QCA.news - Quad Cities news and view from both sides of the river

Thursday, July 23rd, 2026
	Scott County taxpayers spent $1.3M on outside jail beds as sheriff urges Iowa prison expansion to ease county costs Scott County spent $1.3 million housing detainees elsewhere in FY2025 as its sheriff called for more Iowa prison space.
	Emergency responders extricate man from car at crash site on Route 150 Emergency responders are at the scene of a crash that happened shortly after 6 p.m. Thursday about halfway between Coal Valley and Orion on Route 150, which was completely blocked at 7 p.m. Our Quad Cities News crew saw a car and a pickup truck, which may have been pulling a trailer, at the scene. [...]
	Brady Street Sprints ring in Bix 7 weekend The 3rd annual Hilltop Brady Street Party is going on before the race kicks off.
	Bettendorf School Board hears public reaction to recent superintendent moves The Bettendorf School Board heard praise, questions and criticism of recent leadership decisions, including a settlement agreement with the former superintendent and the hiring process for the interim superintendent.
	Short-term workforce programs now eligible for Pell Grant funding As part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, these career training programs are now eligible for money that had traditionally only been available to undergraduates.
	Geifman Group closes on purchase of former Quad-City Times building The nearly 123,000-square-foot space was the headquarters for the Quad-City Times from the building's construction in 1989 until late last year.
	Road closures, forecast and more: What to know ahead of the Quad-City Times Bix 7 this weekend What started with just 84 runners in 1975 has grown to thousands of participants. Here's a look at what's in store.
	Day 5 of RAGBRAI is winding down Today's 87-mile ride from Marshalltown to Independence is the longest of this year's ride.
	Trump to impose double-digit tariffs on dozens of countries The United States will slap taxes of 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 countries accounting for 99% of U.S. imports, charging that they have inadequately enforced bans on goods produced by forced labor.
	Crime Stoppers: Woman wanted by high risk unit for escape from Iowa work release program Fugitive Brieanna Summers, 37, is wanted by the Iowa Department of Corrections' High Risk Unit for escaping a work release program, officials say.
	Crime Stoppers: Suspects burglarized Galaxy Vape in 32 seconds Moline police are searching for two men who broke into Galaxy Vape on Avenue of the Cities and stole THC products in just 32 seconds on Tuesday.
	Crime Stoppers: Iowa High Risk Unit searching for wanted sex offender registry violation Brian J. Hamilton, 34, is wanted by the Iowa Department of Corrections' High Risk Unit for a second-offense sex offender registry violation.
	Pleasant temperatures ahead of dangerous heat & humidity Pleasant weather settles in, cooler through end of work week
	Suspect wanted in Henry County, Iowa hit-and-run The suspect's vehicle is believed to be a white Ford Escape. Anyone with information about the driver is asked to contact the Henry County Sheriff's Office.
	Students able to use federal Pell Grant dollars for eligible workforce programs Both Illinois and Iowa have some form of approval process for the programs open right now.
	Davenport businesses ready for Bix 7 surge Business owners told News 8 that the Bix weekend is the busiest of the year.
	Former JI Case Plant demolition underway Crews are tearing down the former JI Case Plant in Bettendorf.
	Another cyclospora outbreak not linked to lettuce under investigation: FDA At least 72 cases have been linked to this outbreak.
	Davenport woman charged in connection with suspected heroin overdose death A Davenport woman has been charged following the suspected overdose death of a man in May.
	Nick Gow named Muscatine Parks and Recreation Director Muscatine has a new Parks and Recreation Director. The city has named Nick Gow as the new Parks and Recreation Director, effective July 22. City Administrator Matt Mardesen announced the appointment after a competitive selection process that highlighted Gow’s leadership experience, operational knowledge and commitment to community‑focused recreation services. Gow graduated from Iowa State University [...]
	How to keep an ancient text interesting to students? Make it a summer blockbuster English teachers are excited to have a new adaptation of Homer's The Odyssey to use to get students excited about the epic poem.
	Henry County, Iowa, Sheriff needs help finding hit-and-run suspect The Henry County Sheriff’s Office is asking for help finding a hit-and-run suspect Thursday afternoon.
	Chick-fil-A warns cyberattack may have exposed customer data in Iowa, other states Some Chick-fil-A loyalty members may have had their personal information exposed following a recent cyberattack, the company said.
	Trump allies could weaken historic preservation rules to fast-track federal projects A council packed with Trump appointees is poised to rewrite historic preservation rules. Critics say that could help him build his D.C. arch faster — and endanger important sites across the country.
	Trump allies are poised to weaken protections for historic sites — not just in D.C. A council packed with Trump appointees is poised to rewrite historic preservation rules. Critics say that could help him build his D.C. arch faster — and endanger important sites across the country.
	Davenport family to host 8th annual gun violence prevention walk The public is invited to the walk this Saturday at 10 a.m. from the intersection of 4th and Warren streets to the Davenport police station.
	Gov. Pritzker signs bill to honor Emmett Till and his mother Governor JB Pritzker signed House Bill 4323 to designate July 25 as Emmett Till Day in Illinois, honoring the legacy of the young civil rights icon and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley.
	Sprints set to kick off Thursday ahead of weekend’s signature road race The MercyOne Brady Street Sprints begin tonight at 7 p.m. in Davenport, featuring runners racing up the iconic hill.
	MVF's General Manager talks 'Tiger King' and Grand Stand on the Getting To Know Podcast Mississippi Valley Fair General Manager Shawn Loter joined Chief Meteorologist Andy McCray on the Getting to Know Podcast to discuss the logistics, costs, and upcoming plans for the 2026 fair.
	Temperatures to increase next week. Oklahoma City Zoo shortens hours in response A Sumatran tiger cub climbs on a log at the Oklahoma City Zoo on May 1, 2026. (Photo by Janelle Stecklein/Oklahoma Voice)OKLAHOMA CITY — Intense heat is expected to continue around Oklahoma as triple-digit temperatures increase in the next week. The National Weather Service in Norman forecasts it will feel like between 105 to 110 degrees next week across Oklahoma. Actual temperatures are expected to reach 100 to 105 degrees. John Pike, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said he expects heat advisories to continue to be issued around the state as temperatures rise. Pike says next week’s temperatures are expected to be higher than normal for this time of the year, which are usually between the mid-to-upper 90s. He recommends Oklahomans limit time outside, especially from afternoon to sundown, stay hydrated and be aware of the symptoms of heat exhaustion, which include dizziness, thirst, nausea and weakness. Oklahoma City news station KFOR reported Wednesday emergency medical services system EMSA has responded to 80 heat-related illness calls in Oklahoma City this month and transported 58 patients to nearby hospitals for heat-related illness complications. Ahead of the temperature hikes, the Oklahoma City Zoo announced that beginning Sunday the zoo’s public visiting hours will be shortened to 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The abbreviated schedule will run through Thursday though its summer camps and preschool program will continue as normal. The zoo encouraged visitors to use water refill stations and find shaded areas around the park. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Courtesy of Oklahoma Voice
	Roadway improvements close part of 12th Street, Rock Island Rock Island has a new roadway improvement project starting next week. A news release from the city’s Public Works Department said 12th Street between 7th Avenue and 10th Avenue will be closed to traffic for roadway improvements, starting on Monday, July 27. Drivers should expect delays in the area and are encouraged to plan alternate [...]
	Registration open for Bettendorf’s Citizen Academy Officials said students will get an in-depth look at how the city government works by exploring all 12 city departments.
	Unemployment unchanged in Illinois Quad Cities: Report New numbers show that unemployment in the Illinois Quad Cities has not changed since last year, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Illinois Department of Employment Security (DES). Over the year, total nonfarm jobs increased in five metropolitan areas, including seven consecutive months of year-over-year job growth for [...]
	Moore Caffeine in Silvis to hold ribbon-cutting on Saturday The shop has an array of new and unique energy drinks, inspired by cultures around the world.
	Iowa’s newest rock climbing destination takes climbers to new heights A new outdoor climbing area in Jackson County is the first of its scale to open in the state in more than a decade. Volunteers passionate about opening more access to climbing in Iowa developed the site earlier this summer.
	For a 2nd time, House approves resolution to end the war in Iran in a rebuke to Trump Four Republicans joined Democrats to approve the measure. And while it is not legally binding, the resolution represents growing frustration inside Congress over the war.
	Sprints set to kick off tonight ahead of weekend’s signature road race The MercyOne Brady Street Sprints begin tonight at 7 p.m. in Davenport, featuring runners racing up the iconic hill.
	The time to act on Alzheimer’s is now with support for treatment, prevention, caregivers More than 7 million Americans age 65 and older are living with Alzheimer's disease. (Photo by Halfpoint Images/Getty Stock photo)Every family hopes to grow old with the people they love most. But for millions of Americans, Alzheimer’s disease slowly takes those moments away. It steals patients’ memories, identities, and independence while caregivers carry much of the burden. As the number of Americans living with Alzheimer’s continues to grow, we can no longer afford to treat this as tomorrow’s problem. Alzheimer’s disease must become one of today’s top public health priorities. Today, more than 7 million Americans age 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s disease. It is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States and the only disease among the nation’s top 10 leading causes of death without a cure. Unless we act, the number of Americans with the disease is projected to double in the coming decades, placing even greater strain on families, caregivers, and our healthcare system. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. Alzheimer’s is on track to cost the United States over $780 billion a year if we don’t do something about it. The growing human and economic toll make clear that addressing Alzheimer’s disease can no longer be delayed. Preventative healthcare must become a priority for Alzheimer’s disease. Research consistently suggests that physical activity, healthy eating, quality sleep, and social engagement can help reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Managing conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes are also associated with a lower risk of dementia. Encouraging healthier lifestyles and greater access to preventive healthcare can improve quality of life while reducing long-term healthcare costs. Investing in prevention is a decision Congress can make for individuals, families, and taxpayers. Every dollar invested in prevention saves taxpayers several times that amount in future Medicaid and Medicare spending. Alzheimer’s disease begins long before symptoms appear. Changes in the brain develop years before memory loss becomes noticeable. Fortunately, clinical tools are rapidly changing. Blood-based biomarker tests can detect Alzheimer’s earlier than ever, allowing patients time to make informed decisions and consider treatment options before significant cognitive decline occurs. Early diagnosis also gives patients the opportunity to adopt healthier habits that research shows may help reduce the risk of dementia. Access to a timely Alzheimer’s diagnosis and treatment should be available to every person with Alzheimer’s. They deserve the right to know important information about their own health, and physicians should have the tools necessary to provide the best care to their patients. Congress has introduced the ASAP Act, bipartisan legislation designed to modernize Medicare by covering routine, FDA-approved blood-based biomarker tests for Alzheimer’s disease. Medicare should also ensure that patients can access FDA-approved therapies without unnecessary administrative barriers that can interrupt care. We also cannot overlook the caregivers who make it possible for loved ones with Alzheimer’s to feel supported and safe. For every patient, there is generally more than one caregiver. Caring for a person with Alzheimer’s disease requires a strong support system. Caregivers often sacrifice their own careers and financial security to take care of their loved one with Alzheimer’s. Taking care of your own mental and physical health is just as vital as managing your loved one’s medical needs. Supporting caregivers through offering resources, education, and respite services is just as important to invest in. Alzheimer’s is a devastating disease that affects families, caregivers, and healthcare systems long before most people realize the damage it causes. We owe it to families and future generations to invest in science, expand access to care, and support the caregivers who give so much of themselves every day. Congress has an opportunity to change the trajectory of Alzheimer’s disease. Investing in prevention, earlier diagnosis, and caregiver support today will spare millions of families from greater hardship in future years to come. Courtesy of Iowa Capital Dispatch
	Kansas cases of illness causing explosive diarrhea jump to 289 A national outbreak of cyclosporiasis, a gastrointestinal infection, topped 7,400, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Kansas is reporting 289 confirmed cases, and the state health agency said they are connected to the national outbreak. (Photo courtesy Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)TOPEKA — Kansas cases of an infection that causes gastrointestinal illness increased to 289 over the past week, and the state’s health agency said they are connected to a national outbreak. The state’s cyclosporiasis cases are part of more than 7,400 cases reported nationally and are linked to Taylor Farms de Mexico iceberg lettuce, which was voluntarily recalled from restaurants and grocery stores on Friday, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment said in a news release Wednesday. The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s website reported the agency is aware of more than 7,400 cases nationally, with 4,173 confirmed cases. There have been 308 hospitalizations from the outbreak and no deaths. KDHE reported that of the state’s total cases of cyclosporiasis, an infection caused by the organism Cyclospora cayetanensis, 114 were domestically acquired, 24 were likely linked to international travel and six could not be classified. The remainder are pending classification. Taylor Farms de Mexico  voluntarily recalled all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico from the U.S. market, which includes Marketside-brand products sold at Walmart:  Marketside 12-oz and 24-oz Iceberg Salad with Best if Used By dates of July 18 to Aug. 3.  Marketside 8-oz and 16-oz Shredded Lettuce with Best if Used By dates of July 18 to Aug. 3.  Other Taylor Farms lettuce products are sold for food service, KDHE said. The parasite Cyclospora cayetanensis is commonly found in tropical or subtropical countries and spread by food or water contaminated with feces, KDHE said. Cyclosporiasis isn’t known to spread from person to person, KDHE said. Symptoms occur two to 14 days after exposure and may include: Frequent watery diarrhea. Loss of appetite. Weight loss. Abdominal cramps and bloating. Nausea. Less common symptoms include vomiting and low-grade fever. KDHE said anyone experiencing sudden gastrointestinal illness should be evaluated by a health care provider. The disease is usually treated with an antibiotic, the agency said. “Cooking fresh produce before consuming or avoiding fresh produce all together during periods of increased cyclosporiasis activity are the safest options and are the preferred prevention methods for those who have a higher risk of dehydration or weakened immune systems,” the KDHE release said. That includes people on chemotherapy and organ transplant recipients, as well as infants, young children and elderly people. Courtesy of Kansas Reflector
	Hy-vee Fast & Fresh celebrates 24/7 with first responders Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh stores are showing appreciation for first responders on Friday, July 24, by offering them a free medium coffee or medium fountain drink for 24/7 Day. All first responders, including firefighters, police officers, paramedics and more, can receive their free coffee or fountain drink at all Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh locations. 24/7 [...]
