Tobacco tax backers get boost from report

Tobacco tax backers get boost from report

Georgia health advocates are hoping a new report from the U.S. Surgeon General on youth tobacco use can kick-start their campaign to boost the state tax on cigarettes. The report, released this week, noted that while youth smoking dropped dramatically from 1997 to 2004, that decline has leveled off since. Nearly one in four high…

Commentary: Apathy and AIDS funding

Commentary: Apathy and AIDS funding

The number of people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide has reached 34 million. But despite the importance of developing a vaccine for the disease, research groups and small biopharma companies are finding challenges in obtaining the amount of funding required to conduct effective research and clinical trials. Robert McNally, CEO of GeoVax, an Atlanta-based company that…

Georgia’s war on a ‘really scary’ drug

Georgia’s war on a ‘really scary’ drug

William Blackie lost everything to meth. Blackie, who used to be an aircraft inspector, started smoking methamphetamine at age 25 after a friend introduced him to it. That one foolish mistake changed his life. He quickly became addicted to meth, smoking $1,200 to $1,500 worth per week. He started dealing the drug with a friend,…

Bill targets concussions in school sports

Bill targets concussions in school sports

Buddy Curry was a standout linebacker for the Atlanta Falcons in the 1980s, and he says it was a “badge of honor’’ to be the toughest player on the field. He had several injuries in his football career, including concussions. He recalls coming off the field in a daze, unsure of which sideline was his team’s….

State drug-testing bill would break new ground

State drug-testing bill would break new ground

Georgia could become the first state to require drug testing of Medicaid applicants, if a Senate bill becomes law. That’s according to a Department of Community Health official, who was asked by a state senator at a legislative hearing Monday whether other states have such a requirement. Senate Bill 292, sponsored by Sen. John Albers…

Fresh new ideas changing school menus

The lunchrooms of Statham Elementary and South Jackson Elementary dished up an unusual meal in late January: hamburgers made from grass-fed beef donated by local farmer Cyndi Ball. Cows in the Cafeteria is a new nonprofit organization that Ball established to bring local beef –- and a better understanding of healthy eating –- to Georgia…

Fructose consumption raises concern (video)

Fructose consumption raises concern (video)

If you check labels, you’ll often find fructose – or high-fructose corn syrup — as an ingredient in soft drinks and processed foods. But this powerful sweetener may pose a cardiovascular threat for young people. Recently, researchers at Georgia Health Sciences University found that adolescents with diets high in fructose may have an increased risk…

State responds on HIV drug waiting list

State responds on HIV drug waiting list

Georgia Health News published an article last week on the state’s waiting list for low-income people to receive government help in obtaining HIV medications. At the time, GHN attempted to get comment from Department of Public Health officials prior to the article’s publication, but the officials could not be reached. The agency has since responded…

Georgia tops nation in wait for HIV drug help

Georgia tops nation in wait for HIV drug help

Georgia has the longest waiting list in the nation for people with HIV to get government drug assistance. The number of people on the waiting list for the state’s AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) stood at 1,348 on Jan. 19. Florida’s waiting list is the second-longest at 1,109, according to figures compiled by the National…

State gets low marks in fighting tobacco

State gets low marks in fighting tobacco

Georgia has earned poor grades on a new tobacco prevention report card. The state received F’s in three categories — tobacco prevention funding, tobacco taxes and smoking cessation coverage — in the annual report from the American Lung Association, released Thursday. Georgia’s only passing grade was a C for state smoking restrictions, thanks to a…