Claire Stremple, KTOO - Juneau
Alaska has the fastest rising rate of overdose deaths in the country, CDC says
The state’s health department recommends all Alaskans carry naloxone, a drug that can rapidly reverse an overdose.
Alaska needs to train more nurses, but it doesn’t have enough nursing faculty to meet demand
Alaska relies heavily on health care workers who come from outside and are less likely to stay. As a result, Alaska has some of the most expensive health care in the nation.
Alaska is fighting a surge in fentanyl deaths with stronger overdose kits
Nearly 300 Alaskans died of opioid overdoses last year, and most of those deaths involved fentanyl.
An Anchorage boy is waiting for a life-saving stem cell transplant, but Alaska Native donors are scarce
It’s harder for Alaska Native and mixed-race people to find donors because they’re underrepresented in the donor database.
Dunleavy speaks out as fentanyl crisis intensifies in Alaska
Nearly 250 Alaskans died of drug overdoses last year. Six of every ten drug overdoses in Alaska involved fentanyl.
Alaska military bases fall short on climate readiness, federal report says
A report released this month said that most base leaders were unaware even of the requirements expected of them to prepare for climate change.
Alaska teens host anti-tobacco summit online
The teens create tobacco prevention videos that teachers across the state use in their classrooms.
Tlingit and Haida launches online tool for addiction treatment and education
Tribal citizens in Southeast Alaska who are experiencing addiction have access to a new, free online treatment.
Wolverines, lynx and moose: Fish and Game screens wildlife for COVID
Biologists are collecting samples from moose and mustelids — that’s wolverines, minks and martens. There are plans to test caribou and Sitka black tail deer, as well as seals and belugas.
Alaska House votes to cut Medicaid funding for abortion services
Lawmakers who oppose the measure say it’s likely to be signed into law even though similar measures were found to be unconstitutional.
Alaska’s top doctor on living with COVID in the post-restriction era
KTOO’s Claire Stremple spoke with Alaska Chief Medical Officer Dr. Anne Zink about this moment of living with COVID while many are ready to move on.
State fines Juneau’s Bartlett Hospital for COVID safety violations after whistleblower report
Hospital staff tipped off the state, leading investigators to find the city-owned hospital’s health and safety program inadequate. They issued more than a dozen citations.
Millions of relief dollars are finally on the way for Alaska’s child care centers
The state of Alaska received nearly $100 million last year to support the ailing child care system, but by the end of the year, the state had distributed only about 5% of it.
Cruise lines are predicting a record year, but Southeast Alaska is proceeding with caution
“It’s hard. It’s terrifying. And people are making real business decisions at this point with a lot of hope, but with no concrete knowledge of what the season is going to look like,” said an owner of one Juneau tourism company.
Why one Hoonah family rooted for the Czech women’s hockey team this Olympics
The Czech team captain is married to Thomas Mills, who grew up in Hoonah and Juneau. They now live together in Russia.
How climate researchers and Juneau composers are turning data into song
Through the project, music composers will interpret glacier outburst floods, high latitude mirages and arctic sea ice changes.
Hot dam: Beavers have gnawed their way into the Arctic, speeding permafrost thaw
Beavers are moving to the Arctic as the Alaskan tundra heats up and the beaver population rebounds after centuries of trapping. A study published in December shows the small, industrious mammal is accelerating climate change in the north.
Alaska is changing how it tracks the pandemic. Here’s what you need to know.
Omicron is now the dominant COVID variant in Alaska — and it is transforming the way the health department looks at the pandemic.
Southeast Alaska’s ever-deepening snow ‘a real problem and a real hassle’
Winter weather is in full effect across Alaska, but unusually high snow accumulation is testing Southeast. Usually some snow melts between storms, but that’s not happening this winter.
Retreating glaciers will open up salmon streams in Alaska, study says
A new study shows retreating glaciers are likely to open up thousands of miles of salmon spawning habitat by the year 2100. While that may sound like the distant future, it’s the blink of an eye in geologic time.