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dlwickham

dlwickham's Journal
dlwickham's Journal
January 29, 2018

Publix Grocery Chain Denies PrEP Coverage to Its Employees

http://www.thebody.com/content/80784/publix-grocery-chain-denies-prep-coverage-to-its-e.html

Some parts of the country have weather that signals the arrival of the winter holiday season, but the South has Publix commercials. The Florida-based grocery store chain has made a Christmas tradition of its sentimental short films exalting family, fireplaces, and food bought from its stores and prepared with your love. "Whatever your tradition may be, we're grateful to be a part of it," a narrator with a delicate rasp says in the 2017 ad, "Traditions. A Publix Christmas story."

However, Publix is showing a cooler, less compassionate side to some of its 188,000 employees. One of the more prominent supermarket brands in the southeast, it has taken a hard line against including the HIV-prevention medication known as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in the insurance coverage it offers workers. But it remains a mystery whether the company is blocking coverage for PrEP due to cost concerns or the growing cry of employers (such as Hobby Lobby) that don't want to cover medical care for issues or people they deem morally objectionable.

The company's rejection of what is widely considered a major breakthrough in HIV prevention is as unique as it is puzzling, said David Holland, M.D., M.H.S., an assistant professor of medicine at Emory University and director of the Fulton County PrEP clinic in Atlanta, who unsuccessfully tried to get Publix to cover PrEP for one of the company's employees. "We've started over 400 people on PrEP at our clinic alone, and this is the only person that we weren't able to get PrEP for," Holland said.

Publix representatives were contacted numerous times for an explanation of the company's decision, and they responded with a brief statement noting that "the health plans offered by Publix provide generous medical and prescription coverage." "Annually, we evaluate benefits covered under our health plans," Publix spokesperson Brenda Reid wrote in the statement. "There are numerous medications covered by the plan used in the treatment of HIV." "There are some medications that have coverage limitations or require prior authorization," Reid added. "Any Publix associate with questions regarding his or her coverage can contact our benefits department directly."
January 25, 2018

A court ruling could be about to legalise gay sex in eight Caribbean countries

http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2018/01/25/a-court-ruling-could-be-about-to-legalise-gay-sex-in-eight-caribbean-countries/?utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#link_time=1516885449

Gay sex could be about to be legalised in eight Caribbean countries.

The potentially momentous ruling would come about through Trinidad-born LGBT rights activist Jason Jones, who is taking his country to court in an effort to decriminalise homosexuality.

If the campaign – which PinkNews supports – is successful, it would also make gay sex legal in Antigua, Barbados, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent.
January 20, 2018

WV pharmacies dispensed 31M fewer painkillers and other powerful drugs last year

Source: Charleston Gazette Mail

The number of potentially addictive prescription drugs dispensed by West Virginia pharmacies dropped by 31 million in 2017, the sharpest decline in a single year since the state started tracking such powerful medications.

Controlled substances – which include prescription painkillers, anti-anxiety medications and amphetamines – declined by 12 percent between 2016 and last year, according to the state Board of Pharmacy’s annual report.

Hydrocodone -- sold under brand names like Vicodin and Lortab -- remained the most-prescribed pain medication, but the number of pills dispensed dropped by 8.4 million tablets. Oxycodone numbers decreased by 9.3 million.

The state Board of Pharmacy’s Controlled Substances Monitoring Database has been tracking the highly regulated drugs since 2011.

Read more: https://www.wvgazettemail.com/news/health/wv-pharmacies-dispensed-m-fewer-painkillers-and-other-powerful-drugs/article_c8756a55-8cac-5618-9f86-2e0e990d0e72.html

January 16, 2018

Panama votes to boot Trump Hotels out of country

http://www.rawstory.com/2018/01/panama-votes-to-boot-trump-hotels-out-of-country/

An attempt to try to strip President Donald Trump's name from a hotel building in Panama has turned bitter, with the U.S. leader's hotel company refusing to leave the Central American country without a fight.

Owners of the Trump International Hotel in Panama City, the country's capital, are reportedly fighting to have the name of the building changed and oust the president's hotel management company, Trump Hotels.

However, two people familiar with the matter have told the Associated Press that Trump's staff "ran off" a team of Marriott executives invited last month to visit the property as a prospective new hotel operator.

The head of Trump Hotels, Eric Danziger, also called Marriott's CEO to complain about the visit, the two people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told AP.
January 16, 2018

Dr. Mathilde Krim, Hero, Mentor, and Warrior Against AIDS, Dies at 91

http://www.towleroad.com/2018/01/362093/

Wrote activist Peter Staley on Facebook: “My greatest AIDS hero died a few hours ago. Dr. Mathilde Krim, founder of amfAR, warrior against homophobia and AIDS-related stigma, dedicated defender of science and public health, and mother-figure and mentor to countless activists, will leave a deep hole in the continued fight against AIDS — a fight she dedicated her life to. She as 91.”
January 14, 2018

Exclusive: Mark Wahlberg refused to approve Christopher Plummer unless he was paid

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2018/01/11/exclusive-mark-wahlberg-refused-approve-christopher-plummer-unless-he-paid/1026347001/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Mark Wahlberg refused to approve Christopher Plummer as a replacement for Kevin Spacey in All the Money in the World unless he was paid over a million dollars for the reshoot, USA TODAY has learned.

Wahlberg had co-star approval in his contract, two people familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly about it tell USA TODAY.

"What he said was, 'I will not approve Christopher Plummer unless you pay me.' And that's how he (expletive) them," says one person.



I know what movie I won't be going to see
January 4, 2018

After reading posts at Freeperville I'm convinced there's only one poster

and he makes all the posts

they're all basically the same depending on the threat

December 29, 2017

Emboldened white nationalists? Look no further than this liberal Oregon college town

http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2017/12/post_292.html

Looking back, things did seem a bit out of balance with successful marijuana entrepreneur Bethany Sherman.

She shared an open contempt for Eugene and its renowned left-wing politics. She gloated about the election of Donald Trump. She made sure to note that she’d given her baby a German name.

But few who knew Sherman expected to read an antifascist expose´ accusing her of neo-Nazi sympathies. They were even less prepared for Sherman’s immediate and enthusiastic declaration of white pride, though she disavowed any connection to neo-Nazis.

Within a day of the allegations, Sherman found her carefully cultivated image as a well-connected and savvy businesswoman in tatters. She closed the marijuana testing lab that she had worked for years to establish. The industry condemned her and customers left in droves.
December 29, 2017

I have found myself not caring what garbage Trump tweets

I expect him to say something controversial or just plain stupid to piss off the left and have his supporters come back and start a twitter war

I know that this could be dangerous, but I'm in favor of just ignoring him. He's like the senile old grandparent who sits in the room and you just nod and smile at anything they say.

December 28, 2017

Chechnyas first openly gay man forced to apologise on national TV

http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2017/12/28/chechnyas-first-openly-gay-man-forced-to-apologise-on-national-tv/1/?utm_source=ET&utm_medium=ETFB&utm_campaign=portal&utm_content=inf_17_60_2&tse_id=INF_b78537d0ec1c11e79160a780a1ef54df

The first man to publicly come out as gay in Chechnya has revealed he was publicly shamed and forced to take back his comments.

Mover Eskarkhanov received death threats and was forced to apologise on national television after he told Time magazine that he was gay. 
Chechnya was condemned by world leaders and LGBT activists after the news of “gay concentration camps” in the republic reached the international press in April 2017.

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