January 26, 2011 - Excerpts of the Tea Party's response to President Obama's State of the Union address last night (Tuesday). Minnesota's 6th District Republican Congresswoman, Michele Bachmann, delivered her remarks on behalf of the Tea Party after the Republican Party's official response, delivered by Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan. Obama's policies and actions on taxes, the unemployment rate, gas prices and healthcare are mentioned.
January 27, 2011 - The leaders of seven large Minnesota health plans and hospital groups are floating a plan that would cut hundreds of millions of dollars from the state's Medicaid benefits, while boosting health care revenues from additional taxes on alcohol, tobacco and providers. The organizations say their idea could eliminate nearly a third of the state's $6.2 billion dollar budget shortfall. The proposal, called Minnesota's Healthcare Imperative, is already drawing fire from groups who would be affected by the suggested cuts and increased taxes. Lorna Benson reports.
February 8, 2011 - Tim Pawlenty has been touting the success of Minnesota's home-grown health reforms during his national book tour as he prepares for possible run for the presidency. The former Republican governor says the state has designed a good blueprint for reining-in costs, that the rest of the nation should follow. While it's true that Minnesota has been experimenting with new ways of paying for care, some health care observers believe it's a stretch to say that Minnesota's experiments have had much of an effect on costs at this point. We picked out two of Pawlenty's Minnesota reform claims and examined them.
February 11, 2011 - Learning you have breast cancer is never easy, but for members of the deaf community, the diagnosis can be particularly isolating. Now a group of Minnesota film makers are trying to change that with a documentary called "Signing On." The film will be previewed this weekend in St. Paul, but Euan Kerr reports the film is already attracting attention internationally in the deaf community.
February 23, 2011 - MPR’s Tim Post profiles Monte Bute, a sociology professor at Metropolitan State University in St. Paul. Bute is sharing one of the toughest struggles imaginable with his students…his battle with terminal cancer.
February 25, 2011 - It's no secret the Republicans think President Obama is vulnerable in next year's election. They think he overreached on the healthcare overhaul, the economy is still sluggish and they're confident voters agree with them that the federal government spends too much. A lot of possible contenders are acting like candidates, including former Governor Tim Pawlenty and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann. But so far, no high profile Republicans have announced they're running, and some analysts say the party is having an unusually difficult time getting behind a candidate. Mark Zdechlik reports.
February 28, 2011 - As part of MPR’s Youth Radio Series, Valencia McMurray revisits an incident that happened in her family... and has kept a hold on her family 14 years later. McMurray saw the affects of domestic violence firsthand as a six-year-old when her father stabbed her mother.
June 7, 2011 - Can we end hunger in Minnesota? Hunger-Free Minnesota launches a three-year effort to provide 100 million more meals a year for hungry adults and children in Minnesota. How can an initiative like this work? What's needed to make it successful? Guests Rob Zeaske and Robbin Johnson discuss project.
August 16, 2011 - As State Senator Linda Berglin steps after a 39-year career in the Minnesota House and Senate, she stops by the Midday studio to reflect on her career and on Minnesota's health care system. Berglin’s legislative specialty was health care, and she moves to a new public policy job at Hennepin County.
October 4, 2011 - MPR’s Julie Siple reports on the fight against hunger on the White Earth Reservation. Tribal officials estimate up to 50 percent of American Indians on the reservation live below the poverty line. For some, ensuring there is enough healthy food to feed themselves and their families is a problem. There is a growing effort to return to traditional foods to help alleviate hunger and improve the health of people on the reservation while reconnecting them with a diet that served their ancestors.