The House voted 157-2 in favor of the medical cannabis bill, but not before amending it so the list of treatable illnesses was expanded to include sickle cell anemia. Read the full article: WABE
Month: February 2015
Thousands without power
Utility companies say more than 6,000 customers are without power in North Georgia after several inches of snow fell in the region. Read the full article: Athens Banner-Herald
Chatham: Partner benefits
The Chatham County Commission is set to vote again Friday on a proposal to extend insurance benefits to employees’ domestic partners. Read the full article: Savannah Morning News
Teen pregnancy programs: How Hall County is reaching out
“My life is over! How am I going to do this?” Crystal Gonzalez says those thoughts went through her mind when she found out at a routine sports physical that she was five months pregnant. Gonzalez, a 17-year-old sophomore at West Hall High School, delivered her son Feb. 11. Gonzalez’s baby was born with spina…
State of emergency issued
Gov. Nathan Deal is warning Georgians ahead of a winter storm that is expected to bring snow in metro Atlanta and even more in north Georgia. Read the full article: wsbtv.com
Ga. still high in uninsured
Nearly one in five people in Georgia still lack health insurance while other Southern states that expanded Medicaid saw dramatic improvement of uninsured rates. Read the full article: Augusta Chronicle
Atlanta: Sentencing set
The former payroll director for Grady, convicted of stealing more than $480,000 from the hospital, is scheduled for sentencing Wednesday in federal court. Read the full article: Atlanta Business Chronicle
Bill on cancer hospital takes immediate flak
The long-awaited “CTCA bill” has finally arrived – and Georgia’s hospital industry immediately pounced on it in opposition. Legislation that would end major regulatory restrictions on the Cancer Treatment Centers of America’s hospital in Newnan was introduced in the Georgia General Assembly on Tuesday. The lead sponsor is state Rep. Wendell Willard (R-Sandy Springs), chairman…
Commentary: Don’t let good workers go to waste
“Supported employment” is a key term in the developmental disabilities and mental health field. It helps match individuals to job opportunities in typical workplaces, letting them work alongside people without disabilities. In an new GHN Commentary, Kathy Keeley, executive director of All About Developmental Disabilities, urges state lawmakers to include more money for supported employment….
Shunning productive Georgia workers is bad for us all
For individuals with developmental disabilities, the typical choices after finishing high school — getting a job or going to college — are difficult to accomplish, if not impossible. There are thousands of Georgians with developmental disabilities, and the unemployment rate for this group is more than 85 percent. As the 2015 Georgia General Assembly begins…