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Alabama Unemployment Rate Goes Down
Alabama's unemployment rate dropped to 7.5% in November, below the national average of 7.7%. Officials say hiring in two sectors increased.
Flu Comes Early to Alabama
The Centers for Disease Control is predicting a bad flu season and today announced the Alabama and four other southern states are showing the most flu activity right now.
September 19 News
Voters approve transfer of $437 million from trust fund to General Fund; BP loosens documentation requirements for oil spill losses; and Alabama faces expensive and deadly obesity crisis.
September 14 News
Forces are rallying on both sides in advance of next week’s statewide referendum. The constitutional amendment would allow the transfer of $437 million dollars from the Alabama Trust Fund to be used for Medicaid, prisons and other state services.
September 18th Referendum
Voters in Alabama will go to the polls next Tuesday to vote on a referendum state leaders say is vital to the financial health of the state. The vote would authorize moving money from the Alabama Trust Fund to shore up the state’s general fund budget. That budget supports many services from child protection to prisons. But if the referendum does not pass, one of the biggest programs to feel the effects is Medicaid, as WBHM’s Andrew Yeager reports.
August 10 Morning Newscast
Alabama ranks 14th on Toxic 20 List; 75% of Alabama schools make adequate yearly progress; and UA student discovers extinct snail in Cahaba River.
August 8 Morning Newscast
Jefferson County leaders set date to vote on closing Cooper Green Hospital's in-patient services; Birmingham's mayor looks to attract pro sports; and a judge says "time is of the essence" in Alabama Public Television lawsuit.
Judge Extends Orders Against Birmingham School Board
One round of testimony is over, but the long road to legal closure in the battle over Birmingham Schools is not. After two sometimes arcane, sometimes fiery days of testimony, Jefferson County Circuit Judge Houston Brown on Thursday extended two temporary injunctions against the Birmingham Board of Education by 10 days or until further notice. Our Southern Education Desk reporter Dan Carsen has the latest in this web-exclusive story.
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation to Treat Depression
One in ten Americans suffers from depression. All of us probably know someone who’s living with the condition. Anti-depressants work for some, but many find it difficult to keep their depression at bay with just medicines. Could magnets offer relief?
Religious Exemptions to School Vaccine Requirements on Rise
Today's students and most of their parents are too young to remember a time when epidemics crippled and killed millions. And there's a reason we've forgotten: vaccines. Even so, a small but growing number of Alabama students are getting religious exemptions to school immunization requirements. The reasons are sometimes religious, sometimes philosophical, and sometimes health-based. Dan Carsen has more from the Southern Education Desk at WBHM.
A Healthy Novella
The typical Spanish novella drips with passion, love, and jealousy. It usually doesn't explain how to manage diabetes or stop smoking. But a Birmingham-based radio project is trying to do just that. WBHM intern Clare Gamlin explains how this broadcast is teaching new Alabamians health information they might not otherwise hear.
Alabama and the Oil Spill: Marketing Seafood
It's been almost a year since millions of barrels of oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico. If you're still a little leery about eating seafood from the gulf, you're not alone. One study found about 70% of consumers nationwide are concerned about seafood safety. Almost a quarter have reduced how much they eat. Alabama's seafood industry says the catch has been tested and is safe. But as WBHM's Andrew Yeager reports getting that message out isn't easy.
Bariatric Ambulance
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says over 30 percent of Alabamians are obese. Obesity can cause a whole host of health problems, from diabetes to high blood pressure. And treating obese patients can be a challenge too.
Charter Schools: Politics
Advocates of charter schools in Alabama are getting a do-over. A bill to authorize such schools has been reintroduced in the state legislature after lawmakers killed a similar proposal last month. But if the topic of charter schools weren't controversial enough, mixing it with Alabama politics makes for a potent combination. WBHM's Andrew Yeager continues our look at charter schools by examining the political context.
Shelter and Cold
The cold weather gripping the south isn't just uncomfortable, it's dangerous. In Tennessee, police believe an 81-year-old man with Alzheimer's Disease froze to death after wandering outside in his bathrobe. In Birmingham, low temperatures in the teens make having a reliable source of heat essential. The city of Birmingham will open a warming center at Boutwell Auditorium this evening, but some people have already been looking for comfort in the area's homeless shelters. Ruth Crosby is head of First Light, a shelter which houses women and children. She tells WBHM's Andrew Yeager they have already been stretched thin by the economy.
HIV/AIDS in the South
A new report from the Southern AIDS Coalition says HIV has taken hold in the Deep South, plaguing some of the poorest people in the country and creating a health disaster.
Alabama Obesity Ranking
Alabama has once again been ranked as one of the most obese states in the country. The latest survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that Mississippi was the most obese state, followed closely by Alabama.
Air Quality: a history
Birmingham's air quality has improved significantly over the last century. But you wouldn't know it. The area still has problems with smog and other particulate matter, exceeding federal standards. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis harkens back to a time when bad air meant big Birmingham business.
