Director Allison Randall of the Office on Violence Against Womaen Delivered Remarks at the Launch of the National Plan to End Gender-Based Violence Federal Interagency. "At the Department of Justice, we know that sexual assault, domestic violence, stalking and human trafficking are serious violent crimes that make our nation less equal and less just. Only a comprehensive response that is deeply informed by survivors and historically marginalized communities can end gender-based violence. I travel all over the country meeting with advocates, law enforcement, prosecutors and clinicians. They are doing whatever it takes to meet survivors where they are – both figuratively and literally. Just as laid out in this national plan, they are responding to the whole person, the whole community." more »

"The American Academy of Pediatrics warns that gun violence also carries long-term physical and mental health consequences. The data does not surprise Stephanie Chao, MD, pediatric surgeon and trauma medical director at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford and assistant professor of the Surgery Division of Pediatric Surgery at Stanford Medicine. She recently appeared on A Little More Conversation with news podcaster Ben O’Hara-Byrne to discuss what it’s like for pediatric surgeons to treat young victims of gun violence. In the podcast, Dr. Chao says that firearm injuries in young patients are not generally from school or gang-related shootings, but from incidents in the home." more »

"The reported amount of unpaid medical bills among older adults increased by 20 percent between 2019 and 2020, from $44.8 billion to $53.8 billion. Yet older adults reported fewer doctor visits and lower out-of-pocket expenses in 2020 than in 2019. Older adults face a complex billing system with a high likelihood of errors and inaccurate bills. Complaints submitted to the CFPB involving Medicare commonly cite inaccurate billing as a source of unpaid medical bills in collections. Consumers who reported having multiple sources of insurance were especially likely to note problems with inaccurate billing." more »

Rose Mula Writes: Some people never leave home without their American Express card; I never leave home without a camera. Digitized pictures of the twenty-five countries and forty-plus states of America that I’ve visited since my first tour of exotic New Hampshire constantly flash on my computer monitors and digital frames throughout my home, helping me relive the magic every day. The galleries on my tablet, IPod, and phone teem with images of everything and everyone I love. more »