Aug 16 Health HIV Infection “Clusters” Put Focus On Harm Reduction Programs Health officials in Huntington, West Virginia, say a cluster of HIV infections has grown to 71 confirmed cases. That’s in a city that usually sees about eight HIV infections in a year. As with an earlier such cluster in northern Kentucky, officials say the primary cause of infection is needle drug use. Health officials say […] By Mary Meehan Aug 16 Health HIV Infection “Clusters” Put Focus On Harm Reduction Programs Mary Meehan
Jul 25 Agriculture How A Proposed SNAP Eligibility Revision Could Affect Ohio Valley Recipients The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced this week a proposal to tighten the rules on who qualifies for food stamps through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). USDA estimates more than three million people across the country would lose SNAP benefits in an effort to prevent fraud. Anti-hunger advocates in the Ohio Valley say the […] By Liam Niemeyer Jul 25 Agriculture How A Proposed SNAP Eligibility Revision Could Affect Ohio Valley Recipients Liam Niemeyer
Jul 24 Agriculture Power Plant: How A Grass Might Generate Fuel And Help Fix Damaged Mine Lands Down bumpy back roads deep in central West Virginia, a flat, bright green pasture opens up among the rolling hills of coffee-colored trees. Wildflowers and butterflies dot the pasture, but West Virginia University Professor Jeff Skousen is here for something else that stands above the rest of the Appalachian scenery – literally. Thick stalks of […] By Liam Niemeyer Jul 24 Agriculture Power Plant: How A Grass Might Generate Fuel And Help Fix Damaged Mine Lands Liam Niemeyer
Jul 18 Economy Living Wage: Ohio Valley Workers, Employers React As House Votes For $15 Minimum Wage The U.S. House of Representatives voted Thursday to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, more than double the current $7.25 rate, which has not changed in a decade. The bill is unlikely to clear the Republican-controlled Senate, where Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has said he will not take it […] By Becca Schimmel Jul 18 Economy Living Wage: Ohio Valley Workers, Employers React As House Votes For $15 Minimum Wage Becca Schimmel
Jul 17 Health New Data Show Opioid Deaths May Have Peaked, And Reveal Scale Of Past Pain Pill Sales Two newly released sets of government data show that the death toll from the nation’s opioid crisis may finally be dropping and also reveal the scale of the pain pill sales that help set the crisis in motion. The data for the Ohio Valley show how hard the region was hit and how hard people […] By Aaron Payne Jul 17 Health New Data Show Opioid Deaths May Have Peaked, And Reveal Scale Of Past Pain Pill Sales Aaron Payne
Jul 15 Economy “Death Spiral.” How A Carbon Tax Could End Some Coal Towns … Or Fund A New Future Declining coal tax revenues place coal-reliant counties in Appalachia at risk of fiscal collapse, according to new research from the centrist Brookings Institution and Columbia University. Policies designed to prevent further climate change would accelerate that decline, the report found, but could also provide a new stream of revenue to help communities rebound from coal’s […] By Sydney Boles Jul 15 Economy “Death Spiral.” How A Carbon Tax Could End Some Coal Towns … Or Fund A New Future Sydney Boles
Jul 9 Economy Minimum Wage Hike Would Have Major Effect In Ohio Valley A new report from the Congressional Budget Office shows increasing the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour would boost the wages of 17 million workers and lift about 1.3 million people out of poverty. But the CBO warns that could also result in more than one million lost jobs and could diminish overall income […] By Becca Schimmel Jul 9 Economy Minimum Wage Hike Would Have Major Effect In Ohio Valley Becca Schimmel
Jul 5 Agriculture Watershed Moment: “Ephemeral” Streams Debate Could Reshape Ohio Valley Waterways West Liberty University Professor Zachary Loughman has dedicated his professional life to crustaceans – specifically freshwater crayfish. He dips his hand into one of the water tanks at his laboratory near Wheeling, West Virginia, to pick up a teal crayfish the size of a dollar bill. “See the little guy dropping down? We caught mom […] By Liam Niemeyer Jul 5 Agriculture Watershed Moment: “Ephemeral” Streams Debate Could Reshape Ohio Valley Waterways Liam Niemeyer
Jul 3 Economy Judge Approves $5M Loan To Ailing Blackjewel Coal, But CEO Hoops Is Out Kentucky’s Attorney General said on Friday he is investigating complaints from miners who say they are not receiving pay following the fast-moving bankruptcy negotiations for Blackjewel mining, which employs some 1100 people in Central Appalachia. Attorney General Andy Beshear said in a statement he has received “numerous troubling complaints” related to the company, “ranging from […] By Brittany Patterson Jul 3 Economy Judge Approves $5M Loan To Ailing Blackjewel Coal, But CEO Hoops Is Out Brittany Patterson
Jul 1 Energy & Environment Major Appalachian Coal Company Files For Bankruptcy Protection In the latest sign of problems for the U.S. coal industry, one of the country’s largest coal producers has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. West Virginia-based Revelation Energy LLC and its recently-formed affiliate, Blackjewel LLC, began the bankruptcy reorganization process in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of West Virginia on Monday. […] By Brittany Patterson Jul 1 Energy & Environment Major Appalachian Coal Company Files For Bankruptcy Protection Brittany Patterson