Health

Manhattan College Student Honored at Pride Ceremony

By SARA MARTINEZ
As Bronx residents and elected officials gathered at Bronx Borough Hall on Thursday, June 1, for the annual Pride ceremony to mark the beginning of Pride Month, one northwest Bronx student was among those being honored this year. The annual tradition of honoring selected members of the Bronx LGBTQIA+ community was also an occasion to witness the raising of the Pride flag, which will fly alongside the American flag and the veterans’ Prisoner of War (POW) / Missing in Action (MIA) flag throughout Pride Month (June).   On the day, Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson reiterated New York’s commitment to


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Yankee Anthony Rizzo & Montefiore Join Forces to Raise Critical Funds for Children Battling Illness

By SÍLE MOLONEY
The Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by New York Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo, and the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM) are partnering to raise funds for children battling illness, by supporting 27 runners representing CHAM in the TCS New York City Marathon, Montefiore officials said. They said every year, Montefiore gathers a team of “CHAMpions” to run the 26.2-mile marathon, held annually in November, to raise critical funds that support children undergoing treatments at CHAM. This year, hospital officials said The Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation is partnering with CHAM to bolster the runners’ fundraising efforts. They


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Op-Ed: Bring Paid Family Leave after Stillbirth to a Vote Now

By YUVELCA REYES
Stillbirth is still birth. “A woman who has a stillborn child still goes through the trauma of labor and birth, and this is compounded by the loss of a child,” wrote Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson in her April 2023 Black Maternal Health Week letter to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.   But right now, our Bronx representative and speaker of the New York State Assembly, Carl Heastie, seems to think it’s okay for New York to revoke a mother’s right to previously-approved paid leave and tell her to “get back to work” only days after birthing and then burying a


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UPDATE Gustavo Rivera Laments Assembly Did Not Pass “Coverage for All” Health Care Bill

By SÍLE MOLONEY
  State Sen. Gustavo Rivera (S.D. 33), chair of the State senate health committee, has shared his disappointment that his “Coverage for All” health care bill did not pass the State assembly, despite having recently passed the State senate, an advancement which had marked a major milestone in his long-term and ultimate goal of passing the NY Health Act.   “I am incredibly disappointed that Coverage for All did not pass the assembly despite the herculean efforts of Assembly Member Gonzalez-Rojas and our group of dedicated advocates,” Rivera said in a June 22nd press release. “Together, we had to fight


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UPDATE Air Quality Advisory Remains in Effect Through Friday due to Canadian Wild Fires

By SÍLE MOLONEY
The Mayor’s Office of Community Affairs provided New Yorkers with an update on Thursday on the unprecedented event the city is facing as a result of smoke coming from Canadian wildfires. At 5 p.m. on Wednesday, June 8, the Air Quality Index hit 484, meaning “hazardous” the highest level for health concern on the index level, City officials said, adding that there was potential for conditions to significantly improve on Thursday.   “We are encouraging New Yorkers to stay home and indoors today, whenever possible,” a City representative said on Thursday. “All New Yorkers should limit outdoor activity to the


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UPDATE Guerinos Against Graffitti* Share Results of Local Clean-Up of East 204th Street

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Local graffiti removal group, Guerinos against Graffitti* have been thanked by their neighbors following the group’s confirmation that most of the graffiti on 204th Street between Mosholu Parkway and Valentine Avenue in Bedford Park has been recently removed. Sirio Guerino, cofounder of the group, said the work was done in honor of the May 52nd Precinct Community Council Meeting.   Local community members were grateful for the group’s efforts. “YAY Serio and the SAG group! On behalf of all long-time, Norwood residents ….THANK YOU!!!!,” said Marilyn Reyes.   Meanwhile, Friends of Mosholu Parkland said, “Thank you so much !!!”   Guerino


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UPDATE Mayor & City Officials Address Deteriorating NYC Air Quality due to Canadian Wild Fires

By SÍLE MOLONEY
New York City Mayor Eric Adams addressed the deteriorating air quality across the five boroughs on Tuesday night due to smoke coming from recently reported Canadian wildfires, with the Air Quality Index hitting 218 at 10 p.m. on Tuesday in parts of New York City, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). A rating of 218 means “very unhealthy” on the “Levels of Health Concern,” according to City officials.   “Smoke from wildfires in Canada began to impact New York City’s air quality today, and conditions this evening have worsened with additional smoke and haze moving into the region,”


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UPDATE Health Department Conducts First Aerial Larviciding of Mosquito Season on Marshes & Other Non-Residential Areas

By SÍLE MOLONEY
  To reduce mosquito activity and the risk of West Nile virus, the City’s health department is conducting its first aerial larviciding treatment of the mosquito season on marshes and wetland areas of The Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island on Thursday, June 8, Friday, June 9, and Monday, June 12, from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., weather permitting.   City officials said the helicopter will treat only nonresidential areas. While two days are allotted for the aerial larviciding, the application may be completed in less time. In case of bad weather, application will be delayed to Tuesday, June 13,


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Bronx Community Board 7 Members Attend Flagging Event at Woodlawn Cemetery

By DAVID GREENE
  Bronx Community Board 7 (CB7) members joined residents for the annual “flagging of the graves” event on Wednesday, May 24, ahead of Memorial Day weekend, Volunteers at Woodlawn Cemetery on Webster Avenue on the Norwood-Woodlawn border also participated by locating the gravesites of U.S. veterans and placing an American flag at each grave.   As CB7 members arrived, with invited guests, Bonnie Morales, army veteran and support coordinator at NY Outreach Services, and Ronald Downs, suicide prevention community engagement & partnerships coordinator for the local VA hospital in Fordham Manor, they were greeted by Meg Ventrudo, executive director of Woodlawn Conservancy.


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