New York State Department of Health

New York state Thursday adopted maximum contaminant levels for three chemicals in drinking water. Environmental and community advocates wanted to see lower levels adopted, and more PFAS chemicals included, but say it’s a good start. One of the limits is a national first.

A vote in New York on whether to adopt recommended maximum contaminant levels in drinking water for three chemicals has been postponed a second time because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Still, clean water advocates say they are disappointed with another delay.

New York state lawmakers are pushing legislation to better protect nursing home residents. They say they’re hearing reports of residents not receiving proper care during the COVID-19 pandemic and poor communication with family members.

Community and environmental advocates, along with some New York state lawmakers, are calling for the withdrawal of a proposed revision to recommended maximum contaminant levels for drinking water. Yet water suppliers welcome the revision that state health officials detailed Tuesday.

Just as New York raised the minimum age to buy tobacco and electronic cigarettes to 21 from 18, a local Albany County law that would have banned flavored tobacco sales was defeated.

A dispensary in the Hudson Valley is offering patients a new form of medical marijuana — the first raw cannabis product to be offered in New York.

A New York state senator has introduced legislation to compel e-cigarette manufacturers to disclose ingredients on their packaging.

State and local officials gathered in front of the city of Newburgh’s water treatment plant Tuesday to urge the state Department of Health to implement drinking water standards.

The New York state Department of Environmental Conservation has deemed an Orange County power plant’s air permit applications complete, and a public comment period has begun. Plant opponents say the CPV plant should never have been allowed to operate in the first place.

The New York Public Interest Research Group has a new report showing the prevalence of emerging contaminants detected in the state’s public drinking water supplies. With a focus the past few years on PFOA and PFOS from Hoosick Falls to Newburgh, NYPIRG highlights other emerging contaminants.

The number of confirmed measles cases in Rockland County, New York, continues to rise. The county executive is highlighting his health department’s recent orders, while a state senator is introducing a bill to counter misleading vaccination information.

The New York State Drinking Water Quality Council is scheduled to meet on December 18.

WAMC's David Guistina speaks with Mike Spain, Associate Editor of The Times Union, about the ramifications of the Schoharie, New York limo crash.  The pair also discuss an illness that is affecting infants around the state.

In New York, the Rockland County health commissioner has issued a letter to certain schools saying that unvaccinated students must stay home. This comes following a measles outbreak.

State and federal agencies met with the residents of Hoosick Falls Tuesday night, where an investigation into the presence of toxic chemicals in local water supplies continues. Officials hope to foster better communication between the people and government.

WAMC's David Guistina speaks with Mike Spain, Associate Editor of the Times Union, about New York State Health Department grants, which were awarded to an Orange County- based private medical coporation.  The pair also recap the 2018 Saratoga horse racing season.

The New York State Association of Counties and two other groups are urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and state Department of Health to act on setting contaminant levels for chemicals that have been found in drinking water.

Six New York state senators are calling on the state Health Department to act aggressively to stop the spread of the longhorned tick. The species was discovered for the first time in New York earlier this month in Westchester County. A health department official says efforts have already been ramped up.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is touting the newly created state Hepatitis C Elimination Task Force as the nation's first strategy to eliminate the viral infection being exacerbated by the ongoing opioid epidemic.

The longhorned tick has been found in Westchester County. County and state officials confirmed their findings this month. Officials say the threat is mainly to livestock. But there is concern about whether it will transmit disease to humans.

More than a dozen environmental, civic, and research groups have sent a letter urging the New York State Department of Health and the Drinking Water Quality Council to establish so-called maximum contaminant levels for three chemicals, including PFOA and PFOS. The groups highlight new research in recommending levels they think the state should adopt.

A viral video of Coeymans, New York police running over a rabid raccoon is under scrutiny. 

The New York state Department of Health says a tourist from Australia who has been confirmed to have measles visited hotels in New York City along with some places in the Hudson Valley.

New York state officials were in Newburgh Monday night to update city residents and officials on the testing timeline and procedure for a new PFOS carbon filtration system. And while community members had concerns about the state-funded system, they also expressed frustration with PFOS blood testing results and potential health impacts.

Officials say the City of Newburgh should be able to connect its main drinking water source to a new, state-funded carbon filtration system in February. That source is Washington Lake, where PFOS was found in 2016. The city now draws water from the Catskill Aqueduct. State environmental and health officials delivered an update during a Newburgh City Council meeting Monday night.

The New York state Department of Health is offering Newburgh area residents two dates for same-day PFOS blood testing.

New York state health and environmental officials are updating residents on private well testing in Orange County near Stewart Airport and Stewart Air National Guard base. A number of wells have been tested for PFOA and PFOS with none exceeding federal safety guidelines. Still, some residents are concerned and say more needs to be done.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation recently released a national survey of children's health that shows almost half of American kids experience traumatic experiences.

The New York state Department of Health is extending the PFOS blood testing program for Newburgh by eight weeks. PFOS drinking water contamination came to light in May 2016 and blood testing began in November. The news came one day after Newburgh’s city manager called for continuing the program beyond its end date.