skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Monday, March 10, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Judge temporarily blocks effort to deport Palestinian activist who helped lead Columbia student protests; Power of rural organizing reflected in SD carbon pipeline law; Safety at risk as budget cuts hit Indiana Dunes National Park; Barriers to tracking bird flu mount amid federal changes.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

House Democrats won't back the GOP budget bill. Ontario reacts to Trump trade moves by enacting energy export tariffs, and a new report finds mass deportations don t help the labor market.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Immigrant communities are getting advice from advocates as the reach of ICE expands, experts in rural America urge lawmakers to ramp up protections against elder abuse, and a multi-state arts projects seeks to close the urban-rural divide.

Study: Higher wages mean lower obesity

play audio
Play

Friday, November 15, 2024   

If state and local governments want healthier populations, new findings suggest they should be more aggressive in tackling income inequality. A Nebraska organization feels that approach is on point.

A new study from Johns Hopkins University looked at obesity levels in more than 3,000 counties across the country. The places with minimum wages of at least $9 an hour had greater success in reducing obesity rates.

Christine Cary, who helps address economic justice with the group Stand In for Nebraska, said other data routinely show that healthier foods tend to cost more, so the connection made in this new research is pretty clear.

"Raising the minimum wage is obviously a way to increase access to healthier food," she said. "You just have more money to spend on it."

In 2022, Nebraska voters approved a gradual increase in the state's minimum wage, which is set to reach $15 an hour in 2026. At the same time, the state doesn't fare well in obesity rankings.

Cary said she sees a chance for numbers to improve as wages go up, but noted that not all communities have stores that sell healthy foods, potentially hindering that progress.

The study's authors also called for "place-based" interventions, such as urban farming initiatives and subsidies for healthy food retailers to go along with higher wages. Cary said that's an important step in tackling this issue.

"It's pretty well known among geographers that we shop at the closest place," she said, "meaning don't expect people who are already low income to seek these things out."

She said creating more awareness and options in underserved communities can help maximize the impact of higher wages from a public health standpoint. Cary said that's especially important in a rural state such as Nebraska, which has seen its food retail and health facility options disappear in smaller towns and cities.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled four times, starting with the DeRolph decision in 1997, that the state's method of funding schools violates the state constitution, prompting ongoing efforts to reform the system. (jovannig/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Despite being four years into Ohio's six-year Fair School Funding Plan, it has yet to receive full funding. Advocates of the plan are pushing for …


Environment

play sound

By Gabriella Sotelo for Sentient.Broadcast version by Suzanne Potter for California News Service reporting for the Sentient-Public News Service Collab…

Environment

play sound

Mississippi farmers face mounting uncertainty as a federal funding freeze and layoffs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture have disrupted some of …


During the Great Depression, the U.S. enacted the "Mexican Repatriation" program, which forced the deportation of millions of people born in Mexico. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

As nationwide deportation efforts continue, new research examined the labor market of a past president to help forecast what could happen if …

Health and Wellness

play sound

Florida lawmakers are taking steps to address the state's growing number of people with diabetes, by improving early detection and access to care…

Farmers and ranchers say they feel uncertain about their futures because of executive orders that have impacted the U.S. Department of Agriculture. (Lightfield Studios/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Farmers and ranchers in Arkansas are voicing frustration and concern surrounding funding freezes and layoffs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture…

Social Issues

play sound

As Michigan's senior population steadily increases, the need for communities that prioritize their well-being becomes more critical. With nearly 2 …

Social Issues

play sound

A Colorado law passed in 1943 amid intense big-business and white-supremacist campaigns to block worker organizing has suppressed unionization in the …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021