Lead In Michigan Town’s Water Supply Forces Switch To Bottles — Again
Meanwhile, residents in Newark, New Jersey, remain unconvinced lead levels are safe five years after high levels were found in 30 schools' water systems. Opioid settlement money in Louisiana, postpartum Medicaid benefits, black lung, school violence and more are also in the news.
CBS News:
Health Officials Advise Michigan Town To Use Bottled Water Amid What Local Activists Call A "Persistent" Lead Crisis
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHSS) on Wednesday recommended residents of Benton Harbor rely on bottled water instead of tap water as a precautionary measure while various agencies work to decrease the risk of lead exposure. Activist groups say lead in the city's drinking water has been a "persistent, widespread, and severe public health crisis" for at least the past three years. (Powell, 10/6)
ABC News:
Newark Residents Still Aren't Convinced Their Water Is Safe To Drink After Lead Water Crisis
Five years after high levels of lead were detected in the water of 30 public schools in Newark, New Jersey, the city faces a new challenge of convincing residents affected by the crisis that the water is now safe to drink. Newark resident Marcellis Counts said he grew up feeling neglected by the city and that's caused public distrust to run deeply. "The water is just a clear example of how things are able to be neglected," Counts said. "Many people already knew that a lot of our water was bad anyway. So I always grew up not even drinking from water fountains when I went to school and stuff like that. So it was like that distrust." (Abramoff, Schlosberg and Yamada, 10/6)
In other news from across the U.S. —
AP:
Louisiana Opioid Settlement Money To Go To Local Governments
Louisiana intends to divvy up the $325 million it expects to receive from a national settlement of opioid epidemic lawsuits to parish sheriffs and local governments to provide addiction treatment, response and recovery services, Attorney General Jeff Landry said Wednesday. The Republican attorney general announced he had reached an agreement in principal with organizations representing Louisiana’s sheriffs, police juries and municipalities that will govern how the money will be divided and spent. (Deslatte, 10/6)
North Carolina Health News:
Budget Could Extend Postpartum Medicaid Benefits
As budget negotiations drag on between the two chambers of the North Carolina General Assembly and the office of Gov. Roy Cooper, maternal health advocates are hoping a “game-changer” bill extending postpartum Medicaid will be included. A provision in the Senate budget, but not included in the budget created by the House of Representatives, would allow pregnant people with incomes at or below 196 percent of the federal poverty guidelines – about $34,800 for a family of two – to remain eligible for coverage for 12 months postpartum. (Thompson, 10/7)
Charleston Gazette-Mail:
Miner Advocates See Federal Black Lung Benefit Bill As First Step To Shoring Up Strained Disability Trust Fund
Mine worker advocates have welcomed a new legislative proposal to keep federal black lung disease benefit payments flowing to certain coal miners at current rates for another decade. But it’s only a temporary fix. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and four other Senate Democrats recently reintroduced legislation that would extend the tax on coal production that pays benefits to miners affected by black lung, their eligible survivors and dependents when no responsible coal operator is identified or when the liable operator does not pay. The Black Lung Disability Trust Fund that the tax supports, though, has not raised enough revenue to meet obligations throughout its 44-year existence, and its dim fiscal outlook has miner advocates pushing for permanent solutions. (Tony, 10/6)
The CT Mirror:
Survey: Pandemic Recovery Highlights Inequities In Connecticut
The coronavirus exacerbated the state’s existing economic and racial inequities, and pandemic recovery continues to be a tale of two Connecticuts as Black and Hispanic residents report lower rates of vaccination and higher rates of housing, food and economic insecurity, according to figures provided by DataHaven. The New Haven-based nonprofit research group conducted Community Well-Being Surveys in 2012, 2015, 2018, 2020 and 2021. This year, DataHaven gathered 5,145 responses from state residents between June and August. (Pananjady, 10/7)
Anchorage Daily News:
Anchorage Schools See Rise In Physical Altercations And Behavioral Issues, Superintendent Says
Anchorage schools this year are seeing a significant uptick in behavioral issues, including physical altercations and emotional outbursts, said Superintendent Deena Bishop.
Students this year have faced additional stress returning to classes and disrupting routines formed during the last year of distance learning, Bishop said. And some of the tension throughout the school district may also reflect a larger sense of division throughout the community, she said. “I want schools to be a respite from all that where they can go and just be kids and do school, but a lot of our emotions follow us,” Bishop said. (Williams, 10/6)