Spencer Fitness Central

Nutrition

Biden Administration Takes Additional Steps to Strengthen Child Nutrition Programs

July 11, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

Department providing another nearly $1 billion boost to schools for purchasing food

WASHINGTON, June 30, 2022 – The Biden Administration announced today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will provide nearly $1 billion in additional funding to schools to support the purchase of American-grown foods for their meal programs. The department also applauds the President’s recent signing of the Keep Kids Fed Act, which equips schools, summer meal sites, and child care food programs with extra resources so they can continue serving children through school year 2022-2023. Both actions are a response to the significant challenges child nutrition program operators continue to face, such as high food costs and supply chain disruptions.

“The Biden Administration knows that ongoing impacts of supply chain issues and rising food costs continue to be a challenge for many schools and child nutrition operators, and we are thankful for Congress stepping up to ease

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Body Builder

Aron Baynes Potential ‘Fit’ For Celtics Following Workout

July 11, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

Aron Baynes’ NBA comeback attempt might just occur with his former team in the Boston Celtics.

Baynes held a workout in Las Vegas on Friday for teams around the league after missing all of last year due to a spinal cord injury. Baynes suffered the baynes-work-nba-teams-las-vegas-one-year-spinal-cord-injury”major injury when he fell in the bathroom while playing for the Australian national team in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. The nine-year NBA veteran spent almost two months in hospitals in Tokyo and Brisbane learning how to walk again, per ESPN.

Now, Baynes, who played two seasons with the Celtics from 2017-2019, is trying to entice teams to take a shot at him, and a celtics/aron-baynes-fall-workout-las-vegas/”reunion in Boston isn’t out of the question, according to well-connected Heavy.com writer Steve Bulpett.

“I can see a fit in Boston,” a source told Bulpett. “They’ve already got (Rob) Williams and Al (Horford) and the

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Health Insurance

Health Insurance Companies Request Average 20.4% Rate Hike For 2023

July 10, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

Insurance Department chart of rate hike requests for health insurance plans offered on Connecticut’s health insurance exchange. Credit: Screengrab / Connecticut Insurance Department

Nine insurance companies have asked the state Insurance Department to approve double-digit rate hikes for individual and small business health insurance plans that start in 2023. The proposed average individual rate request is a 20.4% increase compared to 8.6% in 2022.

The department “has received 13 rate filings from nine health insurers for plans that will be offered on the individual and small group market, both on and off the state-sponsored exchange, Access Health CT,” Insurance Department Commissioner Andrew Mais said. “Working within the authority granted to this department, we will closely examine these filings to make sure the requested rates are consistent with state law.”

ConnectiCare Benefits is proposing an average 24.1% increase for its individual plans offered on the exchange.

health insurance plans in Connecticut.”

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Body Builder

‘I Did Natalie Portman’s ‘Thor’ Arm Workout For A Month’

July 10, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

I’ve always been self-conscious about my arms. I have broad shoulders and build muscle quickly, so I generally shied away from lifting weights in the past. An outdated refrain echoes in my head: You don’t want to get *too* big and muscly. It didn’t help that I was once told during a high school swim practice that I had “man shoulders”—whatever that means.

Still, when WH fitness editor Jennifer Nied asked if anyone wanted to try out Natalie Portman’s arm workout from her movie Thor: Love and Thunder, in theaters July 8, I quickly volunteered. I surprised myself by how fast I said yes, as I had very limited knowledge of the movie, or Natalie’s starring role as Thor. But in that moment, I wanted to try something different and revisit my relationship with training my upper body.

This was totally out of my wheelhouse. Running is my go-to

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Health Insurance

Insurers seek average rate hike of 20% on Access Health CT plans in 2023

July 9, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

Insurance companies that sell policies on and off Connecticut’s Affordable Care Act exchange are seeking an average increase of 20.4% on individual health plans next year, alarming advocates who fear people will forgo insurance because they can’t pay.

The rate hike requests were released by the state Insurance Department Friday. On small group plans, the carriers are asking for an average increase of 14.8%.

The requested increases are substantially higher than those sought last year for 2022 health policies. Carriers in 2021 asked for an average hike of 8.6% on individual plans and 12.9% on small group plans.

“It’s jaw dropping,” said Lynne Ide, program lead for communications outreach and engagement at the Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut. “Looking at these rate requests, the ranges are off the charts.

“Our big concern right now is, coupled with inflation and the fallout from COVID, these proposed increases spell trouble.

