Hometown News Publications

FCC and US Dept of Ed want digital textbooks for all students in five years

Submitted Press Release — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:25:00 +0000

FCC Chair Genachowski and Secretary of Education Duncan at Digital Learning Day Town Hall in Washington, DC on Feb. 1, 2012. Photo source: www.fcc.gov/blog

Wednesday (Feb. 1), at the first-ever Digital Learning Day Town Hall in Washington, DC, FCC Chair Genachowski and Secretary of Education Duncan challenged states and the education and technology industries to get digital textbooks into the hands of all students in five years.

Barriers to adoption of digital textbooks include:

antiquated state procurement rules,

lack of device and content interoperability,

connectivity costs

Six months ago, Genachowski and Duncan launched an effort with business and education leaders to help schools make the transition to digital textbooks. At the Feb. 3 event, this collaborative presented them with the Digital Textbook Playbook, a resource for schools making the move to digital learning.

As a next step, Genachowski and Duncan announced a meeting in March 2012 with education CEOs, state officials, and nonprofit leaders to advance the national adoption of digital textbooks.

To read more of this FCC blog post, click here:

http://www.fcc.gov/blog/fcc-chairman-digital-textbooks-all-students-five-years

Posted Feb. 4, 2012

Related link: Digital Textbook Playbook http://www.fcc.gov/encyclopedia/digital-textbook-playbook

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Some DMV offices to close temporarily during computer system upgrade

Submitted Press Release — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 00:56:31 +0000

Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles is upgrading its computer systems to offer more online transactions.

Therefore, DMV offices will have temporary downtime – between Feb. 7 and March 21, 2012 – so staff can learn about developing features in the new system.

The multi-million dollar project, which is expected to produce new online services later this year and next, aims to make it easy for customers to conduct a number of online services with DMV.

It is also designed to streamline DMV’s electronic files so that customers can be served more quickly when doing business with the agency.

The temporary downtime – dates when an office will be closed only on a specific day – will affect offices statewide beginning next week according to the following schedule:

February 7 – Willimantic

February 8 – Willimantic and Putnam

February 14 – Norwich

February 15 – Norwich and Putnam

February 21 – 24 Old Saybrook

February 28 – March 2 – New Britain

March 6 and 7 – Bridgeport and the Milford Photo License Center

March 8 and 9 – Danbury

March 13 – Hamden Office

March 14 – Hamden and the Derby Photo License Center

March 15 and 16 – Norwalk

March 20 – 21 – Waterbury and the Winsted satellite office

With the exceptions of these temporary downtimes, other DMV and AAA offices will be open normal hours and serving customers. Remember, DMV offices are normally closed on Mondays and in observance of state and national holidays.

Customers should check the DMV website at http://ct.gov/dmv/ for hours and the most convenient locations.

The computer modernization project, which is underway, is divided into three phases that are expected to be completed during the next two years.

Some of the early work in phase 1 includes:

An online service for customers to cancel their marker plates when lost or stolen.

A registration verification system to check whether a vehicle is properly registered in the state.

Design of an improved process for issuing new dealer and repairer licenses that could someday lead to filing information online for these businesses that are also customers of DMV.

Customers to handle online issues surrounding compliance matters with state law.

Customers to renew any vehicle’s registration online (Now doing only passenger cars whose owners do not owe property taxes or have other violations that prevent the registration of the vehicle).

Customers to order vanity plates online (now customers can only check online whether a combination of letters or numbers are available, but they still need to mail-in the order).

DMV to give customers 8-character vanity plates. (The state now does only 6 characters.) This opens up the possibility of more vanity plates than currently produced.

Allow customers to do certain information research that might tell them whether they can obtain a license or registration, i.e. suspension records and driver history records that show violations that prevent someone from getting a license or registration.

Posted Feb. 3, 2012 as edited by HTNP.com Editor Brenda Sullivan

Health care workers should be required to get flu vaccination

Shefalki S. Kulkarni | KaiserHealthNews.org — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 00:50:58 +0000

About one-third of the nation's health workers do not get vaccinated for the flu. Photo image: slide of H1N1 flu virus - National Institutes of Health

Despite more than 20 years of recommendations that health workers get flu shots, the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that less than 64 percent of them do.

The concern is that the one third who aren’t being protected against the flu will help spread the disease among their patients and coworkers.

Consumer and business groups met in Washington Thursday (Feb. 2) to show their support for a recommendation from the National Business Group on Health that hospitals require all health care workers to be vaccinated annually against the flu. The NBGH is a nonprofit representing more than 300 large employers, including 68 of the Fortune 100.

