Recent Stories
All eyes on the Fed
WASHINGTON — Debate is heating up within the Federal Reserve over how and when to signal that the days of record-low interest rates are numbered.
Dems start countdown toward vote
WASHINGTON — House Democrats triggered the countdown Monday for the climactic vote on President Barack Obama’s fiercely contested remake of the health care system, even though the legislation remained incomplete and lacked the votes needed to pass.
Are people receiving too many medical tests?
CHICAGO — Too much cancer screening, too many heart tests, too many cesarean sections. A spate of recent reports suggests that many Americans are being overtreated. Maybe even President Barack Obama, champion of an overhaul and cost-cutting of the health care system. Is it doctors practicing defensive medicine? Or are patients so accustomed to a culture of medical technology that they insist on extensive tests and treatments? A combination of both is at work, but new evidence and updated guidelines are recommending a step back and more thorough doctor-patient talks about risks and benefits of screening tests.
Parkinson signs Kansas smoking ban
TOPEKA, Kan. — Gov. Mark Parkinson signed Kansas’ first statewide smoking ban Friday, calling it a victory for people concerned about clean air.
Loosening their belts
WASHINGTON — Retail sales posted a surprising increase in February as consumers refused to let snowstorms stop them from stepping up purchases for everything from clothes to appliances. The improvement provided hope that the recovery from the Great Recession is gaining momentum.
Nixon suggests combining education departments
Looking to fill a $500 million gap in the state budget, Gov. Jay Nixon on Thursday proposed combining the state’s education departments. The announcement found the approval of Dr. Robert Stein, commissioner of the Missouri Department of Higher Education. Combining the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education with the Department of Higher Education is part of the governor’s initial proposal to cut $125 million in spending. Slashing health care services, appropriations to schools, and axing one passenger train between Kansas City and St. Louis are also in his initial proposal.
Truck, SUV hybrids?
WARREN, Mich. — General Motors Co. will keep making big trucks and SUVs because U.S. buyers demand them, but a major portion of them will be gas-electric hybrids in the near future, retiring Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said Friday.
Nixon announces more cuts
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has announced $125 million in spending cuts, with plans to trim hundreds of millions of dollars more in the future.
Continental may cancel more flights
DALLAS — Continental Airlines plans to cancel flights rather than risk stiff fines under new federal rules designed to punish carriers for delaying passengers.
Spring storms could be ferocious
OKLAHOMA CITY — Forecasters say a wetter-than-usual winter and a jet stream ripping over the part of the country known as “Tornado Alley” could lead to an active spring — perhaps starting with the strong twister that nicked a small western Oklahoma town Monday night. “It’s time to get ready,” Michelann Ooten of the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management said Tuesday as she surveyed damage from a storm that destroyed five homes and tore the roofs off several others in Hammon.
