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By DAVID KLEPPER, Associated Press | Updated: 2 days ago

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York state lawmakers say more must be done to confront the deadly scourge of heroin and opioid abuse.The Legislature included more than $200 million in this year's state budget to help prevent and treat addiction. But Republican proposals to stiffen penalties for heroin dealers stalled in the face of criticism from Democrats who say treatment and rehabilitation work better than punishment.On Wednesday, the Senate's Joint Task Force on Heroin and Opioid Addiction meets in Buffalo to discuss how heroin and opioid addiction are putting a strain on local governments, hospitals, emergency personnel and focus on how local communities are responding.

From Staff Reports | Updated: 4 days ago

Jeff Hughes, executive director of Progressive Independence Center for Independent Living in Norman, will speak to the Canadian County Democrats on Monday about the integration and full inclusion of people with disabilities into the mainstream of society.

By Jessica Phillips Staff Writer jphillips@oklahoman.com | Updated: 3 days ago

Children with special needs learned how to ride two-wheeled bicycles during the iCan Bike camp.

By Eriech Tapia Staff Writer etapia@oklahoman.com | Updated: 3 days ago

A new report shows cases of sexually transmitted diseases are higher in Oklahoma County than the nation, with the east side of Oklahoma City being one of the highest areas.

From Staff Reports | Updated: 4 days ago

A thought leader on Alzheimer’s disease who co-created an approach for caregivers will speak July 19-20 at Touchmark at Coffee Creek.

By GILLIAN WONG, Associated Press | Updated: 2 days ago

BEIJING (AP) — China's imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo's two brothers were being allowed to travel to a northeastern city to visit him in a hospital Saturday, a friend and a former lawyer said, as concerns mounted over his deteriorating health.A German cancer specialist, meanwhile, has arrived in China to help treat Liu — though it was not immediately clear if he had been able to see the dissident suffering from late-stage liver cancer. The specialist was allowed in by China following international criticism of Beijing's handling of Liu's illness and calls for him to be treated abroad."We have learned that Liu Xiaobo's state of health is deteriorating rapidly," the German foreign ministry said late Frid

By MICHAEL VIRTANEN and ALAN FRAM, Associated Press | Updated: 2 days ago

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia's Republican senator, Shelley Moore Capito, is under pressure from those in her state opposed to Medicaid cuts in the Senate GOP health care bill.West Virginia has one of the country's lowest median incomes. It's home to some of the worst rates of drug overdose deaths, smoking, obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer and disabilities.Around 3 in 10 West Virginians are on Medicaid, making it the state most dependent on the health insurance program for the poor, disabled and nursing home residents.Capito says she cares deeply about health care but that changes and reforms to Medicaid are necessary.

Associated Press | Updated: 2 days ago

EDGEWATER, Colo. (AP) — A suburban Denver police officer who had a heart attack during a struggle with a DUI suspect has been released from the hospital.The Edgewater Police Department says Cpl. Michael Nesbitt was released from a Wheat Ridge hospital Friday so he can recover at home.He suffered respiratory and cardiac arrest as he tried to arrest a man who was suspected of driving a scooter while intoxicated June 23. The man fought officers as they tried to take him into custody.He was booked into the Jefferson County jail on suspicion of second-degree assault of a police officer and other charges.

By KRISTENA HANSEN, Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — The Oregon Legislature has adjourned the 2017 session — a contentious, nearly six-month period that saw lawmakers pass a range of new laws including a major transportation infrastructure package, restrictions on guns and tobacco, expanded health care for undocumented immigrants, mandated cost-free abortions and a balanced 2017-19 budget.The session officially wrapped up Friday by a vote in both chambers to adjourn "Sine Die," a Latin phrase marking the end of their time in Salem for the year. With the constitutionally-required deadline of July 10, adjournment came three days ahead of schedule.It began in early February when the state's budget hole stood at $1.

Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has agreed to review the level of access that New Mexicans have to behavioral health care services through the Medicaid program.Members of New Mexico's congressional delegation made the request earlier this year, citing significant access issues that remain following a shake-up among nonprofit providers who served some of the state's most needy residents.The inquiry will be one of a handful being conducted by the agency's inspector general.New Mexico's behavioral health system was upended in 2013 when Republican Gov.

By SUMMER BALLENTINE, Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Republicans want to make it a crime for abortion clinic staff to ask ambulances to respond to calls at their facilities without sirens or lights, a move that abortion-rights advocates say is unnecessary and another veiled attempt to restrict access to abortion providers.The proposal would establish a misdemeanor offense, punishable by up to a year in prison or a $2,000 fine, for clinic workers who make such requests that "interfere" with medical assistance, according to Republican Sen. Bob Onder, who's been involved in crafting the legislation.If approved, the law may be the first of its kind in the U.S., according to the Guttmacher Institute, a national research group that supports abo

Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

LONDON (AP) — The Latest from Wimbledon (all times local):___11:55 p.m.American tennis player Bethanie Mattek-Sands says she's been through a "painful & emotional" 36 hours after injuring her right knee during a match at Wimbledon.Mattek-Sands sent out a tweet Friday night to thank "the best family, friends and fans a girl could ask for."She is the No. 1-ranked women's doubles player and has won the past three Grand Slam titles in that event.Mattek-Sands hurt herself in the third set of a second-round singles match Thursday and was taken to the hospital. Neither she nor the WTA has said how badly she was injured.___9:25 p.m.

