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Bentonview Park Health and Rehab, a nursing home in Monett, Mo., was evacuated Jan. 22 after construction crews exposed asbestos, local NBC affiliate KSN reports. Construction crews exposed the asbestos while removing tiles, which prompted the evacuation of the facility's 57 residents. Some residents were transferred to other nursing homes temporarily while others were taken to a temporary shelter at the former Cox Monett Hospital.  (Carbajal, 1/25)

After two hours of public comments, a state Senate committee on Monday delayed a vote on a measure to ban psychoactive drugs that are already illegal in Idaho. The constitutional amendment, introduced by Sen. C. Scott Grow, R-Eagle, would put the prohibition against now-illicit drugs in the state’s Constitution instead of just code — if voters passed it. Putting the ban in the Idaho Constitution would make it more difficult to legalize marijuana and other drugs in the future. Grow said the measure would preserve Idaho’s values and “ensure the health and safety” of children. He cited Oregon’s recent drug reform measure that voters approved in November, in which small amounts of several street drugs were decriminalized, as an “end game where all drug legalization is headed.” (Norimine, 1/25)

Even under the best of circumstances, planning for birth requires parents to make many decisions: Where to have their baby, which providers to entrust with their care during and after pregnancy and what kind of experience they want during delivery. But planning ahead for birth has become both more complicated and more important during the pandemic. The limitations hospitals have placed on numbers of visitors, for example, may mean that you won’t be able to have as many people supporting you in person during labor as you had planned. (1/25)

KHN: Readers And Tweeters Fight Stigma And Salute Front-Line Workers 

Letters to the Editor is a periodic feature. We welcome all comments and will publish a selection. We edit for length and clarity and require full names. (1/26)