President Trump’s declaring the opioid epidemic a national health emergency is a critical first step, but it does not address the urgent need for more federal funds to fight this crisis, according to Arthur C. Evans, Jr., PhD, CEO of the American Psychological Association (APA). Evans said the declaration does not automatically direct federal funds to address the problem – funds which should go to the states, because they “are battling this epidemic on the front lines.”

When it comes to health, a large gap often exists between what we know (for example, we know that eating too much sugar is bad for our health) and what we still do. Hearing loss prevention is no exception. We have been aware of the harmful effects of overexposure to noise for over a century.

Two months after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, residents of the U.S. territory are still being told to boil water from rivers and streams before using it to drink, bathe, wash or cook with. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said that if it’s not possible to boil water – for at least a minute - water may be disinfected with bleach. That warning is part of an EPA update on Hurricane Maria’s effects on Puerto Rico.

OSHA has cited a Pittsburgh masonry contractor for exposing workers to serious dangers including fall and electrical hazards after an employee was fatally electrocuted in April. The 21-year-old laborer was doing restoration work at a Pittsburgh residence when he was electrocuted. A subsequent investigation of the man’s employer, Ski Masonry LLC, resulted in two willful and five serious citations for violations against the company.

With extreme weather and its effects increasingly in the headlines, a new survey reveals what worries workers when it comes to power outages. An online poll among 2,072 U.S. adults ages 18 and older commissioned by Cintas Corporation found that more than a third (34 percent) would not feel very confident in their ability to navigate the building safely.

New research conducted at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health finds exposure to arsenic in drinking water was significantly reduced among Americans using public water systems following a 2006 EPA regulation on maximum levels of arsenic. Compliance with the regulation led to a decline of 17 percent in levels of urinary arsenic, equivalent to an estimated reduction of more than 200 cases of lung and bladder disease every year.

Men develop a type of irregular heartbeat, known as atrial fibrillation, about a decade earlier than women on average, and being overweight is a major risk factor, according to a large new study published in the American Heart Association’s journal Circulation. In atrial fibrillation, the upper chambers of the heart, or atria, quiver instead of beat to move blood effectively.

President Trump this week directed U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao to launch an initiative to safely test and validate advanced operations for drones in partnership with state and local governments in select jurisdictions. The results of the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration Pilot Program will be used “to accelerate the safe integration of UAS into the national airspace and to realize the benefits of unmanned technology in our economy,” according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

OSHA has again cited a Moonachie, New Jersey hair distribution company, and proposed $181,280 in penalties, after finding continued safety hazards at the employer's warehouse. The agency initiated an inspection of Mane Concept’s facility in April after receiving a complaint alleging imminent safety hazards.