FEMA cuts could leave nation more vulnerable to disasters
The recent loss of hundreds of workers at the Federal Emergency Management Agency will leave the nation unprepared for disasters, watchdogs warn.
The agency is one of many to recently come under the ax of the Trump administration, which has been working aggressively to cut both federal staff and funding. At least 200 FEMA workers have lost their jobs so far, and staff who work to boost community resiliency may be next, CNN reported.
The actions leave “the entire country more vulnerable to the effects of disasters,” according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. Cutting staff will reduce FEMA’s ability to manage disasters and slow response time, the organization predicted. FEMA also plays an important role in distributing disaster relief funding, including payment for community cleanup and infrastructure repairs, which could be impeded.
The reductions in FEMA’s workforce come as the agency responds to nearly 100 major disasters and nine emergency declarations, including fires in Texas, mudslides in West Virginia, storm damage in Kentucky and flooding in multiple states. Six declaration requests were in process as of March 5, including one from Virginia related to severe winter storms that recently hit the state.
As natural disasters in the U.S. have become more frequent in recent years, they have severely strained FEMA and its workforce, according to a Feb. 25 report from the Government Accountability Office. Rather than cutting back on staff, GAO recommended strengthening FEMA’s disaster workforce and capacity and investing in resilience.
Costs, transportation are barriers to care for Texans
High costs are forcing many Texans to skip or postpone their health care, a new poll finds.
About two-thirds of Texans missed screenings, checkups, prescriptions and other needed care in the past year because of cost, according to the Episcopal Health Foundation poll.
Conducted last year in November and December, the poll found that about 41% of Texas residents had difficulty paying medical bills, a nearly 8% increase since 2018. Hispanic residents were about twice as likely as Black or white residents to have trouble affording their bills.
While nearly half of Texans overall said it was difficult for them to pay for health care, responses varied by age and income. About 61% of low-income residents said they struggled to afford health care, while only 27% of high-income people did. By age, about half of younger Texans had trouble paying for care, compared to only a third of people over 65.
Access to public transportation was also cited as a barrier to care, particularly for rural residents. About 35% of Texans said they had difficulty reaching facilities such as hospitals, clinics and pharmacies because of transportation issues.
Poll-takers named obesity, mental health issues, diabetes and opioids misuse as some of the state’s major health problems. About 11% of adults in Texas have been diagnosed with diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. Most people in the U.S. with Type 2 diabetes also have overweight or obesity.
Obesity and diabetes contribute to higher health care costs, according to Ann Barnes, president and CEO of Episcopal Health Foundation. She called for prioritizing diabetes screenings, expanding preventive care, improving healthy food options and creating safe places for physical activity.
Exposures to smoke, chemicals may trigger genetic changes in firefighters
Firefighters exposed to burning materials can experience biological changes in their bodies, which may contribute to their higher risk of cancer, according to a new study in Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis.
Researchers with the University of Michigan examined blood samples from firefighters who had fought fires in what they called an “wildland-urban interface” — an area where developed and undeveloped land meet. Firefighters deployed to such areas are exposed to a range of chemical-laden emissions from burning vegetation, vehicles, structures and infrastructure, often for long periods.
When compared to other firefighters, workers who’d fought fires in the interface areas were more likely to show genetic changes in their bodies, the study found. Researchers detected changes in microRNAs — small molecules used within cells — that play a role in tumor suppression, immune function and inflammation.
Previous research has found firefighters have a higher risk of developing cancers such as mesothelioma and bladder cancer. A 2013 study led by researchers at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health found firefighters are 9% more likely to be diagnosed with cancer and 14% more likely to die from it than people in the general population.
Other recent public health news of note:
• Health experts are advising parents to stay away from “measles parties,” which are gatherings that deliberately expose children to the measles virus. As the number of measles cases in Texas continue to grow — with 159 reported cases and one death as of March 4 — the state’s Department of State Health Services warned that exposing kids to measles in any setting puts both children and the people they come into contact with at risk. While some people believe exposure to the virus can beef up immunity, it could instead lead to severe illness, hospitalization and death. Vaccination remains the safest way to protect against measles, the department stressed.
• Female physicians in the U.S. have a 53% higher suicide risk compared to women who are not physicians, according to new findings in JAMA Psychiatry. The finding did not hold true for male doctors, who had a lower suicide risk than nonphysicians. Compared to the general public, physicians of either sex who died by suicide were 35% more likely to have experienced depressed mood, 66% more likely to have had other mental health issues and 40% more likely to have experienced legal problems.
• How long people are displaced after a disaster varies by state, reports new research in Risk Analysis. Households in Minnesota, North Dakota and Connecticut were likelier to take more than a month to return home after floods, wildfires, earthquakes and other disasters. Households in Louisiana and Florida were about 6.8 and 4.4 times more likely to be displaced, respectively, compared to the national average.
• Synthetic braiding hair, often used by Black women, can contain potentially dangerous chemicals, an investigation by Consumer Reports finds. Researchers tested 10 popular synthetic braiding hair products, finding known or probable carcinogens in all of them. Three of the products contained benzene, a chemical linked to acute myeloid leukemia, while nine contained lead.
• Controlled-release agricultural fertilizers leave microplastics behind when their polymer coatings break down in the soil, a new study in the Journal of Hazardous Materials shows. Another study, to be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 77th Annual Meeting in April, finds that people who live in coastal areas may be at higher risk of disability from marine microplastics, which can wash ashore in high volumes.
• Extreme heat may speed up aging at the molecular level in older adults, University of Southern California researchers report in Science Advances.
• Alternatives are available for many “forever chemicals,” says a study in Environmental Science & Technology. Researchers identified 300 industrial and consumer applications of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — including pharmaceuticals, cookware and clothing — and 530 alternatives that perform similar functions. The list of alternatives is available in an online database.
The Watch is written by Michele Late, who has more than two decades of experience as a public health journalist.