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B.C. to drop COVID-19 vaccine rule for public workers as it launches booster campaign

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

VANCOUVER — British Columbia is rescinding its policy requiring provincial public servants to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as it announces a spring booster program that will focus on the elderly and vulnerable.Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says the next round of boosters will target people at the “highest risk” of severe illness.That includes people aged at least 80, Indigenous people aged at least 70 and long-term care residents.People who are at least 18 and are moderately to severely immunity compromised are also recommended to get a booster in the campaign, which Henry says will begin “for the most part” in April. The province has meanwhile announced that from April 3, BC Public Service employees will no longer be required to provide proof of vaccination.The Ministry of Finance says in a statement the decision to rescind the policy was made “based on the high level of vaccination among public-service employees and the current state of...

Oregon closer to magic mushroom therapy, but has setback

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon is taking a major step Friday in its pioneering of legalized psilocybin therapy with the graduation of the first students trained in accompanying patients tripping on psychedelic mushrooms, although a company’s bankruptcy leaves another group on the same path adrift.The graduation ceremony for 35 students was being held Friday evening by InnerTrek, a Portland firm, at a woodsy retreat center. A total of around 70 more will graduate on Saturday and Sunday in ceremonies in which they will pledge to do no harm.“Facilitator training is at the heart of the nation’s first statewide psilocybin therapy and wellness program and is core to the success of the Oregon model we’re pioneering here,” said Tom Eckert, program director at InnerTrek and the architect of the 2020 ballot measure which legalized Oregon’s program. In order to receive a certificate from InnerTrek, the students must pass a final exam. They then can take a test administered by the Oregon Healt...

Maryland House OKs recreational marijuana framework bill

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — The Maryland House voted Friday for a measure that would create a legal framework and tax structure to enable recreational marijuana to be sold in stores as soon as July 1.The House voted 103-32 for the bill, sending it to the Senate, which is moving forward with a separate measure.Although Maryland voters approved a constitutional amendment in November to legalize recreational marijuana, lawmakers left details about implementation to be decided this session. “You might not have agreed with marijuana or the vote that our citizens took, but they took it, so it’s now our obligation to create an adult-use program,” said Del. C.T. Wilson, the chair of the House Economic Matters Committee. “And it’s our duty to ensure that Marylanders can receive the benefit of ownership in this industry, that citizens can have access to safe and effective cannabis without fear of adverse health effects or violence.”Under the constitutional amendment, which received 67% ...

Trans Mountain pipeline construction costs balloon again, this time to $30.9B

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

CALGARY — The estimated cost of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project has increased once again, this time to $30.9 billion.That’s the latest figure from Trans Mountain Corp., the federal Crown corporation that owns the pipeline. On Friday, Trans Mountain Corp. blamed the latest cost overruns on a number of factors, including inflation, labour and supply chain challenges, flooding in B.C. and unexpected major archeological discoveries along the route.The new price tag is a 44 per cent increase from the $21.4 billion cost projection placed on the pipeline expansion project a year ago, and more than double an earlier estimate of $12.6 billion. Previous cost increases were blamed on the COVID-19 pandemic, scheduling pressures related to permitting processes, and route changes to avoid culturally and environmentally sensitive areas, among other things.“Canada has among the world’s highest standards for the protection of people, the environment, and Indigenous participation ...

Regulators cut pressure on pipeline after Kansas oil spill

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — U.S. government regulators have stopped allowing a large part of the Keystone oil pipeline to operate at higher-than-normal pressures following a massive oil spill in northeastern Kansas in December.The order this week from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s pipeline safety arm covers 1,220 miles (1,963 kilometers) of the Keystone pipeline in seven U.S. states. Regulators already had ordered the system’s operator, Canada-based TC Energy, to reduce the pressure on a 96-mile (155-kilometer) segment of the pipeline from southern Nebraska near the Kansas border into central Kansas, where the spill occurred. The regulators’ action came ahead of the first hearings in the Kansas Legislature on the spill. A TC Energy official is set to face questions from lawmakers Tuesday during a joint meeting of two House committees. TC Energy said in a statement Friday that it was already operating within the pressure limits set by this week’s order and t...

