The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors took preliminary steps Tuesday that could lead to a countywide ban on artificial-stone countertops, the source of an epidemic that is killing workers who fabricate the products.
Posted inMental Health
Texas Legislators Boosted Alzheimer’s Program Funding. It’s Not Enough.
Texas lawmakers set aside $14.2 million for the 2024-2025 biennium to help victims of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, a $4.2 million increase over the current two-year budget. Advocates for the state’s 400,000 dementia patients say it’s not enough.
Posted inEnvironment
Texas Lawmakers Raised Pollution Fines for the First Time in More Than a Decade. But Regulatory Concerns Remain
The Texas Legislature raised the maximum daily fine for polluters from $25,000 to $40,000. But it also gave environmental regulators more latitude to avoid investigating citizen complaints.
Posted inThe Watch
June 1, 2023
Racism and bloodstream infections in kids, missed deadlines in Flint and more.
Posted inThe Watch
May 25, 2023
Millions of years of life lost by Black Americans, the influence of heat waves on COVID-19 transmission, and more.
Posted inEnvironment
As Wildfire Smoke Worsens Public Health, Government Watchdog Calls EPA Response ‘Ad Hoc’
Auditors say the EPA’s response to wildfire smoke is “poorly resourced and muddled by a lack of coordination with other agencies.”
Posted inCommentary
Misplaced Priorities in Texas
The Texas Legislature is wrapping up another session without addressing the state’s high rate of residents without health insurance. For a physician, meeting these patients’ needs can be impossible.
Posted inThe Watch
May 18, 2023
Racial disparities in opioid-use medications; the number of Americans living in counties with “persistent poverty,” and more.
Posted inThe Holdouts
Packed East Texas Safety-Net Clinic Finally Gets Federal Lifeline
Thousands of uninsured and underinsured residents of Henderson County depend on the clinic
for care.
Posted inEnvironment
Latest Chemical Plant Fire Unnerves, Infuriates Houston-Area Residents
A recent investigation by Public Health Watch and The Texas Tribune revealed government negligence before and during a devastating 2019 fire at a tank farm in the Houston suburb of Deer Park. Earlier this month, a public hearing was held for that facility. The next day, another big fire broke out at a plant down the road.