UNC Health seeks approval for new hospital in Asheville
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Atrium land deal clears way for 1,200 homes
By Michelle Crouch Co-published with The Charlotte Ledger After months of scrutiny, Atrium Health announced this week that it has finalized a deal to fulfill one of the affordable housing promises it made in 2021 while seeking public support for The Pearl, its medical innovation district. The agreement calls for the hospital to transfer nearly 14…
Mixed federal messages on drug checking leave North Carolina harm reduction programs in limbo
By Taylor Knopf For the third year in a row, drug overdose deaths in the U.S. have trended downward. North Carolina had one of the largest year-over-year decreases — a nearly 29 percent drop in overdose deaths from the end of 2024 to 2025. Substance use experts worry these hard-fought gains could now be in…
Cardiac emergency survivors, advocates encourage ‘Smart Heart Act’ inclusion in state budget
By Skye Crawford Hailey Yentz was lifting weights with her track and field team in February 2025, when she started to feel dizzy. Without knowing why, she collapsed in a teammate’s arms and for 10 minutes, she had no pulse. The college senior was having a heart attack. After that cardiac arrest, Yentz, who had…
Giving more teeth to public health in dentistry
By Anne Blythe Mary Otto was a reporter at The Washington Post almost two decades ago when she came across the story of a Maryland boy whose lack of access to routine dental care would expose a broken oral health system. Deamonte Driver was just 12 years old in February 2007 when he died from…
UNCW gets UNC System blessing to continue medical school planning
By Kate Denning Carolina Public Press The University of North Carolina System Board of Governors voted Thursday to let UNC-Wilmington move forward with the planning process for its proposed medical school. It’s the next step — though an unusual one — in the university’s effort to mend healthcare inequity by increasing access in Southeastern North Carolina.…
Lawmakers target hospitals – and Atrium Health in particular – in reform bills
By Michelle Crouch Co-published with The Charlotte Ledger Atrium Health would have to add four local elected officials to its board under a North Carolina state Senate bill — one of several proposals this session taking aim at the growing power of large hospital systems. The bill, SB 961, would also require any meeting of…