor.

Abortion-rights attorneys help patients and providers navigate legal chaos 

BY: - April 20, 2023

These days Kylee Sunderlin is often the first person people will talk to about needing or wanting to terminate a pregnancy, even though she’s not a nurse or doctor or a loved one. She’s a lawyer.  This is Sunderlin’s third year overseeing a national hotline dedicated to helping people navigate legal questions around abortion in […]

Amended proposal to increase some Arkansans’ food stamp asset limit goes to Sanders’ desk

BY: - April 4, 2023

Legislation meant to help some Arkansans save money while still receiving federal nutrition assistance is on Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ desk after clearing the state Legislature on Tuesday. Senate Bill 306 initially would have raised the resource limit to $12,500 for Arkansans to qualify for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly called food stamps. […]

Sen. Jonathan Dismang (R-Searcy) describes a bill he sponsors, Senate Bill 306, that would raise the asset limit for federal nutrition assistance in Arkansas on the Senate floor March 16, 2023. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate)

Arkansas Senate approves proposal to increase food stamp asset limit

BY: - March 16, 2023

A proposed increase of Arkansas’ asset ceiling for federal nutrition assistance passed the Senate on Thursday with bipartisan support. Senate Bill 306 initially would have raised the resource limit to $12,500 for Arkansans to qualify for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly called food stamps. The bill was amended to lower the proposal to […]

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks to Iowa Republicans on March 10, 2023, in Des Moines.

DeSantis, in Iowa, says GOP stance in culture wars will help win elections

BY: - March 12, 2023

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told Iowa Republicans Friday that standing strong in the culture wars around issues like education, criminal justice and health care in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic will help their party win elections. DeSantis, along with Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, spoke to more than 600 Iowans at the Iowa State Fairgrounds’ […]

Vice President Kamala Harris participated in a panel discussion on the climate crisis at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities west of Denver on March 6, 2023. Democratic U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen of Lakewood was also on the panel. (Screenshot from White House livestream)

Kamala Harris visits Colorado to highlight Biden administration’s climate action

BY: - March 7, 2023

Vice President Kamala Harris joined an audience of Colorado elected officials and other stakeholders in Arvada to talk about the Biden administration’s latest efforts to tackle climate change. In a panel discussion led by U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen of Lakewood as well as rock climber and environmental advocate Sasha DiGiulian of Boulder at the Arvada […]

Rep. Aaron Pilkington, Rep. Kendon Underwood

Arkansas panel votes down requiring paid maternity leave of employers that cover abortion costs

BY: - February 22, 2023

An Arkansas Senate committee voted down a proposed law that would have required companies that pay for employees to receive abortions in other states to also provide 12 weeks of paid maternity leave. Rep. Aaron Pilkington (R-Knoxville) said he introduced House Bill 1006 after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and left access […]

Workers attempt to move a damaged rail car at the site of train derailment that released hazardous chemicals into a town near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. (Photo courtesy of the Environmental Protection Agency)

Federal government to send medical experts to site of Ohio train derailment

BY: - February 17, 2023

WASHINGTON — The federal government is sending medical personnel and toxicologists to conduct public health testing following the derailment of a train carrying hazardous materials that released into a small town near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. A team from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be […]

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris seated at a table.

White House targets economic development in Central America to reduce migration

BY: - February 6, 2023

WASHINGTON — The White House Monday announced nearly $1 billion in investments to address economic causes of migration in several Central American countries, an effort being spurred by Vice President Kamala Harris.   Spread over several years, 10 private companies from Target to Nestlé are pledging $950 million to create economic development in Honduras, El Salvador […]

Arkansas proposes move to clear developmental disability waitlist, allow in-home family care

BY: - September 6, 2022

The state moved a step closer Tuesday to eliminating the waitlist for Arkansans with intellectual and developmental disabilities who want to receive care at home, particularly from those closest to them. The state House and Senate Committees on Public Health, Welfare, and Labor reviewed a rule on Tuesday that would allow parents and legal guardians […]

Phillips County (Arkansas) Courthouse (Getty Images)

UAMS partners with UCLA, Howard to improve health, longevity in impoverished areas

BY: - August 19, 2022

A UAMS project aimed at improving the health of medically underserved people in the Arkansas Delta is expanding its outreach in partnership with UCLA and Howard University researchers. Both the Arkansas project and the UCLA/Howard project seek to gather data on health needs and outcomes as well as provide information and resources to “historically marginalized […]