Carbon Monoxide (CO) Poisioning

"When power outages occur after severe weather (such as severe storms, hurricanes or tornadoes), using alternative sources of power can cause carbon monoxide (CO) to build up in a home and poison the people and animals inside.

Every year, at least 430 people die in the U. S. from accidental CO poisoning. Approximately 50,000 people in the U.S. visit the emergency department each year due to accidental CO poisoning. There are steps you can take to help protect yourself and your household from CO poisoning. Change the batteries in your CO detector every six months. If you don’t have a battery-powered or battery back-up CO detector, buy one soon.

CO is found in fumes produced by portable generators, stoves, lanterns, and gas ranges, or by burning charcoal and wood. CO from these sources can build up in enclosed or partially enclosed spaces. People and animals in these spaces can be poisoned and can die from breathing CO.

CO poisoning is entirely preventable. Protect yourself and your family by acting wisely in case of a power outage and learning the symptoms of CO poisoning..."
Carbon Monoxide

Prevent Shingles

"Shingles causes a painful, blistering skin rash. Almost 1 out of 3 people in the United States will develop shingles during their lifetime. Your risk of shingles increases as you get older. If you are 60 years of age or older get the shingles vaccine.

Shingles, also known as herpes zoster, causes a painful, blistering skin rash that can last two to four weeks. For some people, the pain can last for months or even years after the rash goes away. This pain is called postherpetic neuralgia or PHN. It is the most common complication of shingles. The risk of shingles and PHN increases as you get older.

People have described pain from shingles as excruciating, aching, burning, stabbing, and shock-like. It has been compared to the pain of childbirth or kidney stones. This pain may also lead to depression, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, loss of appetite, and weight loss. Shingles can interfere with activities of daily living like dressing, bathing, eating, cooking, shopping, and travel. Shingles can lead to eye complications that can result in vision loss..."

Shingles

Managing Travelers’ Diarrhea While Traveling Abroad

"What do you do if you find yourself with a rumbling tummy while traveling overseas? Follow these tips to prevent or treat travelers’ diarrhea and still enjoy your international trip.

What is it?

Travelers’ diarrhea is caused by a variety of pathogens but most commonly bacteria found in food and water, often related to poor hygiene practices in local restaurants. An estimated 30% to 70% of travelers experience travelers’ diarrhea, depending on where they go and what time of year. Countries are generally divided into 3 risk groups: high, intermediate, and low.

• Destinations with high risk: Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Mexico, and Central and South America.
• Destinations with intermediate risk: Eastern Europe, South Africa, and some Caribbean islands.
• Destinations with low risk: the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Northern and Western Europe..."

Travelers' diarrhea

Building Healthy Inclusive Communities

"Since passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 27 years ago, communities have become more inclusive and people with disabilities have better access to buildings, transportation, and employment. However, there is still work to be done, and we all play a role in creating communities where everybody can thrive.

One in five adults in the United States have some type of disability, and many people will experience a disability during their lifetimes. A disability is any condition of the body or mind that makes it more difficult for the person with the condition to do certain activities and interact with the surrounding world. However, the way our cities are built and how we provide access to the places where people live, work, learn, and play can either strongly encourage or serve as a major barrier for people with disabilities to participate and be included in community life..."
Inclusive Communities

Antibiotic Resistance, Food, and Food-Producing Animals

"More than 400,000 Americans get sick every year from infections caused by antibiotic-resistant foodborne bacteria, according to CDC estimates. People who are infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria may experience more severe illness, including hospitalization and death, because these infections can be harder to treat. Learn what CDC is doing and how you can protect yourself and your loved ones from these types of infections.

Antibiotic Resistance and Food Production

Antibiotic resistance is the ability of bacteria to resist the effects of an antibiotic. This means that bacteria are not killed by the antibiotic and can continue to grow. About one in five resistant infections are caused by germs, such as Salmonella and Campylobacter, from food and animals..."

