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West Virginia Now Finds Itself at a Real Crossroads

Local Columns

The legislative session is nearly over and very little has been accomplished by the state Senate that would help move the state forward. The House of Delegates has been working through a package of economic development bills that would help to attract new job creators to our state. Gov. Morrisey has proposed a state budget with a 5% income tax cut. Meanwhile, the state Senate continues to focus on legislation that is not likely to help our state prosper. West Virginia continues to have the lowest workforce participation rate in the country. There have been no significant job ...

SAVE Act Is Wrong For West Virginia

Letters to the Editor

Editor, News-Register: Hello, my name is Donald Shriner. I am a registered republican; The SAVE ACT is not an acceptable piece of legislation. Requiring proof of citizenship in the manner that is articulated in the bill would be very cumbersome and costly for the citizens of the state of West Virginia. More than 146 million American citizens do not have a valid passport. Obtaining a passport can be a lengthy and costly process, and many people who lack the time and money to get one would be deterred from voting. In New York and California, over 70% of citizens have passports. ...

More Insurance Benefits Must Get to Patients

Local Columns

I have practiced orthodontics in Wheeling for 45 years. I have sat across from parents who budget carefully for braces, cleanings, and routine dental care. I have watched families try to stretch insurance benefits that look much the same as they did nearly half a century ago. Now, we have numbers that confirm what many of us have seen firsthand. The West Virginia Office of the Insurance Commissioner recently released updated dental loss ratio data. On average, only 43 cents of every premium dollar in our state goes toward patient care. Think about that for a moment. Families and ...

Improving Heart Health

Editorials

All that technology we drag around with us all the time is giving researchers data that provides insight into everything from our travel to fitness. If you have a habit of checking your health and fitness data through a smart watch and app, you are not the only one keeping track. Data from participants, provided by Apple, helped researchers produce the “Apple Heart and Movement Study.” So how are we all doing? Well, in Ohio, not so great. In West Virginia, even worse. In Ohio, we get less exercise and have higher average resting heart rates than the national average — though we ...

Douglas’ Legacy Will Still Live On

Editorials

There are so many ways to describe what Bobby Douglas meant to the world of amateur wrestling. Legend. Icon. Pioneer. Champion. All are true. So it’s important to understand just what the amateur wrestling world and the Ohio Valley lost with Douglas passing at the age of 83. Here’s a person who hitchhiked to West Liberty for classes and slept in a dorm attic because he couldn’t afford room and board, who became an NAIA national champion and NCAA national runner-up before becoming the first Black Olympic wrestler, an Olympic team captain, a collegiate coach who won an NCAA ...

Vape Bill Goes Off The Rails

Editorials

Del. David McCormick, R-Monongalia, chose a soft target with his Vape Safety Act — House Bill 5437 — perhaps hoping state House of Delegates committee members would not look too carefully at the language he wielded or be affected by the dog whistles he was blowing. First, it is important to acknowledge the vape shop industry SHOULD be better regulated in this state. McCormick knows most elected officials will understand that. So, if one does not get past the basics of the bill, it might seem like something that should earn a stamp of approval. HB 5437 would require all specialty ...