	60% of search journeys now involve AI. Here is what that means for brand visibility. 60% of search journeys now involve AI. Here is what that means for brand visibility.Thirty percent of consumers now use AI for product research. A year ago, that figure was 12%. At the same time, roughly 40% of Google results include an AI Overview, according to a Brainlabs analysis of internal SEOClarity data, meaning people are reading AI-generated answers without actively choosing to. Add those two things together and the share of search journeys that involve AI in some form is already closer to 60%, according to Brainlabs research. The same research projects that figure will reach 80% within twelve months, based on current growth rates. As Brainlabs reports below, that changes how to think about almost everything in organic search.How many people are actually using AI search?Brainlabs' survey data splits consumers into three groups. Traditionalists, around 69% of consumers, use established search engines exclusively. Augmenters, around 30%, use both Google and AI platforms at different points in a single research journey. Dissenters, fewer than 1%, use only AI platforms. The augmenters are where the growth is. They have not abandoned Google. They have added AI as a research layer for complex queries, and that behavioral shift is what makes the aggregate 60% figure significant.Why AI SEO is not just a rebrand of traditional SEOThe two disciplines are similar enough right now that teams do not need to tear up their roadmaps, but different enough that the gap is widening faster than most have adjusted for. There is not one AI search. There are at least four major platforms with different models, different guidelines, and a different relationship with Google's index.The figure worth pausing on is Gemini's 15% overlap with Google's top 10 results, according to a Brainlabs analysis of internal SEOClarity data. Gemini is a Google product, yet it only cites pages from Google's top 10 results 15% of the time. An SEO strategy built entirely around top-10 rankings does very little for Gemini or ChatGPT visibility. And the overlap keeps shifting. AI Overviews used to have a 76% overlap with Google's top 10. In 2026, that figure has roughly halved.How LLMs actually decide what to citeUnderstanding why an obscure page ends up cited in a Gemini answer while a major brand's content is ignored requires understanding how LLMs generate responses, which works differently from how Google ranks pages.When Gemini receives a prompt, it first determines whether it needs external data or can rely on training data alone. For most product research queries, it needs external data. From there, the LLM generates dozens of related micro-questions from the original prompt, sometimes tens of them running simultaneously for complex queries. For each micro-query, it searches Google's index across the top 100 results and beyond, not just the top 10. That is the first major divergence from traditional SEO.The LLM then looks for direct answer blocks, headings matching the micro-question, hard statistical data, and freshness signals such as a recent last-updated date. Sources with low consensus compared to higher-authority references get filtered out. A page that answers a specific micro-question very directly can outcompete higher-authority pages that bury their answer in editorial prose.In practical terms, three optimization approaches have produced the most consistent results across Brainlabs client work. First, studying query fan-out: The micro-questions LLMs generate are knowable, and FAQ sections built around them drive measurable citation increases. Second, running embedding similarity analyses to measure how closely content resembles what is already being cited, an approach that has produced an average 140% increase in AI citations across Brainlabs client tests. Third, treating content freshness as a technical requirement rather than a nice-to-have, with monthly refreshes of high-demand pages as a minimum for time-sensitive topics.Measuring AI search performance is hard. Here is why.No first-party data from any major AI platform is available at scale. Access to Google and Bing data on AI performance has begun to open up, but it remains limited. Google Search Console's Generative AI report provides impressions but not the data most useful for optimization decisions: queries and clicks. Impressions and page performance are useful for establishing baselines and tracking direction, but they leave significant questions unanswered: What are customers actually searching for, what are their follow-up questions, and what is happening in standalone apps like Gemini?The current standard approach is to convert keyword data into likely prompts, track them across one of the thirty-plus third-party AI tracking tools available, and measure brand visibility over time as a proxy for real-world performance. The data is noisier than it looks. Across models, only 23% of citations remain active after 14 days. There is only around 45% agreement between platforms on which brand to recommend first. And fewer than 5% of query sets show perfect consensus across all major platforms.Practical measurement approaches that work within these constraints include running 100 related prompts per category four times each, which produces equivalent reliability to running one prompt 400 times with richer category insight. Tracking AI referral traffic in GA4 and running correlation analyses against existing Google search demand data provides directional signal. Published AI demand studies, including high-quality data from SEOClarity, can be used alongside sensible adjustments to existing Google volume estimates. Any AI traffic estimate will be questioned by leadership, so documenting the methodology and making the reasoning defensible is as important as the number itself.Agentic search: the next shiftEverything so far sits within the current paradigm, where AI is a layer on top of search. The next shift is larger. Google CEO Sundar Pichai has described plans to transform search into an "agent manager," where AI agents do the research and decision-making on a consumer's behalf. In this emerging agentic model, an AI agent researches in seconds, filters to a recommendation, and facilitates the transaction, all without the consumer leaving the AI platform. ChatGPT already has Instant Checkout. Google has its Universal Commerce Protocol.The agents still need to do research, and they will still need information that has to come from somewhere. The question is what content and data sources they will trust enough to cite and act on. Three approaches are worth building toward now.Restructuring content for agent consumption is the starting point. Agents look for explicit conclusions, unambiguous recommendations, precise structured data, and clean HTML. Burying the recommendation in the third paragraph does not work at machine speed.Thinking about data as an asset agents will want to connect to is the second. B2B API access, consumer-facing authentication, and tiered licensing with AI platforms are all plausible commercial models that do not require waiting for the market to fully mature.The third is considering building rather than just feeding. Brands with genuinely valuable expert content have the ingredients to become agentic platforms in their own right, with commerce rails so users can act on recommendations immediately.Where to startStart with measurement. Set up AI referral tracking in GA4, pick two or three priority categories, and begin tracking 50 to 100 related prompts at low frequency. The data will not be perfect, but it will be directional.Next, audit priority content against the signals LLMs look for: freshness dates, direct-answer formatting, structured data, and heading-level relevance to likely micro-questions. A targeted refresh of high-demand pages applying these principles will indicate whether the changes move citation rates before scaling further.Then build the roadmap for divergence. The overlap between traditional SEO and AI SEO is decreasing. In order to be best positioned in two years, teams should be building those capabilities now. The window to get ahead of it rather than chase it is shorter than it looks.MethodologyThe original survey data around consumer AI search behavior was taken from this Brainlabs study. The survey data showed that ~80% of all search journeys use established search engines (Google, Bing, Amazon) at some point when researching a product. If at least 40% of results now have an AI answer e.g. an AI overview or equivalent then Brainlabs maintains that the data saying 30% of consumers are using AI search is under-stating the scale of usage.This story was produced by Brainlabs and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	How CRM dashboard customization turns your pipeline data into decisions How CRM dashboard customization turns your pipeline data into decisionsThere’s an endless stream of data coming into your CRM. But the true value lies in how your company chooses to utilize that data. The last thing you want is for your team to spend their time deciphering and digging through that data. That’s why a CRM dashboard customized to your business objectives is essential.The goal of an optimized CRM dashboard is to channel your team’s focus. Customizing a CRM dashboard creates a visual reporting structure within the CRM that shows the right metrics to the right audience in the right configuration. This way, the dashboard evolves from a report into a tool that drives real business decisions.This Nutshell guide on CRM customization and reporting explores how companies turn their CRM data into a genuine competitive advantage. And the dashboard is where that competitive edge shines.Key takeawaysA customized CRM KPI dashboard that serves role-specific needs eliminates the need to hunt for answers.Determining the ideal visual format for your data type separates a genuinely useful CRM dashboard from an unnecessarily cluttered one.Solid reporting automation is what bridges the gap for confident decisions from real-time data.What is CRM dashboard customization?CRM dashboard customization is the tailoring of the reporting module within a CRM to align with the required pipeline views, metrics, and data visualizations needed by teams to meet their respective goals.Standard dashboards are useful, but they’re built with every user in mind and aren’t optimized for any specific role. A well-customized dashboard is a display that aligns with the key decisions a particular role is concerned with.For instance, a sales manager’s dashboard and a marketing manager’s dashboard should not be the same. Their roles and objectives differ, so the metrics that matter to them differ as well.Customizing your CRM dashboards is also something you’ll revisit at intervals. It’s an ongoing process because your business objectives change, your team expands, and additional data sources become available, which means the metrics you track change.Why does your dashboard design determine your decisions?There is a direct relationship between the visibility of data and the performance of a business. According to research conducted by Forrester in 2026, established analytics programs consistently give businesses between two and five times ROI related to revenue growth, reduced risk, and cost efficiency.Those returns are directly influenced by visible and relevant data, easily accessible by the person who needs to see it.The most successful teams see dashboard customization as part of their overall strategy. These teams determine exactly which decisions their dashboards should inform, and design their dashboard visualizations accordingly.An effective CRM dashboard keeps up with the natural flow of your business. It represents how your business really runs, integrates the most important KPIs, and shifts as your business priorities change.Which KPIs belong on a CRM dashboard?KPIs included in an effective CRM dashboard should relate directly to the decisions and actions teams take in their daily work.The best dashboards include a mix of leading and lagging KPIs. Lagging KPIs show past results, and leading KPIs predict future outcomes. An example of a lagging KPI is the win rate, while a leading KPI example is the number of weekly demos scheduled. Both types of KPIs are necessary to gain a full understanding of performance.The role of the user is vital here. A single dashboard serving teams across all departments ultimately serves no one well.Here's a practical starting framework to build an ideal role-focused CRM dashboard: Nutshell Bear in mind that your CRM dashboard is not meant to function as a scoreboard. See it as more of a navigational tool, intended to show users the opportunities and risks related to their work in order to prompt them to take action.One useful rule to follow is to limit dashboard views to between seven and 10 KPIs. Displaying more KPIs than this typically leads to information overload and less insight.What types of data visualization work best in CRM reporting?CRM data visualization involves translating customer and pipeline data into visual formats, like charts and graphs, to help users identify data trends and patterns quickly.The most effective visualization format depends on the type of data being displayed. Selecting an unsuitable format for the data creates friction. Even the highest-quality data will be hard to read if a mismatched visual format is chosen.The following table offers some guidance on how to best match your data with a suitable visualization format for an effective custom CRM dashboard: Nutshell Modern CRM platforms have built-in reporting tools and visualization capabilities. Teams requiring greater functionality can typically integrate more specialized reporting tools that offer a broader spectrum of visualizations.A well-known dashboard design test is the five-second test. This gauges how quickly and easily a person viewing the CRM dashboard can find and interpret the insight. If this takes longer than five seconds, then the visualization is too complex and needs to be simplified.How does reporting automation sharpen decision-making?Reporting automation refers to the setting of rules and scheduling to automate the delivery of CRM data to the individuals most impacted by those insights, without the need for them to create or run a report.The value of CRM data is its timeliness. For example, an alert indicating the status of a deal three days after it stalled is far less useful than an alert that comes through as soon as the lead goes silent. Automation ensures that the gap is closed.Examples of automation in reporting for CRM systems include:Scheduled pipeline digests: Summaries sent to sales managers or executives on a daily or weekly basis.Threshold alerts: Notifications are set to a specific threshold to alert managers of a transaction that has stalled, decreased in value, or moved backward in a transaction pipeline.Role-based report distribution: Automated role-specific reports provide each report recipient with only the information relevant to their role.Forecast roll-ups: Individual pipeline contributions to team and organizational forecast levels are automatically consolidated.Forrester's research confirms that organizations that connect their analytics to their strategic KPIs outperform organizations that rely on manual reporting cycles.How to build a CRM dashboard that teams actually useAn effective CRM dashboard is designed to direct users to the actions that need to be taken. It's important to remember that sophistication in its design isn’t what drives dashboard adoption. What makes the difference is knowing what decisions users need to make and building the dashboard to address those decisions.A practical four-step frameworkStart with the question, not the metric: Ask what decisions need to be made and what data is required to support those decisions. Build your dashboard visualization around the metrics that directly support those decisions.Design for roles, not departments: Although sales operations, sales reps, and sales managers are in the same department, they're each accountable for different decisions. Custom role-specific CRM dashboard views allow them to remove the clutter and only see what’s relevant.Apply the seven to 10 metric limit: Including only the most important metrics allows the dashboard to maintain focus and clarity. Anything beyond the necessary KPIs becomes noise.Build in a quarterly review cadence: Shifting business priorities can make a dashboard obsolete for the goals that it was designed to address from one quarter to the next. A quick quarterly dashboard review can realign the strategy and reporting environment to current business priorities.The best customizable CRM platforms offer the flexibility to optimize dashboards as needed without the need for a developer. Users should consider the dashboard as a living tool that requires updating as their priorities change.The dashboard is where CRM data becomes a decisionCRM dashboard customization isn't reserved for enterprise teams with dedicated analytics staff. It can be done by any company, and the benefits can be seen in sales, marketing, and leadership decisions thereafter.Companies that benefit the most from their CRM data don't necessarily have the most data. They’re the companies that decided what’s important, built their dashboard around that, and used those data insights to decide their next steps.Ensure the right metrics are matched to the right roles, present them clearly, and get them delivered automatically so that the insights come through when needed. That’s the discipline that will take a CRM from sitting in the background to actively driving company and revenue growth.FAQs1. What is the difference between a CRM report and a CRM dashboard?A CRM report is a static or generated output of data for a specific time period or query. A CRM dashboard is a live, visual interface that displays multiple metrics simultaneously and updates in real time. Dashboards are built for ongoing monitoring. Reports are built for deeper, point-in-time analysis. Both have a role. They just serve different moments in the decision-making process.2. How many KPIs should a CRM dashboard display?Most dashboard design frameworks recommend seven to 10 metrics per view. Fewer metrics means each one gets more attention, and more useful attention. Teams that start with fewer, high-impact KPIs consistently find it easier to act on their dashboards than teams that try to surface everything at once.3. Can small businesses benefit from CRM dashboard customization?Yes. Often more immediately than larger organizations. Small businesses typically have less tolerance for wasted time and misdirected effort, which makes having the right metrics visible at a glance especially valuable. Many CRM platforms designed for small and midsize businesses offer dashboard customization without requiring technical expertise to set up or maintain.4. What CRM platforms offer the most dashboard customization?Platforms vary significantly in their customization depth. The right choice depends on the team’s technical resources and how deeply they need to customize their reporting environment.5. How often should a CRM dashboard be updated or reviewed?A quarterly review cadence works well for most teams. This allows enough time to assess whether current metrics are driving useful decisions, while catching misalignments before they compound. Dashboards tied to specific campaigns or initiatives should be reviewed at the close of each campaign cycle.This story was produced by Nutshell and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Why you smell worse after a long car ride and how to fix it Why you smell worse after a long car ride and how to fix itYou start the day clean, packed, and ready to go. A few hours into the drive, something changes. The air feels heavier, your clothes start to cling, and that not-so-fresh feeling kicks in. It’s not your imagination.Long drives create the perfect setup for body odor. Add heat, traffic stress, and hours of sitting in one position, and things can get sticky quickly. In this article, Dove Men+Care shares how to stay fresh, comfortable, and dry from hitting the road to when you arrive.Even when you’re just sitting, your body is still working. It’s regulating your temperature, responding to stress, and producing sweat the whole time.The difference on a road trip is that sweat doesn’t get a chance to evaporate properly. Your back presses into the seat, your legs stay folded, and airflow is limited. Heat and moisture get trapped against your skin. This creates a warm, damp environment where odor-causing bacteria can build up.The real cause of body odorSweat is mostly odorless. The smell actually comes from bacteria on your skin breaking down the sweat. “There are two types of sweat, one that is watery and occurs all over the body,” says Unilever R&D scientist Matt Annecharico. “The second sweat is found in areas such as the groin and underarms, which is an oily sweat. This oily sweat is the main contributing factor to body odor.”During long drives, both types of glands are active. Throw in the stress of a traffic jam or trying to reach a destination on a tight schedule, and apocrine sweat increases, making odor more noticeable. Dove Men+Care The main odor zonesWhen you’re in the car for hours, odor doesn’t just show up in one place. Some areas tend to take the hit more than others:Chest and back, where your shirt presses into the seatUnderarms where heat and moisture build quicklyInner thighs and groin, because of friction and limited airflowFeet inside closed shoesThese areas hold moisture longer, giving bacteria more time to do their thing.What makes body odor worseSome typical road-tripping factors can ramp up odor without you even realizing it:Heat and poor airflow: Car interiors warm up fast. Even with air conditioning, certain areas of your body can get warm and sweaty.Seat friction: Constant contact with the seat creates friction, which can irritate your skin and increase sweat production.Tight or heavy clothing: Clothes that trap heat and moisture keep sweat close to your skin.Dehydration: Taking in less water means more concentrated sweat, which can smell stronger.How to prep before you hit the roadA little preparation goes a long way when you’re spending hours in the car. Starting fresh helps you stay comfortable, manage sweat, and keep odor under control. Here’s a simple checklist to get you road-trip ready:Take a showerStart with a clean base to remove sweat and odor-causing bacteria from your skin. A good body wash helps control odor without drying you out. Focus on areas that tend to sweat more, like your underarms, chest, groin, and feet.Take a moment to really work in your body wash so your skin is fresh and ready for the products you apply next. Dry off thoroughly, since damp skin can lead to odor building up faster.Choose your productYour choice of deodorant or antiperspirant comes down to how much you sweat and the level of protection you need. Deodorants target odor directly, helping neutralize it as it forms, especially in high-friction areas.If sweat is your main concern, antiperspirants are the better option. They work by reducing the amount of sweat your body produces, which means less moisture for odor-causing bacteria to feed on.Apply correctlyApply your antiperspirant or deodorant before getting dressed. If you want longer-lasting protection, apply an antiperspirant the night before your road trip so it has time to settle into the skin.What about sensitive skin?When you’re sitting for hours, your skin is under more pressure than usual. Friction, heat, and moisture can make it more sensitive, especially in areas like the inner thighs or armpits. Aluminum-free formulas work with your skin to help manage odor without drying or irritating it.On the road tipsOnce you’re on the road, it’s all about staying ahead of sweat and odor before they build up. A few clever choices along the way can make a big difference in how you feel after hours in the car.Smart clothingClothing can either help you stay comfortable or make things worse. Go for breathable fabrics that allow air to move and choose materials that wick moisture away from your skin. Keep it simple with light layers so you can easily remove one if the temperature changes.Watch what you eat and drinkFood and drink show up in how your body smells. “Eating certain foods can result in more intense body odor, such as garlic, onions, red meat and even alcohol,” says Annecharico. Heavier meals can also affect your natural scent. Eat lighter meals for long travel days.Drinking water regularly can help keep your body temperature stable and dilute sweat. Try to sip throughout the drive instead of waiting until you feel thirsty.Car tipsYour environment matters too. Let fresh air in when you can. Even cracking a window open or switching to fresh-air mode helps reduce trapped odors. Clear out trash and food wrappers regularly, since those smells can build up.The quick refreshWhen you stop to stretch your legs, take a moment to freshen up for the next part of your journey.Use cleansing wipes on your underarms, chest, and back.Dry before reapplying deodorant.Swap out socks and underwear if needed.Apply a gentle whole-body deodorant to key areas.When to take a closer look at body odorIf your body odor suddenly changes, becomes much stronger, or doesn’t improve with good hygiene, it might be worth checking in with your doctor. Excessive sweating, hormonal shifts, or certain medications can affect how your body smells.FAQsWhy do I smell worse after a long car ride?Sitting for hours traps heat and sweat against your skin. Bacteria break down that sweat, creating an odor that builds up.Does sitting for hours increase body odor?Yes. With limited movement and airflow, sweat and bacteria stay on your skin longer, increasing odor.Is whole-body deodorant safe for sensitive areas?Yes, but make sure to use gentle, alcohol-free formulas. They’re kind to skin that’s prone to irritation.What is the best way to stay fresh on a road trip?Start with a good cleanse before you drive, use antiperspirant or deodorant, wear breathable clothing, stay hydrated, and stop off to take a few minutes to refresh.Long drives are part of the adventure. With a bit of prep and a few smart moves along the way, you can keep odor in check and stay comfortable mile after mile. It all adds up to feeling good in your own skin, so you can focus on the journey, the destination, and everything in between.This story was produced by Dove Men+Care and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	If business ownership is the American dream, are you building the business you actually wanted? If business ownership is the American dream, are you building the business you actually wanted?For many entrepreneurs, owning a business isn't the end goal: It's the path to something bigger. It’s the start of what many call the American Dream. And for many business owners, that dream means having more control over their future.A recent Rocket Lawyer-commissioned survey of small business owners reflects this shift. More than 83% of small business owners said owning a business is part of the American Dream, while nearly 79% said they feel more fulfilled now than they did before becoming business owners.Still, business ownership itself isn't what matters most to entrepreneurs. The survey found that they associated the American Dream with freedom and flexibility (53.9%), financial independence (43.9%), homeownership (43.7%), and providing for their families (39.8%). These results raise the question: Is your business helping you reach those goals, or is it becoming another source of stress?Success Isn't Just About RevenueGrowing your business is important, but growth isn't the only measure of success. Many owners start a business because they want greater control over their schedule, finances, and overall future. As your company grows, take some time to assess whether your business is still serving your goals, or if you have inadvertently lost the freedom you once sought.The Biggest Obstacles May Not Be What You ThinkThe survey identified several practical challenges for small business owners. Finding customers (41.4%) was the primary barrier, followed by economic conditions (39.8%), access to funding (31.4%), and uncertainty regarding next steps (28.7%).While you can't control the economy, you can build a stronger foundation to help your business adapt. Success doesn’t come from avoiding challenges, but from establishing the business foundation to handle them effectively. Reviewing customer agreements, improving payment practices, planning for slower periods, and regularly evaluating your growth strategy can make your business all the more resilient.Practical Questions to Ask Yourself About Your American DreamBefore planning your next stage of growth, it’s important to ask yourself a few practical questions about where your business is today and where you want it to go.Is my business giving me the freedom I hoped it would? Or am I spending all my time solving day-to-day problems instead of leading the business?Are my contracts helping my business grow? Could clearer payment terms or deliverable agreements reduce future disputes?What's preventing my next stage of growth? Is it customer acquisition, cash flow, funding, operations, or something else?Should I review my business strategy with an attorney? Are there legal or operational risks I could address before they become larger problems?What to Do NextTake some time this month to evaluate whether your business is moving you toward the life you wanted when you first started.Review your customer contracts, vendor agreements, and payment terms to identify areas that could reduce risk or improve cash flow.Look at your biggest bottlenecks, and identify one or two changes that would give you more time to focus on growth.If you're preparing for expansion or facing recurring business challenges, consider speaking with an attorney to review your contracts and long-term plans.Ultimately, building a successful business isn't just about working harder; it's about making the proper preparations to enjoy more freedom and security for years to come.MethodologyRocket Lawyer surveyed 883 U.S. small business owners through the UserTesting platform from June 9-26, 2026. Respondents were screened to confirm that they owned a small business. The survey explored views on business ownership and the American Dream, motivations for starting a business, barriers to growth, personal fulfillment, financial independence, family opportunity, and demographic and business characteristics. Read the survey announcement and full survey report.This story was produced by Rocket Lawyer and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	The Fun Station shares plans for its first outdoor attraction What’s considered “Iowa’s largest indoor adventure park” is venturing outside for its next attraction.
	Rock River Hospice & Home closing after 40+ years A hospice center in Sterling is closing its doors next week. Rock River Hospice & Home announced it will close on August 1 after over 40 years of serving patients and families throughout the Sauk Valley and surrounding communities. Rock River Hospice & Home has provided expert hospice and end-of-life care focused on comfort, dignity and quality [...]
