Chile becomes first country in South America validated for eliminating dog-transmitted rabies as a public health problem - World Health Organization (WHO)

For years, 7-year-old Israel Solis couldn't communicate with the world around him. Born with autism and nonverbal, he would bite and scratch himself in frustration when someone couldn't understand his needs. Therapy through a state-subsidized program gave him a voice: using a picture system he's learned from his providers in Houston, he's now able to convey his desires. But Texas wants to eliminate the state program, which allows some families to pay nothing for services, because of state budget cuts. In its budget request to the Legislature for the 2028-2029 biennium, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) proposed eliminating funding for the Children's Autism Program (CAP) entirely, stunning advocates, providers and parents.

A gut pathogen that causes diarrhea and vomiting is morphing into a dangerous and difficult-to-treat sexually transmitted infection (STI). In the United States, roughly 450,000 people acquire shigellosis each year, which can lead to dysentery. Historically, this highly contagious bug has mostly been spread through contaminated food or water during travel, and among young children in day care. But since the turn of the century or so, Shigella bacteria have emerged as a sexually transmitted infection as well. Shigella infections can make anyone sick, but they are now considered 'endemic' in some communities of gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM). Several of the strains transmitted in these communities have grown resistant to multiple antibiotics. Some are now superbugs, on the brink of becoming untreatable. A recent analysis from the US CDC found that among nearly 17,000 Shigella isolates, versions that were extensively drug-resistant (XDR) rose from 2011 to 2023. In 2011, isolates that were resistant to five commonly used antibiotics made up 0 percent of the samples. By 2023, they made up 8.5 percent.

Founder and CEO Alison Donnally says three family tragedies inspired her unique business idea. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Alison Donnally, the founder and CEO of JoeyCo. It has been edited for length and clarity. Prior to starting JoeyCo, I worked in strategy and business development within healthcare. That started me down a path of ideating better solutions for elderly patients. But personal tragedies within my own family are what really confirmed for me that a business like JoeyCo was needed. Many older people want to retain their independence. I've had a lot of family history with this pattern of aging independently, living alone, and everything working out fine, until suddenly it doesn't. I've seen firsthand the safety of that situation changing very quickly. So, I started JoeyCo in 2024 and created a new category of business, one that blends housing and healthcare. Three of my family members experienced mental and physical health declines while living aloneMy husband's grandmother was isolated in a nursing home during COVID. Before this, she was social and deeply engaged in her community and civic life.