Utah parents will soon have some help tracking their children’s development and learning about the warning signs of autism and other developmental disorders. The Utah Department of Health has launched a new campaign, dubbed Utah Act Early, to let parents know which developmental milestones should be reached during a child’s early years.
More Americans are living without health insurance. A new report released by the US Census Bureau shows nearly one million more Americans did not have any sort of health insurance coverage in 2010 compared to 2009. Utah Health Policy Project Executive Director Judy Hilman says it’s not surprising that nearly 50 million Americans don’t have health insurance because of the current to economic climate.
Hookah tobacco will not be banned in Utah’s bars and clubs after all… at least not for now. In an emergency meeting Tuesday, the legislature’s Administrative Rules Review Committee asked the state health department to hold off on its new changes to the Utah Clean Air Act, saying it didn’t have the authority to make them.
A new study finds certain racial groups and certain areas of the state are more prone to high infant mortality rates. Utah Department of Health Program Specialist April Young Bennett says the report pinpoints who has high infant mortality rates and where they are occurring.
The Salt Lake Valley Health Department will begin offering flu vaccines tomorrow at five locations. November through May is typically when people get the flu. Immunization Coordinator Sharon Moon says most people start getting their shots in October, but she says the Centers for Disease Control suggests getting them as early as August.
Four former federal cabinet secretaries came to Utah to learn more about what the state is doing to boost health and tour some of its facilities, like the Olympic Oval. And as KCPW’s Jessica Gail explains, they hope those ideas will soon be implemented on the federal level.
Governor Gary Herbert and state lawmakers made one more plea to the federal government today to grant Utah a federal waiver for reforming Medicaid. The request was submitted to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on July 1st. But as KCPW’s Whittney Evans reports, one stakeholder who had input in crafting the waiver proposal says it’s not ready for the federal stamp of approval.
Today NPR’s All Things Considered will launch a three-month long series of stories titled “Beginnings” which explores pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting practices around the world. One of the program’s hosts, Melissa Block, traveled to Mozambique in Africa to research the parenting culture there.
The number of unwanted guests crawling their way into Utah beds is reaching exponential numbers, according to the Salt Lake Valley Health Department, and now they want residents to talk about the bed bug problem. KCPW’s Jessica Gail talked with experts about why the blood-sucking bugs are a big problem, and what they’re urging people to do to help stop it.
The Utah Department of Health is putting a spotlight on health disparities in geography and income, in addition to its current focus on racial and ethnic minority health. In response to a Utah law passed this year, the Center for Multicultural Health has been replaced by the Office of Health Disparities Reduction, which broadens its mission.
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