	What is a hardship loan? What is a hardship loan?Life’s unexpected challenges often lead to surprise expenses. If you’re navigating a sudden shift in finances without the safety net of an emergency savings account, you might consider a hardship loan — a personal loan you can use to offset financial challenges. With a personal loan, you could get the money you need to cover essential costs and regain your financial footing.OneMain Financial explains what hardship loans are, how they work, and when they may be worth considering for unexpected expenses.What is a hardship loan?A hardship loan is a personal loan that can be used to help you cover expenses during a financial setback, such as a job loss.What is considered a hardship loan may vary from one lender to another. Many banks, credit unions, and lenders offer personal loans you can use for expenses during financial hardships. Once you receive the money, you can spend it on what’s most pressing — whether that’s an urgent home repair or a medical bill.To receive a personal loan for hardship, some lenders may require you to prove you are facing significant financial difficulties. Many lenders do not.How do hardship loans work?If you’re considering a personal loan to help with a financial hardship, you’ll apply with a lender, bank, or credit union. If your application is approved, the lender will send you the funds. You typically must repay the loan in equal monthly installments over a set repayment term. In addition to the amount you borrowed, which is called the principal, you will also have to pay interest, which is the cost of borrowing money. Some personal loans may also have fees.Personal loans may be secured, meaning they require collateral, or unsecured, which do not. Collateral is something of value that you possess, such as a car, that you use to back the loan. If you default on the loan, the lender may take possession of your collateral to offset the cost of what you owe. Collateral could boost your borrowing power, potentially helping you get a lower interest rate or more favorable repayment terms.In some cases, lenders may ask you to prove that you’re experiencing financial hardship. Depending on the lender, some may require you to show documentation about your situation.When to consider applying for a hardship loanJust like any other loan, you’ll need to repay the money you borrow, generally with interest and sometimes with added fees. Before committing to a hardship loan, it’s important to understand:When you’ll need to repay the loanHow much it will cost to borrow the money after interest and any feesWhether you can afford the monthly paymentsWhether there are any fees for paying off your loan earlyIf you’re confident that you can afford to repay what you borrow, a personal loan due to hardship may be worth considering.What to do before applying for a hardship loanHere are some actions you can take before applying for a personal loan due to hardship.Review your financesTake some time to add up the expenses or debts you need to pay. Having a clear understanding of your financial needs makes it easier to identify areas where you may need additional support and how to receive it. It can also be helpful to create a budget and track your spending, so you can find additional places to save.Reach out to creditors and service providersIf a serious illness or other hardship has left you short on money to pay your monthly debts and bills, consider reaching out to current creditors, lenders, and service providers. You may find that many are willing to work with you to find options that help you get back on track, like temporary lower interest rates, loan deferments, or reduced payments.Consider nonprofit and government assistanceIf you’re unable to pay for basic needs, like food or shelter, local nonprofits and government assistance programs may help you access resources before you consider taking on new debt. Your state or local government may offer general assistance programs and other potential emergency aid.Borrowing alternatives to hardship loansA personal loan may be useful in many circumstances, including a time of hardship, but you may consider other borrowing options.Borrowing from friends or familyA family loan could help you access the money you need with little to no interest and more flexible repayment terms. However, it’s best to borrow from friends and family with caution. Owing money to loved ones could cause unnecessary strain on your relationship, especially if you aren’t clear about the terms of the loan. Have an open conversation about your situation, and work together to develop a repayment plan that works for both parties.Home equity loan or home equity line of creditIf you own your home, you may be able to borrow against its equity through a home equity loan or home equity line of credit (HELOC). Equity is the difference between your home’s current market value and how much you have left to pay on your mortgage.A home equity loan, also known as a second mortgage, allows you to borrow a lump sum of money based on the amount of equity you have in your home and then repay it in fixed monthly payments. A HELOC is a line of credit that permits you to borrow up to a specified limit, but you only pay interest on the amount you actually borrow, like a credit card. While these borrowing options differ somewhat, both use your home as collateral. If you’re unable to repay what you borrow, the lender could take ownership of your home.401(k) hardship withdrawal or early withdrawalDuring times of financial difficulty, you may be able to withdraw money from your 401(k) retirement plan, either through a hardship withdrawal or an early withdrawal. Each of these options has its own requirements and tax implications. For a hardship withdrawal, you’ll need to prove you have “immediate and heavy financial need.” You may only use the funds for certain purposes defined by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).Hardship withdrawals and early withdrawals may also impact your long-term retirement savings, so it’s important to consult with a financial expert before taking this step.How to apply for a hardship loanThere are several steps involved in applying for a personal loan when facing hardship.1. Check your eligibilityEvery lender has their own way of evaluating applicants. For example, lenders may consider your credit score, income, and ability to repay the loan.One way to check your eligibility is to prequalify for a loan. Prequalification lets you consider your options and budget before you commit to a loan. It’s typically a quick and easy process, but timing does depend on the lender. Prequalifying has no impact on your credit score.2. ApplyMost lenders allow you to fill out and submit a personal loan application online. However, you may also be able to apply for a loan by phone or in person, if you prefer. When you apply for any type of loan, the lender will perform a hard inquiry on your credit report, which may have a small, temporary impact on your credit score.3. Gather your documentsAfter applying, you’ll usually need to provide some important documents, including:Proof of identity (driver's license, state-issued ID card, passport, or available third-party verification service)Proof of residence (such as a driver’s license with current address, utility bill, or signed lease)Proof of income (such as pay stubs or tax returns)Some lenders may also ask for documents that show why you need a hardship loan. You may need to provide additional items based on your personal situation.4. Wait for review and approvalThe lender will review your application to decide if you’re approved for the loan. Depending on the situation, the lender may contact you for more information to finalize your loan.5. Review the loan offerIf you’re approved, you’ll receive a loan offer that explains the amount, interest rate, any fees, and the repayment terms. Before accepting any loan, make sure you understand all the details. Don’t be afraid to ask questions if you are unsure about anything.6. Receive your fundsOnce you accept the loan offer and sign the loan agreement documents, it’s time to receive your funds. Some lenders may send your funds the same day your loan is approved. Others may take more time, depending on whether you choose to receive the money via direct deposit or a paper check.Get the money and relief you needFinding financial balance may seem impossible in a time of hardship, but a setback doesn’t have to define your future. By exploring your resources and making borrowing decisions that work for your needs, you can regain control and build more stability to help you face whatever surprises life holds.This story was produced by OneMain Financial and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	How housing alternatives are giving the traditional starter home its comeback How housing alternatives are giving the traditional starter home its comebackWatch nearly any classic movie from the early 2000s, and you'll always find one family in a picture-perfect home. It’s the never-changing white picket fence, the nicely mowed grass, and three different generations under one roof every holiday season. For decades, the starter home has been the entry point to that picture. Today, for millions of Americans, that entry point has nearly disappeared, leaving first-time buyers priced out and older Americans stuck in homes they can no longer afford to leave.Nestment, a platform that guides first-time homebuyers through the homebuying process using traditional and alternative pathways to ownership, offers insight into the death of the starter home and how non-traditional pathways to homeownership might help bring some version of the popular home model back.It’s Hard Out Here for a First-Time BuyerThe starter home was born alongside the Federal Housing Administration in 1934. The model was typically defined as the cheapest homes priced in the lower third of the market and sized at 1,400 square feet. It was built for working families as a deliberate on-ramp to stability and safety. It wasn't built solely to impress, it was built to work — and work it did.Now falling somewhere close to 90 years old, the starter home survived the post-WWII suburban boom, the 2008 financial crisis, and, most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. Owning a home meant building equity, establishing financial stability, and participating in the common joys of the consumer. While these homes quickly moved from just a starter to an important asset, many Americans were excluded from the benefits, including singles, people of color, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and those with disabilities. As of 2026, the gap has only continued to widen.A record 242 U.S. cities now have starter homes worth more than $1 million, according to Zillow. That’s an increase of 80 cities prior to the pandemic. Meanwhile, first-time buyers accounted for about 1 in 5 of all home purchases last year, the lowest share the National Association of Realtors has recorded since it began tracking the data in 1981. It’s little wonder why many Americans have turned to renting or living with parents to lessen financial burdens. It’s not for lack of trying either. According to research conducted by the Economic Innovation Group, first-time buyers spend nearly 26% of their income on housing. Many are even choosing between retirements and weddings to afford a home.And the squeeze runs in both directions. A Redfin analysis found that baby boomers who are empty nesters own roughly twice as many large, three-bedroom homes as millennial families raising kids. Many older owners aren’t reluctant to sell their homes as much as they can’t. Increased mortgages and thinner inventory of smaller homes have left older Americans inside the same home they bought decades ago.Lawmakers have taken notice and are desperate to close the gap, with varying results. Massachusetts has rolled out Starter Home Zoning Districts, a voluntary program offering state incentives to towns that allow smaller, denser homes by right. Minnesota and Arizona have each tried, and so far, have been unable to pass their own versions of a Starter Homes Act following pushback from cities over local zoning control. And Detroit developers are experimenting with new construction that blends pricier and cheaper models on the same block to make modest homes that work out financially.While a strong step for interested homeowners, these efforts haven’t closed the gap on their own, which leaves millions of Americans asking: What’s next?The AlternativesAlternatives to traditional homeownership have existed for decades. Since the early 1990s, families have pooled resources together with other families and neighbors to afford a home or shared apartment buildings. By the 1970s, community land trusts were helping low-income buyers get a foothold, while the Equal Credit Opportunity Act finally allowed women to obtain mortgages without a male co-signer.For years, these models sat on the sidelines, underused by the very market that was pricing out buyers. However, rising costs, growing families, and tight inventory are pushing more people toward pathways that were once considered unconventional. Now, they might be the next step to normalcy. Co-buying: buying a primary residence with three to four co-borrowers or housemates.Shared equity: using funds from investors as a portion of the down payment in exchange for proportional ownership in the home’s equity.Cooperative communities: creating shared ownership structures through increased residential density, including multi-unit or cooperative housing arrangements.House hacking: purchasing a multi-unit primary residence and using rental income from the additional units to help offset monthly housing costs.Rent-vesting: acquiring equity in rental properties while continuing to rent a primary residence.The starter home is dead. It’s not coming back in its old form and, potentially, never will. Instead, it’s reemerging as something more flexible: an ADU tucked behind a main house, a condo or converted duplex, or a co-op.Condos have long been dismissed on the homeownership ladder, but recent policy has given them an opportunity to shine. In March 2026, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac issued coordinated updates to their condo lending rules, easing costly insurance requirements and dropping the cap that made building with heavy investor ownership harder to finance. The Federal Housing Finance Agency framed the move as a way to lower monthly payments and put more first-time buyers in a position to own a home. The changes could make condos one more viable alternative for first-time buyers again.The ComebackThe traditional starter home, the white picket fence, the 1,400-square-foot space with a guaranteed path to equity, is effectively gone from most of the country. Yet, the gap it left behind hasn’t closed; it’s just changed shape. Co-buying arrangements, shared-equity programs, primary multi-family homes, and newly accessible condos are some of the many alternatives that are trying to offer everything the starter home once promised.Separately, they can’t give the classic holiday moving feeling, and they can’t restore the “American Dream” version of homeownership many Americans grew up hoping for. But together, they make clear that the dream isn’t dead. It just looks different. For generations, for millions living just out of reach of the traditional home, this version may be the better alternative. It just might be the new starter home worth chasing.This story was produced by Nestment and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Republicans urge Justice Department to investigate former prosecutor Jack Smith The former special counsel led two criminal investigations of President Trump and has been a frequent target of Trump's ire on social media.
	Missouri maternal deaths remain mostly preventable, sixth state report finds From 2019 to 2023, 340 Missourians died while pregnant or within a year after pregnancy, according to the sixth annual Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review published by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (Oscar Wong/Getty Images).From 2019 to 2023, 340 Missourians died while pregnant or within a year after pregnancy. Of those, 108 deaths were classified as pregnancy-related — meaning caused or aggravated by the pregnancy itself — and nearly 80% of them were preventable. The findings were part of the sixth annual Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review, published this month by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. Cardiovascular disease and mental health and substance use disorders remain the leading causes of pregnancy-related mortality in Missouri. Infections, hemorrhage and amniotic fluid embolism are among the other less-common causes of death. Missouri has long ranked among the states with the worst outcomes for infant and maternal health. “Preventing maternal deaths in Missouri is complex. Health disparities, the opioid crisis and lack of access to healthcare all impact the health of moms across the state,” this year’s report concludes. “ … Studying maternal mortality cases is the first step in helping Missouri moms have healthy pregnancies and postpartum outcomes.” The latest report does not yet account for deaths in 2024 and 2025, at which point the state began rolling out several programs and initiatives aimed at reducing poor maternal outcomes. While the latest data virtually holds steady to the numbers seen in years prior, Martha Smith, the Missouri maternal child health director for the health department, is confident that the outcomes will soon start improving. “Sometimes there’s not a magic bullet, so to speak,” she said. “Sometimes it is more of this process, and systems work to build the infrastructure and then train everybody and get everybody on board to use the same framework and build on the same infrastructure enough when you can really start the massive push to see a shift. I kind of think of it like a tidal wave to create that momentum to really change how things are done.” While the statewide efforts are expansive — bringing together government, hospitals, researchers, providers and community health workers — maternal health advocates on the community level worry how budget cuts at the state and federal levels could impact the work in years to come. Across Missouri, maternal health deserts are expanding and safety net care is shrinking. “Community based organizations are struggling to provide basic care that they’ve been providing as safety nets, they’re just being cut, and the projected policies that are on the ballot are lined up to do even greater harm,” said Lora Gulley, chief operating officer at Generate Health, a St. Louis-area nonprofit focused on addressing racial disparities in maternal and infant health. “So we do have our work cut out for us in advocacy.” The warning comes as the money behind that work is thinning. State funding for maternal health services was cut in half in this year’s budget, lawmakers eliminated the capital gains tax last year and a measure on the Aug. 4 ballot would begin phasing out the state income tax — pressures advocates fear will fall hardest on the community groups already working with less. Mental healthcare All of the 24 deaths in the report associated with mental health conditions, including severe postpartum depression and substance use disorders, were found to be preventable. Kyra Betts-Patton, a community-based maternal health strategist in St. Louis, said she wasn’t diagnosed with postpartum depression until she was 13 months postpartum with her first child. Five months later she was pregnant again, and on her third type of antidepressant medication after the first caused gastric issues and the second caused insomnia. For Betts-Patton, who is also a doula and a PhD student studying public health at Washington University, the experience only reinforced how difficult it can be to identify and then treat mental health disorders postpartum. “We are starting to get some providers who have some perinatal behavioral health training,” she said. “Not enough, not enough for the number of us that experience the severe depression and anxiety that leads to maternal mental health being one of the leading causes of maternal death.” This year’s report identified several contributing factors to the mortality rates, while also noting that without autopsy results for a majority of the cases, it’s difficult to pinpoint the exact cause of death. Only 36% of the women in the report had an autopsy performed. The report recommends that autopsies be performed in all cases. Betts-Patton said the lack of an autopsy lets systems and providers off the hook. For example, she said, a woman battling a severe infection postpartum might take additional pain medication to cope. If her death is then documented as an accidental overdose, then it might overlook the infection as an underlying cause. Where more information was available, the board determined that a failure of a provider to complete a health assessment, including a postpartum mental health screening, factored into 38 of the deaths. Other provider-level contributing factors include failure to provide quality care, such as failure to treat hypertensive disorders; failure to coordinate continuity of care, such as failure to coordinate prescription changes in pregnancy; and discrimination, including dismissed symptoms. Lack of knowledge of risk factors or warning signs was listed as the most prevalent risk factor for patients, factoring into an estimated 26 deaths. The report also highlighted system-level contributing factors in the women’s deaths, including barriers to accessing care, such as an inability to afford care, or a lack of reliable transportation to get to that care. Statewide efforts to reduce deaths Black women continue to die at 2.5 times the rate of white women, according to the report. Women enrolled in Medicaid were nearly 3 times as likely to die as those on private insurance, a rate that has decreased since a 2022 report, which encompassed maternal deaths from 2017 to 2019, found women on Medicaid were eight times more likely to die than those on private insurance. In 2023, the Missouri legislature expanded Medicaid coverage through the first year postpartum. About 40% of women in Missouri who give birth are on Medicaid at the time of delivery. This is one of several recommendations by the board over the past several years that has since been rolled out. Other efforts include support for doula training programs and coverage of doula services for pregnant women on Medicaid beginning in 2024, followed by an expansion of those services that was signed into law this year. Also signed into law this year was a statute expanding the scope of the mortality review board to include studying the state’s maternal healthcare deserts, tracking the level of prenatal and postnatal care given to women who die in childbirth or postpartum and making recommendations to combat racial inequities in maternal deaths. Childbirth left a Missouri mother paralyzed. Childcare access helped her heal In 2024, the Missouri Perinatal Quality Collaborative launched the Ask Me 5 Campaign aimed at establishing more trust between providers and patients while discussing critical health and safety information. The state is currently in the process of implementing the Postpartum Pathway program published late last year that aims to create standardized postpartum care across the state. The initiative was the result of state funding spurred by the mortality board’s previous findings. Gulley said the report proves it’s possible to “create space where collaboration can happen between and amongst both those that are providing those critical care and services and families that are trying to access them so that we’re in alignment.” It also proves there’s no one lynchpin to be found. “When we talk about listening to community, that better helps us understand what things we need to address or tackle,” she said. For example, among the new recommendations this year was an urging by the board for local housing authorities to create policies prioritizing housing for pregnant and postpartum women. The board also called on local governments, state agencies and community-based organizations to invest in community violence intervention programs with the goal of reducing the number of pregnant and postpartum women killed in homicides. “We know there’s a direct correlation with stress and cortisol in your body. It’s not an ideal environment for a baby to be growing in.” Gulley said. “That leads to hypertension, it leads to preeclampsia. It can lead to other chronic illnesses that stress exacerbates.” It’s often community organizations working on the ground to address social determinants of health, like housing and food insecurity, violence and environmental hazards. The task is made all the more difficult when investment dollars start drying up. In 2023, Gov. Mike Parson signed off on a budget that invested $4.3 million in improving quality and access to maternal health services. That funding was cut in half in the budget signed by Gov. Mike Kehoe for the 2027 fiscal year, Smith said, but they still have some continued funding. Some of the state programs also rely on federal grants as well as MO Healthnet funds. Betts-Patton said she fears how budget line items like the doula training program might fare in leaner years, despite research showing their effectiveness in improving maternal outcomes. “There have been people in this work for over a decade, still advocating before there was a PAMR report,” she said. “There were still people who had that anecdotal community level experience that something was happening. Is still happening.” Courtesy of Missouri Independent
