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Ways to deal with a bad year for ticks

From what we’re hearing, it may well be the worst season for ticks that anyone has seen. Tick season is in full swing and with it, the danger of contracting one of several nasty infections that are becoming all too common in the area. But ticks shouldn’t keep you out of the woods, if that’s something you enjoy doing. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has these suggestions to avoid contact with ticks: Before going outdoors: • Know where to expect ticks. Ticks live in grassy, brushy or wooded areas, or even on animals. Spending time outside walking your dog, ...

Billing abuses for autism assistance unacceptable

Most people cannot imagine the challenges autism poses to families caring for someone afflicted with the developmental disorder. But when those challenges are exacerbated by unscrupulous individuals and companies, people need to take notice and not be shy about projecting their disgust and calls for remedial legal action and stiff penalties, criminal as well as civil. Those who would try to take advantage of the families in question — and, in the process, the victims of the disorder themselves — don’t deserve any leniency in any court of law. Meanwhile, there should be no ...

Spirit loss sets off domino effect

When small towns rely on one employer, everyone is just a closed factory away from collapse. That’s a reality many in Pennsylvania can understand — and have experienced. We know what it’s like when the only hospital shuts down, and you have to drive an hour to reach the emergency room. We know what happens when the only supermarket goes away, and suddenly all your meals come from a dollar store. A lack of backup plans is the start of a domino effect. It isn’t long before other things start to leave too. Arnold Palmer Regional Airport is learning that lesson now. The ...

Insurance holders should read fine print

Thousands of insurance policies are bought each day in America, and the people who have purchased those policies usually feel some semblance of peace of mind, believing they will be protected if they are victimized by an event such as an accident, fire or weather disaster, including a hurricane or flood. After completing the purchase, most of the new policyholders most likely tuck away the policy in a safe place, determined that they’ll read it “when they have the opportunity to sit down with it” — an opportunity window that, for many, never becomes available amid the hustle ...

Will single-payer health care champions ever offer something credible?

Billionaire progressive activist and California gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer recently remarked: "Health care companies only care about one thing: profits. Single-payer now." This is the same Tom Steyer who opposed single-payer when he ran for president in 2020. "Bernie Sanders was right," he says. "Boy, was I wrong." He still cannot explain how to pay for it. Can anyone? Single-payer health care has been the progressive left's signature domestic demand for four decades. It has generated presidential campaigns, mass rallies, congressional cosponsors and an inexhaustible supply ...

Democrats’ Maine Senate gamble raises questions about standards

The Democratic Party's approach to Maine's Senate race has sparked a debate that extends well beyond the state's borders. At the center of the controversy is Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner, whose campaign has been dogged by a series of damaging allegations and personal scandals. Reports have highlighted Platner's past online activity, including the presence of a tattoo some have characterized as Nazi-related, inflammatory comments on public forums, sexually explicit social media posts and allegations involving inappropriate online communications. More recently, questions ...