With the 30-day special session at the halfway mark, seven meetings have been held on the budget, one on Medicaid expansion, and zero on a sexual abuse prevention bill known as Erin’s Law.
Health
Why Alaska bars are offering free pregnancy tests
Bars in Alaska are now offering pregnancy tests. The pilot program is meant to reduce the number of babies born with fetal alcohol syndrome in the state.
Can Alaska Lawmakers Break The Gridlock?
With the impasse between the Republican majority and Democratic minority, the legislative branch and the executive branch, little has been accomplished.
Marijuana use on the rise for Alaska’s pregnant women
About one in 14 Alaska women are using marijuana while pregnant and that ratio appears to be going up.
Kick the Bucket: The future of rural sanitation in Alaska
Federal and state funding isn’t keeping up with the need, and the situation is likely to get worse due to climate change.
Kick the Bucket: Experts seek alternatives to costly, ineffective sanitation systems
What if you didn’t have piped water and sewer, and the government wasn’t picking up the tab to get you some? How would you find a low-cost system that you could keep running through the winter?
Epidemiologists confirm first case of PSP in 2015
The paralytic shellfish poisoning case originated with clams harvested on a private beach near Ketchikan.
Governor’s revised budget restores some funding for sexual assault prevention
Advocates for sexual assault and domestic violence programs say the prevention programs were working in Alaska, but state lawmakers slashed funding.
Rural Alaska communities struggle to keep water and sewer systems running
Rural communities that have raised the money for modern sanitation systems face the threat of their ultimate failure from lack of funding for operations and maintenance.
Blessing and remembering Alaska’s commercial fishermen
This weekend marks the 25th anniversary of Juneau’s Blessing of the Fleet.