(APN) ATLANTA — Grady Health System CEO Michael Young and staff engaged about 30 citizens Thursday night, June 25, 2009, in a discussion at the First Iconium Baptist Church in East Atlanta on a variety of issues. Topics ranged from the quality of patient care at Grady Memorial Hospital, keeping neighborhood clinics open, access to care, funding, and even […]
Read moreVice President Joe Biden announced Wednesday the White House is releasing $4 billion of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds to expand broadband internet service to unserved and underserved areas. This is the first round of ARRA funds aimed at expanding broadband and creating jobs to build such infrastructure. ”Today’s announcement is a first step toward realizing President Obama’s […]
Read moreOn June 30, Center for American Progress President and CEO John Podesta, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) President Andy Stern, and (wait for it) Wal-Mart CEO Mike Duke sent a letter to President Obama noting “reforming health care is necessary not just to improve the health of all Americans, but also to remove the burden that is crushing America’s businesses and hampering […]
Read moreA new report from Smart Growth America, a coalition of national, state, and local organizations working on better rural and urban planning, tracks how well the states are spending $26 billion in transportation funds allocated in the first 120 days of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The report makes two key spending conclusions: Almost one-third ($6.6 billion) of […]
Read moreThe Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) announced this week it has awarded 22 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) contracts worth $56.7 million. Construction will begin this month on projects such as the repaving of 20 miles of I-575 as well as bridge replacements and safety improvements in a dozen counties. “This truly is a ‘win-win’ for Georgia,” GDOT Commissioner […]
Read moreThe New York Times reports this afternoon that Minnesota Democrat Al Franken has prevailed over Republican Sen. Norm Coleman. In a 32-page, per curiam opinion, the Minnesota Supreme Court found Coleman’s claims of voting and constitutional irregularities in the November election were baseless and recommended the election be certified. Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty indicated earlier this week that if the Supreme […]
Read moreCommunity Health Centers across the nation received a third boost in funds today courtesy of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The grants will help address immediate and pressing health center facility and equipment needs and increase access to health care for millions as more Americans lose their health coverage. The Recovery Act Capital Improvement Program (CIP) grants will support the construction, […]
Read moreWe just received word that the U.S. Supreme Court will delay any judgment on the case of Georgia death row inmate Troy Anthony Davis until September. Lawyers filed what many considered a long-shot habeas corpus petition with the Court in late May. Twenty-seven former judges and prosecutors, including 2008 Libertarian Party presidential candidate Bob Barr and former FBI director William […]
Read moreThe House of Representatives just narrowly passed The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (HR 2454) by a vote of 219-212. The legislation, commonly known as the Waxman-Markey bill (named after its cosponsors Reps. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.), is an effort to cut U.S. emissions by 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020. To do […]
Read moreU.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation John Porcari will join Gov. Sonny Perdue and new Georgia Department of Transportation Commissioner Vance Smith Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. to officially break ground on Georgia’s first highway project funded under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA). The project will resurface 4.2 miles of SR3/US-19, a critical commercial corridor in Clayton and Fulton Counties. The White House announced […]
Read moreThis article first appeared on the Inter-Press Service at: http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=47232 ATLANTA, Georgia, Jun 15 (IPS) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday denied taking up an appeal of a group of Cuban intelligence agents accused of spying in the United States. The justices declined, without comment, to review a 2008 decision from the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals that said […]
Read moreThe Obama administration announced Wednesday a streamlined edition of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. The shorter, simpler, and user-friendly form, the White House said, will make it easier for low- and middle-income college-bound students to apply for financial aid. “President Obama has challenged the nation to once again have the highest percentage of college graduates in […]
Read moreAs the national healthcare debate heats up, the Center For American Progress (CAP) released a report this week identifying key strategies designed to potentially save the United States trillions of dollars in healthcare over the next decade. From the report’s executive summary: First, investments in health information technology and other types of health care-provider infrastructure could bring direct federal savings of […]
Read moreThe second U.S. Social Forum (USSF) will take place June 22-26, 2010 in Detroit. Next year’s event is a follow up to the inaugural U.S. Social Forum, which attracted 12,000 attendees to Atlanta from June 27-July 1, 2007. Organizers say Detroit is the right place for the second forum because it “is a harbinger for what we must do in […]
Read moreThe MARTA board of directors Monday approved its budget for fiscal year 2010 that includes a combination of a fare increase and service changes to make up for a multi-million dollar operating budget gap. Starting Oct. 1, fare will increase from $1.75 to $2.00, marking the first fare increase since 2001. The board of directors did back down on some […]
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