To read the full story, click here

http://capsules.kaiserhealthnews.org/index.php/2012/02/taking-another-shot-at-the-flu-vaccine/

Posted Feb. 3, 2012

Pfizer recalls birth control pills due to mixup in packaging

Brenda Sullivan | HTNP.com Editor — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:43:48 +0000

Consumers who may have used pills from the affected packaging (see list of Lot numbers ) should begin using a non-hormonal form of contraception immediately, notify their physician and return the product to the pharmacy.

Pfizer Inc. says it has voluntarily recalled 14 lots of Lo/Ovral®-28 (norgestrel and ethinyl estradiol) Tablets and 14 lots of Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol Tablets (generic) for customers in the U.S. market.

An investigation by Pfizer found that some blister packs may contain an inexact count of inert or active ingredient tablets and that the tablets may be out of sequence. (Birth control packs include pills without active ingredients that allow a woman to have a monthly menstrual cycle.)

As a result of this packaging error, the daily regimen for these oral contraceptives may be incorrect (the inactive pills may be taken on the wrong days) and could leave the user at risk for unintended pregnancy.

Pfizer notes the recall is being conducted with the knowledge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

These products are packaged in blister packs containing 21 tablets of active ingredients and seven tablets of inert ingredients.

The cause was identified and corrected immediately, according to the company’s press release.

These tablets were manufactured and packaged by Pfizer Inc., commercialized by Akrimax Rx Products and labeled under the Akrimax Pharmaceuticals brand.

This product is distributed to warehouses, clinics and retail pharmacies nationwide.

Consumers who may have used pills from the affected packaging (click here for a list of the Lot numbers http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm289770.htm ) should begin using a non-hormonal form of contraception immediately, notify their physician and return the product to the pharmacy.

Any adverse events that may be related to the use of these products should be reported to Akrimax Medical Information at 1-877-509-3935 (8 AM to 7 PM Mon-Fri CST) or to FDA’s Med Watch Program either online, by regular mail or by fax.

Online: www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm

Regular Mail: Use postage-paid, pre-addressed Form FDA 3500 available at: www.fda.gov/MedWatch/getforms.htm Mail to the address on the pre-addressed form.

Fax: 1-800-FDA-0178

Posted Feb. 3, 2012

CT OPM Secretary Barnes chides GOP for criticism of Gov. Malloy

Brenda Sullivan | HTNP.com Editor — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 23:29:35 +0000

“Given all that Gov. Malloy has done to clean up the financial wreck he inherited from Rep. Cafero, Sen. McKinney, Gov. Rowland, and Gov. Rell – a $3.5 billion deficit, early retirement incentives, borrowing for operations, underfunding pension payments, etc. – the criticism is kind of ironic." - statement issued by CT OPM Secretary Ben Barnes. Photo source: CT Gov website

Office of Policy and Management Secretary Ben Barnes released a statement Friday (Jan. 27) that chides Republicans for criticisms of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy in reaction to the latest Office of Fiscal Analysis report.

“I think the first point to make is that it should be reassuring to taxpayers that the Republicans are arguing with Gov. Malloy over how many billions of dollars his policies have saved, as opposed to how many billions of dollars his policies have created. That’s a welcome change from the past 16 years,” Barnes states.

Barnes goes on to point the fiscal finger elsewhere.

He also accuses critics of proliferating inaccurate information.

“In this past Wednesday’s installment, Rep. Cafero claimed that there is a ‘$145 million deficit hole,’” Barnes states. “That is incorrect. The analysis showing that gap does not take into account significant available revenue, more than $100 million in the Reserve for Salary Adjustments account. “

“Beyond that, Gov. Malloy has repeatedly assured our citizens that he will manage to the bottom line – there will be no deficit, period. And the state will end the year in the black,” he continues.

“The Republicans can ask these questions any way they want, and they can use all sorts of interesting theatrics in the process, but the answer will always be the same thing: we are confident in OPM’s numbers and the calculations provided by the State’s pension plan actuary,” he states.

Barnes also calls the analysis by the Office of Fiscal Analysis “flawed.”

“While we respect the capabilities of the legislature’s Office of Fiscal Analysis, they are not actuaries; their analysis of the pension fund is flawed. The House minority should refer questions about the actuarial funding of the pension plan to actuaries.

“We have relied on the plan’s actuaries and we are confident in their findings, which show billions of dollars in long-term savings to taxpayers as a result of plan changes negotiated by the Administration last summer,” Barnes concludes.

Posted Jan. 29, 2012

U.S. DOT serious about enforcing airline price advertising rules

Submitted Press Release — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 23:23:59 +0000

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Finnair was fined because, for a period of time in the fall of last year (2011), the airline displayed three fare advertisements on its web site that made no mention of additional taxes and fees that applied to these fares. Photo source: Finnair web site

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) on Friday (Jan. 27) assessed a civil penalty of $35,000 against Finnair for violating federal aviation laws and the DOT’s rules prohibiting deceptive price advertising for air travel.

