Health and Medicine
An $85,000 from the Delta Dental of Virginia Foundation will be used to improve the oral health of caregivers in the homes that CHIP – Child Health Investment Partnership of Roanoke Valley – encounters during its early childhood home visiting program. Chief Operating Officer Autumn Lavering says those caregivers often don’t have dental coverage since they don’t yet qualify for Medicaid – and don’t have insurance in some cases; adding that a caregiver who is taking care of their oral health can also set an example for they children they are with. Grant partner New Horizons Healthcare will take care of the actual dental work.
Dr John Williams-submitted photo
President Joe Biden’s announcement this week about a relaunching of the cancer “Moonshot Initiative” – and halving cancer deaths by 2047 – involves encouraging more Americans to get regular screenings. The story from WFIR’s Gene Marrano:
The annual “State of Tobacco Control” report from the American Lung Association suggests that the Commonwealth could do a better job when it comes to the fight against tobacco use. The story from WFIR’s Caroline Moore:
Click here for the “State of Tobacco Control” report
MGN
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia’s new attorney general has altered the state’s position on a closely watched abortion case before the U.S. Supreme Court, with his office now saying it should be left to individual states to decide on restrictions.
When Democrat Mark Herring was attorney general, the state joined more than 20 other states in a brief filed in September urging the justices to declare unconstitutional Mississippi’s law banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Herring was a strong supporter of abortion rights.
Republican Jason Miyares, an abortion opponent, defeated Herring in November and took office last weekend.
Citing “the change in administration,” Miyares “has reconsidered Virginia’s position in this case,” Virginia Solicitor General Andrew Ferguson wrote Friday in declaring the state no longer adheres to that frie“Virginia is now of the view that the Constitution is silent on the question of abortion, and that it is therefore up to the people in the several states to determine the legal status and regulatory treatment of abortion,” Ferguson wrote to the clerk of the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case last month.
Virginia’s position is now that the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which affirmed the constitutional right to an abortion, and the 1992 Planned Parenthood v. Casey case, which reaffirmed Roe but set a new standard on evaluating restrictions, “were wrongly decided,” Ferguson added.
The letter was disclosed on the day of the annual March for Life in Washington. Miyares was part of a Republican sweep of Virginia’s top three offices in the fall in a state where a GOP candidate hadn’t won a statewide race since 2009.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin said Friday he’s confident his administration will win a court battle over his executive order allowing parents to opt out of school mask mandates for their children, but he advised parents to “listen to their principal” until the Supreme Court of Virginia issues its ruling.
With Youngkin’s order slated to go into effect Monday and no action yet from the court following a lawsuit filed earlier in the week, confusion continued to swirl Friday.
School districts across the state have offered a range of responses to Youngkin’s order, with some planning to comply but many others in some of the state’s most populous areas saying their mandates would remain in place next week. One district said it would have extra security Monday after a mother speaking against mask mandates made a perceived threat during a school board meeting.
n a statement, Youngkin said he was confident the Virginia Supreme Court would rule “in the favor of parents.” “In the meantime, I urge all parents to listen to their principal, and trust the legal process,” he said. Tuesday’s legal challenge to the order — which Youngkin issued on his first day in office — was filed by a group of parents with children in Chesapeake Public Schools.
Youngkin has asked the court to dismiss the petition. A filing late Thursday from the office of Attorney General Jason Miyares cited a state law that says parents have a “fundamental right to make decisions concerning the upbringing, education, and care” of their children. Miyares also argued that Youngkin’s order falls well within the broad authority given to the governor to address the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
School districts in Virginia have required masks in part under a state law passed in 2021 that requires in-person instruction during the pandemic and for schools to adhere “to the maximum extent practicable” to mitigation guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC currently recommends masking by anyone 2 or older, regardless of their vaccination status.
Dr. Cynthia Morrow/VDH-VT photo
The new COVID-19 testing site at Valley View Mall – set up in a tent outside the Community Vaccination Center – opened the doors today. Dr. Cynthia Morrow with the Roanoke City and Alleghany Health Districts says they can accommodate up to around 400 people a day – by appointment only. The Virginia Department of Health center at Valley View will be open Monday through Thursday from 9 until 5-30; it offers the PCR COVID-19 test with results a few days later.
Governor Glenn Youngkin toured Carilion Clinic and then visited the new testing center that opened today outside the Community Vaccination Center at Valley View Mall. Youngkin also rolled out his COVID Action plan, which calls for reduced testing in some cases where people are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms. Youngkin also said his administration is launching a “Marshall Plan,” to distribute more COVID vaccines – and he wants to improve the messaging to Virginians about getting vaccinated – also making that outreach “less clinical.”