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New treatment for heart issue requires thought

Great progress has been made in treating aortic stenosis, a heart problem that reportedly affects at least 1.5 million Americans. In severe cases of aortic stenosis, calcium buildup has narrowed the opening of the aortic valve to the point where, if left untreated, can lead to heart failure and death. There apparently have been no statistics presented publicly about the prevalence of the condition to people in the six-county Southern Alleghenies region, or even statewide, but no doubt the condition has a local presence. It might be puzzling to some people why this topic has reached ...

Rigid public comment rules do more harm

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Public comment periods are meant to let people talk to the government. Sometimes it’s about actions that are happening or decisions that are pending. Sometimes it’s about bringing problems to the government’s attention. A comment period is one mechanism municipalities, school boards and other agencies can use to make that process tick by with clockwork efficiency. It prescribes when a speaker can speak. It sets up the format. It establishes the time frame. It also moves the blame. It isn’t council’s fault you only get a few minutes to speak. It’s ...

Prison plans should shift into high gear

Mostly aimed at Blair County governments of the past, well-deserved criticism about procrastination over the issue of a new county prison has been meted out in this space. The need for a new incarceration facility has been known for decades by government leaders as well as many other people of this county. The problem has been that, rather than tackling new construction when a new facility could have been built for a small fraction of the current cost, county leaders chose instead to kick the proverbial can down the road and hope some future commissioners board would “pick it ...

PennDOT improvements vast over past

The Mirror’s April 14 edition provided a detailed look at the 2026 schedule of highway work in the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s District 9, which encompasses Blair, Bedford, Cambria, Somerset, Huntingdon and Fulton counties. The work schedule will continue the record of progress that has evolved at PennDOT over the past 50 years. Many older residents of this region can recall the 1970s, when large potholes were common on area roadways. One story emanating from that troubled highway era was that a northern Blair resident, apparently to call attention to a ...

Corp. welfare for hospitals raising costs

Hospitals are not as unpopular as other health care sectors, such as drug manufacturers and insurance companies. But like other businesses, they are prone to rent-seeking and fiercely defensive of special breaks. Case in point: The 340B drug discount program. The federal program was created in 1992 to help hospitals and clinics in poor communities. In recent weeks, it has become the target of new lawsuits over complaints that wealthy health systems are abusing the benefits and driving up costs for everyone else. The program requires pharmaceutical companies to sell drugs at a ...

County must ensure CYF stays strong

The Blair County commissioners are justified in breathing a sigh of relief these days that their efforts on behalf of the county’s Children, Youth & Families department have paid off. The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services has restored the full operating license of the Blair agency following nearly four years of intense local anxiety over the ultimate fate of CYF and its vital mission. Going forward, the challenge will be to ensure that CYF does not return to the problem existence within which it had languished for so long. Accomplishing that will necessitate close scrutiny ...