“Consumers need to trust that what they see is what they get, when it comes to purchasing an airline ticket,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said. “DOT will continue to protect consumers by taking enforcement action when our price advertising rules are violated.”

Finnair’s web site violated DOT rules requiring any advertising that includes a price for air transportation to state the full price to be paid by the consumer, including all carrier-imposed surcharges.

Until Jan. 26, 2012, when even more stringent rules went into effect, government-imposed taxes and fees assessed on a per-passenger basis, such as passenger facility charges, could be stated separately from the advertised fare but had to be clearly disclosed in the advertisement so that passengers could easily determine the full price to be paid.

Internet fare listings were permitted to disclose these separate taxes and fees through a prominent link next to the fare stating that government taxes and fees were extra, and the link had to take the viewer directly to information where the type and amount of taxes and fees were displayed.

Now, under DOT’s recently adopted consumer rule that enhances protections for air travelers, carriers and ticket agents are required to include all government taxes and fees in every advertised fare, beginning Jan. 26, 2012.

DOT’s airline price advertising rules apply to both U.S. and foreign carriers, as well as ticket agents.

Finnair was fined because, for a period of time in the fall of last year (2011), the airline displayed three fare advertisements on its web site that made no mention of additional taxes and fees that applied to these fares.

Instead, once consumers clicked on the advertisements, they were taken to a page on the carrier’s web site where taxes and fees were displayed in the fine print at the bottom of the page.

In one of the three advertisements, consumers could not see the fine print unless they happened to scroll to the bottom of the page.

To view the consent order go to www.regulations.gov, docket DOT-OST-2012-0002.

Posted Jan. 29, 2012

Utility company warns customers about bogus credit-payment offer

Submitted Press Release — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 23:46:49 +0000

Customers have received calls from those claiming to represent customers’ utility companies, who tell customers their service is scheduled to be shut off for nonpayment, and then advise them to make a payment by purchasing a “Green Dot” VISA card. Photo source: Green Dot web site

Connecticut Light & Power (CL&P) and Yankee Gas are asking customers to be wary of a scam that has involved customers of utilities in other parts of the country. The scam involves prepaid “Green Dot” VISA credit cards.

Yankee Gas delivers natural gas to more than 205,000 customers in 71 cities and towns; it and CL&P are part of Northeast Utilities.

Customers are then asked to call another phone number where information is obtained from the credit card and the monetary value is removed from the “Green Dot” VISA card.

“If a customer gets a call of this nature, they can verify that it is CL&P or Yankee Gas by asking for some basic information about their account. Our customer service representatives will always be able to provide the name on the account, the account address, and the exact past due balance,” said Sharon Eberman, director, Customer Experience Operations. “If the caller cannot provide that information, the call is not from one of our employees.

“In this case, customers should not provide any type of payment or financial information, and should call CL&P Customer Service at 1-800-286-2000 or Yankee Gas customer service at 1-800-989-0900 immediately, and local law enforcement, to report the incident,” Eberman said.

Customers who are scheduled for disconnection due to nonpayment receive written notice that includes the actions they can take to maintain service.

CL&P and Yankee Gas do not require customers to purchase any type of pre-paid card to pay their utility bills.

Incidents such as these are also important reminders for consumers to always remain vigilant for potential fraud or identity theft, and protect their personal information.

CL&P and Yankee Gas offer these general Internet safe-use tips:

Don’t give out information such as your Social Security number, account number or mother’s maiden name unless it is truly necessary to complete a transaction and you have verified you are speaking with an authorized company representative.

When using online and mobile technology, use passwords that have at least eight characters and include numbers or symbols, and don’t give your passwords to anyone.

Research online entities so you know who they are.

Make sure you check your web browser and virus protection software for updates regularly.

The company websites, www.cl-p.com and www.yankeegas.com, provide more information on how to protect personal information.

Consumers may also visit the Federal Trade Commission’s web site at ftc.gov/idtheft to learn what to do if their identity is stolen or their personal or financial information has been compromised.

Posted Jan. 28, 2012

Legislation would enhance care for retired military dogs

John T. Bennett | thehill.com — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:59:16 +0000

Special Forces in Afghanistan are strapping dogs to themselves before parachuting into Taliban territory. The German shepherds are equipped with video cameras to search buildings for insurgents. There have been eight canine casualties. Read more: http://undertheradar.military.com/2010/11/dog-soldiers/#ixzz1jIRoxIaO

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) unveiled legislation Thursday (Jan. 12) in Hartford that would make it easier for military working dogs to get care and be honored for their service. It would “standardize” Defense Department policies on how retired military working dogs are transferred after leaving active duty.

