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Three Alabama Maternity Units to Close |
Come November, two hospitals in Alabama will stop delivering babies, leaving Shelby and Monroe counties without any birthing hospitals. Pregnant women in Shelby County must travel 17 miles or more to reach a hospital with an OB-GYN, while Monroe County residents will face 35–100 mile trips. Another hospital in Birmingham will follow suit, leaving a predominantly Black neighborhood without maternity care. The situation is especially alarming considering a third of Alabama counties are already “maternity care deserts,” and the state has high maternal and infant mortality rates.
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US Nurse to Help Israel Wounded |
Most people use their paid time off to relax or travel, but not Heather Berken, a Milwaukee VA Medical Center nurse. Instead, Heather is heading to Israel to do whatever she can to help the wounded. Originally from Israel, where she still has family and friends, Heather couldn’t continue to sit by and watch people there suffer without lending aid. She said she would do whatever she could to help the wounded, even if that just meant cleaning out beds.
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Ending Conversion Therapy |
The US Supreme Court may soon have to weigh in on the dangerous practice of sexual or gender identity “conversion therapy” — again. The practice has long been discredited and is banned for minors in about half of US states. In a handful of cases in the last decade, SCOTUS left in place decisions by the 3rd and 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upholding New Jersey’s
and California’s conversion therapy bans. A licensed family counselor in Washington is now challenging that state’s ban, claiming it violates his free speech and religious rights. The 9th Circuit sided against him last year.
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TODAY'S TOP VITAL
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1.5 Million |
The number of emergency room visits for assault that occurred each year between 2019-2021.
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