	6 ways to cut costs and save money 6 ways to cut costs and save moneyFeel like there’s not enough money at the end of the month? You’re not alone. Affordability and the cost of living are among most people’s top financial concerns.Getting more out of your money may seem like wishful thinking, but slashing everyday expenses and putting extra cash in your pocket may be more doable than you think. Finder.com explores 10 ways to lower your costs and save money.1. Slash unnecessary bank feesAre all the bank account features you pay for worth the fees? If you rarely use your account for anything other than everyday spending and money transfers, it may be worth looking into no-fee bank accounts.Spending $5 to $15 a month to maintain your account doesn’t sound like much. But over a year, that’s $60 to $180—enough to cover an unexpected expense or one or two fillups at the gas station.If you need the features that come with a paid account, see if you can open one that waives the monthly fee if you meet certain criteria, like setting up direct deposits or holding a minimum balance. Keep an eye out for new account offers to score an extra bonus for your savings.You wouldn’t throw physical cash down the drain, so stop wasting money on unnecessary account fees.2. Transfer your credit card balance to get a lower rateDon't commit to endless credit card interest payments. Lower or eliminate the cost of your debt by transferring your balance to a card with a lower rate.Credit card interest rates are currently around 21%, and the average cardholder is carrying a total balance of just over $6,500. That means the average cardholder is paying over $113 per month—or over $1,350 per year—in interest alone.Switching to a card with a low or 0% balance transfer offer helps you pay off debt faster, because more of your monthly payment will go towards slashing down the principal you owe.But balance transfer offers expire, after which, higher standard rates kick in. So, it may be worth switching to a credit card with a low standard rate instead.3. Negotiate your existing loan termsBorrowing comes with a price tag. But it may be easier to manage debt like auto loans, personal loans and mortgages by adjusting factors like the loan term and payment frequency to suit your budget.Stretching out your loan term will lower your payments and free up room in your budget. However, you’ll pay more in the long run.One trick for paying off debt faster is to switch from monthly to biweekly payments (that is, every two weeks).You’d think making two payments per month would mean 24 payments a year. But one year actually contains 26 two-week periods. So, you’re sneaking in the equivalent of an extra monthly payment, which, over the life of a mortgage or car loan, can save you a lot in interest.Interest isn’t the only cost to avoid. Stay away from other charges that drive up loan costs like optional insurance coverage and fees for late or missed payments.Whether your goal is lowering your payments or reducing the cost of borrowing, stay focused on your goal and don’t get sidetracked by unnecessary add-ons.4. Round up your transactions and save or invest the differenceSaving for tomorrow may not feel right when you’re struggling to make ends meet today. Fortunately, there are ways to put aside a little here and there without significantly impacting your budget.Some banks offer a “round-up” feature that rounds your purchases to the nearest dollar and deposits the difference into your savings. Micro-investing apps do the same thing, but deposit the difference into an investment account instead for potentially greater returns.If you’re willing to spend $2.49 on a cup of coffee twice a week, why not round up to $3 and put 51 cents into savings? After a year, you’ll have over $53. The effect is even greater if you round up all your transactions, including groceries, gas, online purchases and eating out.Most banks also let you schedule automatic transfers to your savings to ensure you’re regularly setting aside money. It doesn’t matter how much you transfer—every dollar counts.5. Streamline your streaming servicesCompared to your rent or mortgage payment, the cost of streaming may seem like a mere drop in the bucket.However, reality paints a different picture. Deloitte reports that the average American household spends $69 per month on video streaming services. That’s a whopping $828 per year.Setting your subscription payments on autopilot increases the likelihood that you’re paying more than you think. Prices may have risen since you last checked, or you may be shelling out for platforms or multi-user packages you no longer need.Taking an hour to review your subscriptions could save you hundreds of dollars annually.You don’t have to bid a permanent farewell to your favorite movies and shows if you subscribe to services on rotation, so you’re only ever paying for what you’re watching right now.6. Cut down food wasteFood waste adds up more than you think. ReFED estimates that the average American spent over $760 on uneaten food in 2024.A study by Love Food Hate Waste Canada estimated that Canadian households waste $1,300 worth of food per year. Even worse, the organization estimates that 63% of discarded food is actually fit to be eaten.Avoid spending money on food you won’t eat by planning your meals and buying only what’s on your shopping list. Cook smaller portions, combine leftovers to create new meals and freeze anything you can’t consume within a few days.Bottom lineWhen you need a little breathing room in your budget, free up funds by migrating to lower-cost financial products, shedding wasteful spending and auto-saving when you make purchases. Thinking outside the box may help you balance your budget and make money more easily than you realize.This story was produced by Finder and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	The 25 books startups and founders bought most in the first half of 2026, according to Brex spend data The 25 books startups and founders bought most in the first half of 2026, according to Brex spend dataIf founder mode says the pure people manager is finished, that means the founder has to build the thing and negotiate the deal, close the skeptical buyer, deliver the feedback nobody wants to give, and more. That's a lot to learn. So, how are founders doing it? They’re hitting the bookstore.In this article, Brex examined book spend data across all of its customers, and one thing was consistent: Founder mode was written all over the receipts.A year ago, operating manuals were the most-purchased books. In the first half of 2026, a biography of Alex Karp, the cofounder and CEO of Palantir, tops the list, followed by a wave of books about the work founders won't hand off.Leaders are going full founder mode by devouring books about builders who are changing the world, from defense systems to restaurant empires to battlefields.The 25 books founders bought the mostData is for the first half of 2026, with “Movement” indicating the change in rank compared with the same period a year earlier (H1 2025), and “NEW” indicating no appearance in the rankings during H1 2025. Brex Honorable mentionsA few titles sitting just outside the top 25 that belong in this story:“The Technological Republic” (Alex Karp and Nicholas Zamiska). The most-purchased business book of 2026 is about Karp, and his own book — the argument for what Silicon Valley owes the country that built it — is knocking on the door of the same list.“The Infinity Machine” (Sebastian Mallaby): The AI-builder bookshelf is growing. First, the oral history of AI landed at #10, and now the biography of the man behind DeepMind is climbing right behind it.“Zero to One” (Peter Thiel). Published in 2014 and back in the top 40 after a year off, it still resonates with the founder's worldview: Don't compete, don't copy, and build the thing only you can see.“An Elegant Puzzle” (Will Larson) and “The Art of Doing Science and Engineering” (Richard Hamming). Two more Stripe Press hardcovers are within arm's reach of the top 25 list.Founders are reading books by and about foundersStartup readers want to learn from the founders themselves. A playbook might tell you how to run the company, but the biographies tell you who you have to become to run it.These founder and CEO biographies trended up this year:#1, “The Philosopher in the Valley” (Michael Steinberger). The Karp biography reveals that he has no business or computer-science background. He’s severely dyslexic, allergic to the standard CEO script, and reliably willing to say things in public most operators wouldn't whisper. The book showed up in November 2025 and went straight to the top of this list by a wide margin.#9, “The Hard Thing About Hard Things” (Ben Horowitz). At 12 years old, this book is up 41% from a year ago, climbing five spots into the top 10. No book is more honest about how ugly building a company gets, and apparently, every new cohort of founders figures that out on schedule.#13, “High Output Management” (Andrew Grove). This book defined how Silicon Valley ran teams for four decades. It rose 59% and climbed 12 spots. This is the book that started founders sharing their opinionated views on how companies should run. Founders are reading Grove and the biographies simultaneously to develop their own mix of methods.The skills you can't delegateThe first wave of founder-as-personal-project reading hit a ceiling. Everyone bought “Atomic Habits,” everyone built a morning routine, and a lot of those routines faded. The whole optimize-yourself shelf lost ground at once:A year ago, “Atomic Habits” was the #3 book on this list. Today it's #11, down 31%.“Extreme Ownership” fell from #10 to #19.“What the Heck Is EOS?” slid six spots.What's pulling away: hard feedback, skeptical buyers, and coaching conversations. These are the skills of someone who does the work, not someone who manages it.“Never Split the Difference”: up four spots to #7, up 57% from a year ago.“Crucial Conversations”: up 20 spots to #14, up 76%, the biggest climb on the list.“The Challenger Sale”: up 50%, now #5. “Radical Candor”: up 35%, inside the top 10.“Dare to Lead” and “The Coaching Habit”: up 13 and 16 spots, respectively.The #3 book startups buy“The Scaling Era,” Dwarkesh Patel's oral history of how the models actually got built, with Dario Amodei, Demis Hassabis, Ilya Sutskever, Mark Zuckerberg, and others, debuted at #10. And “Designing Data-Intensive Applications,” a 700-page distributed-systems textbook, is tied for third, up 44% from a year ago. A systems engineering textbook is the #3 book among founders.The people running companies are reading the deep technical material themselves, because in founder mode, there's no layer between them and the machine.Stripe Press has won the startup bookshelfStripe launched its press in 2018 with a handful of titles a year, betting that operators would pay for beautifully made hardcovers about science, economics, and technology. Books for "an audience that is global, fiercely curious, and extremely high-agency," in their own words. A leading global payments company is now outperforming 200-year-old publishers.Three of the top 25 are Stripe Press hardcovers, and two more are in the honorable mentions:#10, “The Scaling Era” (Dwarkesh Patel, NEW)#12, “Scaling People” (Claire Hughes Johnson, +17% from a year ago)#21, “The Origins of Efficiency” (Brian Potter, NEW)Just outside the top 25: “An Elegant Puzzle” (Will Larson) and “The Art of Doing Science and Engineering” (Richard Hamming)Founder mode has animated two years of podcasts, panels, and essays, and for good reason. It's a leadership idea that came from the founders themselves, not the theory shelf. The Brex data adds something new to that conversation: Whatever founders say, they also vote with their corporate cards. They've picked up the founders who came before them, the story of how the machines they now command got built, and they're still reading Grove while they do it.So compare your bookshelf to the list. Are you operating the way the data says founders operate now, or are you still reading the faders?MethodologyRankings come from anonymized Brex card purchases of books tagged by ISBN. The ISBN-level detail comes from L2/L3 card data that Brex uses to auto-generate itemized receipts on purchases like these. Cardholder purchases per month were counted and summed across each period. For momentum, each title's rank in H1 2026 was compared with the same window a year earlier, which controls for the seasonality of when companies buy books.This story was produced by Brex and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	For Yukon River residents, salmon shortages have health consequences Migrating summer chum and chinook salmon swim on July 7, 2007, below the U.S. Bureau of Land Managment's fish weir on the Tozitna River, Alaska. The Tozitna is a tributory of the Yukon River. (Photo by Jason Post/U.S. Bureau of Land Management)When 26-year-old Tirzah Bryant was a kid, she knew how to watch the cottonwood trees along the Yukon River for the sign that it was time to fish for salmon. “We know that the fish are coming when the cotton’s flying from the cottonwood,” she said. But run collapses and successive fishing closures along the river have rendered the cottonwood signal meaningless. “I remember that first summer that we couldn’t fish, watching the cotton flying and being like …what it felt like, I was drifting. I’m like, ‘What am I doing?’” she said. That drifting feeling includes interactions with members of her extended family who had moved to cities but used to gather in Galena during fishing season. “They don’t have a reason to come home now,” she said. Bryant described that odd feeling during a presentation in March at an Anchorage tribal environmental conference. A 2025 graduate of the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Center for One Health Research master’s degree program, which focuses on the human-animal-environmental health connections in Alaska and the Arctic, she described the One Health concept as fitting perfectly with her family’s traditions. “Everything is related. So a healthy environment equals healthy animals, which equals healthy humans,” said Bryant, who also holds a biology degree from UAF and is now the environmental and education coordinator for the Louden Tribe, the Galena-based tribal government. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. That makes the collapse of runs in the Yukon River — where Indigenous residents’ culture is tied to communal salmon harvesting, preparation and eating — “very detrimental to our people,” she said. On the Yukon River, salmon runs that used to support a thriving and lucrative commercial harvest have collapsed. The runs of Chinook, also called king salmon, that have been in steady decline since the early 2000s, took a nosedive in recent years; by 2022, Chinook abundance was down 81% below its long-term average, according to fishery biologists. Harvest closures that began in 2020 were extended, and in 2024 an Alaska-Canada agreement established a seven-year moratorium on Chinook salmon fishing in the river to preserve Canadian-origin stocks. Runs of chum salmon, a species that is generally more abundant in the river, suffered a similar but more sudden crash. A series of chum-harvest closures, even for subsistence purposes, started in 2020, and by 2022 abundance had fallen 92% below the long-term average. Several factors, working in combination, are blamed for the declines. Scientists cite multiple climate change effects in both the ocean and freshwater bodies used by salmon. Those changes have not only affected the raw numbers of fish but also contributed to the shrinking size of salmon, resulting in smaller egg loads carried to spawning grounds by females. Tirzah Bryant of Galena and elder Betty Huntington after giving a presetnation on One Health issues on March 25, 2026, at the Alaska Tribal Conference on Environmental Managmeent in Anchorage. Bryant is the environmental and education coordinator for the Louden Tribe, the Tribal govenrment in Galena, a community on the middle Yukon River. Huntington is also from Galena. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon) Other factors cited are interceptions at sea by trawlers targeting groundfish species like pollock, changes forced by increasing loads of Asian hatchery fish in the ocean, past fishery management practices and the parasite Icthyophonus, which thrives in warmer conditions and has a more detrimental effect on Yukon Chinook than on any other type of salmon. Salmon-protection activists say there is not much that can be done in the short term in Alaska to address those factors, other than to adjust fishery management to cut down on at-sea interception, also known as bycatch. ‘We are truly fish people’ Tribal representatives have made that argument repeatedly to fishery managers. Among them was Brian Ridley, chairman of the Tanana Chiefs Conference, a consortium of Interior Alaska tribal governments. Ridley, in testimony to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council at its February meeting in Anchorage, spoke about salmon-related health issues in terms similar to those Bryant used. He discussed Athabascan salmon traditions that go back millennia — as far back as 10,500 years ago, according to archaeologists’ discoveries of Yukon River fish camps. “So we are truly fish people,” he said. The approximately 20,000 people who live in the Texas-sized area covered by the Tanana Chiefs Conference need more protections to repair the Yukon River’s weak salmon runs, he said. “I’ve got to do the best I can for them, and that’s why we’re fighting so hard to try to get our fish back,” he told the council. A dietary staple, salmon had — until recently — been the main source of protein for Indigenous people who live along the Interior Alaska river systems. Traditionally, salmon has made up about a third of the wild food that rural Alaskans eat, according to the state Department of Fish and Game, and along the Yukon River basin, the percentage was much higher, at least in the past. Store-bought substitutes, in addition to being expensive and of limited availability in rural Alaska villages that lack any outside road access, do not provide the same quality proteins and vitamins, minerals and omega-3 fatty acids, tribal organizations say. The Tanana Chiefs Conference says effects of salmon shortages are seen in medical records. In October 2024, it said there had been a 24.6% increase in diabetes and a staggering 70% increase in prediabetes among tribal members since 2019. Concerns in Alaska about adverse health impacts from reduced salmon consumption fit into a larger pattern of problems around the circumpolar North as wild and nutrient-rich foods traditional in Indigenous diets have been gradually replaced by less-healthful store-bought foods. In Western Siberia, for example, climate change has shortened the seasons in which the Indigenous Nenets people harvest fish and reindeer, resulting in less overall consumption of those dietary staples and higher rates of hypertension, according to a 2021 study by researchers from Russian and Chinese institutions. In Arctic Canada, a long-term transition away from what in local vernacular is called “country food” — wild foods such as fish, marine mammal meat and berries — has coincided in Inuit populations with rising obesity and related chronic conditions like cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes, according to a Canadian report published online in 2020 that summarized the findings of 162 studies. Subsistence fishing on the Yukon River (Photo provided by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game) A 2024 Canadian study calculated the expected increases in heart attack risks over the coming decades for First Nations members in British Columbia. A traditional foods comeback Despite challenges around the Arctic, there have been successes in resurrecting traditional diets, which experts say are important for both physical and mental health. At the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage, for example, traditional Native foods are served regularly, with supplies donated by community members. Traditional foods are “healing, nourishing medicine for our people,” says the hospital’s website. Donated traditional foods are served at other tribal health care facilities, too, such as the Maniilaq long-term care center in Kotzebue. Count last summer’s culture camp organized by Eva Burk and other tribal leaders in the Interior Alaska community of Nenana as part of the healing process. Burk is a scientist, local food activist and Indigenous representative on the North Pacific Fishery Management Council’s advisory panel. Nenana is located on the Tanana River, a Yukon River tributary. Burk and other members of the Nenana Native Association gathered local kids to teach them how to harvest and prepare salmon in the traditional Tanana Athabascan ways, along with other Indigenous skills. For their activities, they used a smattering of locally caught chum salmon, also known as dog salmon because it was traditionally fed to sled dogs, that was available through a very limited harvest opened last summer specifically for cultural camp purposes. In all, they used 25 locally caught chum and 25 locally caught coho salmon for the camp, Burk said. Camp activities relied mostly on sockeye salmon sent from the Bristol Bay region, where runs remain abundant. The Bristol Bay fish are not as much to Burk’s liking as the fish that used to be plentiful in the Nenana River and other Yukon tributaries. Bristol Bay salmon tastes a bit different, and the traditional smoking techniques she learned from her family don’t work quite as well, she said. While they were grateful for the donations, they were especially grateful for the ability to harvest salmon from their own river, Burk said. As she described it, catching, preparing and eating the local salmon was something of a healing process. Special care was taken to serve some of it to appreciative elders, she added. “We scored them and smoked them for a day and cooked them over a fire and served them at a potlatch,” she said. “Fish that we would have normally cut for dog fish we were treating with the utmost care and respect, and savoring every last bit.” The Nenana Native Association has scheduled another culture camp this summer to start in late July, and there is another special allowance for culture camp harvesting this year, Burk said. Eva Burk cuts salmon during a culture camp held by the Nenana Native Association in August of 2025, (Photo provided by Eva Burk) This article was produced as a project for USC Annenberg’s Center for Health Journalism and Center for Climate Journalism and Communication 2025 Health and Climate Change Reporting Fellowship. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Courtesy of Alaska Beacon
	Dubuque prepares for RAGBRAI finish Saturday Dubuque will host the final day of RAGBRAI on Saturday, with riders entering the city in the morning and finishing at A.Y. McDonald Park. Full route and closure details are available at DubuqueRAGBRAI.com.
