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In New York City, a controversial law banning food containers made from plastic foam has been overturned by the state's Supreme Court. Although the ban initially had bipartisan support in the state, opponents say recycling was never seriously considered as an alternative. In 2013, New York City lawmakers voted to ban plastic foam containers, unless an investigation determined that the plastic containers could be effectively recycled instead. After the law went into effect this July, a group of custom product packaging manufacturers, restaurant owners, and recyclers sued the city. The group successfully argued that recycling the food containers was not only a viable plan, but one that would save the city money. New York Supreme Court Judge Margaret Chan ruled that the Department of Sa...

Before 29-year-old Brittany Maynard took the medication that would end her life, she spent an hour on the phone with California Governor Jerry Brown. The young California woman urged him to help pass "Right-to-Die" legislation in California, the same type of law that allowed her to peacefully take her own life, surrounded by friends and family, in Oregon. In recent years, euthanasia advocates have tried to re-brand the procedure, instead arguing for a right-to-die or "death with dignity" laws. Maynard suffered from terminal brain cancer herself, and was a passionate proponent of laws that allow people with terminal illnesses to end their life on their own terms. Now, Gov. Brown has a right-to-die bill waiting for his signature, and the country is waiting to see what he will do. This ...

Lottery winners in Illinois are definitely not happy lately, but it isn’t because they’re losing. It’s because they’re winning, but they’re receiving a big ol’ I.O.U. from the Illinois Lottery because of the state’s budget problems. According to the Chicago Sun Times and New York Daily Post, the Illinois legislature doesn’t have its budget figured out yet and is therefore unable to pay lotto winners if their prize is more than $25,000. The state’s fiscal year ended on June 30 -- nearly three months ago -- but Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and the Democrat-controlled Illinois legislature haven’t come to an agreement on a spending plan for the current year. Many Americans don’t realize it, but each state controls its own lottery and is responsible for paying lottery winnings; everything...

Since she rose to Instagram fame in 2014, Kylie Jenner has been at the center of many a plastic surgery rumor. First and foremost, her plump lips were in question, in addition to her breasts and other plastic surgery procedures. For a while, the teen -- who is a half sister to the Kim, Khloe, and Kourtney Kardashian -- kept silent and refused to comment. But in a recent and very public online manifesto, Jenner spoke up, admitting to her lip injections. As far as the other surgeries, however, she claims they never happened. "As of now, I only have lip fillers," Jenner wrote. "Like I've said before, it has always been a huge insecurity of mine and I wanted to make a change. Indeed, at 18 years old, Jenner seems to be like any other teenager struggling with insecurities. More and ...

When Republican Presidential candidate Carly Fiorina started rising in polls, frontrunner Donald Trump put the businesswoman in his crosshairs. Specifically, Trump said, he doesn't like her ugly face. At the second Republican debate on Wednesday, September 16, moderator Jake Tapper began the night by asking Fiorina to comment on whether Trump is suited to be the leader of the free world. That kicked off a back and forth between the candidates that lasted on and off all night, as the pair traded insults about their respective business careers. Trump is nothing more than a puffed up "entertainer" with a history of bankruptcy, Fiorina said. And Fiorina was a total disaster that cost Hewlett-Packard billions of dollars and thousands of jobs, Trump fired back. Naturally, Teflon Trump d...

A Florida family realized their worst nightmare as an improper termite control fumigation by a Terminix subcontractor left their 10-year-old son with serious brain damage, according to CNN. Peyton McCaughey's family planned to have the house fumigated during the weekend of August 14 by Sunland Pest Control Services, which Terminex contracted for the job. The family left their home for the weekend while their house was being treated. The family was told it was safe to return on August 16, just two days later. By Monday morning, every family member in the house had fallen ill. According to Peyton's uncle, Ed Gribben, everyone was vomiting. Eventually, the symptoms subsided in the family members, all except for Peyton. "He was... eyes rolling, legs weren't working," says Gribben, rec...

According to a recent report from The New York Times, a trophy hunting ban in Botswana has left the village of Sankuyo open to intrusions from wild animals. Unlike the deer and fowl that 38 million Americans hunt every year, though, these villagers are subjected to invasions from lions and elephants. The wildlife have been consuming the village's resources, including crops and livestock. Though the hunting ban was meant to protect local wildlife, it has led to an excess of wild animals in surrounding villages. As a result, villagers have had to flee to their homes after dusk, fearing possible harm from these animals. Jimmy Baitsholedi Ntema, a Sankuyo native, remembered a time where things were more balanced between hunting and preservation. “Before, when there was hunting, we ...

In recent years major research studies have linked the anti-nausea drug, Zofran, to congenital heart defects. Almost two million birth records from Denmark and Sweden were reviewed by researchers who found babies exposed to the drug during their first trimester more than doubled their risk of "cardiac septal defects," according to the global news site Digitaljournal.com. Today many of the mothers affected, who were prescribed Zofran as an "off-label" treatment to their morning sickness, have filed birth injury lawsuits against the drug's pharmaceutical company, GlaxoSmithKline. Reports indicate there are currently 34 individual motions filed in federal courts. One Ohio law firm, Monheit Law, has started the website Zofranlegal.com where this particular case, among others, is made pub...

After years of painful, tortuous rashes, a young boy is finally getting relief after a new form of water therapy treatment cleared up his eczema, reports The Sun. Morgan Bishop has suffered from chronic eczema since he was just four months old. According to Morgan’s parents, the skin on his feet and legs was so raw and painful that it rendered him unable to walk. In addition to the skin condition, Morgan also has severe food allergies and asthma and suffers from a life-threatening kidney disease known as nephrotic syndrome. Eczema is a common skin disease that is most often found in young children. A substantial portion of the U.S. population show symptoms of atopy, such as eczema, asthma, or hayfever. Of the 17.8 million who have moderate to severe eczema, those who suffer from the ...

We've seen the American healthcare system make leaps and bounds in recent years. Planned Parenthood does wonderful things for low-income families, and urgent care facilities see three million patients per week for much cheaper than the ER. But it's been a while since we've heard a truly good thing about taking care of the world's poor. Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty is an Indian philanthropist, cardiac surgeon and is the Chairman of Narayana Health in Bangalore. Thanks to his work through Narayana Health, he has been able to bring healthcare to India and was recently profiled in the Wall Street Journal for the care he provides across the world. Shetty had humble beginnings in a small village before moving on to study in the UK. In 1989, he returned to India and operate on Mother Teresa after...