AZ makes significant strides in opioid crisis
More than five people in Arizona die each day from opioid overdose, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services. To address the crisis, state administrators, behavioral health providers, prevention specialists, educators and researchers have made remarkable progress.
GOP Covid panel to hold people ‘accountable’
A new committee run by Republicans who are critical of how Covid was managed will convene this month and hold unspecified people “accountable” for their role in the pandemic, but members haven't said how that will be done.
Have health needs, will travel: ADHS delivers vaccines, tests to underserved communities
Even as Covid levels decline, the Arizona health department continues to deliver tests, vaccinations and other medical services to underserved, low-income communities across the state, according to health-equity officials.
Lawmakers frustrated over food bill veto, but will it lead to override?
Will Democrats in the Legislature vote to override a veto by a Democratic governor?
Cities, businesses, activists launch tree-planting measures, legislature slow to act
Arizona cities, environmental advocates and businesses are teaming up to combat extreme heat by launching a variety of tree-planting initiatives, while the state Legislature has been slow to act on this issue.
Nomination picture still muddy going forward
A month after the Arizona Senate formed an extraordinary new committee to vet Gov. Katie Hobbs’ appointments, the picture still looks muddy for the governor’s nominees to lead key agencies.
Nominations committee: checks and balances or sabotage?
The problem isn’t the new committee. The problem is the way the committee is being led. If it doesn’t change, and quick, we’re all in a heap of trouble and ordinary Arizonans will be the ones that suffer.
Hobbs vetoes Republican skinny budget
Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed 13 budget bills on Thursday, saying they represented a “purely-partisan” plan for the state.
Minority groups may face fewer opioid addiction treatment options
The opioid epidemic has touched all races, but when it comes to seeking treatment, some minority groups are at a distinct disadvantage, a panel of experts said at a recent online forum.
Republicans advance bill that would boost penalties for fentanyl suppliers
Republicans in the state Senate are working to greatly boost the penalties for people who supply the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl, advancing a bill on Thursday that would subject someone who makes, transports or sells the drug to life in prison or the death penalty if someone dies after taking the drug.
Interview: Public education and housing issues top Hobbs’ priorities for first session
The 2023 legislative session is set to start next week and will usher in a new era of divided government, with the governor's office occupied by Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs and the legislative chambers both controlled by Republican majorities. Hobbs sat down with the Arizona Capitol Times on Wednesday to talk about her goals for the upcoming session.
Three years on, Covid no longer grabs headlines, still poses a threat
Almost three years after the first Covid cases were detected in Arizona, here’s what we know: It hits the elderly hardest, it spikes in summer and winter, it killed men in Arizona at sharply higher rates than women and new strains continue to evolve.