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☆ Gay meteorologist, allegedly fired for using adult webcam site, pleads for his job back
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Zachary Schermele | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

A gay meteorologist in New York City who was allegedly fired after someone sent nude webcam photos of him to his employer and to his mother is pleading for his job back and accusing the sender of revenge porn. He said he was not paid for his appearances on the site and apologized for taking part. “I unequivocally do not apologize for being sex-positive and for being myself — for being an openly gay man,” he said. Adame, 39, said he never spoke at work about his involvement with the website, which is owned by Unit 4 Media Ltd. New York City Council Member Erik Bottcher, who represents the Manhattan district where Spectrum NY1 is located, appears to agree.

☆ 'Out of control' STD situation prompts call for changes
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

“It is imperative that we ... work to rebuild, innovate, and expand (STD) prevention in the U.S.,” said Dr. Leandro Mena of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a speech Monday at a medical conference on sexually transmitted diseases. Last year the rate of syphilis cases reached its highest since 1991 and the total number of cases hit its highest since 1948. Annual congenital syphilis cases numbered only about 300 a decade ago; they surged to nearly 2,700 last year. But some experts say the government needs to provide more funding for STD work, not divert it. Mena, who last year became director of the CDC’s Division of STD Prevention, called for reducing stigma, broadening screening and treatment services, and supporting the development and accessibility of at-home testing.

☆ Covid testing providers scale back despite worries of another winter surge
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-17 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Shannon-Pettypiece-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Shannon Pettypiece | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +9 min

“There are definitely manufacturers stepping back without full confidence there will be a government or any market for Covid tests,” said Aspinall. Companies making Covid tests, equipment and supplies have also seen a hefty drop in Covid-related sales. The Biden administration had aimed to provide some stability to the Covid testing market by purchasing a steady supply of Covid tests to send to Americans for free. But Congress has failed to pass a Covid spending package that included $2 billion for testing, and last month the White House said it was ending its free Covid testing program. Abbott saw its Covid testing revenue decline by 29% in the most recent quarter, though its sales nearly doubled over the past year.

☆ Montana defies order on transgender birth certificates
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

— Just hours after a Montana judge blocked health officials from enforcing a state rule that would prevent transgender people from changing the gender on their birth certificate, the Republican-run state on Thursday said it would defy the order. District Court Judge Michael Moses chided attorneys for the state during a hearing in Billings for circumventing his April order that temporarily blocked a 2021 Montana law that made it harder to change birth certificates. Moses said there was no question that state officials violated his earlier order by creating the new rule. ACLU attorney Malita Picasso expressed dismay with the agency’s stance and said officials should immediately start processing requests for birth certificate changes. State officials denied that the new rule preventing birth certificate changes was adopted in bad faith.

☆ Worries over stigma are driving a push to rename monkeypox, but the process is slow
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-15 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The naming of the species is the responsibility of WHO's International Committee on Taxonomy of VirusesScientists have been calling this virus "monkeypox" for 64 years. The current species known as "monkeypox virus" and the others would then be renamed to "orthopoxvirus 'something,' " he said in an email to CNN. Prior to more modern conventions about names, scientists would name a variant for the region where it emerged and was circulating. It cited "growing concern for the potentially devastating and stigmatizing effects that the messaging around the 'monkeypox' virus can have on these already vulnerable communities." "Stigma and discrimination can be as dangerous as any virus," Tedros said when he declared monkeypox a global health emergency in July.

☆ Trans Floridians sue to block Medicaid rule excluding gender-affirming care
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-07 | by ( Jo Yurcaba | Jo Yurcaba Is A Reporter For Nbc Out. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

Advocacy groups sued Wednesday to block a new Florida rule that bars Medicaid coverage of gender-affirming health care, such as puberty blockers, hormone therapy and surgery. The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration adopted the rule last month after it issued a report that claimed gender-affirming procedures have the “potential for harmful long term affects.” The rule took effect Aug. 21. in the lawsuit, said the new Medicaid rule will prevent her and her husband, Joshua, from being able to access puberty-blocking medication prescribed by K.F.’s doctors. They are also represented by two health advocacy groups, the Florida Health Justice Project and the National Health Law Program. Accredited medical groups — including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychological Association — say gender-affirming medical care is safe and medically necessary.

A mushroom product sold in 15 states is being recalled after tests revealed the presence of salmonella. Tai Phat Wholesalers LLC said it was recalling four types of packages of its Three Coins Dried Mushrooms after routine testing by the Maryland Health Department found the bacterium in items bought at a retail store. The mushrooms are sold in Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. Three Coins Dried Mushrooms. Sales of the product have been suspended while the Maryland of Department Health and the company investigate.

☆ Workforce at Alabama chicken plants includes migrant teens
▼ + stars: | 2022-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +20 min

At Amelia’s request, Reuters agreed not to identify her hometown, the chicken plant where she now works, or the exact job she performs there. She said she was determined to get here because Rosa told her she could find work quickly. Amelia provided her new credentials to a staffing firm that supplies laborers to a local chicken plant, she said. Some firms deduct as much as $40 a week from employees’ paychecks for the service, four workers told Reuters. She rarely leaves Rosa’s trailer except to head to and from the chicken plant.

☆ I had a difficult pregnancy and complications afterward — and my options for maternity leave made everything far worse
▼ + stars: | 2022-01-18 | by ( Jacquelynn Kerubo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

She had to agree to return to work for at least six months after her leave was up. It provides six weeks of fully paid leave and up to 12 weeks total when combined with sick and annual leave. I had eight weeks of combined annual and sick leave, which meant I could take the full 12 weeks off. A coworker told me she took six weeks of paid leave and eight weeks of unpaid leave. 6 weeks of paid leave isn't enough for anyone.

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