July 3, 2000 - The Kenyan-Community-Abroad International Conference wrapped up today at Concordia University in St. Paul. The conference tackled two issues... the current political climate in Kenya and the country's growing AIDS crisis. HIV or full-blown AIDS infects almost 14 percent of the adult Kenyan population... one of the highest rates in Sub-Saharan Africa. Dr. Moses Djenga helped organize the conference. He stresses that it's hard to underestimate the affect the AIDS virus has had on Kenya:
July 4, 2000 - The Fourth of July means fireworks, parades, and - in an election year - politicians. Minnesota candidates worked the crowds at parades around the state today . Many of them could be seen at one of the state's biggest parades in Forest Lake. The primary is ten weeks from today, and although voters may not be paying attention yet, that's not stopping the candidates in Minnesota's U-S Senate race. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports...
July 4, 2000 - The Independence Day holiday is the beginning of peak swimming season in Minnesota. But already a number of drownings have occurred. In the past two weeks, a 25-year-old St. Paul man drowned in Lake Phalen when he tried to retrieve a frisbee, a 23-year-old man drowned in Carver County's Lake Ann, a woman in her 40s was found submerged in a lagoon on Minneapolis' Lake of the Isles and a 14-year-old boy drowned when he tried to swim across the St. Croix River. Barb Pierce is a Water Safety Specialist with the Minneapolis Red Cross. She thinks the weather has played a role in the drownings.
July 7, 2000 - A federal judge has dismissed Minnesota's lawsuit over disparities in Medicare reimbursement. Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch and the Minnesota Senior Federation sued the federal government, arguing that the formula used to pay HMO's to provide Medicare is unconstitutional, because it results in seniors in some states paying higher premiums and getting fewer benefits than seniors in more populous states. But the judge ruled the formula is a matter for Congress, not the courts, to resolve. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports...
July 10, 2000 - Congress debates a bill today that will address how to pay for treating the growing numbers of veterans with Hepatitis C. The Centers for Disease Control says Hepatitus C afflicts 2 percent of the American population. But the incidence of Hepatitus C among veterans is at least two times higher. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports...
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July 11, 2000 - In its 15 years, the Center for Victims of Torture in Minneapolis has become a vital part of the internationa campaign for human rights. Where it once solely treated torture victims, it now does research, training, and advocates public policy. Minnesota Public Radio's Patty Marsicano reports.
July 12, 2000 - Minnesota has long been known for its concentration of medical device and food companies. Now a number of local entrepreneurs are building a cluster of new biotechnology businesses. Several companies have sprung up around the University of Minnesota to profit from new breakthroughs in genetics. Commercial breakthroughs could help assuage critics who say the U has lagged behind in capitalizing on technological developments. But biotechis new to Minnesota, and some fear the state lacks what entrepreneurs need to thrive. Minnesota Public Radio's Andrew Haeg reports.
July 12, 2000 - Saying AIDS is the Number one problem facing the world, United Nations ambassador, Richard Holbrooke, said today the U.N. Security Council will soon approve a resolution to intensify the international battle against the disease. In Minnesota, more than 3600 people have contracted AIDS since it was first discovered in the state some 20 years ago. Another 2700 have H-I-V, the virus that causes AIDS. Dr. Keith Henry directs the H-I-V clinic at Regions Hospital in St. Paul. He says advances in the treatment of H-I-V and AIDS make it harder to track infection rates:
July 13, 2000 - The strike at the Pepsi bottling plant in Burnsville has entered its second month, and there's no end in sight. About 450 workers who bottle and deliver Pepsi products in the Twin Cities area walked off the job in mid-June. They say the company's last offer fell short on several issues, including retirement and health care benefits. Kelly McAndrew is a spokewoman at Pepsi Bottling Group's headquarters in New York. She's on the line now.