January 8, 2009 - MPR’s Tom Crann interviews R.T. Rybak, Mayor of Minneapolis about President-elect Obama economic speech. In his speech today, President-elect Obama also recognized the budget problems local governments are facing these days. Here in Minnesota, the Governor and the legislature are working to close a 4.8-billion-dollar budget shortfall. And, that has meant less aid money for cities and counties. The president-elect tried to offer local leaders some words of hope.
March 4, 2009 - Healthcare is one of the fastest-growing costs for Minnesota government. Governor Tim Pawlenty says it's critical to slow the growth in healthcare spending. He wants to reduce the cost of Minnesota Care, the state-funded insurance program. He's also proposing cuts to medicaid reimbursements. This week, Minnesota Public Radio is exploring the effects of the state budget crisis from the perspective of one community, Fergus Falls. It's the largest city in Otter Tail County. This is the latest installment in our series, "The State Budget in Your Backyard." As Dan Gunderson reports, balancing the state budget could mean big changes for the people covered by Minnesota Care and the hospitals that treat them.
March 12, 2009 - MPR’s Lorna Benson reports on Minnesota's sudden infant deaths, and how investigators are now learning that unsafe sleeping arrangements are fairly common with these deaths.
May 18, 2009 - Minnesota's safety net hospitals are sifting through their options after Governor Pawlenty eliminated public insurance coverage for up to 35,000 of the state's poorest adults to balance the budget. The cuts don't take effect until the middle of 2010. But hospitals say they will have to start making some tough decisions now to make up for the expected *reductions*. Minnesota Public Radio's Lorna Benson reports. {
June 18, 2009 - MPR medical commentator Dr. Jon Hallberg stops by Midday to discuss medical and health issues currently in the news. Hallberg is a family practice physician at Mill City Clinic, and assistant professor of family medicine at University of Minnesota. Topics include health care law and quality care.
June 19, 2009 - Congressional Democrats stumbled out of the starting blocks unveiling their healthcare reform bills today. They're struggling to find ways to pay for insuring the nation's uninsured. The House bill would create a federal plan to compete with private insurers. The Senate's proposal would create non-profit insurance co-ops that provide coverage. But, an advocacy group representing 14-thousand doctors says a "single payer" health insurance program would cover every American without adding costs.
July 7, 2009 - MPR’s Elizabeth Stawicki profiles a woman who shares a lifetime of domestic abuse. It’s a story that is seldom spoken about.
July 23, 2009 - All Things Considered’s Tom Crann talks with Democratic U.S. Representative Tim Walz, of Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District, about his and Mayo Clinic’s push for Medicare reform in health bill.
August 5, 2009 - MPR’s Lorna Benson profiles a special little black dog named Batman. 2009 marks the one year anniversary of cancer treatment, a major milestone for the dog and University of Minnesota's College of Veterinary Medicine. In 2008, University researchers began an experimental procedure to save Batman from an aggressive brain tumor that threatened to kill him within a month.
August 19, 2009 - On this Midday program, MPR’s Gary Eichten talks with U.S. Representative Tim Walz, who represents Minnesota's 1st Congressional District. Walz is holding a town meeting on health care reform in Mankato. In advance of that meeting, he joins Midday to talk about healthcare reform and other issues facing Congress.