Charleston Gazette

Mental-Health Report Urges Better Care, Pay: ; Legislators to Take Up Recommendations in Session This Week

West Virginians with mental illness would be better served if the state paid psychiatric hospital staff better, invested in more group homes, and boosted Medicaid payments for providers of behavioral health care, according to a task force that looked at the issue. Last month, the state's Comprehensive Behavioral Health Commission formed the task force after Gov. Joe Manchin vetoed legislation (SB672) that would have increased Medicaid payments for community-based mental-health services.

Legislature Oks $11.5b State Budget

West Virginia's Legislature finally passed a new state budget Sunday, but that doesn't mean lawmakers are going home. Instead, they launched a special session sought by Gov. Joe Manchin after completing a six-day extended session for the budget. They fixed 17 bills from the regular session that Manchin had vetoed because of technical errors.

U.S. 35's Safety Issues Not yet Solved: ; Intersections with New Road Raise Concerns in Putnam

BUFFALO - The new U.S. 35 through Putnam County was built in part to alleviate traffic on one of the most dangerous roads in the state, but county officials are worried several intersections on the road may add a new element of risk to residents. The new four-lane road spans 14 miles and will connect Interstate 64 at the Crooked Creek exit to the Buffalo Bridge. It is slated to open in mid-June.

Gm to File for Bankruptcy: ; Government to Own 60 Percent, Officials Say; Obama to Announce Support for Plan Today

WASHINGTON - General Motors, the humbled auto giant that has been part of American life for more than 100 years, will file for bankruptcy protection today in a deal that will give taxpayers a 60 percent ownership stake and expand the government's reach into big business. It would be the largest industrial bankruptcy in U.S. history, and the fourth-largest overall. In addition, a GM bankruptcy would be unprecedented as the federal government would pump billions more into the company.

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State to Decide On Retirement Subsidies

West Virginia would join just a handful of other states if its Public Employees Insurance Agency stopped subsidizing retiree health care costs, according to a recent survey of public sector coverage. The agency's finance board is meeting Thursday to reconsider its May vote to end retiree subsidies starting with those hired in 2010. While the board is expected to rescind that decision pending public comment, officials predict it will ultimately reaffirm the move.

Cameras to Record I-64 Traffic Conditions

Video cameras will be installed along Interstate 64 between Charleston and Huntington as part of an $800,000 project that will allow the Department of Transportation to monitor traffic and road conditions. The cameras, which will be placed at strategic intersections and exits on I-64 in the southern part of the state, will allow the DOT to supervise accidents and emergencies along the interstate that may cause traffic congestion problems.

B&B Planned for South Hills; Must Clear City Agencies

Visitors could soon have another lodging option in Charleston, the Carriage House Bed & Breakfast. But Marta and Mark Snapp, owners of the home at 815 Bridge Road, must first clear some red tape with several city agencies. City Council members must first amend the zoning code to allow B&Bs as a conditional use in single-family residential districts. A bill to do just that has been drafted and is expected to be introduced at council's meeting tonight. The Municipal Planning Commission is sched...

Bulletin Board

TODAY * American Red Cross will sponsor a blood drive from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at CAMC General Division, Morris Street. A blood drive will also be held from 2 to 7 p.m. at the Winfield United Methodist Church, 20 Radwin Way, Winfield. The Charleston Donor Center at 4501 MacCorkle Ave. S.E. is also open for blood donations from noon to 6 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Fridays. All donors at the Charleston Donor Center on Mondays and Tuesdays in June will be entered ...

2 Injured in Small Plane Crash in Preston

AURORA - A federal aviation spokeswoman says two people were injured when after a small airplane went down in a hayfield in northern West Virginia. Spokeswoman Holly Baker says the Piper 22 aircraft with two people aboard went down in bad weather about 2:50 p.m. Sunday near U.S. Route 50 in eastern Preston County.

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Immune Therapies Working On Cancer

ORLANDO, Fla. - First there was surgery, then chemotherapy and radiation. Now, doctors have overcome 30 years of false starts and found success with a fourth way to fight cancer: using the body's natural defender, the immune system. The approach is called a cancer vaccine, although it treats the disease rather than prevents it.

Lens Maker Bausch & Lomb Settles Eye Infection Lawsuits: ; at Least One Patient in W.Va. Had Eye Removed Due to Damage

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - Contact lens maker Bausch & Lomb Inc. had an overriding reason for going private in 2007: It wanted to handle a devastating recall of its flagship lens cleaner, its chief executive said, "without a lot of outside distraction." Over the past year, away from the glare of public scrutiny, the optical products company has quietly settled nearly 600 fungal- infection lawsuits - with dozens more individual claims yet to be resolved. The cost so far: Upward of $250 million.

More States Legislating Against Cell Phone Use by Teen Drivers

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Teens. Cars. Cell phones. The mix is as combustible as gas, fire and oxygen. And the result can be just as deadly.

20th Century Images: ; Cobb Compressor Station, 1948; by Richard Andre

My parents had a summer camp up Elk River and I remember my childhood sense of wonder as we passed by the Cobb Compressor Station, which at one time was considered the largest natural-gas compressor station in the world. Seen here on the Elk River Road just past Clendenin, the water reservoir is part of the cooling operations and the Elk River is out of view behind the station.

Ohio U. Professor Offers New Look at Edgar Allan Poe

The themes in Edgar Allan Poe's tales and poems are much more conservative - and a sign of his times and environment - than most would imagine, professor Paul C. Jones believes. Poe classics such as "The Fall of the House of Usher" and "The Tell-Tale Heart" are, in part, stories told in a horrifying manner that also reflect Poe's personal beliefs, Jones said. The first critiques a woman who fights her expected role in 19th-century society, while the second mocks the transcendentalism of Ralph...

Innerviews: ; 'I'm a Good Forensic Psychologist'

He's a high-profile psychologist, affable and infinitely quotable, a media darling, much in demand at conferences and seminars and as a forensic expert in court. Last month, David Clayman accepted the Mildred Mitchell-Bateman Tribute Award, the most prestigious honor bestowed by the state Mental Health Association.

Statehouse Beat: ; Is Auditor Liable for $2m From Scam?

State Auditor Glen Gainer has said his office is not liable for the $2 million in vendor payments lost in a corporate identity scam. However, it seems obvious that the state will have to make good on those payments - to Deloitte Services and Sedgwick Claims Management - at some point, as the Joint Committee on Government and Finance discussed last week.