PHOENIX - According to a study out this week, Arizonans are driving less in favor of bicycling and utilizing public transportation options, such as those provided by Phoenix Metro Light Rail.

The study from the Arizona Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) and St. Luke's Health Initiatives is titled "Bikes, Trains and Less Driving." It reveals that from 2005 to 2012, Arizonans on average traveled nearly 11 percent fewer vehicle miles each year. Diane Brown with Arizona PIRG says the reduction in driving is being driven by 18-to-34 year-olds, known as the Millennial generation.

"The Millennials are more likely than the rest of the population to use public transportation and walk or bike to their destination," says Brown. "They're do so in an effort to protect the environment."

Brown says additional factors fueling the drop in driving around the state are more Arizonans are working from home, and are purchasing retail goods online - thereby saving a trip to the store. She says the trend of driving less is occurring throughout the nation for the same reasons it's happening in Arizona.

According to Brown, transportation planners continue to operate under the assumption Americans will drive more each year, not less. She says planning priorities should be refocused.

"We need to make sure more money is going to repairing our existing infrastructure," she says, "and building and planning for more public-transit opportunities."

The study also found annual ridership on the Light Rail and Valley Metro buses in Phoenix is at record levels - increasing from 60 million to 75 million. Brown says Tucson probably will experience a big surge in public transportation as the city launches its "Sun Link" streetcar system this week.


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Community health centers are calling on state and federal lawmakers for added protections against drug manufactures for drastically cutting them out of a federal drug discount program.

The 340B Drug Pricing program allows health centers to purchase outpatient medication at reduced costs, so they can then provide it to a greater reach of patients while drug companies get reimbursed. But in the past two years, drug producers and third-party prescription drug benefit managers have been restricting centers, threatening their financial stability.

A survey by the National Association of Community Health Centers shows more than half their patients would go without needed medications, including insulin for diabetes patients and inhalers for children with asthma, if they are cut out of the program.

Ben Browning, vice president and CEO of the Florida Association of Community Health Centers, explained the importance of the program.

"These contract arrangements are really the lifeblood," Browning contended. "They are the lifeline for a lot of the patients that may not otherwise have access to these reduced-cost, reduced-price medications."

But the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the lobbying arm of the drug-manufacturing industry, countered the program needs to change, claiming there is little to no evidence patients are benefiting. They also are calling for centers to share data in an effort to tamp down on potential fraud and abuse in the system.

Browning argued the centers continue to fill a critical need because many health care providers do not have the financial resources to support an in-house pharmacy. The survey showed 86% of health centers utilize contract pharmacies, allowing them to serve hundreds of ZIP codes.

"Put some protections in law, in regulations, in statute, that said the 340B program is a vital component of the health care system," Browning urged. "This is a vital component of maintaining and securing the safety net."

It is estimated enrolled hospitals and other covered entities in 340B can achieve average savings of 25% to 50% in pharmaceutical purchases. The issue is also playing out in courts with conflicting rulings across the country.

A new coalition of businesses and nonprofits in West Virginia is ready to create at least 3,000 new green industry jobs. They say they just need the funding to do so.

Brandon Dennison, founder and CEO of the nonprofit Coalfield Development, is leading the coalition called Appalachian Climate Technology (ACT Now). Dennison said the coalition is a finalist in the Biden Administration's Build Back Better Regional Challenge, and if selected will be awarded $100 million to jump-start the region's economy in expanding the solar industry, sustainably reclaiming former mine lands, retrofitting buildings to be more energy efficient, and attracting green manufacturers to the area.

"There's a unique opening in time right now, where we can really take a leap forward for this region, and that would have tremendously positive outcomes for our country," Dennison asserted. "And if you think about it from a climate-change perspective, really positive outcomes for our planet. "

Dennison added they will find out if they've been selected in the next few months.

Numerous studies have pointed to renewable energy such as wind and solar as a way to create good-paying jobs for Appalachian communities left behind. One report released by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory found the Mountain State has the potential to create thousands of jobs in solar energy, wind energy, battery storage and energy efficiency.

Dennison noted many West Virginians are not counting on coal as a means to support their families or supply the next generation with a livelihood.

"In many ways, we've sort of gone through the stages of grief with the coal industry, and come to an acceptance that coal is never going to be what it was," Dennison observed. "We might not be happy about that, but if we are going to survive, we're going to have to adapt."

Federal data show U.S. coal production has decreased by more than 24% since 2019.

Since then, the average number of employees at U.S. coal mines decreased by more than 10,000 employees. Supporters of the coal industry argued fossil fuels are essential to keeping Americans' power supply affordable.

Pennsylvania's budget deadline is looming on Thursday. Gov. Tom Wolf is calling for a minimum-wage increase that would get the state to $15 an hour by 2028.

A new brief gives a profile of the workers who would benefit.

The analysis from Keystone Research Center found an estimated 1.46 million Pennsylvania workers would see higher wages through the increase.

Keystone Research Center Senior Research Analyst Claire Kovach said the workers who would most benefit are the ones who were deemed essential during the pandemic, such as those in health care, retail, social services and more.

She said the state minimum wage has been stagnant for far too long.

"One of the minimum wage jobs that I worked 12 years ago is still advertised at $7.25 per hour today," said Kovach. "So the minimum wage worker who stands where I stood a dozen years ago, they're getting paid a wage with around 25% less buying power than I was back then."

The increase to $15 by 2028 would amount to a $3,800 raise for the average-year round worker, Kovach said.

If passed, the gradual increase would start with a boost to $12 an hour in July. Opponents to a minimum wage increase are concerned about the costs to businesses.

The brief also finds that across the proposed minimum wage increase from July 2022 to July 2028, an estimated $30 billion would be put back into the state economy.

Kovach added that with inflation climbing and more Pennsylvanians experiencing financial insecurity, an increased minimum wage could be a lifeline for families.

"There's an interesting thing that happens when you give low-wage workers a raise," said Kovach. "They don't store this money in off-shore accounts. This money is spent directly back into the economy and actually generates more economic movement and more economic benefits for communities than some other economic stimulus items."

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Living Wage calculator shows that today, a single adult in Pennsylvania needs to earn nearly $17 per hour to support themselves - while a single adult with one child needs nearly $33 per hour to support their family.