Blumenthal’s bill would set up a process where military K-9s without a permanent home would go to a Texas Air Force base to be used by a training squadron. It also would create a “voluntary veterinary care fund” that would use “private donations” to allow DOD and private vets funds to care for retired military working dogs, according to his office.

For the full story, click on this LINK http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/operations/203925-sen-blumenthal-wants-enhanced-care-for-retired-military-working-dogs

Posted Jan. 14, 2012

Applications now available for state’s annual firewood lottery

Submitted Press Release — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 22:59:51 +0000

Applications will be accepted until Feb. 1 2012. The Firewood Lottery will be determined using a random-number-generating process. “Winners” will be posted on the DEEP Forestry Website by March 14. Firewood lots are generally offered during the warm months when forest roads are accessible. Connecticut residents may apply for one Forest Products Harvesting Permit per household per year.

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) announces that applications for the annual state forest firewood lottery are now available.

Firewood lots are generally offered during the warm months when forest roads are accessible.

Connecticut residents may apply for one Forest Products Harvesting Permit per household per year.

Firewood Program in State Forests

The annual firewood lottery provides Connecticut homeowners with a renewable, affordable, locally grown fuel source.

Firewood harvesting from State land helps achieve sustainable forest management goals, improve forest health, and offers fun physical activity for family and friends. (Henry David Thoreau is often credited with the saying that firewood warms you twice, once through the exercise of splitting and once in the fireplace.)

DEEP reminds all visitors that removal of any firewood from a state forest requires a permit.

Standing trees and downed wood will be sold to the lottery winners in designated two-cord lots for $60 by DEEP Foresters, as forest road conditions allow.

Most all permits will be issued before October 2012.

In addition, personal protective equipment (PPE) must be worn while cutting wood. The minimum requirements of PPE include: hard hat, eye protection, hearing protection, and cut-resistant chaps or pants.

Chainsaws have to be equipped with properly functioning safety devices, including a chain brake.

Cutters without PPE may have their Forest Product Agreement revoked and not be offered a woodlot the following year.

To submit an application

Applications may be downloaded and more information may be found at the State Lands Firewood Program Web site at http://ct.gov/dep/cwp/view.asp?a=2697&q=429464&depNav_GID=1631 or by calling 1-860-424-3630.

Applicants who do not receive a permit by lottery selection will be placed on an alternate list. Alternates may be offered permits at the discretion of DEEP Forestry based on supply.

Posted Jan. 13, 2012

Editor’s note: The cost for pre-cut firewood in Connecticut at this time appears to range from $160 to $225 a cord.

Related links: What is a cord of wood? http://www.snowservicesllc.net/

Listing of some CT businesses selling firewood http://www.firewoods.net/ne/CT.aspx

CT DEEP/Forestry listing of certified wood product sellers – look to right column for link to info about certification and the list (in PDF format). http://www.ct.gov/dep/cwp/view.asp?a=2697&q=322792&depNav_GID=1631

Want to learn how to help your community during a disaster?

Submitted Press Release — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 23:05:36 +0000

Are you part of a business, church or neighborhood that would like to strengthen its ability to come through a storm strong, and reach out to others? Anyone can take the Red Cross Shelter Operations training; children under the age of 16 may attend if accompanied by an adult.

Recent storms Irene and Alfred saw most of our state shut down and several shelters opening throughout our region.

Self-sufficient, resilient communities are strong communities during tough times.

Many local volunteers used Red Cross Shelter Operations training to assist at the shelters, but we need more help!

Already Trained?

Those who are already Red Cross Shelter Operations certified may join together on the afternoon of Feb. 4 for a tabletop sheltering drill held at Windham Hospital.

Disaster workers will organize into teams and set up a shelter on paper, and problem solve common issues.

Please register to reserve a spot. There is no cost to participate in this drill, and it is open to the entire region.

Need Training?

There are three opportunities to take Disaster Shelter Operations training before the drill.

Pick one and please register now because space is limited. There is no cost to participants.

Wednesday Jan. 18, 1 p.m. – 4 p.m., Eastern Connecticut State University, Willimantic

Wednesday Jan. 18, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. N. Windham Fire Dept.

Saturday Feb. 4, 9 a.m. – noon Windham Hospital

Are you part of a business, church or neighborhood that would like to strengthen its ability to come through a storm strong, and reach out to others?

Anyone can take the training; children under the age of 16 may attend if accompanied by an adult.

For more information and to register, call 860-456-2221 or send email to citizencorps@wincog.org

Posted Jan. 12, 2012