	4 in 5 Americans report financial stress. Here's what it’s doing to their mental health. 4 in 5 Americans report financial stress. Here's what it’s doing to their mental health.Financial stress is one of the most consistent triggers of anxiety and depressive symptoms in adults. The American Psychological Association's 2024 Stress in America survey of more than 3,300 U.S. respondents found that 73% of them rated the economy as a significant source of stress, making it the second most common stressor in the country. A separate national survey of over 1,000 U.S. adults found that at least 4 in 5 (83%) Americans report financial stress driven by inflation, rising living costs, and recession fears, with millennials and Gen Z carrying the heaviest psychological load.This convergence of economic pressure and mental health strain, or what LifeStance Health coins “stressflation,” creates a cruel paradox, according to its 2025 survey of 1,026 U.S. adults aged 18 and older. The same financial pressure fueling the distress is also keeping people from getting support: 60% of respondents have avoided seeking mental healthcare because of financial constraints.This story explains how “stressflation” and money worries can affect mental health, with measurable effects on sleep, mood, relationships, and physical health, even in people whose bank balances look stable on paper.Financial stress and anxietyA 2022 study in the Journal of Family and Economic Issues found that higher financial worries were associated with higher psychological distress among U.S. adults.Money can represent safety, autonomy, status, identity, and the ability to care for others. When that foundation feels unstable, the brain may treat the threat as existential, which can make a missed payment or a surprise expense feel disproportionate to its actual size.Several mechanisms tend to drive the relationship between financial stress and anxiety:Chronic uncertainty. The brain is wired to resolve open threats. Unresolved financial questions, such as whether rent will be covered next month, often keep the stress response chronically activated.Loss aversion. Decades of behavioral research show that the pain of losing money is psychologically about twice as powerful as the pleasure of gaining the same amount.Shame and isolation. Money is one of the most stigmatized topics in American culture. People who are struggling often hide it, which can remove social support and intensify the internal experience.Compounding effects. Anxiety can impair sleep, decision-making, and focus, which may lead to costlier financial decisions that create more anxiety and deepen the cycle.There’s a common assumption that this kind of distress only affects people who don’t have enough money, but according to a 2024 Intuit Credit Karma survey of 1,006 U.S. adults, 37% of respondents who reported financial distress had more than $10,000 in savings, and 23% of that group had more than $30,000, well above the U.S. median of roughly $5,300.Income and savings do not reliably predict who feels anxious about money. That gap between financial reality and financial perception has a name: money dysmorphia.What is money dysmorphia?Money dysmorphia is a distorted perception of one's financial situation that does not match reality. Someone with money dysmorphia may feel chronically broke despite a healthy income and stable savings, or may believe they are one purchase away from ruin even when their finances are objectively sound. The term is not a formally recognized clinical diagnosis, but the pattern parallels the cognitive distortions seen in other anxiety and mood presentations.The Credit Karma survey found that 29% of Americans experience money dysmorphia, with the rate climbing to 43% among Gen Z and 41% among millennials, compared to 25% among Gen X and 14% among adults 59 and older. Among those who experience it, 95% say it negatively impacts their finances, holding them back from saving, pushing them toward overspending, or driving them into avoidable debt.Several factors appear to fuel money dysmorphia:Social media comparison. Constant exposure to curated wealth on platforms like TikTok and Instagram may distort the baseline of what financial success looks like, particularly for younger adults.Financial trauma. Growing up in a household where money was scarce, conflict-laden, or unpredictable may leave a lasting imprint, even after a person's adult financial situation has stabilized.Scarcity mindset. A focus on what is missing or at risk, rather than what is present, may persist even when the financial picture is objectively stable.Perfectionism. Holding financial standards so high that no realistic income or savings level ever feels like enough.Financial stress and depressionAnxiety is often the more visible response to money stress, but financial strain has an equally well-documented relationship with depression. A 2022 systematic review published in PLOS One examined 40 observational studies and concluded that financial stress is positively associated with depression across both high-income and low- and middle-income countries. The association was generally stronger among populations with lower income or wealth, but it appeared consistently across socioeconomic contexts, meaning depression risk tied to money worries is not limited to people in poverty.Other research has quantified the dose-response pattern. A study of U.S. adults using national survey data found that financial worries were associated with more than four times the odds of serious psychological distress, and the risk climbed further when financial stressors stacked, such as food insecurity and healthcare insecurity occurring alongside money worries. Among young adults specifically, a separate analysis of National Health Interview Survey data found that the prevalence of psychological distress climbed from roughly 15% in those with no financial worry to over 45% in those reporting severe financial stress.Several pathways may explain how chronic financial stress moves from worry into clinical depression:Learned helplessness. When effort does not appear to change the financial picture, the brain may shift from problem-solving to shutting down.Loss of pleasure and access. Financial stress often forces a withdrawal from the activities, social events, and self-care routines that protect mood, removing the buffers that may normally guard against depression.Self-worth erosion. In a culture that often equates financial success with personal value, persistent money problems may be internalized as evidence of personal failure, which is a known cognitive driver of depressive episodes.Sleep and biological stress load. Sustained cortisol elevation and disrupted sleep are independent risk factors for depression, and financial stress often produces both.Signs of financial anxiety and depressionFinancial stress shows up in distinct anxious and depressive patterns, and the two often overlap. Recognizing which features are present can help guide which kind of mental health support to pursue.Anxiety-leaning signsPersistent worry about bills, debt, or savings that intrudes on daily activitiesAvoidance behaviors such as not opening mail, ignoring account balances, or delaying tax filingsDifficulty falling asleep or staying asleep because of money-related thoughtsPhysical symptoms such as tension headaches, chest tightness, stomach issues, or fatigueA sense of dread when checking a bank balance, even when no specific problem existsDepression-leaning signsPersistent low mood, hopelessness, or a sense that the financial situation will never improveLoss of interest in activities that used to feel meaningful, including ones that don’t require spendingHeavy fatigue, low motivation, and difficulty completing basic tasksSelf-critical thoughts that frame financial problems as evidence of personal failureSocial withdrawal, including from people who would offer supportMixed presentationSome people experience both anxious and depressive features at the same time. Irritability, conflict with a partner or roommate about spending, impulsive purchases followed by guilt, or compulsive saving that prevents necessary spending can all signal that financial stress is affecting mental health on more than one front.Who is most affected by financial stress?LifeStance research found that 67% of millennials and 58% of Gen Z report being significantly impacted by financial stress, compared to 49% of Gen X and 41% of Baby Boomers. The generational gap is consistent with what therapists see in practice: Many millennials and Gen Zers entered the workforce during or after the 2008 financial crisis, carry higher student debt loads, face a more expensive housing market, and have spent their formative earning years inside a social media environment that amplifies financial comparison.Other groups carry elevated risk based on the structural factors identified in the Ryu and Fan analysis of national survey data. People who are unmarried, unemployed, living in lower-income households, or renting rather than owning showed stronger associations between financial worries and psychological distress than their counterparts. The fewer financial buffers a person has, such as a partner's income, employment-based benefits, or equity in a home, the more directly money worries translate into mental health symptoms.How to deal with financial stressCoping with financial stress tends to work best when both the financial and psychological dimensions are addressed together. These strategies are commonly used to support both.1. Separate the problem from the panicBefore making any financial decision, write down what is actually true about the situation: exact account balances, exact bills due, exact deadlines. Comparing the felt sense of crisis to the documented facts often shrinks the threat enough to make clearer choices possible.2. Build a one-page financial pictureA single page that lists income, fixed expenses, variable expenses, debt, and savings may do more for anxiety than any motivational reframe. The brain tends to calm when uncertainty drops, even if the underlying numbers are not ideal.3. Use grounding techniques during acute spikesWhen financial anxiety hits in waves, such as opening a bill, checking an account, or reading economic news, the body needs to come back online before any productive thinking can happen. Grounding techniques such as slow exhales, the 5-4-3-2-1 sensory exercise, or briefly holding something cold can help interrupt the stress response.4. Practice mindfulness around moneyA short daily mindfulness practice may help create space between a financial thought and the automatic anxious or self-critical reaction. The goal is not to feel calm about money, but to notice the thought, label it, and choose what to do next rather than spiraling.5. Address the avoidance loopAvoidance may feel like relief in the moment, but it can make both anxiety and depression worse over time. Unopened bills accrue late fees. Unchecked balances generate fears that are often worse than the actual numbers justify. A small structured behavior, such as opening one piece of mail per day or reviewing one account each morning, may gradually rebuild tolerance for financial information.6. Protect the activities that support moodWhen money is tight, the first things to get cut are often the activities that buffer against depression: movement, social connection, time outdoors, hobbies, rest. Identifying low-cost or no-cost versions of these and protecting them on the calendar is a form of behavioral activation, an evidence-based approach commonly used in treating depression.7. Talk about money out loudTalking with a trusted partner, friend, financial counselor, or therapist can help break the isolation that makes money stress so corrosive. If financial conflict is straining a relationship, couples therapy can help partners separate the practical disagreements from the emotional charge underneath them.When to seek professional helpSelf-management works for many people, but financial anxiety and depression can cross into territory where professional support makes a real difference. Signs that it may be time to talk to a clinician may include:Money worries that interfere with sleep, appetite, or daily functioning for more than two weeksPanic symptoms triggered by financial cues such as bills, statements, or conversations about moneyPersistent low mood, loss of pleasure, or hopelessness that does not lift with normal copingAvoidance behaviors that are creating real-world consequences, such as missed payments or damaged relationshipsPersistent feeling of financial inadequacy that does not match the objective situationWorking with a therapist trained in treating anxiety and depression can help identify whether the symptoms reflect generalized anxiety, a depressive episode, money dysmorphia, financial trauma, or another presentation that responds well to evidence-based treatment.Whether financial stress is rooted in real scarcity, distorted perception, or both, support is available.This story was published by LifeStance Health and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	How interest rates work in 2026: A plain-English guide for everyday borrowers How interest rates work in 2026: A plain-English guide for everyday borrowersAn interest rate is the amount lenders charge for borrowing money. It’s typically expressed as a percentage of the principal on an annual basis. Interest impacts your loan, so it’s crucial to have interest rates explained if you don’t have a complete understanding of how it works.How Are Interest Rates Determined?Rates are determined by a combination of factors, including:Central bank policiesEconomic conditionsMarket demand for loansThe Federal Reserve Bank plays a key role in setting benchmark rates, which influence the rates for personal loans, mortgages, auto loans, and other forms of borrowing.Credit Score Impact on an Interest RateYour credit score significantly impacts the interest rates you’re offered on loans and credit cards.When you borrow money, a higher FICO score can lead to lower rates, saving you money over time. While not always possible, negotiating for better rates can be successful, especially if you have a strong credit history or are a long-standing customer with a financial institution. According to Experian, the average credit score in the U.S. was 713 in 2025.1On the other hand, borrowers with low credit scores often receive high interest rates because they are considered high-risk borrowers. A “poor” FICO score is anything below 579 points. Lenders use high interest rates on bad credit loans to decrease the risk of lending. The interest paid on no-credit-check loans can make up for or reduce a lender’s losses if a borrower cannot repay.Several other factors can affect your interest rate, including:Your credit historyYour annual incomeYour debt-to-income (DTI) ratioPolicies of a particular lenderHow Interest Rates Are Applied to Loan PaymentsTwo main types of loans are addressed here: amortized loans and non-amortizing or interest-only loans.Amortized Loan PaymentsAmortized loans have scheduled periodic payments that are applied to both principal and interest. Although the payments are equal in amount, the amounts of principal and interest vary each month. Usually, the amount of interest owed decreases as the amount of principal paid increases from one month to the next.Non-Amortizing Loan PaymentsNon-amortizing or interest-only loans are different from amortizing loans in that you don’t make any payments on the principal until a lump sum is required. As a result, the principal doesn’t decrease over the life of your loan. This type of loan may apply to mortgages and home equity lines of credit (HELOCs).How Interest Rates Affect Different Financial ProductsYour interest rate plays a key role in determining the total cost of borrowing for loans and other financial products. Below is a breakdown of how just a 1% interest rate increase can affect different financial products like credit cards, auto loans, or a savings account. CreditNinja How Different Types of Interest Rates Affect the Cost of BorrowingThe cost of your loan can vary based on the type of interest rate given by lenders. Therefore, find out what type of interest rate applies before taking a loan.Simple interest — Simple interest means interest paid or computed on the principal only of a loan. The monthly payment first goes toward the particular month’s interest, and the remaining amount goes toward reducing the principal.Compound interest — Compound interest is when you earn interest on the money you’ve saved and the interest you earn. Interest may be compounded on a semi-annual, quarterly, monthly, or daily basis. Ideally, you should have a savings account that has compound interest.APR — Annual percentage rate reflects your loan interest rate plus all other related loan fees. It’s a more effective way to compare the cost of different loans than simply considering the interest rate. Understanding Interest Rate FluctuationsAn interest rate can fluctuate based on economic conditions, inflation, and bank policies. Central banks, like the Federal Reserve, use interest rate adjustments to control inflation and help stabilize the economy.In fluctuating interest rate environments, borrowers should consider locking in fixed rates to avoid future increases, while savers can benefit from higher rates on savings accounts. It’s crucial to adjust your budgeting and investment strategies in response to these financial changes, focusing on reducing high-interest debt and maximizing returns on savings during periods of rising rates.Interest rates have fluctuated significantly over the years. Historically, rates have seen highs during periods of economic boom and lows during recessions.Interest Rates in the Housing MarketInterest rates play a critical role in the housing market, particularly for mortgage loans. When rates are higher, borrowers pay more, which can result in a lower demand. However, this lower demand may cause sellers to drop their listing prices, triggering a more competitive housing cycle. Understanding how mortgage rates work and keeping an eye on market trends can help you secure a favorable rate on a property.Credit Cards and InterestCredit card interest can significantly impact your debt. To manage and reduce this burden, consider transferring balances to lower-rate cards, negotiating with your card issuer for a reduced rate, or paying off high-interest cards first. Staying informed about your card’s annual percentage rate and shopping around for better rates can also help manage credit card debt effectively.Strategies for Lowering Interest Rates on LoansPaying off a loan early can potentially help lower the overall cost. It’s possible to reduce the amount of interest you pay, but first you need to ensure your creditor does not charge prepayment penalties. A prepayment penalty is a charge for early repayment.If your lender does not penalize early payments on loans, you can use these strategies to reduce loan fees. CreditNinja FAQs About InterestHow do rising rates affect my savings and borrowing?When rates rise, borrowers may pay more in interest for loans and mortgages. However, savers can benefit as the annual percentage rate (APR) on savings accounts typically increases, offering better returns on deposits.What is the role of the Federal Reserve Bank in setting interest rates?The Federal Reserve Bank, as the central bank of the United States, sets the federal funds rate, which influences rates across the economy. This rate impacts everything from personal loans to mortgage rates and plays a crucial role in the growth of an economy and inflation control.Should I choose a fixed or variable interest rate for my loan?The choice between fixed and variable interest rates depends on your financial stability and risk tolerance. Fixed rates remain the same throughout the loan term, offering predictability. Variable rates can fluctuate with market changes, potentially leading to lower interest payments but also higher risks if rates rise.How do changes in interest rates affect my savings account?Savings accounts are directly impacted by changes in interest rates. When interest rates rise, the interest you earn on your savings account typically increases, offering you a higher return on your deposits.What is the Annual Percentage Rate (APR), and why is it important?The APR is the annual rate charged for borrowing or earned through an investment, including any fees or additional costs associated with the transaction. Understanding the APR helps you compare the true cost of loans and the real return on savings accounts.How do interest rates contribute to economic growth?Interest rates play a pivotal role in economic growth. Lower interest rates make it cheaper to borrow money, encouraging spending and investment. Conversely, higher rates can slow down economic activity but help control inflation.How do interest rates affect my mortgage payments and credit card debt?The interest rate on your mortgage determines the amount of your monthly interest payments. A lower rate means lower monthly payments and vice versa. Understanding how interest rates are set can help you choose the right time to secure a mortgage.How do interest rates affect my credit card debt?The interest rate on your credit card dictates how much extra you pay on top of your borrowed amount. Lowering interest on your credit card can significantly reduce the cost of your debt.What should I do in a scenario of rising interest rates?In times of rising interest rates, consider locking in fixed rates for loans and mortgages. For savings, look for accounts offering higher rates to maximize your returns. Staying informed and adapting your financial strategy is key.This story was produced by CreditNinja and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Day 5 of RAGBRAI is the longest day on the route The 86-mile route includes a climb of just under 2,500 feet.
	Bix 7 week brings sprints, expo, youth race, and Saturday’s main event Bix 7 race week continues through Saturday with the Jr. Bix, Brady Street Sprints, the Running Wild Sports & Fitness Expo and post‑race festivities, with full details and registration available at bix7.com.
	Fleet Feet marks Bix week with pop‑up shop, race events, and ‘Beat the Elite’ prep Fleet Feet Davenport will host Bix week events, including a HOKA pop‑up shop and Brady Street Sprints afterparty, as co‑owner Phil Young competes in the Beat the Elite challenge during Saturday’s Bix 7.
	5 Wireless Chargers College Students Actually Need This Semester (BPT) - Between move-in checklists and hectic unpacking days, it's easy to overlook one small item that could make a big difference to your college student's dorm setup — a good wireless charger. No more digging through moving boxes for a lost cable, or "my phone died and I missed your call" texts, and definitely no more fighting for the one outlet in a shared room. This back-to-school season, a reliable wireless charger is a small investment that will solve a daily headache for them and for you.Wireless charging has come a long way thanks to the new Qi2 wireless charging standard. With previous wireless chargers, you might have wondered if your device was actually connected. Now, the magnetic snap of Qi2-certified chargers keeps devices perfectly aligned for faster, more reliable and convenient charging.Most major charger brands now offer Qi2-compatible options, so there's no need for a clutter of cords and charging blocks for every device. With watches, headphones and phones all needing a charge, these wireless chargers help cut down on the excuses for a dead device.Here's our guide to some of the best options for your student.3-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand SATECHI Qi2 Trio Wireless Charging PadThe Satechi Qi2 Trio wireless charging pad is the perfect addition to a dorm desk with limited space. Make the most of one outlet without the need for multiple cords to charge your phone, watch and headphones at the same time. Plus the foldable design allows the charger to easily be taken on the go or just folded down for less real estate tableside.Portable Power Bank Ugreen MagFlow Power BankFor the college students who are constantly on the go — between classes, the library and everywhere in between — a wireless power bank is exactly what they need. The Qi2 certification helps to deliver a fast and reliable charge on the go, and this bank can charge up to three devices at once. Forget hunting for an outlet in a busy coffee shop or a crowded lecture hall.3-in-1 Portable Charger AUKEY MagFusion Z ProKnow a college student studying abroad this semester, or one who travels often? This 3-in-1 portable wireless charger is worth considering. The Qi2 magnetic snap keeps devices securely charging, and the ultra-thin, foldable design makes it easy to pack. One less cord to track down when you're already balancing a suitcase.Bedside Foldable Charging Station Prodigee MagChill StationSettling into a dorm room means making the most of a small space, and this charging stand is an easy way to do it. Set this charging dock on a nightstand; it can charge multiple devices at once, with a sleek, foldable design that won't crowd a small dorm room.Speaker Wireless Charger Acefast Speaker Wireless ChargerFor the music-loving student, this charging speaker stand pulls double duty. You can sleekly charge two devices at once while playing music at home or on the go — no extra cords required. This is a tidy desk upgrade for anyone tired of cable clutter paired with great sound quality.These are just five examples of Qi2-certified wireless chargers that can simplify your student's life this school year. As back-to-school season nears, consider gifting one of these chargers to help free up space and cut down on daily stress. Once you make the switch to wireless charging, you may not go back.Interested in a specific brand? Virtually all major wireless charger brands today produce Qi2 Certified wireless chargers. Qi Certified cell phones include iPhone, Samsung and Google Pixel. You can ensure you're getting a Qi Certified charger by examining the box and/or charger for the Qi or Qi2 logo.
	What does 'earned media' mean in the AI era? (BPT) - Key takeawaysThe prevalence of AI search engines has fundamentally changed how consumers discover brands.AI systems assess the value of a brand's content in terms of credibility, authority, consistency and frequency, whether sponsored or earned.PR and MarCom professionals seeking brand visibility need to follow the shift in discovery through both earned and editorial content placed in credible publications.Brandpoint Optimize helps brands build stronger AI visibility through quality content, trusted syndication and credible third-party validation.By Stacy Stusynski, Chief Commercial Officer, BrandpointThe widespread adoption of AI search has dramatically altered your brand's visibility, whether you've invested in this process or not. In 2026, AI speaks for your brand every day by assessing and summarizing (or ignoring) your existing content for consumers.For decades, the industry defined earned media as one thing: A journalist chose to cover a story someone pitched. No payment, no guarantee; just the credibility of a third party deciding your story was worth telling.That definition still exists, but it's only part of the picture. Today, earned media means any third-party content that signals credibility and authority to audiences and to algorithms that decide what gets trusted, cited and recommended.The impact of AI search on PR and MarCom strategyI've spent my career watching technology change how consumers discover and evaluate products. When the discovery method shifts, brands that understand that change succeed.This is one of those moments. If you're a marketer or communicator who hasn't adapted, you risk building strategies that are invisible to the audiences you're trying to reach.Third-party validation through earned media remains one of the most powerful tools in a communicator's toolbox. When a credible publication covers your organization independently, this signal tells AI algorithms your content is worth surfacing before a human ever sees it.A single piece of great coverage is a win. But a consistent footprint of credible, authoritative content, both earned and editorial, shapes how AI understands and represents your organization.How has AI search changed the value of branded content?AI has become the new customer voice. AI systems don't evaluate content the way human readers do. They don't consider how a placement was procured. AI systems assess whether the information appears on credible authoritative sources, if key messages are reinforced consistently across the web, and whether signals across those sources indicate genuine expertise and trust.According to Bain & Company, approximately 70% of consumers use AI-powered tools (like ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude) as part of their product research and decision-making process.Instead of clicking through search results one at a time, consumers let LLMs do the work in the search platform itself. In today's zero-click environment, brands should strive to be THE answer to consumers' questions.AI doesn't evaluate content through the traditional media-plan lens that separates branded content from paid or earned. It looks for crucial signals including:Authority: A source recognized as knowledgeable on a topicConsistency: The same message reinforced across multiple trusted sourcesRecency: Up-to-date informationCredibility: Content from reputable publishers, organizations or expertsFrequency: A brand, topic or perspective repeated oftenIncreasing your brand's AI visibilityVisibility is now a competitive metric. PR success was traditionally measured by coverage, reach and traffic. Those metrics still matter, but AI introduces a new layer of value most PR and MarCom professionals weren't trained to think about: visibility as a signal.I've measured consumer behavior across dozens of product categories and hundreds of campaigns. The pattern is always the same: Brands that show up consistently over time, in the right places with the right message, earn consumer trust.AI is learning the same way. Placement in credible publications shapes how an AI system responds when someone asks a question in your category, even if no one ever clicks on that article.That's why consistent presence across trusted sources matters more than ever: A single piece of great coverage is a win. But a consistent footprint of credible, authoritative content, both earned and editorial, shapes how AI understands and represents your organization.What communicators should do nextTo embrace this change and build on it, expand the frame:Let earned and editorial content work together. Earned coverage validates authority through independent voices. Editorial-quality sponsored content, placed in trusted publications, reinforces authority by expanding your footprint into the same credible spaces. Using both consistently compounds their impact, building the kind of multi-source authority AI systems are designed to recognize and cite.Prioritize authoritative placements. Not every publication carries equal weight. Focus on placements in outlets AI recognizes as credible, well-indexed sources.Create consistent messaging. When key messages are reinforced consistently across earned, owned and editorial channels, AI recognizes patterns of authority.Focus on frequency. AI learns to trust organizations that show up on trusted sources over time.Understanding these insights drove Brandpoint to develop Brandpoint Optimize, which helps brands build stronger AI visibility through quality content, trusted distribution, credible third-party validation and visibility insights that help them understand how they're being discovered.Brandpoint Optimize brings those elements together through:Editorial-quality branded content built for audiences and AI systems.Syndication on over 3,000 news and media publications. Earned media support designed to reinforce authority signals.AI visibility reporting and insights.Brandpoint Optimize is one part of our larger roadmap helping PR and MarCom pros monitor their AI visibility and make strategic decisions to stay relevant to LLMs and their audiences.Communicators are uniquely poised to leverage this shiftConsider what PR and marketing professionals have always done: build credibility, establish authority and create consistent presence in publications audiences trust. This new version of earned media — real, third-party validation in authoritative sources regardless of procurement — is what AI recognizes and values.The signals MarCom and PR pros have been building for decades are now the exact signals that determine whether a brand gets recommended, cited or ignored.Communicators who understand the value of credibility, consistency and trust will win this next era. This is our moment. And we're just getting started.
