Jill Burcum

5 days ago | startribune.com | Jill Burcum

Opinion editor's note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of commentary online and in print each day. To contribute, click here. I say this as a compliment. In more than three decades as a journalist, it's the occasional phone calls from Sue Abderholden that have left me feeling the most frustrated and outraged. It's not because of any policy disagreement.

2 weeks ago | startribune.com | Jill Burcum

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson listens after the House narrowly passed a bill advancing President Donald Trump's agenda at the Capitol on May 22. (Kevin Dietsch /Tribune News Service)

2 weeks ago | startribune.com | Jill Burcum

An outreach worker shows nasal Narcan, also known as naloxone, in New York in 2023. (HILARY SWIFT/The New York Times)"What if you are in AA or another fellowship group and are not in treatment and did not receive an official diagnosis? How do you prove your substance use disorder?"The bottom line: There are additional barriers to treatment even with the exemption. Said LaBelle: "At a time when we're seeing a reduction in overdose deaths, why would we make it harder to get help?"

3 weeks ago | startribune.com | Jill Burcum

This is indeed a thorny issue, with the wrong moves leaving people uninsured and hammering hospital finances at a critical time. My prescription: Convene a task force to study the issue and report back next year with more details and data. Let's proceed with care and get it right.

4 weeks ago | startribune.com | Jill Burcum

Opinion editor's note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of commentary online and in print each day. To contribute, click here. President Donald Trump fortunately didn't include northeast Minnesota's risky Twin Metals copper-nickel mine on a recent executive order aiming to fast-track projects like this. But any sigh of relief about that by Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) advocates came to a quick end this week as Minnesota U.S. House Rep.