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Child care challenges are threatening economic growth in Southside, study finds
About 52% of the Danville-Pittsylvania County area is considered a child care desert, according to a new Virginia Tech study. This means that there’s inadequate access to quality child care — an issue that the study found is hindering the region’s economic growth. Alongside housing and infrastructure, child care was identified by community workshop events over the last year as a main inhibitor of economic progress.
Kaine Announces Plan To Lower Drug Costs
Sen. Tim Kaine announced the first step of his plan for economic relief for Virginians facing rising costs and inflation at a summit Monday at a retirement home in Lansdowne. This first step, which Kaine referred to as the “first plank of his ‘Kaine Kitchen Table Agenda,’ ” involves lowering the cost of prescription drugs like insulin. This follows prices for several prescription medications for maladies like heart disease and parasitic infections being raised drastically throughout the 2010s, according to NPR.
Old Dominion Power asks to raise rates
Old Dominion Power is asking state regulators for an increase in electric rates that would raise the average residential customer’s monthly bill by nearly $22. But the proposed increase could be partially offset by an approximately $10 monthly decrease in fuel costs that took effect April 1. Old Dominion Power, a subsidiary of Kentucky Utilities, provides electric service to about 28,000 Virginia customers in Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, and Wise counties. It’s the smallest investor-owned utility in Virginia.
Effort to ban kratom in Virginia sparks uproar
For a few days, Jennifer Brandt’s petition drew very little attention. In April, Brandt requested that the Virginia Board of Pharmacy make big changes to how it regulates kratom, a widely available medicinal plant. Kratom is marketed as a natural pain reliever, mood booster and at-home solution for addiction cravings. The petition has since received more than 2,900 comments — primarily from addicts describing how kratom has repaired their lives. Despite that, pharmacists say there need to be guardrails around kratom for community safety.
Va. health officials testing, but not limiting, use of Lake Anna water after E. coli cases
Judy Inglett never dreamed her healthy 15-year-old daughter would end up on dialysis and undergo blood transfusions after swimming at Lake Anna State Park in Virginia over the Memorial Day weekend. ... Ava is one of 20 people diagnosed with an E. coli infection — that for four children escalated to serious kidney complications — that investigators said triggered lake water testing that has left families second guessing their go-to summertime vacation spot.
Miyares joins cohort pressing for U.S. Supreme Court to review pharmacy benefit manager case
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares wants states to have more authority to regulate pharmacy benefit managers. Pharmacy benefits managers, or PBMs, are the middlemen that negotiate contracts between health plans, drug manufacturers and pharmacies. Though they do retain rebates and discounts set in their contracts, the exact amount of savings passed onto consumers has been relatively unknown. In recent years, several states have pushed legislation to enhance transparency, but it’s unclear how much power states have to enact their own regulations due to different court rulings on similar cases. So, Miyares recently signed onto a 32-state amicus brief to request that the United States Supreme Court review a case from Oklahoma.
After HR probe, Richmond officials suggest ‘restructuring’ of election office
Human resources officials in the city of Richmond recommended an “immediate departmental restructuring” of the city election office after an internal investigation concluded the city’s registrar and deputy registrar violated nepotism and ethics policies. The results of the HR investigation into the Richmond election office — which is separate from a more far-reaching probe underway by Richmond’s inspector general — were sent to state and local election officials on Tuesday. The Virginia Mercury obtained copies of the findings through a Freedom of Information Act request.
Outside groups supporting Helmer dominate ad spending ahead of congressional primary
Heading into the June 18 primary for the 10th Congressional District, outside spending from political action committees supporting Del. Dan Helmer (D-Fairfax) has surpassed the amount spent by all candidates in the race combined. Three PACs have spent a combined $5.44 million on ads and mailers in support of Helmer, according to the most recent filings available on June 12. Total campaign expenditures for all 16 candidates totaled $5.35 million through May 29, the most recent reporting deadline for candidate committees.
Norfolk repeals longtime, unenforced psychic reading ban
Norfolk psychics, start your readings. Norfolk City Council members repealed a decades-old, unenforced ban on psychic readings Tuesday. The 7-1 vote repealed a section of the city code that forbade “the practice of palmistry, palm reading, phrenology or clairvoyance” for money or other compensation in the city. Carol Peterson owns the Crystal Sunflower store in West Freemason, which sells items like crystals and tarot decks and routinely hosts tarot readers and other mediums. Peterson said she was relieved to see the fortune telling ban repealed.
Spotlight on Northern Virginia: Races to watch in June primary election
Virginians are selecting their prospective party’s nominees on Tuesday, June 18, in a steamy summer primary as voters hope to influence the makeup of the 119th U.S. Congress. The spotlight is on Northern Virginia where a couple of competitive races have formed. With no candidate carrying an incumbent advantage, primary races are crowded in District 10, which is anchored in Loudoun County, and District 7, which includes parts of Prince William County. Open seats at times provide an opportunity for an opposing party’s candidate to prevail. Five Republican candidates are vying for the party’s U.S. Senate nomination for a chance to go up against Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine in November’s general election.