News and Issues

" ... Stevens received few accolades for her efforts in piecing together chromosomal sex determination. This was due in part to her early death, in 1912, from breast cancer — a mere seven years after her work was published. Conflicting views made the scientific community slow to accept her conclusions, which today are recognized as pioneering." more »

States' detailed data systems have revealed that more education doesn't always mean higher earnings. More technical programs generally have a greater payoff in the labor market. If a journalism major instead chose an associate's degree program and learned to repair industrial equipment, she could be earning $58,000 three years out of school. State data systems that track post-graduate employment rates have their limits. Only a handful of states include student debt information, for instance. more »

To keep even more people from becoming addicted to medicines such as Percocet, OxyContin and Vicodin, lawmakers in five states set limits on the number of pills a physician can prescribe to a patient for the first time. Twenty-nine states beefed up monitoring of filled prescriptions to prevent addicts from "doctor shopping" for more pills. Roughly 2.5 million Americans are addicted to opioids, and more than 28,000 people died of overdoses of painkillers or heroin in 2014, the highest toll ever.   more »

Suburban seniors with less money will need more affordable housing within walking distance of grocery stores and doctors. Local governments may have to help boomers maintain or repair their homes, or else contend with declining property values and tax revenue.  more »