Variety
Earth Day: How a senator's idea more than 50 years ago got people fighting for their planet
Millions of people around the world will pause on Monday, at least for a moment, to mark Earth Day. It's an annual event founded by people who hoped to stir activism to clean up and preserve a planet that is now home to some 8 billion humans and assorted trillions of other organisms.
Business
UK lawmakers back landmark bill to gradually phase out smoking for good
The British government's plan for a landmark smoking ban that aims to stop young people from ever smoking cleared its first hurdle in Parliament on Tuesday despite vocal opposition from within Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party.
Nation
Editorial Roundup: United States
Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad:
Nation
New York's high court hears case on abortion insurance coverage
New York's highest court took up a case Tuesday that seeks to throw out a regulation requiring health insurance policies to cover medically necessary abortions — a lawsuit that could jeopardize a similar state law.
Business
Coal miners have long faced risk of black lung disease. Now they're getting new protections
Coal miners will be better protected from poisonous silica dust that has contributed to the premature deaths of thousands of mine workers from a respiratory ailment commonly known as black lung disease, the Labor Department said Tuesday as it issued a new federal rule on miners' safety.
Nation
Biden administration announces new partnership with 50 countries to stifle future pandemics
President Joe Biden's administration will help 50 countries identify and respond to infectious diseases, with the goal of preventing pandemics like the COVID-19 outbreak that suddenly halted normal life around the globe in 2020.
Business
Wisconsin Republicans ignore governor's call to spend $125M to combat 'forever chemicals'
Wisconsin Republicans on Tuesday ignored the latest call from Democratic Gov. Tony Evers to spend $125 million to combat so-called forever chemicals, leading Evers to say he might sue over the issue.
Sports
Browns QB Deshaun Watson throwing full speed after shoulder surgery, timetable for return unknown
Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson said he's following a conservative plan as he recovers from major shoulder surgery, but that he's been able to throw at full speed.
Nation
Detective says daughter's boyfriend, disliked by Atlantic City mayor, recorded abuse in video call
Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small and his wife disapproved of their teenage daughter's boyfriend, who secretly recorded an incident of Small allegedly physically and verbally assaulting the girl over a video chat, prosecutors said in affidavit.
Business
Weedkiller manufacturer seeks lawmakers' help to squelch claims it failed to warn about cancer
Stung by paying billions of dollars for settlements and trials, chemical giant Bayer has been lobbying lawmakers in three states to pass bills providing it a legal shield from lawsuits that claim its popular weedkiller Roundup causes cancer.
Nation
Texas fined $100,000 per day for failing to act on foster care abuse allegations
A federal judge is fining Texas $100,000 per day for routinely neglecting to adequately investigate allegations of abuse and neglect raised by children in the state's struggling foster care system.
Nation
Indiana limits abortion data for privacy under near-total ban, but some GOP candidates push back
Indiana allows so few abortions that health officials stopped releasing individual reports to protect patient privacy — a move some Republicans are now fighting to reverse.
Nation
Paris Hilton backs California bill to bring more transparency to youth treatment facilities
Paris Hilton joined California state lawmakers Monday to push for legislation aimed at cracking down on the industry that cares for troubled teens by requiring more transparency from youth treatment facilities.
Business
New rules for Pregnant Workers Fairness Act include divisive accommodations for abortion
Workers are entitled to time off and other job accommodations for abortions — along with pregnancy-related medical conditions like miscarriage, stillbirth and lactation — under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, according to finalized federal regulations published Monday.
World
Abortion in Germany should be decriminalized during pregnancy's first 12 weeks, experts recommend
An independent commission reviewing abortion law in Germany recommended Monday that the procedure be made legal during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
Nation
Former Marine sentenced to 9 years in prison for firebombing California Planned Parenthood clinic
A former U.S. Marine was sentenced Monday to nine years in prison for firebombing a Southern California Planned Parenthood clinic in 2022, federal prosecutors prosecutors said.
Nation
Supreme Court allows Idaho to enforce its ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth
The Supreme Court is allowing Idaho to enforce its ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth while lawsuits over the law proceed, reversing lower courts.
Nation
Asbestos victim's dying words aired in wrongful death case against Buffet's railroad
Thomas Wells ran a half-marathon at age 60 and played recreational volleyball until he was 63. At 65 years old, doctors diagnosed him with mesothelioma, a rare and aggressive lung cancer linked to asbestos exposure.
Business
Vertex Pharma scientist talks about the long road to developing non-addictive painkillers
For decades, patients seeking medication for pain have had two choices: over-the-counter drugs like aspirin or powerful prescription opioids like oxycodone.
Variety
Only 26% of Americans say they get at least eight hours of sleep, new Gallup poll says
If you're feeling — YAWN — sleepy or tired while you read this and wish you could get some more shut-eye, you're not alone. A majority of Americans say they would feel better if they could have more sleep, according to a new poll.
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Health news
Latest news and features coverage of health care in Minnesota and elsewhere.