Antibiotic resistance

Executive Order 9981: Desegregation of the Armed Forces

"On July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed this executive order establishing the President’s Committee on Equality of Treatment and Opportunity in the Armed Services, committing the government to integrating the segregated military.
Read more at the Our Documents..."
Desegregation in Armed Forces

JFK Assassination Records - 2017 Additional Documents Release

"The National Archives and Records Administration is releasing documents previously withheld in accordance with the JFK Assassination Records Collection Act.  The vast majority of the Collection (88%) has been open in full and released to the public since the late 1990s.  The records at issue are documents previously identified as assassination records, but withheld in full or withheld in part.  Learn more

This release consists of 3,810 documents, including 441 formerly withheld-in-full documents and 3,369 documents formerly released with portions redacted.  The documents originate from FBI and CIA series identified by the Assassination Records Review Board as assassination records.  More releases will follow.

To view the entire file, you may visit the National Archives at College Park and request access to the original records..."

JFK assassination records

U.S. Role in the World: Background and Issues for Congress

"The overall U.S. role in the world since the end of World War II in 1945 (i.e., over the past 70 years) is generally described as one of global leadership and significant engagement in international affairs. A key aim of that role has been to promote and defend the open international order that the United States, with the support of its allies, created in the years after World War II. In addition to promoting and defending the open international order, the overall U.S. role is generally described as having been one of promoting freedom, democracy, and human rights, while criticizing and resisting authoritarianism where possible, and opposing the emergence of regional hegemons in Eurasia or a spheres-of-influence world.

Certain statements and actions from the Trump Administration have led to uncertainty about the Administration’s intentions regarding the future U.S. role in the world. Based on those statements and actions, some observers have speculated that the Trump Administration may want to change the U.S. role in one or more ways. A change in the overall U.S. role could have profound implications for U.S. foreign policy, national security, and international economic policy, for Congress as an institution, and for many federal policies and programs..."
U.S. world role

Fatal Drownings in Pools Involving Young Children Decreases By 17 Percent Nationwide Since 2010

"A new report released today by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) shows that the number of reported fatal child drownings in swimming pools involving children younger than 5—the most vulnerable population—has decreased 17 percent nationwide since 2010, the year our Pool Safely public education campaign was launched. Despite the decrease, fatal and non-fatal child drownings in pools and spas continue to pose a public health challenge across the United States. In national and local media interviews today, CPSC Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle urged families to be vigilant when children are in and around the water this summer.

“Despite the positive decline in numbers, there are still far too many children who drown each year in pools and spas across the country,” said Acting Chairman Buerkle. “Swimming should be fun and a great way for families to be active, so long as everyone knows how to pool safely.  As a mother, grandmother and registered nurse, I raised my kids, and now my grandkids, with a respect for water. Constant supervision, along with four-sided fencing, knowing how to perform CPR and teaching children how to swim are all important steps to continuing the decline in child drownings.”..."

Youth drownings

Crime in the United States: Preliminary January - June 2016

"Preliminary figures indicate that law enforcement agencies throughout the nation showed an overall increase of 5.3 percent in the number of violent crimes brought to their attention for the first 6 months of 2016 when compared with figures reported for the same time in 2015. The violent crime category includes murder, rape (revised definition), rape (legacy definition), robbery, and aggravated assault. The number of property crimes in the United States from January to June of 2016 decreased 0.6 percent when compared with data for the same time period in 2015. Property crimes include burglary, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft. Arson is also a property crime, but data for arson are not included in property crime totals due to fluctuations in reporting. Figures for 2016 indicate that arson decreased 1.1 percent when compared with 2015 figures for the same time period.

The data presented in Tables 1 and 2 indicate the percent change in offenses known to law enforcement for the first 6 months of 2016 compared with those for the first half of 2015 by population group and region, respectively. Table 3 reflects the percent change in offenses reported within the nation for consecutive years (each year compared to the prior year). Table 4 presents the number of offenses known to law enforcement for agencies with resident populations of 100,000 or more that provided 6 months of complete data for 2016. In addition, Table 4 presents 6 months of 2015 data, where available, as a point of comparison. All data in this Report are preliminary..."

Cime in the U.S.: 2016

Summer Travel 2017

"School is out, work in the office is quieting down, and cold temperatures are a distant memory. It’s time to relax and enjoy the warm, sunny weather. If international travel is part of your summer plans, the CDC Travelers’ Health website is a great first stop to get prepared.

