LOS ANGELES — Etta James, the feisty rhythm and blues singer whose raw, passionate vocals anchored many hits and made the yearning ballad “At Last” an enduring anthem for weddings, commercials and even President Barack Obama, died Friday. She was 73.
COLUMBUS — The sponsor of an Ohio bill that would impose the nation’s most stringent abortion limit has taken responsibility for some confusion over proposed changes to the measure that caused hearings on the bill to be suspended last month.
CHICAGO — Bill Dunphy thought his colonoscopy would be free. His insurance company told him it would be covered 100 percent, with no copayment from him and no charge against his deductible. The nation’s 1-year-old health law requires most insurance plans to cover all costs for preventive care including colon cancer screening. So Dunphy had the procedure in April. Then the bill arrived: $1,100.
ATLANTA — Just as Medicaid prepares for a vast expansion under the federal health care overhaul, the 47-year-old entitlement program for the poor is under increasing pressure as deficit-burdened states chip away at benefits and cut payments to doctors.
COLUMBUS — Opponents of an Ohio bill banning abortions at the first detectable fetal heartbeat told senators Tuesday the measure is unconstitutional, radical and cruel and would effectively ban abortion in the state.
LOS ANGELES — Michael Jackson’s doctor was convicted Monday of involuntary manslaughter after a trial that painted him as a reckless caregiver who administered a lethal dose of a powerful anesthetic that killed the pop star.
NEW YORK — As her grandfather sat pleasantly perplexed at her wedding, Lauren Barnes reached into the recesses of her strapless white gown, whipped out her iPhone and accepted her groom’s Facebook relationship change to “married.”
NEW YORK — Messages of good health and positive self-esteem for girls aren’t hard to come by in kid lit, so what’s the deal with all the attention for a not-yet-published rhyming picture book about an obese, unhappy 14-year-old named Maggie? The title, for starters: Maggie Goes on a Diet.