Page 30 - Consumer Issues News Today

Support staff in public schools across the Commonwealth have created a "Bill of Rights" to help them organize for better pay and benefits. Known as Education Support Professionals or paraeducators, they do it all: teach, help students with disabilities, clean classrooms and serve as a teachers second set of ears and eyes. Michaela Keefe, a paraeducator in Hingham, hopes their Bill of Rights will help convince the local school committee to ensure what she called a living wage ...

To fight such pressing issues as housing shortages and increasing crime rates in cities across the country, many of the nations mayors are taking the time to collaborate on ways to address problems and make their cities better. From small towns to large urban areas, 185 mayors just attended the 91st U.S. Conference of Mayors. ...

Gov. Spencer Cox has announced a statewide initiative to increase awareness of the Affordable Connectivity Program, which aims to get more Utahns connected to the internet. The "ACP Act Now: Utah" initiative unites a number of stakeholders to close the broadband affordability gap. ...

More than 40% of private sector workers in Pennsylvania earned their living at businesses without retirement plans, as of 2020. Multiple groups are now urging the General Assembly to pass legislation to change it. A bill under consideration would establish a state-facilitated retirement savings program for private-sector workers. ...

A new Master Plan for Older Adults is being developed in Pennsylvania. Gov. Josh Shapiro signed an executive order Thursday, directing the Pennsylvania Department of Aging to develop the plan. ...

May is Older Americans Month, and a new report shows the Volunteer State is among the bottom of states when it comes to caring for its most vulnerable adults. Americas Health Rankings 2023 Senior Report from United Healthcare ranks Tennessee 42nd in health outcomes for those age 65 and older. Notable challenges include a high prevalence of frequent mental distress, drug deaths, smoking, lack of physical activity, and increased poverty. ...

The nomination process is open for a prestigious award handed out to volunteers in Oregon each year. The Andrus Award for Community Service award is named after AARP founder, Doctor Ethel Percy Andrus. AARP Oregon will select a person or couple age 50 or older, who performs services without pay in their communities. ...

One Nevada group wants to help educate Nevadans on how to make people with dementia and Alzheimers disease feel "seen" and supported, especially during Older Americans and Mental Health Awareness Month. Jeffrey Klein, President and CEO of the nonprofit Nevada Senior Services, said since 2000, deaths in Nevada from Alzheimers disease have increased 261%. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Alzheimers is one of the leading causes of death in the Silver ...

People might picture a defibrillator or stretcher when they think of a first responder. But what about an iPad? South Dakota says a new program shows promise in combining telemedicine with ambulance crews. Next week is National Emergency Medical Services week, and South Dakota officials are touting an initiative that fits first-responder units with technology that allows them to consult with hospital staff while enroute to the Emergency Room. ...

Nurses at Oregons largest hospital east of the Cascades are voting this week on whether to authorize a strike. Frustrated by five months of union negotiations which have yet to yield a contract, nearly 1,000 nurses at Saint Charles Bend are holding a strike authorization vote through Sunday. Joel Hernandez, registered nurse at St. ...