	AI layoff anxiety is fueling employee disengagement AI layoff anxiety is fueling employee disengagementMore than a third of American workers say there’s little point in working hard because it won’t protect them from layoffs or AI.As AI-related layoffs have become increasingly common, the workforce is disengaging instead of working harder to save their jobs. In the “Employee Engagement Report,” based on a June 2026 survey of 1,000 U.S.-based employees by Founder Reports, 36% said going above and beyond won’t save their job, so they see little reason to give extra effort.Although rapidly increasing AI adoption directly affects the modern workforce’s feelings, other underlying factors, including distrust of employers, are also at play. Founder Reports, a business insights and research platform, examines the data to uncover how layoff tension affects employee engagement. Founder Reports Fear Doesn’t MotivateAccording to the “June 2026 Challenger Report” from Challenger, Gray, and Christmas, AI has been cited as the reason for 101,743 job cuts so far in 2026 (through the end of June). That’s nearly double the 54,836 jobs lost due to AI in all of 2025. AI has been the number one reason for workforce reductions in each of the past four months (March through June).AI layoffs impact the entire workforce, not just those who have lost their jobs. Fear and anxiety spread quickly, especially when there are office rumors of potential cuts.The “Employee Engagement Report” indicates that fear is leading people to pull back on their efforts rather than motivating them to work harder. Survey respondents who said they are concerned about their roles being reduced or eliminated due to AI were nearly twice as likely as those who aren’t concerned about AI to feel that extra effort is pointless (49% compared to 27%).Dr. Gleb Tsipursky, behavioral scientist and CEO of future-of-work consultancy Disaster Avoidance Experts, says anxious workers pull back to protect themselves. “When employees conclude that hard work cannot improve their security, pulling back becomes a rational form of self-protection,” he remarks. “They conserve effort because the psychological contract has weakened: The organization still asks for commitment, but employees no longer believe commitment will be reciprocated.”Trust Had Already Deteriorated Well Before AIEmployee trust has been degrading for decades. In a 2012 article published by the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Adam Cobb, a Wharton management professor at the time, identified the 1980s as a pivotal shift in employee trust. This marked the start of healthy companies laying off workers in favor of shareholders’ long-term interests.In the same article, Peter Cappelli, director of Wharton’s Center for Human Resources, pointed to the end of “lifetime employment” as a turning point in the employer-employee relationship. Cappelli noted that “job security depends now on continuing usefulness to the employer.”The 2007 report “The Impact of Psychological Contract Breach on Work-Related Outcomes” from Personnel Psychology examined the results of a breach in the unwritten understanding of what the employer and employee owe each other. Decades of research revealed that when employees sense they cannot trust their employer, they quietly withdraw any extra effort they once gave, often while remaining in the same job.A “2025 Express Employment Professionals” survey conducted by Harris Poll found that 73% of job seekers feel no job is safe, no matter how well the employee performs. And 67% said they used to feel stable in their careers, but now feel uneasy.Although AI is the leading cause of layoffs in 2026, Andy Challenger, chief revenue officer for Challenger, Gray & Christmas, points out in the “June 2026 Challenger Report” that companies are “reallocating budgets toward new capabilities.” In other words, many of the workforce reductions attributed to AI are not because AI will do the work of the displaced employees. Instead, companies are reducing headcount to free up money to use toward AI and automation. As a result, all workers are vulnerable, not just those whose roles are most susceptible to automation.Disengaged, But Too Scared to LeaveWith the growing number of jobs lost either directly or indirectly to AI, and with organizations looking to free up money for AI, many workers feel helpless.The Founder Reports data is even more eye-opening than the headline stat. Survey respondents were also asked why they stay in their current jobs. Forty-seven percent said a fear of the job market or their employment prospects factors into their decision to remain in their jobs (45% said they stay because they want to, and 8% are actively looking for a new job). Among those who stay at least partly out of fear, 55% believe effort is pointless and won’t protect them.A worker staying in a job out of fear instead of loyalty is known as job hugging, and it’s increasingly common. A Resume Builder survey from February 2026 revealed that 57% of workers are job-hugging, up from 45% just six months earlier.Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that quit rates are the lowest in nearly a decade (1.9% for both April and May 2026). April and May of 2020, when many businesses were heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, were the only months in the past 10 years when fewer employees voluntarily left their jobs (1.5% in April and 1.7% in May 2020).Low quit rates may look like stability. But combined with the job-hugging numbers and the common belief that their efforts don’t matter, it’s clear that the modern workforce is not as healthy as the low quit rates might indicate.The Result is Quiet QuittingIn the Founder Reports survey, 51% of respondents said they do their defined job and not much more, or even less. Among those who stay in their jobs out of fear, 70% said they do not go above and beyond (compared to only 38% of those who stay in their jobs by choice).Doing only the minimum of what’s expected and nothing more is known as quiet quitting. Based on the numbers above, this label applies to just over half the American workforce, and it’s especially common among workers who fear being replaced by AI.Other sources verify that employee engagement is, in fact, very low. A Gallup report from 2025 found that employee engagement reached a 10-year low, with just 31% of the workforce being actively engaged in their jobs.Every Employer is ImpactedWorkers everywhere are impacted, not just those who work for companies that have experienced workforce reductions. The “2025 Work in America study” by the American Psychological Association (APA) found that job security significantly impacts stress at work for 54% of employees.The “Employee Mindset Report” from INTOO found that as of November 2025, layoff anxiety has increased by 30% since 2019. And it also points out that layoff anxiety “influences employee engagement, retention, productivity, and employer brand, whether layoffs actually occur or not.” Even if the layoffs don’t happen, the fear or anxiety about losing a job causes significant damage to both the employee and the employer.Research from Perceptyx, released in May 2026, found that 90% of workers who heard rumors of layoffs experienced some level of anxiety as a result. That number is even higher than the 82% of employees at companies that have eliminated jobs.What Actually Brings People BackAlthough layoff anxiety is widespread, companies that take a proactive approach can reduce the impact on their team members.In the “Work in America” study, APA notes that “employees are more likely to thrive when they have a sense of belonging at work.” They point to findings showing that workers who felt like they mattered to their employer and coworkers were less likely to worry about losing their job. APA recommends “transparent communication, empathetic leadership, and a commitment to gathering and acting on feedback from a diverse range of employees.”Executive leadership and career coach Dr. Benjamin Ritter points out that workers aren’t looking for blanket promises about their job security. “Nobody can promise job security anymore, and employees know it,” he says, “so pretending only feeds the cynicism. Calling out the elephant in the room is important. Employees already see what's happening in the market, whether leadership talks about it or not.”Perceptyx agrees, noting that “open, clear communication is one strategy to mitigate layoff anxiety.” They point out that employees displayed lower levels of worry when the organization issued clear communication about layoffs.The Real Cost of a Fearful WorkforceLow quit rates don’t necessarily indicate that workers are happy. The current data on layoff anxiety and employee engagement prove that a sizable portion of today’s workforce has given up hope. As the Founders Report data shows, more than a third of workers see no point in giving their best effort, and 47% are staying in place at least partly out of fear.The encouraging part is that fear doesn’t have to be permanent. The same research that shows the damage also points to the way out, and it’s an inexpensive fix within reach for any employer. Open, honest communication about AI and job security, and leaders who treat people like they matter are the best ways to reduce anxiety and make employees feel more comfortable. Companies that get it right will strengthen their team, rather than simply holding on to disinterested workers.MethodologyThis study surveyed 1,000 US-based working adults through Prolific in June 2026. The survey had five questions and carried a neutral title, so respondents were not primed toward AI or disengagement before answering.Respondents were asked why they stay in their current job, how concerned they are about AI or automation affecting their role, how they describe their current approach to work, how many coworkers they see doing the minimum, and whether they agree that working harder won't protect them. The design measured all of these in the same respondents so that staying behavior and effort could be cross-referenced at the individual level rather than inferred from separate datasets.This story was produced by Founder Reports and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Why cycling fans are traveling to watch the world’s biggest races in person Why cycling fans are traveling to watch the world’s biggest races in personPro cycling has never been easier to watch from home. Today’s broadcasts offer helicopter footage, rider data, breakaway graphics, and sweeping shots of the world’s most famous race routes. Fans can follow nearly every climb, sprint, and attack in real time.But for many cycling fans, the appeal of the sport has always been tied to place. Unlike stadium sports, cycling unfolds across entire regions — through mountain passes, medieval towns, vineyards, coastal roads, and gravel lanes. The course is not just a backdrop; it is part of the race itself.That connection to place is one reason race-based travel is becoming a compelling way to experience the sport, as EF Adventures explains below. Instead of watching the peloton move through Europe from thousands of miles away, travelers can stand roadside, ride portions of the route themselves, and see how dramatically each landscape shapes the race. For fans who want assistance in planning to be there, tour operators design trips around the sport's biggest live events — handling the access, timing, and logistics that put you in the right place when the race comes through.Three of cycling’s biggest live events (the Tour de France, Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, and Strade Bianche) show just how different race-based travel can be from one event to the next. EF Adventures Tour de France: France and Spain, JulyKnown as the Grand Départ, the Tour de France starts in a completely new city—and frequently a new country—every single year. This year, the 2026 Tour de France started in Barcelona. A fitting backdrop at the start, Stage 1 was a team time trial past the Sagrada Família — Gaudí's tower, completed this year after 144 years.From Spain, the race route moved through the Pyrenees, across the Atlantic southwest, up through Burgundy and Alsace, and into the Alps: 21 stages, two rest days, and three mountain ranges. It is the largest sporting event in the world by roadside attendance, drawing millions of spectators across three weeks.Finding your place in all of it — the right bend, the right afternoon — is less luck than knowing where to stand and when to be there.Being in those crowds is its own experience. The Dutch fans on Bend 7 of Alpe d'Huez, the corner named for Dutch cyclist Joop Zoetemelk, arrive hours before the riders arrive, creating a wall of orange to greet the peloton when it crests that bend.The Col du Galibier is 8,668 feet high, with a memorial at the summit for French cyclist Henri Desgrange, considered the founder of the Tour de France. Up there, the crowd thins, and the air is thinner, too. When the riders come over the top of Stage 20, the Queen Stage, they've already climbed two major passes to get there. What you see in their faces from the roadside is something you don't see in the broadcast close-ups. EF Adventures Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift: Provence and the Côte d'Azur, July and AugustThe Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift takes place immediately after the men’s race and has quickly become one of the most exciting events on the cycling calendar.The 2026 route finishes in Nice. Before it gets there, it moves through Provence: the lavender hills above the Luberon, the gorges of the Verdon, and the limestone ridgelines of the Var..Watching the Femmes live, you truly can appreciate the speed of some of the best cyclists in the world riding near the limit of what's physically possible. The peloton arrives faster than your brain expects, passes before you've fully registered it, and is gone. Then comes the moment of silence that always follows the race — another thing that separates being there from watching it.Fans petitioned this race back into existence, securing 100,000 signatures in 2013, after the predecessor shut down in 2009 for lack of funding. The version that exists now, with a growing prize pool, International Cycling Union-mandated minimum salary, and increasing distances each year, is the result of decades of riders and fans refusing to let it go. EF Adventures Strade Bianche — Tuscany, Italy, MarchThe first thing to know about Strade Bianche is that the roads were not built with racing in mind. They were built for moving grain and wine into Siena. The strade bianche — “white roads” — are compressed limestone and clay, the same soil that grows Sangiovese grapes. They predate the race by centuries.The race arrived in 2007 and found everything already waiting.What happens on those roads — the slides, the gaps, the momentum fractures — can't be predicted. That's the point. The surface punishes riders who try to dominate it. The ones who negotiate with the terrain, who read each section and choose their moment, are the ones still together by the time the peloton reaches the final medieval climb into Siena's Piazza del Campo.By that point, the riders look like they've been dusted with chalk, because they have.Standing as the field arrives — legs white, lungs working, stone façades of the 14th-century piazza unchanged behind them — is one of the stranger experiences in sport. Past and present occupy the same frame.For travelers, the race offers a rare chance to experience Tuscany not just as scenery, but as the defining force of the event.Access to the race routesGetting to these places at these moments is harder than it looks from the couch. The best roadside spots fill hours before the peloton arrives. Road closures redraw access by the minute. Riding an iconic mountain pass yourself, especially while the pros are racing, takes permits, timing, and local knowledge that's difficult to assemble from thousands of miles away.Because of this, more adventure travelers are turning to professional tour operators to help them experience these epic moments.According to data from EF Adventures' 2025 Adventure Traveler Report, travelers who book active vacations wanted access independent travelers can't reach (34%), better value than they could arrange on their own (34%), and a provider with a proven track record built on past trips (28%).And for travelers looking for a more approachable way to experience Europe by bike, a growing number of tours offer more moderate cycling itineraries — often with the option to ride an e-bike — through destinations like Amsterdam, France, Italy, and beyond. These trips may not follow the pro peloton, but they offer a similar sense of moving through a place at ground level, past canals, vineyards, villages, coastlines, and countryside that are often best understood from the saddle.This story was produced by EF Adventures and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	QC student earn award at FBLA National Leadership Conference Iowa Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) students, including two from the Quad Cities, made their mark at the 2026 FBLA National Leadership Conference from June 29-July 3, a news release says. FBLA is the nation's largest career and technical student organization focused on business. Members showcased their exceptional skills and professionalism, earning top placements [...]
	Get into med school in the graphic memoir 'See One, Do One, Teach One' Grace Farris' book brings readers behind the med school scenes — documenting anxiety over loans, bouts of impostor syndrome, friendships forged in stress, and the ever-impossible work-life balance.
	Bettendorf offers Citizen Academy The City of Bettendorf will offer its 2026 Citizen Academy, with an annual eight-week course to give participants an in-depth look at how city government operates by exploring all 12 citydepartments – administration, community development, economic development, familymuseum, finance, fire, human resources, legal, library, parks & recreation, police, and publicworks. Bettendorf’s 2026 Citizen Academy is [...]
	Final race before Mississippi Valley Fair scheduled at Davenport Speedway With the point season quickly winding down, the racing at Davenport Speedway will be fierce on Friday, July 24, which is the final race before the break for the Mississippi Valley Fair, a news release says. Through the first six late model races, there have been six different winners at Davenport. Reaching victory lane so [...]
	Man charged with possession of child sex abuse material, drugs A Davenport man has been charged with possession of child sex abuse material and drugs.
	Dollar General Market opens in Orion; grand opening set for Saturday Operation hours are 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
	New event series looks to connect Quad-Cities nonprofits with potential board members The Quad Cities Community Foundation is launching Board Connections, a networking series for nonprofits and professionals interested in contributing.
	This AI tool promises a 'second sight of eyes' to clinicians. Did patients benefit? Medical workers in a Nairobi clinic used an AI tool to check their work. A new study evaluates the result.
	QC Answers: When is the first day for schools around the Quad-Cities School is around the corner in the Quad-Cities. Here is when area districts start.
	Why health officials do not have a good handle on the current Ebola outbreak To get slightly ahead of the virus, health officials need to quickly identify people at risk of infection, a practice known as contact tracing. That's a challenge in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
	Two more pleasant days before the heat returns Some hometowns this morning woke up to lows in the upper-40s after highs Wednesday in the 70s! While a few showers are possible Friday morning, many of us will stay dry. Here's your full 7-day forecast.
