(KCPW News) Beginning next week, new smoking bans will take effect across the state. More than 150 publicly-funded substance abuse and mental heath facilities are going smoke-free as part of a new initiative. KCPW’s Jessica Gail reports on why researchers say the new restrictions will help patients overcome other addictions.
Updated survey methods used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Utah Department of Health indicate higher numbers of Utah adults either don’t have health insurance or smoke. Michael Friedrichs with Utah’s Bureau of Health Promotion says the survey now includes cell phone users, not just landlines, giving a more accurate picture of the population than before.
Could teaching teens about dating violence actually lead them to be more aggressive? Studies say in certain cases, yes. Now, the Rape Recovery Center in Salt Lake City wants to help solve that problem. KCPW’s Jessica Gail explains how they’re working with youth to reverse the trend.
Freshman Utah Senator Mike Lee joined other Republicans on the Senate floor this morning, accusing Democrats of trying to influence the U.S. Supreme Court’s pending decision on the 2010 health care reform law. Lee called it “false” and “reckless” to suggest that striking down the law’s health insurance mandate would amount to judicial activism.
Two adult Utahns have died in the past month from Hantavirus infection, which leads to a deadly lung disease. And that comes as a surprise to the Utah Department of Health. Epidemiologist JoDee Baker says Utah typically only sees one Hantavirus case per year, and the fatality rate is about 32 percent.
State lawmakers once again rolled up their sleeves this morning at the state capitol to discuss how Utah will approach the implementation of the federal health care overhaul, assuming it’s upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. As KCPW’s Whittney Evans reports, officials say there are still a lot of questions and very few answers.
Utahns who are packing on the pounds will cost the state billions of additional dollars in health care over the next few years if obesity trends continue, according to a new study by the Utah Department of Health. The report says if the rate doesn’t stabilize, Utah’s obesity related health care expenses will be about $2.4 billion by 2018, a nearly $2 billion dollar increase.
Care for patients suffering from HIV has come a long way over the past 30 years. Wednesday, the Utah AIDS foundation honored four Utahns who helped make that happen at its “Pioneers in HIV” celebration. KCPW’s Jessica Gail introduces us to those at the forefront of HIV care in Utah.
Two community health centers in Utah were awarded federal grants today as part of the health care reform law to help expand their facilities, create jobs and serve more patients. As KCPW’s Whittney Evans reports, one facility in Salt Lake City will now be able to provide much needed dental care and substance abuse services to the homeless.
The Utah Department of Health has sent letters to nearly everyone who had their social security number stolen by hackers earlier this month in a massive Medicaid breach. Spokesman Tom Hudachko says 275,000 of the 280,000 people with stolen social security numbers have been informed, and the department is now working to identify those who had less-sensitive information compromised.
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