logo
House bill introduced to improve treatment of postpartum depression

House bill introduced to improve treatment of postpartum depression

Yahoo22-02-2025

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WIAT)– A bill has been introduced that creates new care for postpartum depression in mothers of newborns.
Postpartum depression is a mental health condition where a mother feels sad, anxious or overwhelmed for an extended time after childbirth. It can be treated using therapy or medication.
Supreme Court clears way for lawsuit over COVID-19 pandemic-era unemployment claims in Alabama
HB322 would require doctors to assess new mothers for postpartum depression and refer them for treatment. The cost of this treatment would be funded by Medicaid. This bill also calls for the creation of educational material on postpartum depression to be distributed to new mothers and their families.
The bill was sponsored by Rep. Frances Holk-Jones (Republican, Baldwin County) and co-sponsored by five other representatives. It was referred to the House Health Committee.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

RFK Jr. names 8 new CDC vaccine advisory members, including skeptics
RFK Jr. names 8 new CDC vaccine advisory members, including skeptics

Yahoo

time14 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

RFK Jr. names 8 new CDC vaccine advisory members, including skeptics

June 11 (UPI) -- Two days after disbanding the entire 17-member independent vaccine advisory committee, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday appointed eight new members, including prominent vaccine skeptics and pandemic response critics. CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, is scheduled to meet next on June 25. The new panel included seven men and one woman. "The slate includes highly credentialed scientists, leading public-health experts, and some of America's most accomplished physicians," Kennedy said in a post on X. "All of these individuals are committed to evidence-based medicine, gold-standard science, and common sense. They have each committed to demanding definitive safety and efficacy data before making any new vaccine recommendations. The committee will review safety and efficacy data for the current schedule as well." On Monday, Kennedy said the former members had conflicts of interest on a panel that "wields the grave responsibility of adding new vaccines to the recommended childhood schedule." He pointed ties to Big Pharma. Kennedy, a long-time vaccine critic, said the "most outrageous example of ACIP's malevolent malpractice has been its stubborn unwillingness to demand adequate safety trials before recommending new vaccines for our children. ... ACIP has recommended each of these additional jabs without requiring placebo-controlled trials for any of them. This means that no one can scientifically ascertain whether these products are averting more problems than they are causing." CDC has narrowed its recommendations for mRNA Covid-19 shots, including by children and pregnant women. DHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon told NBC News that "all newly appointed ACIP members were thoroughly vetted" but declined to offer specifics. ACIP normally includes pediatricians, geriatricians and other vaccine experts but the new panel includes a psychiatrist, neuroscientist, epidemiologist and biostatistician, and professor of operations management. Kennedy released information on the new members. Dr. Robert Malone, a physician-scientist and biochemist, has been a vocal critic of mRNA technology in COVID-19 vaccines after making early innovations in the field of messenger RNA. He suggested this year, without evidence, that pediatric deaths from measles were due to medical error. He has served in advisory roles for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Defense. "His expertise spans molecular biology, immunology, and vaccine development," Kennedy said. Dr. Martin Kulldorff, a biostatistician and epidemiologist, co-authored an October 2020 strategy on herd immunity known as the Great Barrington Declaration with Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, now director of the U.S. National Institutes of Health. He formerly was at Harvard Medical School, and served on Food and Drug Administration and CDC panels. "He has also been an influential voice in public health policy, advocating for evidence-based approaches to pandemic response," Kennedy said. Dr. Cody Meissner, a Dartmouth professor of pediatrics who also signed the Great Barrington Declaration, has served on ACIP and on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee. "His expertise spans vaccine development, immunization safety, and pediatric infectious disease epidemiology," Kennedy said. Dr. Joseph Hibbeln, a psychiatrist and neuroscientist, is former acting chief of the U.S. National Institutes of Health section on nutritional neurosciences. "His work has informed U.S. public health guidelines, particularly in maternal and child health," Kennedy said. "Dr. Hibbeln brings expertise in immune-related outcomes, psychiatric conditions, and evidence-based public health strategies." Dr. Retsef Levi, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor of operations management, has published studies on mRNA vaccines and cardiovascular events. "His research has contributed to discussions on vaccine manufacturing processes, safety surveillance, and public health policy," Kennedy said. He has been involved in healthcare systems optimization, epidemiologic modeling, and the application of AI and data science in public health. Dr. James Pagano, an emergency medicine physician with 40 years of clinical experience from "Level 1 trauma centers to small community hospitals, caring for patients across all age groups," Kennedy said in describing him as a "strong advocate for evidence-based medicine." He has served on hospital committees, including utilization review, and medical executive boards. Dr. Vicky Pebsworth, a pediatric professor at Dartmouth, is the Pacific region director of the National Association of Catholic Nurses. She has served on the FDA committee, as well as a national panel reviewing the 2009 H1N1 swine flu vaccine. "She has worked in the healthcare field for more than 45 years, serving in various capacities," Kennedy said. NBC News reported she is a leading source of misinformation about vaccines. Dr. Michael Ross, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at George Washington University and Virginia Commonwealth University, has served on the CDC's Advisory Committee for the Prevention of Breast and Cervical Cancer. "His continued service on biotech and healthcare boards reflects his commitment to advancing innovation in immunology, reproductive medicine and public health," Kennedy said. Dr. Noel Brewer, an ACIP member who was fired this week, told MSNBC on Wednesday: "The new panel is missing all of the expertise that has come before them. They don't know how to go about looking at the evidence, how to think about the volumes of data that will be coming their way." Brewer, who said members should be replaced on a rolling basis, is a professor in the department of health behavior at the University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health. "Being a vaccine skeptic is not a bad thing if you follow the science," Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, told NBC News. "I'm concerned that the names he's put out so far aren't ideologically balanced. I think he got the slate he was looking for." Benjamin said Kennedy's policies are a danger to public health.