Before You Go

• Visit your doctor or a travel medicine specialist, ideally 4–6 weeks before your trip, to get any vaccines or medicines you may need. Go to the Destinations website to check the vaccines and medicines list specific to your destination. Even if you are leaving soon, a visit to a travel medicine doctor is valuable. The doctor can counsel you on ways you can reduce your risk of getting sick or hurt while traveling.
• Pack a Travel Health Kit. Include prescription and over-the-counter medicines, sunscreen, alcohol-based sanitizer, first aid supplies, health insurance card, insect repellent, and condoms.
• Check for any current Travel Health Notices. These notices will inform you about health issues related to disease outbreaks, special events or gatherings, natural disasters, or other conditions at your destination.
• Check the US Department of State website for information on security risks. Register with the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program so the US embassy or consulate can contact you in an emergency...."

Summer Travel

Community HealthSim

"The Community HealthSim is a violence prevention tool on CDC’s VetoViolence website. This game-like experience demonstrates the connections between violence and community issues, such as struggling businesses and schools, overcrowded jails, and long wait hours in the emergency room.

The simulation puts you in the driver’s seat of Vetoville. You can explore the town from the perspective of a “special advisor”—brought in to determine how to spend the town’s limited resources to improve the quality of life for everyone who lives there..."

Community HealthSim

Globe had 2nd warmest year to date and 3rd warmest June on record

"Climate by the Numbers

JUNE

The average global temperature set in June 2017 was 1.48 degrees F above the 20th-century average of 59.9 degrees, according to scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information. This average temperature was the third highest for June in the 1880-2017 record, behind June 2015 (second) and a record-breaking June 2016. June 2017 marks the 41st consecutive June and the 390th consecutive month with temperatures at least nominally above the 20th-century average.

*Year to date | January through June 2017

The year-to-date average temperature was 1.64 degrees F above the 20th-century average of 56.3 degrees. This was the second-warmest for this period, 0.29 of a degree behind the record set in 2016..."

Record warm weather

CBO cost estimates: H.R. 1628 American Health Care Act of 2017

"The Congressional Budget Office and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) have completed an estimate of the direct spending and revenue effects of H.R. 1628, the American Health Care Act of 2017, as passed by the House of Representatives. CBO and JCT estimate that enacting that version of H.R. 1628 would reduce the cumulative federal deficit over the 2017-2026 period by $119 billion. That amount is $32 billion less than the estimated net savings for the version of H.R. 1628 that was posted on the website of the House Committee on Rules on March 22, 2017, incorporating manager’s amendments 4, 5, 24, and 25. (CBO issued a cost estimate for that earlier version of the legislation on March 23, 2017.) 1

In comparison with the estimates for the previous version of the act, under the Housepassed act, the number of people with health insurance would, by CBO and JCT’s estimates, be slightly higher and average premiums for insurance purchased individually—that is, nongroup insurance—would be lower, in part because the insurance, on average, would pay for a smaller proportion of health care costs. In addition, the agencies expect that some people would use the tax credits authorized by the act to purchase policies that would not cover major medical risks and that are not counted as insurance in this cost estimate..."
CBO costs estimates: American Health Care Act

Drawing Justice: the Art of Courtroom Illustration

"Drawing Justice: The Art of Courtroom Illustration showcases the Library’s extensive collections of original art by talented artists hired by both newspapers and television to capture the personal dynamics of legal trials. Skilled at quickly conveying both individual likenesses and the atmosphere of the courtroom, these artists reveal, in intimate detail, the dramatic and, at times, mundane aspects of trial proceedings.

The illustrations on display represent court cases dating from 1964 to the present day. These cases influenced how Americans perceive race and race relations, religion, gender issues, political and corporate corruption, international relations, and the role of celebrities in society. The corresponding drawings are poignant images of people from all walks of life during the last fifty years of court history, observed in their most vulnerable moments. While artistic styles vary, each artist brings the theater of the courtroom to life, capturing gestures, appearance, and relationships in a way that humanizes defendants, plaintiffs, lawyers, judges, and witnesses..."
Drawing justice