Bears trading No. 1 overall pick to Panthers, report says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

LAKE FOREST - Indeed, the Chicago Bears will not be making the No. 1 overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft.Per multiple reports, from Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the team will be sending the selection to the Panthers for a host of selections in this year's and future year's drafts.Adam Schefter of ESPN is reporting the return is the No. 9 overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft, a second round pick in 2023, a first round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, a second round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, along with wide receiver DJ Moore.This means the Bears will now have ten selections in the NFL Draft, having picked up an extra selection in the swap for the No. 1 pick. It's the biggest move so far of general manager Ryan Poles' tenure with the Bears as he looks to rebuild the team after a 3-14 season. It was very much expected that he would trade the pick since a number of teams need quarterbacks and he's publically committed to Justin Fields as the Bears' signal caller for the foreseeab...

Guinness is opening a brewery & taproom in Chicago

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

CHICAGO - One of the world's most famous beer brands is making a major announcement ahead of the St. Patrick's Day celebration weekend. Guinness said late Friday afternoon that they will be opening a brewery and taproom in Chicago in Fulton Market later this summer. No official date has been set.Per a release from Guinness, the company will be converting a former railroad depot at 901 West Kinzie Street and turning it into the "Open Gate Brewery." The 15,000-square-foot facility will feature a full-service restaurant along with indoor and outdoor seating. There will be 12-to-16 beers from the company on tap at any time with the brewery itself making experimental brews that are "unique to Chicago" on a 10 BBL brewing system. Guinness' popular draught stout will still be made at the St. James Gate brewery in Dublin.Guinness is touting a menu of traditional Ireland favorites like brown bread, Beef & Guinness stew, along with a promise to produce local favorites, like an Italian bee...

Michigan State shooter's note says he felt hated, rejected

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

A man who fatally shot three students and wounded five others on the Michigan State University campus left a note describing himself as being “hated,” a “loner” and an “outcast."Anthony McRae, 43, also wrote “I’m tired of being rejected” in the note, which was dated the day before the Feb. 13 shooting and released Friday by police.“They made me who I’m am today a killer,” the note read. “I’m a person,” and “They hate me why? why? why? why?” Michigan State grads honor shooting victims at River North bar McRae, who lived in nearby Lansing, had no connection to the school. The rampage began shortly after 8 p.m. on Feb. 13 when shots were fired inside a classroom at Berkey Hall, which is easily accessible from Grand River Avenue, a major street in East Lansing.McRae then fired more shots nearby at the MSU Union, a landmark building where students can snack and study, and the public, too, can visit. Security video released Friday shows McRae checking his gun as he entered through a rea...

Washington girl missing since 2018 found in Mexico: FBI

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

(NEXSTAR) – An 8-year-old Washington girl who had been missing for over four years was found in Mexico and safely returned to the United States in February, the FBI's Seattle office revealed Wednesday.Investigators say Aranza Maria Ochoa Lopez's biological mother kidnapped her on Oct. 25, 2018 from a Vancouver, Washington shopping mall when she was 4 years old.The FBI said that authorities in Mexico found Lopez in Michoacán, Mexico. FBI special agents brought her back to an undisclosed location in the U.S., according to a news release from the Bureau. "Aranza's safety and privacy is of utmost importance," the FBI added. Missing 81-year-old survives six days trapped in snowbound SUV Investigators said they learned Lopez was in Mexico after they put out a Missing Person Poster. The FBI offered a reward of $10,000 for information leading to the girl's recovery.Lopez's mother was taken into custody in Puebla, Mexico in 2019.Vancouver, Washington newspaper The Columbian identified the ...

Texas Senate bill proposes arrests of anyone, anywhere crossing border illegally

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:10 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — A Texas Republican senator is proposing a bill that would create a new crime for those who cross the border illegally, authorizing law enforcement to arrest and prosecute anyone who crosses the border, and can do so anywhere in the state. Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, filed Senate Bill 2424 on Friday, the deadline for state lawmakers to introduce any new legislation.According to a news release from Lt. Governor Dan Patrick's office, the penalties would be up to one year in jail for the first offense, two years in state jail for a second offense, and up to life in prison for convicted felons who cross the border illegally.“The Texas Senate’s dedication to securing our southern border is unwavering, and our commitment is exhibited by the $4 billion in our base budget to continue Operation Lone Star. In addition, Sen. Brian Birdwell has filed SB 2424 so the State of Texas is empowered to truly protect our border, as the Federal Government has completely abdicated ...