skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Report: EPA Stance on Air Quality Ignores Scientific Evidence

play audio
Play

Monday, June 22, 2020   

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Environmental Protection Agency has said it plans to leave current air pollution standards for particulate matter unchanged, despite warnings from scientists that the standards are outdated and causing tens of thousands of premature deaths each year across the country.

North Carolina State professor Chris Frey co-authored a new report in the New England Journal of Medicine detailing the public health implications of the EPA's position to sideline changes to the standards.

He says because the scientific evidence for strengthening the standards is robust, the agency will likely be sued over its decision.

"It will take time for this to go through the courts, and in the meantime, the country will be stuck with an outdated standard that fails to protect public health," Frey states. "And when we're talking about public health, I mean here we're talking about, we could be avoiding premature deaths."

In April, the agency announced its proposal to keep the current standards, arguing that they are adequate to protect to public health. The proposal is up for public comment through June 29.

Frey adds the EPA's stance on air quality is part of a larger trend of changes to policies that appear to ignore scientific findings.

He notes that in addition to laboratory research, several major studies have focused on large populations breathing in particulate matter at levels even below the current standards. They've found higher rates of heart disease, lung cancer, respiratory illnesses, along with dementia and mental health problems.

"So, all of that taken together is compelling evidence that the current standards are not protecting public health," Frey stresses.

Frey also maintains the EPA is failing to consider the inequality in health risks.

According to the American Lung Association, people of color are more likely to live in counties with higher levels of particulate pollution.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021