A recent change in how federal officials are recommending the COVID-19 vaccine may have far-reaching implications for health equity in Georgia — especially for Black residents, who were among the hardest hit during the pandemic. Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices shifted its recommendation for the COVID […]
Health
Posted inHealth
Florida Vaccine Rollback Sparks Concerns for Black Families in Georgia
As Florida’s surgeon general announced earlier this week that the state plans to roll back vaccine mandates, some are wondering whether similar efforts could advance in Georgia. While there have been no formal proposals or public conversations from Georgia officials about ending vaccine mandates, health experts warn that the ripple effects from Florida could influence […]
Posted inHealth
Where Black Men Can Get Free Prostate Cancer Screening
September marks Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, and life-saving mobile screenings could be coming to a neighborhood near you. Emory Winship Cancer Institute is rolling out an innovative outreach program to get men in Georgia tested. In the United States, about 12.9% of men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point. The National Cancer […]
Posted inCommunity, Economic Development, Food Access
Atlanta’s New Market Brings Fresh Food to a Former Food Desert
To combat food insecurity, Atlanta officials partnered with local companies to provide fresh and affordable options to downtown residents, workers, and college students. The two-story Azalea Market, located at 25 Peachtree St., plans to serve 5,500 shoppers per day. “We have been in a food desert for far too long. We have to make sure […]
Posted inHealth, Mental Health
Youth Suicide Is on the Rise in Georgia. For Black Teens, the Risk Is Even Higher.
A recent report from the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities revealed that suicide remains a leading cause of death among young people in the state, with Black youth experiencing the highest death rates. According to WJBF, which references the state’s report, cited that African American youth experienced the highest suicide death rate […]
Posted inEnvironmental Justice, Health, Politics & Policy
Atlanta Neighborhood Says City Failed to Protect Them From Unwanted Gas Station
When Amber Burks became the first person to move into Aviary Park, a new townhome complex on Greenbriar Parkway, she was excited to see how the community would transform and grow over time. But what she didn’t expect three years ago was for the neighborhood to be in an ongoing feud with the city over […]
Posted inHealth, Public Services
Where to Find Free HIV Testing in Atlanta as the South Faces a Crisis
As the South marks Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day today, local health organizations are sounding the alarm on a persistent public health crisis often overshadowed. “We’re still very much in an HIV epidemic,” Justin Smith, director of the Campaign to End AIDS at Positive Impact Health Centers, told Capital B Atlanta. “A lot of people assume […]
Posted inBlack Businesses, Health
How One Mom Turned Trap Spin Class Into Atlanta’s Hottest Gym
To celebrate Black Business Month, Capital B Atlanta is profiling innovative entrepreneurs during the month of August. Having built a cult following for her weekly sold-out cycling sessions where participants moved and grooved to trap music while pedaling their hearts out, Clarisse “Risse” Frazier knew she was onto something special. And now, the 45-year-old mother […]
Posted inHealth, Politics & Policy
Nurses Rally Against Atlanta VA Layoffs, Warn of Risk to Black Veterans
Nurses, veterans, and community members waved signs outside the Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Decatur on Tuesday protesting pending layoffs and union busting efforts at the VA that they say will detrimentally impact care that local Black veterans need. In 2023, around 34% of all veterans in Georgia were Black, according to data from […]
Posted inHealth, Politics & Policy
Free Atlanta Health Clinics Are Saving Black Women’s Lives. Federal Cuts Could Change That.
As a health care provider at the Urban Clinic of Atlanta, a nonprofit organization that works to provide free medical services to uninsured and low income residents in Fulton County, Megan Boissonneault is no stranger to how access to care can change people’s lives for the better. “I’m thinking of a patient who I have […]