	After a man dies in police custody, residents in a Missouri town demand answers Cynthia Gilmore sits in the front row of her son’s funeral at Cornerstone Baptist Church in Sikeston, Missouri. Lloyd Gilmore died in police custody on June 10 (Cara Anthony/KFF Health News).SIKESTON — Not everyone at Lloyd Gilmore’s funeral knew him well. One woman, who had ironed her clothes two days in advance, said she just wanted to be there for his family. School-age children, guided by their parents, approached his open casket in the sanctuary of Cornerstone Baptist Church and peeked inside. Other people looked away. On that rainy Friday afternoon, hundreds of such mourners gathered to honor the man who went to the police department for help and didn’t come back. “Stay woke. Stay guarded,” his daughter Lania Gilmore told the church full of mourners in this city of fewer than 16,000 with a long, troubled history of racial violence. “Be there for your family and love on one another.” Her father, a 44-year-old Sikeston resident, died in police custody on June 10. During a quick, physical altercation involving seven Sikeston police officers, he was shocked with a Taser and put into hobble restraints, which allow officers to hogtie a person’s feet and hands, according to a police report obtained by KFF Health News through a public records request. Two autopsies were performed, but they — and Gilmore’s cause of death — had not been released as of mid-July while the result of a toxicology report remained pending. Gilmore had approached an officer in the parking lot of the police station, according to the report, speaking words the officer said he could not understand. Lania Gilmore said that her dad, who had mental health issues, had asked her to call the police department and that he ran there seeking help. “I kind of trusted the fact that he was OK because he was at the police station,” she told KFF Health News. At his funeral, hardly anyone spoke of the police — and, at the family’s request, the funeral home declined to ask police to provide traffic assistance as they usually would. A preacher did his best to comfort Gilmore’s family. “Sometimes we need not talk,” the Rev. Tommy Robinson Jr. told the crowd. “We just need to listen.” But after years of expressing concerns of racial bias within the city’s police department, some Black Sikeston residents wonder if anyone is listening at all anymore. They want justice even as the national reckoning over police brutality has faded from public view. “We need the police. We just need them to do their jobs correctly and leave Black people alone,” said Mark Wiggins, president of Sikeston’s NAACP branch. “They know it. We know it. The truth of the matter is there’s a lot of unwarranted cop killings of Black men in America.” But despite worldwide protests in 2020 in the wake of high-profile police-involved killings of Black people, the public paid little attention when a prestigious group released a report last year about deaths in custody, said Roger Mitchell Jr., a forensic pathologist finishing his term as president of the National Medical Association, which represents African-American physicians. The report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine urged Congress to require states to collect and report data on all in-custody deaths, a problem that Mitchell said disproportionately affects Black men. “We are in an anti-diversity environment,” Mitchell said. “We’re in a war.” Mark Wiggins, president of the local NAACP branch, poses for a photo outside his Sikeston, Missouri, home. Wiggins grew up in this city that has a history of racial violence. After Lloyd Gilmore died in police custody on June 10, Wiggins protested alongside other residents and civil rights activists in the city. (Cara Anthony/KFF Health News). Upon returning to the White House last year, President Donald Trump immediately signed an executive order that targeted diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. As a result of that and other measures, funding for racial equity has dwindled, researchers who once studied violence as a public health issue have redirected their work to less politically charged topics, and a growing fear of professional and political retaliation has made it increasingly difficult to sustain the momentum. Kevin Myles, a civil rights leader based in Georgia who has trained tens of thousands of activists around the country, said he saw a shift in priorities around racial equity before Trump was reelected. Since then, it has escalated, he said, and he has lost at least half his funding for his work on equity, child welfare, and mass incarceration. “I don’t think we really were prepared. It’s not that we didn’t take it seriously. I don’t think we were psychologically prepared for what this means,” Myles said. “Everything we have done before now was practice. The game has just started.” Sikeston, located in the rural area of southeastern Missouri known as the Bootheel, has a history of racial violence, including the brutal lynching of a Black man named Cleo Wright in 1942. Another Black man, Undraus Nabors, was found dead in a grain silo months after heading out to pick up his white girlfriend in 1999. In April 2020, less than a month before George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis, an unarmed Black man, Denzel Taylor, was shot at least 18 times by Sikeston police officers. The city was the subject of the 2024 “Silence in Sikeston” documentary film and podcast by KFF Health News, Retro Report, and WORLD. Larry McClellon, a longtime Sikeston resident who founded a civil rights group called And Justice for All, has expressed concerns about the integrity of his city’s police department for decades. He’s also convinced that being vocal about racism in Sikeston comes with a price. “It’s a dark side of Sikeston that a lot of people do not know and don’t prefer to know,” McClellon told KFF Health News in 2021 after police fatally shot Denzel Taylor. “But I’ve walked the streets.” He believes someone burned down the headquarters of And Justice for All in 2019. A report from the city’s public safety department said the fire was “suspicious in nature.” The electricity in his building wasn’t on when flames erupted, he said, so he wasn’t satisfied when an investigator called it an electrical fire. He asked the department to take another look. No one was charged. James McMillen, the city’s police chief, told KFF Health News in 2021 that he had plans to improve policing before Taylor died. At the time, McMillen, who is white, said he and his department had “a poor relationship” with Black residents in the city. He started some community meetings after Taylor’s death, but he said in 2024 that people had stopped showing up. “We have tried,” the chief said during a City Council meeting this month. “But, as my daddy would say, a relationship is a two-way street. And so I don’t know what else I can do.” During the meeting, Lania Gilmore pleaded with the city to release more information about her father’s case. Other residents wanted to know why the officers involved were not placed on administrative leave immediately after Gilmore died. “It depends on the circumstances. It does,” McMillen told them. “You’re assuming a certain set of details that you don’t know.” Another resident asked the city about training for officers. McMillen said his officers are trained. Nationwide, many communities have created specialized non-law enforcement teams to assist people in crisis. “Chief does not want anybody to be mistreated at all. Period,” Sikeston Mayor Greg Turnbow, who is white, said at the meeting. “And I guarantee you, I put my life in his hands. I’d do it today.” McMillen declined to comment on KFF Health News’ questions about Gilmore’s case and the community’s concerns about the department. The Missouri State Highway Patrol investigated the death and planned to refer the results to the Cape GirardeauCounty prosecuting attorney, Sgt. Bradley Germann said. The day Gilmore died, his daughter said, he had been anxious and was looking for a “safe space.” So, she said, he had spent much of the day watching her braid hair at the salon where she works, then he went with her to her eyelash extension appointment. Lania Gilmore said he was still feeling undone, but she needed some space, so he asked her to call the police instead. She said she did, then she watched him run toward the police station. The rest unfolded within 30 minutes, according to the police report and 911 call logs. The police report said that, amid an ensuing scuffle, Gilmore bit one officer’s hand — “but did not break the skin.” After the police stunned and restrained Gilmore, a paramedic gave him a sedative, and the emergency medical services took him to a hospital, according to the police report. The report listed five victims — all police — and accused Gilmore of third-degree assault and resisting arrest. Lania Gilmore said police told her that her father overdosed. But she said she doesn’t understand how that would have been possible, given the short time between when he left her and an ambulance was called. The city’s police force knew Gilmore had mental health issues, his daughter said. Police officers in a neighboring community “excessively tased” and beat him in 2020, court records show. He received a $65,000 settlement five years later, and she said that experience left a mark. After Gilmore died, Louis Houston, a longtime Sikeston resident, said he decided to move 30 minutes outside the city to a neighboring community, where he feels safer. He said hearing about other Black Sikeston residents being harassed by the police department had started to affect his mental health. “I got on away from here,” said Houston, who returned to Sikeston for the funeral. Houston’s already thinking about the conversations he will have with his young children about how to respond if they ever interact with a police officer. He has a script in mind. “Be careful,” Houston plans to tell them. “They can help you, but they also can kill you.” KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism. Courtesy of Missouri Independent
	Pop the Cork wine bar pours a new venture into downtown Moline The new wine bar is in the former WaterMark Corners building in downtown Moline.
	U.S. nuclear power deal with Saudi Arabia faces criticism in Israel The nuclear power deal between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia was met with alarm in Israel as it deepened concerns that Israel, a major American ally, and Trump are increasingly diverging on foreign policy and security.
	Idaho women say anti-abortion website’s articles are ‘false and defamatory’ From right to left stand Jennifer Adkins, Dr. Emily Corrigan, Dr. Julie Lyons, Rebecca Vincen-Brown, Jillaine St.Michel, and Kayla Smith — all plaintiffs who challenged Idaho's abortion ban in 2024. Adkins, St.Michel, and Smith are among a group of women who are demanding an anti-abortion website retract statements they say are "false and defamatory" about their abortions. (Courtesy of Center for Reproductive Rights / SPLASH Cinema)Three women who spoke publicly about seeking abortions amid fatal fetal diagnoses while living in Idaho are among a group demanding an anti-abortion website retract its “defamatory” statements made about them. Attorneys from an abortion-rights legal group called Amplify Legal sent a letter on July 15 to the anti-abortion advocacy website Live Action for posts regarding 13 women who have previously made statements about seeking abortions. Initiative to end Idaho’s strict abortion ban qualifies for November’s general election ballot Jennifer Adkins, Kayla Smith, and Jilliane St.Michel in 2024 joined a lawsuit challenging Idaho’s abortion ban, seeking an exemption to protect the mother’s health, including in cases of a fatal fetal diagnosis. The three women have since moved out of Idaho. The letter, sent last week, argues that Live Action’s articles about Adkins, Smith, St.Michel and 10 other women from around the nation were “false and defamatory.” Most of the Live Action statements referenced in the letter suggest that the women’s pregnancies were not dangerous and abortions were unnecessary. The letter went to Live Action founder Lila Rose and assistant editor of the news branch of the organization and author of many of the cited articles, Nancy Flanders. “The result of such defamation is devastating,” the letter said. “Megan Kling, whose story is described in detail below, has feared for her life and the lives of her husband and children as a result of Live Action News’s and Ms. Flanders’s actions. Other clients have received death threats as a direct result of Live Action News’s conduct.” The attorneys from Amplify Legal requested a response by July 29. Live Action could not be reached for comment. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. What are the claims about the women who sued over Idaho’s abortion law? The letter points to a 2024 Live Action News article about the women who challenged Idaho’s law that said Adkins’ health risks and diagnosis were uncertain and non-fatal. She previously told the Idaho Capital Sun that an ultrasound revealed her fetus had Turner syndrome, a chromosomal abnormality, and severe swelling. Another Live Action article suggested Adkins and her husband had “eugenic motives” to seek an abortion. Smith said in the lawsuit against Idaho’s abortion ban that her fetus had severe heart defects and that she was already at high risk for preeclampsia. Smith said no doctor would perform surgery to keep the fetus alive, and so she opted to end the pregnancy. Another 2024 article by Live Action News countered Smith’s account, claiming the condition was operable. The article claimed a “feticide” was injected to terminate the pregnancy. “Live Action News presented no evidence for this statement because none exists: No feticide was ever administered to Ms. Smith at any time,” the letter said. “Live Action News knew or should have known this claim was baseless yet still concluded that Ms. Smith decided ‘the risk of possibly developing preeclampsia was not worth her son’s life.’” One of the Live Action News articles used quotes around “fatal” to describe the diagnosis that St.Michel received, in which her fetus had several genetic and developmental conditions impacting the heart, spine, bones and ureter. The letter described Live Action’s use of quotes as “sarcastic scare quotes.” The 2024 article said all the women involved in that lawsuit “traveled out of state to kill their babies.” Letter may precede further legal action The Amplify Legal attorneys demanded Live Action’s news arm immediately stop publishing or disseminating false “further false statements about other pregnant individuals who sought, obtained, or were denied abortion care,” including the 13 women named in the letter. It also calls for the anti-abortion group to delete previous posts that had the named statements about the women and to post a retraction. The letter states that the women represented by the firm “may be entitled to additional legal remedies” if the anti-abortion group doesn’t comply with the demands. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Courtesy of Idaho Capital Sun
	More than 80,000 Alabamians have lost food assistance, according to study Canned foods on grocery store sA sign explaining delays in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program during the government shutdown is displayed at a Sprouts grocery store in Bountiful, Utah, on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025. A study released Wednesday found that more than 80,000 Alabamians lost access to SNAP after President Donald Trump signed a bill imposing new restrictions on the program. (McKenzie Romero/Utah News Dispatch)More than 80,000 Alabamians lost access to a federal anti-hunger program after Congress passed new restrictions on it, according to a new analysis. According to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, a left-leaning think tank based in Washington D.C., participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) fell 11% between July 2025, when President Donald Trump signed a bill imposing new restrictions on the program, and this past May. The study also found that more than 23,000 children lost access to SNAP, accounting for 29% of the total decline. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. “It is heartbreaking,” said LaTrell Clifford Wood, hunger policy advocate with Alabama Arise, a nonprofit that advocates on behalf of lower income households in the state. “The first thought is that it is heartbreaking to see our families be harmed by greed based on one number that doesn’t measure what it purports to.” A message seeking comment was sent Wednesday to the Alabama Department of Human Resources, which administers SNAP in Alabama. Under a budget reconciliation bill passed by Congress in July, the funding formula placed more of a financial burden on states. In the past, the federal government funded all the food benefits and split the cost of administering the program evenly with the states. The reconciliation bill increased the administration cost share borne by the states from 50% to 75% while potentially making the states pay for part of the benefit. If states reach a SNAP error rate of at least 6%, they will pay a portion of the financial benefit for the program. An error rate does not necessarily indicate fraud, Wood said. “They are a measure of underpayments and overpayments by state departments,” Wood said. “They are not predicated on the actions of our community members that use this program, and it is incredibly disingenuous to engage with people who use these programs with that sentiment.” States with error rates higher than 6% will pay between 5% and 15% of the benefit costs. Those with higher rates could pay as much as 25% of the benefit. Alabama state officials said in April that the state’s error rate was 10%. Under the reconciliation bill, that could cost the state between $174 and $261 million. Nationwide, about 4.5 million fewer people have participated in the federal food assistance between July 2025 and April of this year, a decline of about 11% in nine months, according to Ty Jones Cox, vice president for food assistance with the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities. “SNAP is in the middle of the steepest, fastest decline in participation in decades,” Jones Cox said. “And it’s not because the need is any lower, we are facing a hunger crisis that Congress has the power to mitigate.” It is the largest decline since 1997 after Congress imposed steep cuts to food assistance programs. “This decline is outpacing even the government’s own predictions,” Jones Cox said. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that about 3 million fewer people would participate in SNAP in a typical month amid the new restrictions. A significant portion of the losses can be explained by actions taken by states as they prepare for the rules changes to SNAP, said Jones Cox. “People need food assistance today just as much as they did a year ago, and they are simply being cut off from assistance as states scramble to limit their exposure to the massive new cuts they face under the reconciliation law’s cost shift,” Jones Cox said. “This is the reality on the ground — as states rush to comply with the costly provisions of the harmful reconciliation law.” In response, Jones Cox said states have been erecting additional barriers to help reduce the potential error rates. Some states require applicants to file additional paperwork with reduced certification periods, Jones Cox said, which could deny benefits to people who are eligible. “What is happening with the additional documentation for example, a household of one, usually you could put that on your application and states are accepting that,” Jones Cox said. “You say, ‘This is my income.’ Now, they are saying, ‘Verify that no one else lives with you.’ Which is very complicated.” Some states now require that a person’s neighbor, or someone else, sign paperwork to verify that an applicant lives alone. The budget reconciliation bill also increased the work requirement age from 54 years old to 64 years old. The program also excluded some immigrants who are eligible to reside in the country from participating. Courtesy of Alabama Reflector
	North Dakota grocers prepare for new SNAP restrictions amid uncertainty Candy and sugary drinks are displayed at a gas station in Bismarck on Oct. 14, 2025. (Photo by Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)The federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law in 2025, dramatically reshaped aspects of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which helps low-income families pay for groceries. One of those changes was the introduction of the Healthy Choice Waiver, which allows states to restrict the use of SNAP benefits for certain products, like candy and soda. North Dakota applied for the waiver in 2025 in an effort to secure more funding through the federal Rural Health Transformation Program. Its application was approved at the end of last year, and the new restrictions — including bans on energy drinks, candy and sweetened beverages — will take effect Sept. 1 and last for two years. After that, the state will be able to request up to three annual extensions, according to a letter approving the state’s application. USDA approves North Dakota request to ban candy, soda purchases with SNAP “We here at Health and Human Services have a vision to be the healthiest state in the nation, so the food choice waiver is a great way to align seamlessly with our mission and push North Dakota participants to choose healthier options,” said JoAnna Rygg, administrator for the state’s waiver program. Five states’ waivers were shot down by a federal court in June, but North Dakota was not one of the states named in the case and will not be impacted, according to Rebecca Askins, interim director of the Economic Assistance Section for the state Department of Health and Human Services. The department expects to spend $3.5 million to $4 million to implement and enforce the changes. Of that total, $1 million will come from a grant the state received from the SNAP Education program, which aims to teach families how to implement healthy lifestyle changes. The remainder of the cost will be split between the federal and state government, with the state paying around 75%, Askins wrote in an email. Tracie Thompson, owner of Baker’s Market in Westhope, said she and other rural grocery stores have been getting regular updates from the North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives about how to prepare for various changes coming to SNAP. But when they spoke with representatives from SNAP, officials didn’t mention the Healthy Choice Waiver, instead focusing on the Double Up Dakota Bucks program, which doubles every dollar SNAP recipients spend on fresh produce. The topic’s come up in conversations with other grocers, Thompson said, but there haven’t yet been more in-depth conversations about how the changes could impact stores’ bottom lines. North Dakota could pay millions for high SNAP error rate While the deadline for grocers and other retailers to have their systems updated is Sept. 1, they’ll still have a three-month grace period to finalize the required changes, Rygg said. “The grace period is there to recognize that there are significant challenges associated with implementation of these projects,” Rygg said during a June 23 webinar. The state is hosting multiple webinars this summer to share information about the changes and answer retailers’ questions. But many grocers are still unaware of the waiver or its implications, according to John Dyste, president of the North Dakota Grocers Association. The state is “doing webinars, but they don’t get anybody to sign up. That’s because (grocers) don’t know or they don’t care about it,” Dyste said. Dyste, who serves as a liaison between grocers and the SNAP program, said state officials have asked his association to spread the word via email but are “frustrated with the lack of retailer involvement so far.” “People are inundated with emails, and they can ignore them very easily,” he said, adding that he’d like to see more direct outreach, like mailed notices. Grocers and retailers that accept SNAP benefits are required to update their systems so that, by the end of the grace period, customers aren’t able to use their benefits on any restricted products. They’ll also have to train employees and submit a form affirming they’ve made the required changes. If, after the grace period, a store is believed to not be complying with the changes, it will be put under investigation. If the investigation finds noncompliance, the store will receive a warning letter, and if changes are not made, it will be kicked off the program, Rygg said. Although Dyste said he expects a fair amount of work for retailers, “none of us know exactly what it’s going to look like.” Retail chains and larger stores will have an easier time adapting thanks to their larger budgets and greater manpower and expertise. Smaller stores face a more “daunting task,” Dyste said. For Thompson, the owner of Baker’s Market, the changes come with an unknown price tag. “We would have to call our software company … I’m not even going to guess what that cost would be,” she said, adding that the man hours required to have employees update the system instead would be “astronomical.” Rural grocers find creative ways to serve customers, keep doors open While Baker’s Market already has a modern system, she said she knew of other stores with outdated technology that would require hand-entering products, or a new system entirely. “It could be anywhere from $3,000 probably up to $16,000, depending on if they have to buy a new program,” she said. During the June 23 webinar, Rygg told retailers that the state was prepared to offer assistance, including providing flow charts to help identify restricted products, clarifying definitions and providing on-site support as needed. However, when an attendee asked whether there would be financial support to help stores update their systems, Rygg told her that the department is “seeking it out,” but there was no confirmation yet. But Dawn Brossart, director of North Dakota’s SNAP program, quickly added that because of the upcoming deadline, “at this time, I think we need to proceed (like) there is not assistance available.” Besides teaching employees about the new changes, managers will have to prepare staff for frustrated customers adjusting to the restrictions, Dyste said. “The staff, the people at the checkout stand, are going to hear it, because the people using SNAP benefits have to be trained, too,” he said. Thompson said her employees already have to deal with customers who get frustrated by the nuances of what SNAP does and doesn’t cover. She said she hopes SNAP officials will do more outreach to program users to explain the changes. “Because we’re going to see the side of it where they get upset,” she said. The new rule could cause confusion, as items sold as baking ingredients — like marshmallows — will still be eligible for SNAP, while other products, such as fruit snacks or trail mixes with chocolate-covered raisins, will not. Dyste said his members understand and support the program’s goal of encouraging healthier eating. Thompson said she is in favor of people buying healthier food, too, but worries the policy is judgmental. “Who am I to tell the person that walks in the store that they can’t have a soda?” she said. “I do see a lot of junk food, a lot of pop, a lot of frozen things that go out. But I’m not on SNAP and I purchase those things.” SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. Courtesy of North Dakota Monitor
