December 22, 2005 - Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch has announced a series of legislative proposals to help Minnesotans guard against identity theft. The so-called 2006 Consumer Privacy Protection Package aims to close loopholes in the state's privacy laws. The measures seek to protect telephone and cell phone records and also allows Minnesota consumers to freeze access to their credit information. Minnesota Public Radio's Greta Cunningham has more.
January 11, 2006 - One of Minnesota's largest medical groups has announced it will lay-off a quarter of its mental health workers. HealthPartners plans to stop providing mental health therapy at its University Avenue clinic in Minneapolis, eliminating the jobs of 13 therapists in the process. Other major healthcare providers have made similar cuts in mental health treatment in recent years. The HealthPartners announcement also comes on the heels of a disturbing case in which a mentally-ill man killed his step-mother. The family says they had sought care for the man at Fairview Southdale Hospital but were advised to go to another hospital because there were no beds available. Our regular medical analyst Dr. Jon Hallberg says great strides have been made in the field of mental health treatments, but providers still don't give it the attention it deserves.
February 1, 2006 - The skyrocketing costs of health care have been in the national spotlight a lot lately, but President Bush spent little time on the issue in his state of the union address last night. News reports leading up to the speech suggested the president would spotlight Health Savings Accounts or HSA's. They're tax free savings plans that accompany high deductible health care policies. Bush has trumpeted their merits in the past. But he only brushed over HSA's in his speech last night. And that left experts and business owners wanting more. Minnesota Public Radio's Annie Baxter has a closer look.
February 7, 2006 - MPR’s Stephanie Hemphill reports that a team of researchers has been trying to track down possible sources of the bacteria on the beaches of lake Superior in Duluth. What they've found so far is surprising, and it raises a big question about the standard way of testing for beach contamination.
February 14, 2006 - Governor Pawlenty and the federal government have reached an agreement to ensure that low income Minnesota seniors continue to get their medicine in the coming weeks. Disarray in the new medicare prescription drug program left many seniors unable to pay for their medicine in the program's first days. The governor issued an emergency executive order authorizing state payments for medicine but it was set to expire on Friday night. Pawlenty says the state has now applied for a federal government waiver to ensure those payments continue. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.
March 3, 2006 - MPR’s Tom Scheck reports on first U.S. Senate debate. Taxes, health care and national security were among the key issues addressed by three candidates running for Minnesota's open U.S. Senate seat. The seat has been viewed as one of the more competitive seats in the nation ever since Mark Dayton announced his decision not to run for reelection. Republican Mark Kennedy and DFLers Amy Klobuchar and Ford Bell all hope to replace the DFL incumbent and put their differences on display in the debate sponsored by the North Metro Chamber of Commerce.
March 6, 2006 - Former Minnesota Twins star, Kirby Puckett, remains in critical condition in a Phoenix, Arizona hospital after suffering what is being called a massive stroke. 45-year-old Puckett underwent surgery the day prior to relieve pressure due to bleeding in his brain. Dr. David Anderson, head of Neurology at the University of Minnesota, provides some background on strokes.
March 7, 2006 - With the unexpected death of former Twins player Kirby Puckett just shy of his 46th birthday, MPR’s regular medical analyst Dr. Jon Hallberg talks about the suddenness and severity of Puckett’s fatal stroke and underscores how serious this health condition can be.
March 9, 2006 - Governor Tim Pawlenty touted the accomplishments of his first term in his State of the State address today (Thursday). In what sounded like a test of possible themes for a reelection campaign, Pawlenty said he's completed the biggest financial turnaround in state history. The governor also said the state has regained its status as an education leader. He outlined a handful of new proposals, which Democrats dismissed as pilot programs and slogans. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports.
March 22, 2006 - Dr. Jon Hallberg, a team physician for the Minnesota Twins, describes various off the field issues in the MLB, including steroid use. Hallberg also details squad’s health at spring training in Fort Myers.