Health & Wellness News

Members of Easton's Blueprint Communities organization announced their first project, a mural at Chubby's honoring South Side's past, present, and future, on Monday afternoon.

Northampton County and Northampton Community College will offer a free workplace safety training later this month aimed at employees of municipal governments, nonprofits and similar organizations.

The funding, through the Livable Landscape program, was unanimously approved at the county council’s June 18 meeting.

Legislators worked to establish penalties for xylazine use and trafficking in an attempt to lessen its presence in Pennsylvania's illicit drug supply. Some say doing so made way for a new, unclassified veterinary tranquilizer to take its place — medetomidine.

Nearly a year after the Biden administration designated xylazine as an "emerging threat" to the United States, Gov. Josh Shapiro classified it as a schedule III drug, making unauthorized possession a crime in Pennsylvania. Experts say the move has partly served to clear the way for new illicit substances to enter the drug market.

Proposed federal budget cuts would impact programs such as the free summer meal program for children in the Allentown School District.

The $2.75 million payment to the federal government resolves allegations that a pharmacy technician stole controlled substances on about 40 occasions and the health network failed to institute proper controls.

Despite not being approved for human consumption, veterinary tranquilizers are infiltrating the illicit drug supply in Pennsylvania. Harm reduction specialists and health care professionals say these overdoses can't be approached solely with naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal drug.

A generous donation from a Lehigh Valley native and others funds free swim lessons for children and adults in the River Crossing YMCA's Safety Around Water, or SAW, swim education program.

The bill would limit the manufacture, sale, distribution and use of firefighting foam containing PFAS, also known as forever chemicals, beginning in 2026.

Xylazine, an animal-grade tranquilizer that's not approved for human use, has taken Pennsylvania's illicit drug supply by storm. Known on the streets as "tranq," it accounted for almost 1 in 4 overdose deaths in Pennsylvania by 2023. Last year in Lehigh County, it was a contributing cause of death in 20 of the 112 deadly overdoses, or 17.9 percent of cases.

The funding comes from the commonwealth’s Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure program, a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

A vigil for Black Trans Lives was held in Allentown yesterday to remember transgender people who have been murdered across the country, and raise their profile amid social justice protests.

An Eastern PA state fair came under fire this week after posting photos that have been described as transphobic, showing a man at a Bloomsburg carnival game dressed up as Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine.

Pennsylvania homeowners and renters are protected from eviction and foreclosure until August 31.

Pennsylvania's ability to provide food assistance benefits without in-person interviews is set to expire July 31. Governor Tom Wolf is asking the federal government to extend waivers related to the program during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Two unions are suing the federal agency in charge of mine safety, demanding it impose emergency rules to try to prevent the spread of COVID-19 among coal miners.

Easton Hospital union employees are worried about their future. Just over two weeks ago St. Luke’s University Health Network announced the purchase of the Easton Hospital in Northampton County, from the Steward Medical Group.

The Lehigh Valley will move to the green phase of reopening next Friday, June 26.

Five YMCA summer camp locations in the Lehigh Valley have opened.

As the Lehigh Valley region begins to re-open, area blood banks are looking for more donations.

Researchers say June and July are peak times for ticks carrying Lyme disease to infect people in Pennsylvania. There are several things you can do to protect yourself outdoors.

As businesses reopen and people begin to try to get back to their normal lives, the Lehigh Valley International Airport is telling its passengers they will get them safely from point A to B.

Calls made to report suspected child abuse to Pennsylvania’s ChildLine continued to be significantly lower than usual in May.