Sizwe’s Test
Federal officials announced a major overhaul Tuesday of the government's efforts to develop an AIDS vaccine. The move comes after a promising vaccine didn't work and may have put people at risk of infection. Despite the setback, AIDS research conducted across the county, including at UAB, has turned a disease of death into a chronic disease that's managed. But in sub-Saharan Africa where infection rates are highest, the image of the AIDS epidemic is much different. Journalist Jonny Steinberg traveled to a village in his native South Africa to gauge AIDS treatment away from western medical institutions. He followed Dr. Hermann Reuter of Doctors Without Borders, and Sizwe Magadla. He's a successful, healthy, charismatic young man, who despite risky behavior in his past, refuses to test for AIDS. WBHM's Andrew Yeager spoke with Jonny Steinberg.
New Lab Opening
In just a few months UAB will unveil a state-of-the art satellite imaging lab. Public health researchers will use it to better understand the way environment affects the spread of disease. And, as WBHM's Rosemary Pennington reports, the lab's created an unlikely partnership.
Elder Exploitation
Each year in the U.S., an estimated 5 million older adults become victims of financial abuse. In 2004, older consumers reported 152 million dollars in fraud-related losses. But most of these crimes - particularly those committed by family members - go unreported. Brigid Galloway reports on how UAB doctors and the Department of Senior Services are finding unique ways to address the complex issue of financial exploitation.
Green Tea and DNA
It seems almost everywhere you look these days -- in magazines, newspapers or grocery store aisles -- you're assaulted by the message that tea is good for you. Studies have shown the leaf may prevent ovarian and breast cancers as well as skin cancer. Now a study out of UAB shows that green tea may actually repair DNA damaged by UVB radiation. WBHM's Rosemary Pennington has details.
AIDS: The Epidemic in Alabama
More than 9-thousand Alabamians are living with HIV or AIDS; if you take into account those who've died from the illness, then more than 14-thousand Alabamians have been infected with the virus. And infection rates are expected to go up as the AIDS epidemic, so often thought of as a big city issue, becomes increasingly a rural issue and a southern issue. There are myriad challenges to getting the word out about HIV/AIDS -- there's the stigma, religion and a money shortage for starters. In a special report, 'AIDS: The Epidemic in Alabama', WBHM's Rosemary Pennington examines what people here in the state are doing to combat HIV.
The MOMS Project
HIV infection rates among women are increasing at alarming rates. When a woman becomes infected and she's a mother, it changes her life and that of her children as well. A program at UAB is working to help HIV positive moms better manage stress so they can be better moms and live healthier lives. WBHM's Rosemary Pennington has more.
Alabama’s AIDS Orphans
You can't really have a discussion about AIDS in Africa without talking about AIDS oprhans. But a researcher here in Alabama thinks, when it comes to AIDS orphans, we should be looking closer to home.
Autism & Diet
The numbers continue to astonish. More than a half million Americans are diagnosed with some form of Autism. The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in 166 children have the disorder. Some say special diets can help a child recover, even lead to a reversal of diagnosis. Donna Francavilla explores this controversial issue.
Making Sense of Mental Health: Rebecca’s Story
Women with Turner's Syndrome live with symptoms including infertility, depression and health problems, such as brittle bones and heart ailments. Rebecca Shaney wasn't diagnosed with Turner's until she was 28, and ever since she's had a hard time finding a job. She shares her experience through an audio diary...
Play Therapy
Digging in the sand - playing with dolls and action figures - for children these are fun activities to pass time either alone or with friends. But in recent years a growing number of psychologists and psychiatrists have recognized that play can also be therapeutic. These professionals have developed a new method of therapy, called play therapy, to help children cope with trauma in their lives. Ryan Mills explains.
Babec’s Pacemaker
Most twenty-six year olds don't have to worry about heart problems unless they're a male gorilla pushing four hundred pounds. Babec, the Birmingham Zoo's senior silverback, is turning twenty-six but in the fall of 2005 it looked like he might not see another birthday. Babec was in the final stage of heart disease. While his illness was life threatening, it led to a scienitfic breakthrough -- Babec got a pacemaker. WBHM's Rosemary Pennington visited Babec to see how he's doing.
Lawyer Assistance Program
In a study of 105 professions, lawyers ranked number one in the incidence of depression. Male lawyers are two times more likely to commit suicide than the general male population. And substance abuse rates are also higher in the legal field than in many other fields. The stats are getting the attention of the Alabama Bar Association. Frank Thompson reports.
Green Tea and Skin Cancer
There have been countless studies over the last few years touting the health benefits of drinking tea. Black tea appears to help prevent ovarian cancer while green tea is shaping up to be a potent weapon in the fight against several different cancers. WBHM's Rosemary Pennington recently spoke with a UAB researcher about a new study that ties green tea to skin cancer prevention.
Asian Soybean Rust
Alabama farmers are almost done harvesting cotton, corn and soy - the state's big three agricultural commodities. This year many soy farmers are breathing a sigh of relief. It was the first growing season soy farmers had to watch for a devastating disease that has crippled crops in Asia, Africa and South America. John Sepulvado has the story of the scientists from Alabama and around the southeast who are working to fight Asian Soybean Rust spores.
