Older Americans Act Reauthorization signed into law

Leave a reply
Liz Seegert

About Liz Seegert

Liz Seegert (@lseegert), is AHCJ’s topic editor on aging. Her work has appeared in NextAvenue.com, Journal of Active Aging, Cancer Today, Kaiser Health News, the Connecticut Health I-Team and other outlets. She is a senior fellow at the Center for Health Policy and Media Engagement at George Washington University and co-produces the HealthCetera podcast.

Photo: Kate Gardiner via Flickr

With practically everyone working overtime to cover COVID-19, you may have missed an important milestone last week. President Trump signed the Older Americans Act (OAA) Reauthorization into law on March 25 after the U.S. Senate earlier in the month unanimously passed the bipartisan legislation co-authored by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Sen. Bob Casey (D-Penn.) the chair and ranking member, respectively, of the Aging Committee. (It passed in the House on March 11.) Continue reading →

Should freelancers pitch right now? Yes, and here’s what to do

1 Reply
Carolyn Crist

About Carolyn Crist

Carolyn Crist (@cristcarolyn) helps AHCJ’s freelance members find the resources, tips and contacts they need to create and run a successful business. A freelance journalist and author, Crist covers health, medicine and science stories for national news outlets such as Reuters, Runner’s World and Parade. She also writes for trade and custom publications. Contact her at carolyn@healthjournalism.org.

Photo: Dan Simpson via Flickr

In numerous groups, forums and discussion lists, freelance journalists are asking three big questions: Do I pitch right now? Can I pitch COVID-19 stories? Can I pitch non-coronavirus-related stories?

The answer to all three: Yes! A resounding “yes, absolutely.”

Some freelancers have reported a decline in work, and others seem booked around-the-clock. Those who have lined up work are reporting similar trends: Continue reading →

Are older lives less worthy in a pandemic?

Leave a reply
Liz Seegert

About Liz Seegert

Liz Seegert (@lseegert), is AHCJ’s topic editor on aging. Her work has appeared in NextAvenue.com, Journal of Active Aging, Cancer Today, Kaiser Health News, the Connecticut Health I-Team and other outlets. She is a senior fellow at the Center for Health Policy and Media Engagement at George Washington University and co-produces the HealthCetera podcast.

Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick

You may have heard the comments from Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick earlier this week, when he said that the elderly should be willing to die to help the economy.  Fox personality Glenn Beck made similar statements, urging older people — basically anyone over 50 — to return to work even if it meant they might get sick and die. He included himself in this group too.

Outrageous? Of course. But it’s also a sign of the ageism that’s still pervasive in the U.S.

“Let’s be clear: prioritizing the economy over the ill, the old, and the disabled is a form of #eugenics,” tweeted journalist and author Ashton Applewhite. Continue reading →

Elsevier webinar to discuss impact of outbreaks on infectious disease research

Leave a reply
Tara Haelle

About Tara Haelle

Tara Haelle (@TaraHaelle) is AHCJ's medical studies core topic leader, guiding journalists through the jargon-filled shorthand of science and research and enabling them to translate the evidence into accurate information.

Transmission electron micrograph of SARS-CoV-2 virus particles, isolated from a patient.

Photo: NIAID via FlickrTransmission electron micrograph of SARS-CoV-2 virus particles, isolated from a patient.

COVID-19 might be the biggest pandemic the world has seen in a century, but it’s not the first major pandemic or epidemic. Ebola, H1N1 influenza, SARS, MERS and Zika all have rocked the news cycle in recent years, with long-lasting ramifications on global health, infrastructure and economies in the 21st century. The disease that develops from the SARS-CoV-2 virus won’t be the last, or possibly even the biggest to come.

During such epidemics, scientific research has been published in a rapid flurry. As on-the-ground, immediately clinically relevant research is published, other researchers look to the past — digging into the pathogen’s etiology — while others steadfastly focus on the future to develop treatments and vaccines. Continue reading →

Ask the experts: What do you want to know about COVID-19?

Leave a reply
Bara Vaida

About Bara Vaida

Bara Vaida (@barav) is AHCJ's core topic leader on infectious diseases. An independent journalist, she has written extensively about health policy and infectious diseases. Her work has appeared in outlets that include the National Journal, Agence France-Presse, Bloomberg News, McClatchy News Service, MSNBC, NPR, Politico and The Washington Post.

webcastThe COVID-19 pandemic is quickly evolving and finding up-to-date answers to questions from experts has been challenging for many journalists.

On Friday, March 27, join two experts from Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security who will be answering your questions about what is known about the virus, how the health system is responding, how the outbreak might end and strategies for journalists to combat misinformation.

To ensure that we address your questions, you are invited to submit them ahead of time using this form. Continue reading →

Another AB 5 lawsuit update: Motion denied but groups consider appeal

Leave a reply
Carolyn Crist

About Carolyn Crist

Carolyn Crist (@cristcarolyn) helps AHCJ’s freelance members find the resources, tips and contacts they need to create and run a successful business. A freelance journalist and author, Crist covers health, medicine and science stories for national news outlets such as Reuters, Runner’s World and Parade. She also writes for trade and custom publications. Contact her at carolyn@healthjournalism.org.

Photo courtesy of David Lena and GSALA Federal Courthouse expressing civic architecture by way of association with City Hall and similar patriotic symbols incorporated into the building.

After a Los Angeles District Court judge declined to halt the current limits on freelance journalists and photographers in California, the two national organizations that filed the lawsuit are thinking about the next move — possibly an appeal to the 9th Circuit.

On March 20, Judge Philip Gutierrez denied a motion for preliminary injunction on California Assembly Bill 5, which restricts journalists to 35 submissions per publication per year as freelancers. Gutierrez also dismissed the lawsuit entirely. The two rulings came as a surprise on Friday since the next step in the case was scheduled to take place on March 23. Continue reading →