Healthcare
UPDATED U.S. Supreme Court overturns right to abortion in landmark decision
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that established abortion as a constitutional right. The decision by six of the Court’s nine justices will allow each state to set its own abortion laws, leading to a patchwork of access throughout the country. The result is expected to […]
Access to abortion for members of the military expanded in Pentagon spending bill
WASHINGTON — Democrats in Congress are pushing to increase access to abortion for members of the military, concerned a U.S. Supreme Court decision that could end the constitutional right will harm troops. The U.S. House’s annual funding bill for the Defense Department would require the Pentagon to provide leave to troops and civilian employees seeking […]
A post-Roe Tennessee threatens patients and hamstrings physicians
The days of safe and legal abortion are limited in Tennessee. Our state has a “trigger ban” on abortion, scheduled to go into effect when the Supreme Court ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson becomes final and Roe v. Wade is overturned. When this happens, it means that emgergency physicians like me will no longer be […]
Tennessee Supreme Court hears arguments over Kingston coal ash illnesses in workers
With workers twice rejecting settlement offers and federal court judges shooting down multiple appeals, Jacobs Engineering Inc., on Wednesday turned to the Tennessee Supreme Court in an attempt to escape financial responsibility for its role in the alleged poisoning of the Kingston coal ash disaster workforce. Sickened Kingston disaster workers and survivors of workers who […]
CDC expects more monkeypox cases in the U.S.
WASHINGTON — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday it’s likely the United States will see additional cases of monkeypox in the coming weeks, but officials cautioned that it’s harder to transmit the virus than it is to spread respiratory illnesses like COVID-19. Monkeypox, which is also spreading throughout Europe, has an incubation […]
This rural, red Tennessee county was a vaccine success story. Not anymore.
MEIGS COUNTY, Tenn. — At a glance, it seemed like a Southern pandemic success story in a most unlikely place. A small county northeast of Chattanooga, along the twisting banks of Chickamauga Lake, for much of the past year has reported the highest covid-19 vaccination rate in Tennessee and one of the highest in the […]
6th Circuit shoots down immunity for TVA coal ash spill contractor Jacobs Engineering
A federal appellate court on Wednesday struck down a last-ditch appeal by a Tennessee Valley Authority contractor accused in the mass poisoning by radioactive coal ash waste of the utility’s Kingston disaster workforce. The 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled Jacobs Engineering Inc. cannot ride the coattails of TVA governmental immunity because TVA itself […]
Food City seeks to spread blame in opioid lawsuit brought by Tennessee Attorney General
When a Bearden homeowners association blew the whistle on the high levels of opiates a Food City grocery store pharmacy was shelling out to pill mill patients, the company’s chief executive officer called it a lie. When a Knoxville weekly newsmagazine reported the Westwood Homeowners Association’s claims and exposed a slew of opiate-related crimes in […]
Abortion rights supporters rally in downtown Nashville
On Saturday, thousands of abortion-rights protesters marched through downtown Nashville, part of coordinated national “Bans off our Bodies” organizing effort to hold rallies in support of Roe v. Wade. A diverse and multigenerational crowd of roughly 500 people met at the Legislative Plaza and listened intently to organizers speaking about a potential future where abortion […]
Delays in processing disability applications impose “significant hardships” in Tennessee
A longstanding backlog in the processing of disability benefits applications from people who are too sick to work has surpassed 1.1 million people nationally — a 27% increase from pre-pandemic levels two years ago and a level not seen in more than a decade. In Tennessee, the number of people waiting to see if their […]
Biden administration looks for ways to alleviate infant formula shortage
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration sought to assuage parents’ concerns over an ongoing infant formula shortage Thursday, though officials couldn’t offer a timeline for when store shelves would be fully stocked again. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the administration is working to “cut red tape,” increase imports of formula and broaden what types […]
McConnell doesn’t rule out U.S. Senate vote outlawing abortion if GOP takes control
WASHINGTON — Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell isn’t ruling out bringing a nationwide abortion ban up for a vote, should the U.S. Supreme Court end the constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy and his party regains the chamber in the November elections. The Kentucky Republican was somewhat reserved last week when repeatedly asked by reporters […]