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Shreveport, LA – The devastating effects of alcohol are well documented. According to a report to Congress by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, more than 14 million Americans meet the criteria for alcohol abuse or alcoholism, and more than half of Americans have a close relative who is an alcoholic.
BATON ROUGE – Beachcombers, wave runners and surf fishermen now can make better decisions about entering the surf at three of Louisiana’s public beaches. Signs alerting beachgoers to the status of the water quality at Fontainebleau, Grand Isle and Cypremort Point state parks were unveiled today at a ceremony at Fountainebleau.
Baton Rouge --- Staff from the Department of Health and Hospitals, along with representatives from other agencies and advocacy groups, will be at locations throughout the state to promote programs already in place to help uninsured children, pregnant women, and seniors in need of assistance paying their Medicare premiums. This outreach is part of Cover The Uninsured Week, from May 10-16.
Baton Rouge --- The Department of Health and Hospitals, Office of Public Health will host a reception on Friday, May 7, to honor the Mothers of the Year from its Women, Infants and Children Program (WIC).
Baton Rouge --- With support from the state and federal governments, the Baton Rouge Primary Care Collaborative, Inc. has secured $650,000 to open two federally qualified health centers in the Greater Baton Rouge area. These centers receive federal funding to provide primary and preventive health care services to all patients in medically underserved areas regardless of ability to pay.
Lake Charles, LA, – This Saturday, May 1, the Louisiana SIDS Program will give away a brand new baby bed at the Women & Children’s Hospital Baby Fair, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., in front of the hospital at 4200 Nelson Road. The Louisiana SIDS Program is co-sponsoring this year’s free Baby Fair to emphasize its “This Side Up” campaign that reminds families to place babies on their backs to sleep to reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS.
Baton Rouge --- The St. Martinville Parish Medicaid office has temporarily relocated to a building in Lafayette to accommodate mold cleanup at the St. Martinville site. The workers at that office expect to return to the St. Martinville site within two to nine weeks.
Baton Rouge --- Did you know Louisiana was the first state to have a public health department? It was begun in New Orleans in 1855 in response to the yellow fever epidemic. Today, the Department of Health and Hospitals – Office of Public Health performs a number of functions to help citizens lead healthy lives, such as restaurant sanitary inspections, water quality monitoring, bioterrorism preparedness, West Nile surveillance and back-to-school immunizations, to name a few.
Baton Rouge --- How much alcohol is too much? How does alcohol affect my health? What can I do if I think a friend or loved one may have a problem? All these questions are ones that can be addressed in a matter of minutes on National Alcohol Screening Day.
Houma – Health officials said today laboratory tests on samples from the suspect tuberculosis case at H.L. Bourgeois High School now have been completed and the individual has been confirmed to have TB. This individual is not showing symptoms, is no longer considered contagious, is undergoing appropriate treatment and has been cleared to return to school.
Baton Rouge –Annual changes in Federal Poverty Level guidelines that go into effect this month make more children eligible for the Louisiana Children’s Health Insurance Program (LaCHIP), by allowing their families to earn more income. Since the program began more than five years ago, more than 21,000 families have been denied coverage because their income was too high. In the past 11 months alone, since the last annual income increases, more than 4,000 families have been denied coverage due to excess income and in many cases because their income just slightly exceeded the limit.
Baton Rouge – Children who are at increased risk for behavioral disorders or mental health problems can now receive specialized services in six parishes in the state.