Many Questions Remain After Judges Order USDA to Fund SNAP During Shutdown
At the eleventh hour on Friday, October 31, two New England federal judges ruled that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) must use billions of dollars in emergency funds to partially cover Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for 42 million Americans living in every county in the nation.
At Health Commission summit, housing, economic stability are key to addressing mental health
When the Boston Public Health Commission hosted its mental health summit at Northeastern University on Oct. 21, the event drew mental health researchers and clinicians. It also brought together housing officials, economic development advocates and community members focused on decreasing inequity across the board.
Street vendors are struggling with rising temperatures
When a person is exposed to extreme heat, their body increases blood flow to the skin as it desperately tries to cool down. This attempt to cool creates more strain on internal organs and, if exposure is prolonged, serious organ failure is a possible outcome.
“The effects are particularly severe on the brain, although organs such as the heart and kidneys are where we have recorded chronic failures,” says Jonathan Lee, a researcher in environmental health who works on heat at Boston University in the United States.
A tiny device is identifying invisible health hazards in Boston schools
The district has deployed a first-of-its-kind network of indoor air pollution sensors that guide efforts to improve air quality — a move that research suggests could boost grades and cut down on sick days. The pandemic put a spotlight on indoor air quality and its role in preventing the spread of viruses. Schools across the country upgraded their HVAC systems, propped open windows, and installed air filters to reduce transmission.
BU faculty uncover what is little known about the production and destruction of solar technology
Dunlap, a Boston University postdoctoral research scientist, and Sovacool, a BU earth and environment professor, titled their project “Transformational Energy Justice Across the Supply Chain,” which aimed to explore the hidden impacts of the solar energy industry, Sovacool said.
As Medicaid Cuts Loom, Here’s What’s at Stake for Families
The story of Medicaid and its role in the United States cannot be told without addressing its profound impact on the health and well-being of families. As the largest health insurer in the country, Medicaid provides coverage to over 77 million people, including two in every five children. Despite its foundational importance, Medicaid is often misunderstood and undervalued, and looming cuts threaten to unravel the safety net it provides. These cuts risk devastating ripple effects, not just on healthcare access, but on housing, hunger and the overall stability of families.
First, the Trump administration cut SNAP benefits. Now it wants to stop measuring food insecurity
An old business adage suggests that “what gets measured gets managed.” By that logic, we will no longer “manage” food insecurity in the United States after the Trump administration announced on September 20 plans to cancel the Household Food Security in the United States report, a long-running annual report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
City living isn’t good for a tree’s microbiome, study shows. Here’s what that means
Trees are home to all sorts of critters: birds, squirrels, frogs and more than a trillion teeny tiny microbes living in roots, bark and leaves. These fungi, bacteria and microorganisms play an important role in tree health; Beneficial microbes can help a tree take up nutrients or defend itself against disease.
But a new study in Nature Cities published Friday found that oak trees in Boston have a greater number of “bad” microbes, like pathogens and plant decomposers, than beneficial ones because of city stressors like heat and pollution. This disruption of the tree microbiome could spell trouble for the health of both trees and humans, according to the study’s authors.
Failure to Pass a UN Declaration on Noncommunicable Diseases is Not an Excuse for Inaction
Near the end of the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly last week, Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) and mental health took center stage in a Fourth High-Level Meeting focused on common ground and solutions. I was optimistic that there would be real momentum to act, as NCDs remain a leading cause of death and disability across the world and the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) to reduce premature mortality from NCDs is off track by a third.
As Trump’s raids ramp up, a Texas region’s residents stay inside — even when they need medical care
As the Trump administration intensifies deportation activity around the country, some immigrants — including many who have lived in Texas’s southern tip for decades — are unwilling to leave their homes, even for necessary medical care.