	Willow This is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Of all the trees that inhabit the Mississippi River Valley, the most common are certainly the several species of willow…
	When the boss sat in the same pew: Crittenden County and the mining that didn’t turn bloody A newspaper story about the Bloody Harlan uprising. (Wikimedia Commons)In the 1930s, as Harlan County, Kentucky, erupted into one of the most violent labor conflicts in American history, a quiet reality was unfolding two hundred miles to the west. In Crittenden County, men went into the ground every morning to dig fluorspar—a mineral essential to building the steel for Allied ships, the aluminum for wartime aircraft, and eventually the uranium for the atomic bomb. They put in the sweat equity, doing dangerous physical labor for modest wages during a decade of historic economic catastrophe. And yet, the guns stayed holstered. The National Guard never came. Florence Reece never wrote a protest song about Marion, Kentucky. That silence demands our attention. It tells us something profound — not just about one hardscrabble county’s past, but about the conditions required for ordinary citizens to retain the agency to shape their own lives. The story of Bloody Harlan is well known. The absentee corporate elites of Eastern Kentucky engineered, with architectural precision, a system designed to crush local independence and manufacture reliance. They owned the houses, the stores, the post offices, and the local sheriffs. Miners were paid in company scrip redeemable only at the company store. A man who signed a union card lost not just his job, but his home, his family’s food supply, and any prospect of future employment in the county. When the Great Depression hit and distant operators slashed wages, the working class of Harlan County had no economic ground left to stand on. The ensuing violence was not a failure of character or culture. It was the logical endpoint of a corporate system that intentionally stripped workers of every instrument of personal agency. Crittenden County was built differently, from the dirt up. The fluorspar district of western Kentucky was never a company town in the Harlan mold, because the agrarian tradition was already too deeply rooted. The land had been settled since the 1780s with my family, the Ordways, arriving in the early 1800s shortly after the New Madrid earthquakes. Families had poured sweat equity into their farms, for generations before a single commercial fluorspar shaft was sunk. When the mineral economy arrived, it integrated into an existing civic infrastructure. The Baptist and Methodist churches were built on land no corporation could repossess. The county seat maintained an independent, family-owned newspaper. The kitchen gardens and dark-fired tobacco patches kept families fed, regardless of the whims of the global commodities market. A mine operator could fire a man, but he could not make him homeless and hungry in the same stroke. My great-grandfather, Virgil, had a foot in both the agrarian and industrial worlds. But the most crucial difference was not structural; it was personal. The men who owned and operated the major fluorspar mines in Crittenden County — the Clements, the Moodies, and others whose names appear in the local press to this day — were not absentee executives dispatched from a high-rise in some big city. They were neighbors. Ben Clement moved to Marion in 1919, took a teaching job, and used his own savings to lease his first mining properties. He stayed for the rest of his life. During the Great Depression, the Moodie operation kept 500 men employed — the largest single employer in western Kentucky at the time — through years when a distant corporation would have reflexively liquidated the workforce to protect its bottom line. They kept skin in the game, creating indirect jobs that sustained the surrounding communities. These are not small details; they are the exact mechanisms of accountability. When a local owner holds the livelihoods of his workforce, he also puts his own reputation on the line. He sits in the same church pews on Sunday and looks his men in the eye at the hardware store on Saturday morning. He cannot outsource a grievance to a faraway claims department or an insulated board of directors. That localized accountability — imperfect, paternalistic, and unequal as it certainly was — created a fundamentally different negotiating environment than the absolute corporate dominance of Harlan County. The historical record points to a level of mutual respect built on economic latitude. Ben Clement asked his miners for the right of first refusal on the beautiful fluorite specimens they pulled from the earth. The miners sold these crystals for extra income, and the owner collected them for posterity and they are now part of the Clement Mineral Museum which boasts the largest collection of fluorite in the world. It was a small transaction freely entered into by independent men. In a Harlan County coal camp, where the absentee corporation laid claim to everything pulled from the ground, such autonomy was unthinkable. This does not mean the fluorspar miners of Crittenden County escaped involuntary hardship. The work was brutal and inherently dangerous. Silicosis was a physical reality that destroyed lungs and took lives. Ultimately, it was the global market, not the local owners, that gutted the industry. When foreign imports flooded the market and the mineral wealth ran dry, a third of the county’s population was forced to pack up and leave. My papaw Hollis would be one of those men, taking one of the many “hillbilly highways” north to work at U.S. Steel in the mid 1950s. What persisted through the worst decade of the century was the unyielding strength of the community itself. The churches remained standing. The families held onto their farmland. The vital social fabric that required neighbors to help each other, to make collective decisions, and to maintain the dignity of labor through hardship was never torn up at the root. Local ownership, embedded in the daily life of a community, did not guarantee high wages or perfectly safe conditions. But it did protect the essential preconditions for working-class citizens to retain their agency and act on their own behalf. Bloody Harlan teaches us exactly what happens when insulated corporate elites systematically destroy those preconditions to maximize profit. Crittenden County teaches us — quietly, without a famous documentary or a soaring labor anthem — what American resilience looks like when they do not. Courtesy of Kentucky Lantern
	Va. hospitals predict $31B reduction in state’s Medicaid funding if proposed CMS rule passes A bed in Lee County Community Hospital. (Photo by Charlotte Rene Woods/Virginia Mercury)A proposed federal rule stemming from the reconciliation bill Congress passed last summer includes additional policy changes that would reduce Medicaid payments to healthcare facilities, a step hospital chains warn exceeds the provision Congress approved and President Donald Trump signed. Public comment closed this week on a rule proposed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association calls “deeply troubling” because it could trigger a $31 billion reduction in Medicaid spending in the state over the next decade. “As written, it goes well beyond the statutory language of H.R. 1 by imposing deeper funding cuts and more restrictive policy provisions than what Congress established in the law,” VHHA spokesman Julian Walker said. What the proposed rule would do Adjustments to Medicaid and how providers are reimbursed for it are set to take effect in 2027, 2028 and 2029. These changes were approved in H.R. 1, first dubbed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and later rebranded as the Working Families and Tax Cuts Act. The law prescribes caps to what are called state-directed payments but the proposed CMS rule includes additional policy changes to align Medicaid payment rates more closely with Medicare rates. The proposed rule would also limit supplemental payment arrangements outside of typical Medicaid managed care organizations. Georgetown University professor Edwin Park said regulatory matters like the proposed rule often attract less attention than legislative debates. It’s why he believes “CMS has taken this as an opportunity to make the cuts harsher.” The suggestions in the rule stem from a June 2025 presidential memo wherein Trump directed federal agencies to curb Medicaid payments that exceed Medicare rates where possible. Trump wrote that growth in state-directed payments “threatens the Federal Treasury and Medicaid’s long-term stability.” CMS administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz emphasized in a press release announcing the proposed rule that the changes are about “ensuring taxpayer dollars support patients, not payment schemes.” The sentiment echoes Trump’s statements that social service programs like Medicaid are rampant with “waste, fraud and abuse.” The administration has also withheld Medicaid funding from California and Minnesota over allegations of abuse and revoked money meant for Hawaii’s Medicaid fraud unit due to its lack of prosecutions in recent years. Virginia’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, housed under the Office of the Attorney General, investigates and prosecutes allegations and instances of abuse each year. Of nearly 7,000 fraud investigations last year, 11% were substantiated, according to a Department of Social Services report. To cut money that supports catching and correcting abuse, Park said, is “counterintuitive.” Healthcare professionals, members of the public say rule risks cuts to essential services By targeting state directed payments, hospital associations suggest the federal government may negatively affect the people programs like Medicaid are designed to protect. Walker called state directed payments a “well-established tool” that helps hospitals bridge the gap between “often inadequate Medicaid reimbursement rates and the actual cost of delivering care.” Walker said if the rule takes effect, Virginia could see more than $31 billion in Medicaid funding reductions over a decade. ER visits by uninsured patients in Virginia hospitals spiked by 8% last year “Essential hospital services including emergency care, behavioral health treatment, and labor and delivery, among others, would be more difficult to maintain under the level of cuts contemplated in the proposed rule,” he said. Hospitals and clinics have already been trimming services over the past year, some partially due to longstanding rural healthcare challenges, while several others statewide specified H.R. 1 as a contributing factor. CMS rule proposals undergo public comment periods, and this one has fielded about 5,500 comments from around the country. Several hundred have been posted in a public online portal that closed Tuesday. Some people asked logistics questions about how the rule would apply, while many expressed opposition to the proposal. Most commenters did not identify themselves on the public portal but New Mexico resident and clinical social worker Ann Schlabach emphasized how Medicaid helps people stay on top of their health with preventative care that ultimately saves taxpayers money. “The cost of early treatment is less than emergency treatment later,” she wrote. “Medicaid is the smarter choice.” Another commenter urged CMS to not adopt the change “unless you acknowledge your intent is to make Americans unhealthy or cause massive preventable deaths.” Virginia leaders address federal healthcare shifts, proposed rule Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger speaks during a roundtable with healthcare organizations on July 7, 2026. (Photo by Charlotte Rene Woods/Virginia Mercury) While Virginia officials monitor the pending CMS rule, they are already at work implementing H.R. 1 compliance and addressing the impact of other federal healthcare funding shifts. State lawmakers earmarked $135 million in the latest state budget to support administrative work to help keep eligible Medicaid beneficiaries on the rolls and approved about $150 million for a state-level version of federal Affordable Care Act subsidies that Congress let expire earlier this year. Social service departments have also inherited former Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s blueprint for reducing the state’s SNAP error rate — which is when recipients are over or underpaid due to paperwork mistakes or outdated information. The state was also awarded a $189 million Rural Health Transformation Fund grant, secured by Youngkin’s administration. Even with these investments, Health and Human Resources Secretary Marvin Figueroa still cautioned thatH.R.1 and the proposed CMS rule could “make it harder” for providers to maintain services and patients to keep coverage. “I hope that CMS will work with us to avoid unnecessary complexities within this already complicated process and preserve the flexibility needed to protect Virginians’ access to healthcare,” Figueroa said. For states or other entities that might seek to delay or block the CMS rule, Park said litigation could be a path or members of Congress could seek action. A regulatory shift in a federal drug pricing program proposed by Trump was blocked by courts. Figueroa and Gov. Abigail Spanberger have been participating in roundtable discussions with representatives of hospitals, free clinics, health centers, insurance companies, and philanthropic groups to hear more about hurdles and brainstorm solutions. “We are trying to take every action possible, a laundry list of actions,” Spanberger said in an interview last week. With public comment closed, Park said the CMS rule is not official just yet. “Even on a sort of fast track, it’s still several months usually before a rule gets finalized,” he said. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Courtesy of Virginia Mercury
	Virginia Beach doctor pushes hospitals to establish protocols for dealing with Parkinson’s patients Howard Weinberg, a retired physician living with Parkinson’s disease, stands beside a stair lift at his Virginia Beach home. (Photo by Yiqing Wang/WHRO)By Yiqing Wang/WHRO Howard Weinberg keeps his Parkinson’s medication in a small container attached to his keychain, so he always has it wherever he goes. The retired doctor from Virginia Beach has to take the medication every six hours, at 1 o’clock and 7 o’clock, day and night. For him, that schedule is not optional. “It should be within 15 minutes of when it’s due. And if you don’t, then you lose mobility, you get so many complications,” Weinberg said. Those complications can include falls, swallowing problems and urinary tract infections. But Weinberg said maintaining that routine to prevent those complications can be tough when Parkinson’s patients end up in the hospital – something that’s not uncommon. National data shows about 1.1 million Americans are living with Parkinson’s disease. One in three are hospitalized each year, and one in six have avoidable complications during the stay because they do not receive their medications on time. During the day, he said, hospital medication rounds often happen every four hours at standard times, which often doesn’t line up with a Parkinson’s patient regimen. Weinberg has seen Parkinson’s disease from several sides. He spent decades as a physician. His mother was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in the early 90’s. His sister was diagnosed with the disease eight years ago. Then, after his wife died in 2024, Weinberg was diagnosed with Parkinson’s himself. “I’ve known about Parkinson’s for 55 years, but it’s only in the last year when I become worse that I’m understanding what it’s like to be patient with Parkinson’s,” Weinberg said. “It’s a whole new world until you experience it yourself.” Howard Weinberg’s Parkinson’s medications, which he keeps with him to stay on schedule throughout the day. (Photo by Yiqing Wang/WHRO) Weinberg now volunteers as an ambassador for the Parkinson’s Foundation, a national organization that supports people living with the disease and advocates for better care. He gives presentations on hospital safety and encourages patients to prepare medication lists before a hospital stay. Because hospital medication rounds often do not match patients’ individual dosing schedules, Weinberg is pushing hospitals to establish clearer protocols to make sure Parkinson’s patients receive their medication on time. “I would love them to [have] at least a partnership, so maybe the nurse knows they’re in the room and in a place, and it was 1am and the nurse hasn’t come in to give you, you take the pills that are in the room, and then they see that you took them,” Weinberg said. Annie Brooks, who works on hospital care for the foundation, said Parkinson’s medications should ideally be given within 15 minutes before or after a patient’s specific scheduled time. “The time sensitivity of Parkinson’s medications is similar to the time sensitivity of diabetes medications for people with diabetes,” Brooks said. Brooks said federal rules allow hospitals to let some patients or caregivers administer their own medication, as long as the hospital has a written policy and confirms they can do it safely. But she said many hospitals are still hesitant. “It means you have to have some processes set, some expectations set,” Brooks said. “It’s not something that a lot of hospitals do, but it is absolutely something that we hear from the Parkinson’s community is a desired protocol.” The Parkinson’s Foundation is working with about 50 health systems nationwide through its Hospital Care Learning Collaborative. The effort focuses on medication timing, avoiding drugs that can worsen Parkinson’s symptoms, helping patients move during hospital stays and screening for swallowing problems. Howard Weinberg goes upstairs at his Virginia Beach home, using both hands on the banisters he installed to help prevent falls. (Photo by Yiqing Wang/WHRO) Virginia Commonwealth University Health is one of the participating systems. Leslie Cloud is a professor of neurology in the VCU School of Medicine and the medical director of the Parkinson’s Foundation Center of Excellence at VCU. She said the collaboration’s priorities start with making sure hospitalized Parkinson’s patients get the exact medications they take at home, without substitutions, and get them on time. “No substitutions, like the exact same ones, and exactly on time — not plus or minus two hours, but on time, plus or minus 15 minutes,” Cloud said. Cloud said getting medication within that 15-minute window is one of the biggest challenges for hospitals because medication delivery depends on staffing and nursing workflow. She said VCU is looking at a 30-minute medication window as a more realistic first step toward the 15-minute goal. The health system is also working on changes to its electronic medical record system to flag Parkinson’s patients and warn providers about drugs that can worsen their symptoms. Cloud said allowing some patients to use their own medication can help, especially because newer Parkinson’s drugs are not always available in hospital pharmacies. “Our patients are really good about taking their medications on time because they know what happens when they don’t,” Cloud said. “They’re more likely to get the medicine in that plus or minus 15-minute window if they have control over it themselves.” But Cloud said self-administration is not possible for every patient, including people with dementia or those who do not have a caregiver who can help manage medication safely. For Weinberg, the goal is to make those steps part of routine hospital care before a Parkinson’s patient arrives. He said he has been advocating for local health care systems in Hampton Roads to adopt similar protocols, but he says he’s gotten nowhere. Sentara, one of Virginia’s largest health systems, declined an interview request for this story. Riverside Health, which operates a Parkinson’s Disease & Movement Disorders Program, had not responded to an interview request by publication time. Weinberg said hospitals already have protocols for conditions such as chest pain or stroke symptoms. He wants Parkinson’s care to be treated with the same urgency. “I’d like to see every hospital in the United States and the world put in a patient’s protocol for Parkinson’s,” Weinberg said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. Courtesy of Virginia Mercury
	Virginia explores 3-year bachelor’s degrees and more state headlines The state Capitol. (Photo by Ned Oliver/Virginia Mercury) • “Virginia explores 3-year bachelor’s degrees.” — Axios • “Hegseth turns to University of North Carolina, Virginia Tech after cutting Ivy League ties.” — The Hill • “Virginia honors Richmond soldier who gave his life trying to save fellow soldier.” — WAVY • “VDH monitoring cyclosporiasis cases in Virginia.” — CBS 19 News • “Amazon returns reseller Wizard Bins & Auctions opening in eastern Henrico.” — Richmond BizSense SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX. Courtesy of Virginia Mercury
	The White House pushes healthy eating. It cut a landmark nutrition education program Nutrition advocates and public health experts are mystified by the decision to eliminate SNAP-Ed, given the Trump administration's embrace of the Make America Healthy Again agenda.
	FDA panel considers easing peptide restrictions Advisers to the Food and Drug Administration are weighing the evidence for seven different peptides. Favorable votes would pave the way for easier access.
	A town renamed its festival 'AI Love Irondale Day.' Then came the comments The online outcry over the renaming of a summer festival illustrates the unease over the data center boom in the South.
	After deadly shootings, police experts question how well ICE officers are vetted The recent fatal shootings by ICE officers in Texas and Maine come at a time when the federal agency has hired a huge number of officers quickly. Some law enforcement experts worry that this kind of a hiring spree can lead police agencies to cut corners in vetting new hires.
	'New York Times' alleges White House abuses legal system to intimidate reporters The New York Times will argue in court Thursday that the White House is abusing the justice system to intimidate reporters over a story that angered President Trump.
	These Catholic sisters want to start a new order with a difficult mission: helping clergy abuse survivors Sisters Theresa Alethia and Danielle Lussier call themselves the Sisters of the Little Way of Beauty, Truth and Goodness. Their order plans to help victims of abuse.
	Ford recalls nearly 388,000 vehicles for faulty seats The second-row seats have a defect that causes them to move unexpectedly, leading to injury in a crash.
	Iowa to preserve Social Security survivor benefits for foster children DES MOINES, Iowa – Motivated by First Lady Melania Trump, Iowa is making changes to its foster care system aimed at helping children build financial stability as they transition into adulthood while continuing efforts to recruit and support foster families. Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Wednesday at "Foster Squad" in Ankeny that the state will no [...]
	OpenAI blamed a hacking event on its AI models gone rogue. Here is what to know The incident is stirring debates over the need for stronger AI guardrails and the extent to which AI agents are capable of acting on their own.
	Davenport Police Department: Watch for Bix road closures, changes It's an Our Quad Cities News traffic alert. With the Bix 7 ahead on Saturday, July 25, the Davenport Police Department is alerting drivers to be aware of road closures and changes from Thursday, July 23 through Sunday, July 26. According to a Facebook post: For news alerts from the City of Davenport, click here.
Wednesday, July 22nd, 2026
	Building demolished in Bettendorf We reached out to the property owners, Alter Logistics. The company told us the building was demolished for safety and aesthetic reasons.
	Assumption baseball advances to State Championship Assumption baseball defeated MOC-Floyd Valley 5-1 in the state semifinals to advance to the state championship.
	Davenport chiropractor surrenders his license: The standard of care you should expect A man was paralyzed after receiving a chiropractic adjustment in 2024. The Iowa Board of Chiropractic says there was no medical history or exam performed.
	City of Bettendorf accepting applications for 2026 Citizen Academy The eight-week course gives "students" a look at all 12 departments. Here's how you can participate.
	Morgan Myles brings country, Americana sound to Cambridge house concert Powerhouse Americana and country singer-songwriter Morgan Myles will bring her soaring vocals and deeply personal songs to Ca d’Zan House Concerts in Cambridge on Wednesday, July 29. Presented by Crossroads Cultural Connections, the all-ages concert will begin at 7 p.m., after an optional community potluck dinner at 6 p.m. Myles first gained national attention as [...]

Thursday, July 23rd, 2026

Wednesday, July 22nd, 2026