One in seven Americans is living in poverty, the highest number in the half-century that the government has kept such statistics, the Census Bureau announced Thursday. Last year was the third consecutive year that the poverty rate climbed, in part because of the recession, rising from 13.2 percent in 2008 to 14.3 percent, or 43.6 million people, last year.
Asians were the only ethnic group whose poverty rate did not change substantially; every other race and Hispanics experienced increases in poverty rates.
One in seven Americans is living in poverty, Census shows
'Our situation worsens every day': Palestinians in the West Bank's Dheisheh refugee camp
A second round of direct talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority are taking place under the auspices of Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. Washington says it hopes the talks will lead to an agreement within a year.
Al Jazeera asked Palestinians living in the West Bank's Dheisheh refugee camp how they think the negotiations will impact them.
South Carolina GOP lawmaker McConnell defends picture with 'slave' re-enactors
Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell says a picture circulating on the Internet of him dressed in a Civil War-era military uniform alongside two African-Americans outfitted in period costumes was an innocent moment among friends — nothing more.
The picture, taken during a Republican women's conference in Charleston last week, however, has managed to capture national media attention. Some think the image callously evokes the state's slave-holding past.
Vitamin D proven far better than vaccines at preventing influenza infections
A clinical trial led by Mitsuyoshi Urashima and conducted by the Division of Molecular Epidemiology in the the Department of Pediatrics at the Jikei University School of Medicine Minato-ku in Tokyo found that vitamin D was extremely effective at halting influenza infections in children. The trial appears in the March, 2010 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (Am J Clin Nutr (March 10, 2010). doi:10.3945/ajcn.2009.29094)
This means vitamin D appears to be 800% more effective than vaccines at preventing influenza infections in children.
Consumer Reports Health Helps Consumers Prepare for Rollout of Consumer Protections Under Health Reform
Free Guide Explains New Options Available To Consumers; Interprets the Fine Print.
To help consumers prepare for the September 23rd rollout of the first major marketplace reforms under the new health reform law, Consumer Reports Health is providing a free online guide at http://www.consumerreports.org/ on September 16th at 6 am Eastern.
"There are many meaningful reforms here that, while not perfect, will help millions of consumers get a fairer shake when they buy and use health insurance," said Jim Guest, president and CEO of Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports.
Israeli art student activity reported at federal officials' homes
On the eve of the 9/11 anniversary and in an eerie repeat of Israeli “art student” activity a year and a half prior to the 9/11 attack at the offices and homes of federal government, U.S. military, and even federal judges, WMR has been informed of an increase in similar renewed activity at the homes of current and former federal officials.
Family to Receive $1.5M+ in First-Ever Vaccine-Autism Court Award
Hannah was described as normal, happy and precocious in her first 18 months.
Then, in July 2000, she was vaccinated against nine diseases in one doctor's visit: measles, mumps, rubella, polio, varicella, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, and Haemophilus influenzae.
Afterward, her health declined rapidly. She developed high fevers, stopped eating, didn't respond when spoken to, began showing signs of autism, and began having screaming fits. In 2002, Hannah's parents filed an autism claim in federal vaccine court. Five years later, the government settled the case before trial and had it sealed. It's taken more than two years for both sides to agree on how much Hannah will be compensated for her injuries.
U.S. Meat Farmers Brace for Limits on Antibiotics
Dispensing antibiotics to healthy animals is routine on the large, concentrated farms that now dominate American agriculture. But the practice is increasingly condemned by medical experts who say it contributes to a growing scourge of modern medicine: the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, including dangerous E. coli strains that account for millions of bladder infections each year, as well as resistant types of salmonella and other microbes.
Now, after decades of debate, the Food and Drug Administration appears poised to issue its strongest guidelines on animal antibiotics yet, intended to reduce what it calls a clear risk to human health. They would end farm uses of the drugs simply to promote faster animal growth and call for tighter oversight by veterinarians.
Israeli High Court: Tax benefits inequitable, discriminate against Arabs
The High Court of Justice on Wednesday ruled that the state's issue of tax benefits to Israeli citizens based on their place of residence was inequitable and discriminated against certain sectors of society, particularly Arabs.
Supreme Court president Dorit Beinisch, Justice Eliezer Rivlin and Justice Asher Grunis questioned the legality of these benefits, as no Arab community has been included as a recipient of the benefits. "The government and the Knesset systematically refrained from resolving this issue, contrary to the position of the attorney general," the judges wrote in their decision.
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