ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — A new letter dated March 14 from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) states Mission Hospital is in violation of two requirements of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, also known as EMTALA.
EMTALA was created by Congress in 1985, and it prevents hospitals from transferring any patient to a "charity" or "county" hospital based on their inability to pay for the care they receive or because they are covered by Medicare or Medicaid programs.
Federal officials conducted inspections of Mission last year but the latest violations are new information tied to the ongoing investigation and scrutiny of Mission’s Emergency Department and hospital operations by CMS and federal healthcare officials. The March 14 letter lists two violations that include a violation regarding an emergency room patient's “Medical Screening Exam.” The second violation is listed as a number, 489.20, and doesn’t state details of the violation.
Cherokee, NC (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians)
Senators Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Ted Budd (R-N.C.) sent a letter to various state and federal officials on Friday, March 1 regarding the cannabis operation of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Qualla Enterprises, LLC, an entity of the EBCI, operates a cannabis farm currently and is set to open the first dispensary in North Carolina on Saturday, April 20.
The letter begins, “In recent months, we have heard directly from North Carolinians who have communicated their concerns about the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and Qualla Enterprises, LLC establishing an operation to produce, cultivate, and sell marijuana. As our nation is facing an unprecedented drug crisis that is harming our communities, it is vital to learn what measures your departments and agencies are taking to uphold current federal and state laws.”
EBCI tribal officials issued a response to the letter on Wednesday, March 6 which states, “We are aware that on March 1, 2024, U.S. Senators Thom Tillis and Ted Budd of North Carolina sent a letter to federal, state, and local law enforcement officials expressing concerns about the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ cultivation and proposed sale of medical marijuana on Tribal lands. Unfortunately, this letter was replete with misinformation and inflammatory language that promote fear and misunderstanding. The Eastern Band is attempting to enter the medical marijuana field with careful and thorough consideration of all the legal and policy implications of this industry. We have been open about our efforts with law enforcement and regulatory bodies, as well as the public, about our intentions. The Eastern Band is establishing a model for safety and responsibility in an industry that is already legal in 36 states, the District of Columbia, and tribal lands across the United States.
It’s a shame that Senator Tillis and Senator Budd did not respectfully communicate their concerns directly to Eastern Band Cherokee leaders, instead choosing a frontal attack on Cherokee sovereignty.”
George Masa was a Japanese commercial photographer living and working in Asheville at the turn of the last century, and he's well-known for photographing and mapping out the Smoky Mountains.
Much like Ansel Adams’ photographs of Yosemite, Masa’s landscapes of the Smoky Mountains helped the U.S. Department of the Interior decide to establish them as the Great Smoky National Park.
But as one local photography historian has discovered, Masa's work was critical in capturing life all over Asheville in the 1920s and 1930s.
“He’s more than the Smokies. He’s more than the Appalachian Trail," said Angelyn Whitmeyer of Masa, a photography historian who has done extensive research on Masa’s landscape and commercial photographic work. "As important as those are, he also did all this other photography -- and he did it well.”
Today, we all have easy-to-use cameras in our hands at all times, but in the early 1900s, the only cameras that existed required a great deal of expertise and darkrooms with photographic chemistry to process and develop the pictures.
Cactus, the Asheville-based hip-hop children’s artist also known as Secret Agent 23 Skidoo, doesn’t remember exactly when he first encountered the Street Creature Puppet Collective. He figures he must have spotted the group at a local festival or parade.
“They’re pretty hard to miss when they have 20-foot-long dragons and whatnot,” he says with a laugh. “I’ve known people in the puppetry and the circus community in this town, but I had never collaborated with Street Creature.”
The Grammy Award winner saw an opportunity to do just that when he started planning his new character-based story songs for the stage. On Saturday, March 23, at noon, Secret Agent 23 Skidoo will partner with the collective at The Grey Eagle, where the groups will perform a family-friendly hip-hop storytelling show.
“This seems inevitable, and I’m glad it’s finally happening,” Cactus says. “We’re both really interested in the same type of wildly imaginative storytelling for kids that has a grown-up vibe to it. I think that proper family entertainment makes everybody feel like a kid again. And Street Creature 100% does that.”
ASHEVILLE - On March 17, many will fashion themselves in green and celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.
Over the years, the reasons to commemorate the holiday have varied from those paying respect to St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland who historians believe died around A.D. 460, to others who don green as a symbol of rebellious Irish nationalism regarding the Great Irish Rebellion of 1641, according to history.com.
Others may wear green to avoid being found and pinched by a leprechaun or spend the day searching for a four-leaf clover good luck charm, and many tens of thousands will march in St. Patrick’s Day parades worldwide.
Please click here or the story title for a great list of places to be wearing the green.