Fire Watch program; helping veterans, first responders cope with trauma
Fire Watch program; helping veterans, first responders cope with trauma

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

Fire Watch program; helping veterans, first responders cope with trauma

The Brief A new virtual program is helping veterans and first responders cope with trauma. The Fire Watch program is available at Rogers Behavioral Health. FOX6 News spoke with a peer specialist who is, himself, recovering from trauma after military service. WAUKESHA, Wis. - Veterans and emergency responders are often first to run into the line of fire. Now, a new virtual program is giving them support to work through the trauma. What we know When veteran Chris Swift came back from serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, he said he had to learn some lessons the hard way. "Some people are like, 'Oh, tell me some cool stories.' Well, they're not always cool stories. They don't understand all the stuff that goes along with it," Swift said. "I drank a lot when I came back. I ended up getting three DUIs. I went to rehab at the VA for about four months, then I went to jail for about seven months." FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android Swift said he is now six years sober. He is also a peer specialist for the Fire Watch program at Rogers Behavioral Health. The goal of the program is to provide help and mental health support for veterans and first responders. The program first launched in September 2024. What they're saying "We can do a wide variety of things within this program. We focus on moral injury, but moral injury can come in a lot of different forms. And we can see it come across as anxiety or depression," said Jennifer Parra-Nelson, Clinical Director of Trauma Services & Fire Watch program. Moral injury is the guilt and shame that can come from trauma. The VA defines it as "the distressing psychological, behavioral, social, and sometimes spiritual aftermath of exposure to such events. A moral injury can occur in response to acting or witnessing behaviors that go against an individual's values and moral beliefs." Organizers said addressing that is an important part of the eight-week, 100% virtual program. Participants go through therapy, learn practical coping mechanisms, and connect with others going through the same thing. SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News "We've seen a lot seen a lot of patients come in just with a lot of stigma. And with a lot of possibly thinking that maybe this won't work for them. And I think we've seen a lot of people be surprised that we are very accessible to this population," Parra-Nelson said. Swift said his goal is to help others who were in his shoes – for their sake and the sake of their loved ones. What you can do Learn much more about the Fire Watch program and how it might be able to help someone you love. Program organizers said insurance covers the Fire Watch program. Medicaid is also accepted. The Source The information in this post was provided, in part, by Rogers Behavioral Health.

RFK Jr.'s newest CDC vaccine panel includes critics of COVID shots, lockdowns
RFK Jr.'s newest CDC vaccine panel includes critics of COVID shots, lockdowns

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

RFK Jr.'s newest CDC vaccine panel includes critics of COVID shots, lockdowns

The Brief U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has replaced the government's vaccine advisory panel with eight new appointees. The new members include vocal critics of COVID-19 vaccines and pandemic lockdowns, such as Dr. Robert Malone and Dr. Martin Kulldorff. Public health groups have raised concerns that Kennedy's changes could undermine long-standing vaccination policies. NEW YORK - U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has named eight new vaccine policy advisers to replace the panel that he abruptly dismissed earlier this week. His selections include a scientist who researched mRNA vaccine technology and transformed into a conservative darling for his criticisms of COVID-19 vaccines, and a leading critic of pandemic-era lockdowns. RELATED: RFK Jr. ousts entire CDC vaccine panel Kennedy made the announcement in a social media post on Wednesday. The backstory Kennedy's decision to "retire" the previous 17-member panel was widely decried by doctors' groups and public health organizations, who feared the advisers would be replaced by a group aligned with Kennedy's desire to reassess — and possibly end — longstanding vaccination recommendations. Dig deeper The new appointees to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices include Dr. Robert Malone, the former mRNA researcher who emerged as a close adviser to Kennedy during the measles outbreak. Malone, who runs a wellness institute and a popular blog, rose to popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic as he relayed conspiracy theories around the outbreak and the vaccines that followed. He has appeared on podcasts and other conservative news outlets where he's promoted unproven and alternative treatments for measles and COVID-19. He has claimed that millions of Americans were hypnotized into taking the COVID-19 shots. He's even suggested that those vaccines cause a form of AIDS. He's downplayed deaths related to one of the largest measles outbreaks in the U.S. in years. Other appointees include Dr. Martin Kulldorff, a biostatistician and epidemiologist who was a co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration, an October 2020 letter maintaining that pandemic shutdowns were causing irreparable harm. Dr. Cody Meissner, a former ACIP member, also was named. Big picture view The committee, created in 1964, makes recommendations to the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC directors almost always approve those recommendations on how Food and Drug Administration-cleared vaccines should be used. The CDC's final recommendations are widely heeded by doctors and determine the scope of vaccination programs. The Source The Associated Press contributed to this report. The information in this story comes from a social media announcement made by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday, in which he introduced eight new members to the federal vaccine advisory panel. This story was reported from Los Angeles.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store