KANSAS CITY, Mo. – 'Tis the season for frequent visits to the emergency rooms – but should you go to an urgent care center instead?

Many families face that dilemma, especially through the holidays.

Physicians report the winter holidays are the busiest times for medical emergencies, but not all emergencies are the same.

If a situation is life threatening, it's best to call 911.

But Dr. Jennifer Johnson, who runs the Urgent Care Center at Children's Mercy Kansas City, says, if you or your child has a problem after hours that you'd likely take to your regular doctor, an urgent care center would be able to manage.

"Run-of-the-mill things, like fever and vomiting, and diarrhea and ear infection – and maybe they are worried that their child has flu, or a mild asthma attack,” she states. “Also mild injuries – things where perhaps you think it's a sprained ankle."

Johnson says a careful assessment of your feelings is critical when making a decision.

Some clear examples of needing an emergency room include severe burns, swallowed objects, unstoppable bleeding, head injuries and loss of consciousness.

Children's Mercy Kansas City has two emergency rooms and three urgent care facilities – in Kansas City and Overland Park, Kan.; and in Independence, Mo.

Johnson says it's also good to have a family emergency plan in place, for situations such as a broken arm that are definite contenders for emergency care.

"If you're kind of wondering, 'Do I call 911, or do I put him in my car to get him there fast?'” she relates. “If that's your line of thinking, you're better off going to the emergency room."

Johnson says an early understanding of both ER and urgent care options helps cut down on wait times, too.

Children's Mercy also has a Save My Spot online check-in program that allows patients to view current wait times.





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Starting Friday, Connecticut residents may start to see a sharp increase in energy costs just as summer gets into gear and inflation hits people hard, but resources are available, especially for older adults who are feeling the pinch.

Connecticut's electric standard service generation rate is expected to increase significantly in July depending on the energy provider, with the biggest spike at more than 12 cents per kilowatt-hour.

John Erlingheuser, director of advocacy and community outreach at AARP Connecticut, said this is a particular challenge for people on fixed incomes.

"Older residents with a lot of medical conditions need electricity to stay cool in the summer," Erlingheuser pointed out. "Many times, they'll find themselves in a position of either cutting back on medication, or cutting back on electricity or cutting back on food, in order to make ends meet."

Erlingheuser noted Connecticut residents pay the highest electric prices in the lower 48 states. One resource available for those who need help paying utility bills is Operation Fuel. Before applying, a household needs to gather proof of the last four weeks of income for all household members, the name of their fuel vendor or a utility bill and payment history.

Erlingheuser added two important programs have an upcoming deadline of June 30: the Connecticut Energy Assistance Program and the COVID-19 Payment Plan.

He emphasized the payment plan can help with catching up past-due balances and current bills.

"You don't need to have any money up front to get in this program, and it could be spread out over 24 months," Erlingheuser observed. "They waive all the fees and interest in the calculation of your monthly payments. So, these are important programs, and we would encourage folks to get to them while they still exist."

You can contact your utility providers to learn more about specific payment plans.

Connecticut customers who have medical conditions also are qualified for protections from utility shut-offs due to lack of payment. They can ask their doctor to certify they have a serious illness or life-threatening condition on the utility's internet portal.

Seven in 10 Americans view inflation as the most pressing issue facing the nation right now, and in Maine, a new report seeks to explore the causes, and what can be done to bring costs down.

James Myall, economic policy analyst at the Maine Center for Economic Policy and the report's co-author, said a variety of factors have come into play. He explained it is partly about supply and demand, and how they have shifted throughout the pandemic, creating bottlenecks. He noted the Russian invasion of Ukraine also plays a role, especially in food and energy costs.

Myall contended one driver of inflation Maine lawmakers could do something about is the issue of corporate consolidation.

"It's one of the things that lawmakers in Augusta can actually address," Myall asserted. "They can't do very much to address sort of some of these supply chain issues. But there are things they can do to limit the power of corporations to be able to set prices beyond rising costs."

The report showed prices for food, energy and other basic goods have increased as much as 16% in the last year, and corporate profits accounted for more than half of each dollar increase in prices. In the 40 years prior, corporate profits made up about 11% of price hikes.

Myall added wage increases have made a difference for some families in their ability to handle inflation, especially those in the restaurant and hotel industries in the face of worker shortages. But he pointed out wages have not kept pace with inflation, so they are not major drivers of it now.

"On average, we're seeing that wages have not increased as fast as inflation or have not kept pace," Myall stressed. "One of the things that's made it particularly tough for a lot of workers is that, even where folks have got pay raises, those have not been as much as the prices have been rising."

Myall emphasized prices have increased the most in the sectors where corporations have the most power. For instance, four firms control more than half of the meat-processing industry, and meat prices have skyrocketed.

The report includes recommendations for lawmakers, from new approaches to antitrust laws and addressing price gouging, to implementing a windfall tax and robust safety-net programs.

A new study shows that almost daily leaks along America's 310,000-mile network of natural gas pipelines are causing death, injury and large-scale property damage.

The report from the Arizona PIRG Education Fund finds over the past decade, pipeline incidents serious enough to require reporting occurred every 40 hours.

Diane Brown - executive director with Arizona PIRG - said the report found between 2010 and 2021, 2,600 explosions killed 122 people, seriously injured 600 and cost Americans more than $4 billion.

"Leaks can occur anywhere," said Brown, "from the transport of gas from the well, through the gathering and transmission pipelines and the distribution lines that carry gas to homes and businesses."

The report - published this week in conjunction with the nonprofit Frontier Group - also found that pipeline leaks in Arizona and elsewhere released 26 billion cubic feet of methane, a greenhouse-gas pollutant linked to climate change.

Brown added that the serious pipeline incidents addressed in the report likely represent only some of the leaks experienced in producing, transporting and burning gas.

"Federally reported gas leaks represent just a fraction of the total," said Brown. "Not all serious gas explosions that have caused death or injury are included in the data if they did not occur in the pipeline system."

The report calls for the U.S. to stop relying so heavily on methane for home heating and cooking, as well as electricity generation. Brown said Arizona regulators have already started down that road.

"The Arizona Corporation Commission is starting to look at some of the risk posed by gas," said Brown. "The commission has brought Southwest Gas before them to discuss recent incidents that have caused Arizonans harm."

In addition to calling for tougher regulations, Arizona PIRG is advocating for better pipeline infrastructure, with improved gas-leak detection systems.

The study, along with gas safety tips for consumers, is online at 'ArizonaPIRGEdFund.org.'