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Nutrition

Wilbur-Ellis Nutrition agrees to acquire F.L. Emmert

July 9, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

Wilbur-Ellis Nutrition announced June 30 that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire F.L. Emmert, a leading manufacturer and marketer of advanced nutritional solutions for the pet and livestock industries. Emmert is a 140-year-old, family-owned company with manufacturing operations in Cincinnati, Ohio, and 35-plus employees.

“We look forward to welcoming the Emmert team, and we’re excited about the capabilities this acquisition provides,” said Matt Fanta, president of Wilbur-Ellis Nutrition.

Emmert has a proven track record in animal nutrition, delivering the right balance of brewer’s yeast, protein, vitamins, and essential amino acids to support companion animal and livestock health. As a leader in expanding U.S. and global markets, Emmert is also known as an innovator with strong research and development capability.

“Emmert supports Nutrition’s strategic priorities and complements our three core businesses – pet, livestock and aquaculture,” Fanta said. “The acquisition will expand our product and customer base

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Nutrition

Nutrition warnings are coming to the front of some packaged foods in Canada

July 8, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

Canada will require that companies add nutrition warnings to the front of pre-packaged food with high levels of saturated fat, sugar or sodium in an effort to help grocery shoppers make healthier choices with just a glance.

But ground meat will be exempt from the labels, after ranchers groups objected to Health Canada’s proposal earlier this month.

The government says the labels are meant to help Canadians eat healthier, as the so-called “nutrients of public health concern” have been linked to conditions such as cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes.

“These regulations are designed to make it easier for us to make informed, healthier choices,” said Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos.

Health Canada said the new labels will complement, rather than replace, the more detailed nutrition information that’s typically on the back of food packaging.

In general, they’ll be placed on pre-packaged foods that contain more than 15 per cent of

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Body Builder

Aron Baynes to Hold Workout for NBA Teams in Las Vegas After Spinal Injury Recovery | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

July 8, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images

Veteran center Aron Baynes will hold a workout for NBA teams in Las Vegas on Friday, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.

Baynes has been recovering from a spinal cord injury he suffered last July that left him unable to walk for two months.

Per that report, Baynes fell in the locker room during the fourth quarter of an Olympics matchup between Australia and Italy last summer and was knocked unconscious. He couldn’t walk after the fall, had numbness in his limbs and hospital scans showed internal bleeding, which put pressure on his spine.

“The loneliest time in my life was laying in that hospital, going in and out of consciousness, going over my life plan and my goals and just crying,” Baynes told Windhorst in January. “My uncle Don had an accident 10 years ago. He’s a quadriplegic. My family’s had first-hand experience with

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Health Insurance

Group Health Plans and Abortion: Implications of Supreme Court Decision | Baker Donelson

July 7, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

In the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, employers are questioning what impact, if any, this decision will have on their group health plans. In the Dobbs decision, the Supreme Court reversed 50 years of precedent by ruling that the Constitution does not provide for a right to abortion and therefore that states have the Constitutional right to legislate abortion. How, then, does this ruling impact employer-sponsored group health plans? In this alert we address four items of immediate concern and expect to supplement this analysis as this drastic change in the law develops.

1. Must a Group Health Plan Provide Coverage for Abortions?

There are no federal laws or regulations that require an employer-sponsored group health plan to provide coverage for elective abortions. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, as amended (ACA), set forth standards that require coverage

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Nutrition

Reckitt Benckiser ‘may shelve plan to sell infant-nutrition unit’

July 7, 2022 Billie S. Dickenson

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UK consumer goods major Reckitt Benckiser is reportedly considering postponing plans to sell its infant-formula unit.

News agency Bloomberg, quoting unnamed sources familiar with the situation, said the sale, reputedly worth US$7bn, has fallen victim to “chaos in the industry and worsening financing markets”.

The company reportedly kicked off plans to sell its remaining businesses in infant formula in April and was said to be working with advisers on moves to sell the assets, which include the Enfamil brand. A

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Biden Administration Takes Additional Steps to Strengthen Child Nutrition Programs

Aron Baynes Potential ‘Fit’ For Celtics Following Workout

Health Insurance Companies Request Average 20.4% Rate Hike For 2023

‘I Did Natalie Portman’s ‘Thor’ Arm Workout For A Month’

Wilbur-Ellis Nutrition agrees to acquire F.L. Emmert

Nutrition warnings are coming to the front of some packaged foods in Canada

Aron Baynes to Hold Workout for NBA Teams in Las Vegas After Spinal Injury Recovery | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

1. Must a Group Health Plan Provide Coverage for Abortions?

Reckitt Benckiser ‘may shelve plan to sell infant-nutrition unit’

What Motivates People to Seek Help From a Snoring Specialist?

US health insurers raise rates to match increase in usage

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