By ANDREW SELSKY, Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Government-funded health care will be accessible for more than 14,000 children in Oregon who were brought to the United States illegally, under a bill the Legislature passed on Friday and that has been championed by the governor.Debate over the measure, which passed the House 37-23 on the last day of the 2017 legislative session, was testy at times. It culminated a wave of legislation aimed at protecting immigrants against a federal crackdown by the Trump administration, which is stepping up deportations and vows to build a wall along the Mexican border.The cost of extending health care for an estimated additional 14,174 children during an 18 month-period starting on Jan. 1, 2018, when the bill takes ef

Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — In a story July 6 about an abortion bill in Oregon's Legislature, The Associated Press reported erroneously how the bill would pay for reproductive health care for people in the US illegally and for others who are uninsured. The care would be paid from Oregon's general fund, not the state's Medicaid program, and would apply only for women in the US illegally who qualify by income and are of reproductive age.A corrected version of the story is below:Lawsuits expected over Oregon's abortion funding billAnti-abortion campaigners say a bill passed by Oregon lawmakers will force taxpayers to assume some of the costs of abortions, even though many oppose the procedureBy ANDREW SELSKYAssoc

Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

SELINSGROVE, Pa. (AP) — The parents of a 23-year-old Pennsylvania woman who overdosed on heroin have included a poem in her obituary that she wrote about struggling with addiction.The obituary for Delaney Farrell was published in The (Sunbury) Daily Item. The Selinsgrove woman died Saturday in the bathroom of a hotel where she worked in Williamsport, where she'd also been staying in a halfway house.Farrell's poem begins, "Funny, I don't remember no good dope days. I remember walking for miles in a dope fiend haze.

Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — In a story July 6 about abortion legislation in Missouri that includes a proposal to make it a misdemeanor offense for abortion clinic staff to ask ambulances to respond to calls without sirens or lights, The Associated Press reported erroneously that violators would face up to a year in prison or a $1,000 fine. Violators would face up to a year in prison or a $2,000 fine.A corrected version of the story is below:Missouri Gov. Greitens expands call for abortion legislationMissouri Gov. Eric Greitens is expanding his call for lawmakers to pass new abortion restrictions during a special legislative sessionBy SUMMER BALLENTINEAssociated PressJEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) —

By SCOTT BAUER, Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan said Friday he doesn't think the failure of Congress to agree on a way to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act puts tax reform in jeopardy.The Republican said he hopes a final version of the health care plan will be approved this summer, and then Congress can turn its attention to tax reform in the fall. He acknowledged that not passing a new health care law would complicate tax reform efforts, but said it wouldn't make it impossible."The way tax reform and Obamacare repeal-and-replace interact, it's about revenues," Ryan said during a news conference in Wisconsin.

By HOWARD FENDRICH, Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

LONDON (AP) — To appreciate fully just how outstanding Rafael Nadal is at the moment — 28 consecutive completed sets won in Grand Slam play — consider what Andy Murray went through at Wimbledon on Friday.Murray's title defense appeared to be on shaky ground in the third round, particularly through a stressful stretch at Centre Court against Fabio Fognini, the 28th-seeded Italian who won their most recent encounter and had five set points to force this one to a fifth.No telling whether the No. 1-ranked Murray, or his vocal backers, could have handled that test. Didn't need to find out, because Murray was steady enough to grab the last five games and beat Fognini 6-2, 4-6, 6-1, 7-5 as the sunlight faded.

Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas health officials are warning residents to avoid tick bites after confirming that a case of the Heartland virus has been confirmed in the state's northwest.The patient was infected by a Lone Star tick but has since recovered. The virus causes flu-like symptoms and generally requires a hospital stay.There is no vaccine or drug available to address the illness. Health officials say more than 20 cases have been reported in the southeastern and south-central United States, and that one person has died.The Arkansas Health Department advises people going outside to use insect repellants, wear long-sleeve clothing, avoid bushy or wooded areas and routinely check for ticks.

John Badman, Associated Press | Updated: 3 days ago

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., left, talks during a news conference attended by hospital officials and other Illinois healthcare professionals Friday July 7, 2017 at the Gateway Regional Medical Center in Granite City, Ill. Durbin was traveling the state explaining how devastating passage of the current U.S. Senate bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, Obamacare, would be on Illinois residents. Many thousands of Illinoisans would be effected including those requiring treatment for opioid addiction, a specialty of the Granite City hospital.