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Dear Annie: When love meets its limits

Dear Annie: I’ve never written to an advice column before, but I honestly don’t know where else to turn. My mother is elderly, physically frail and becoming increasingly confused. Earlier this year, she developed pneumonia and was so sick she could barely function. Her longtime boyfriend, who’d spent years neglecting, stealing from and verbally — and at times, physically — abusing her, refused to take her to the hospital. He even prevented EMTs from entering the house because he had drugs inside. I eventually got the police involved, and she was finally taken to the ...

Murano glass is one of the best demonstrations of how the old lives on in the new. The island of Murano, just off Venice, Italy, became a center for glassmaking in 1291 and has been ever since. Beautiful glassware has been there for export in various colors and patterns, starting with beads, ...

Medicare for all? Here’s the missing truth

Ever since I was in Congress there was a group of people that wanted some form of universal healthcare. It would include one healthcare provider through the federal government, which they frequently refer to as “Medicare for all.” However, there is a huge difference between Medicare which is for the elderly and disabled in contrast to Medicaid which is for the indigent and their children. Working Americans contribute by paying into Medicare, while Medicaid is paid by the federal government. Essentially healthcare for Medicaid individuals is free. You simply cannot combine the two ...

Americans get rare break from quietly expensive law

Since March, America has been running an accidental experiment and glimpsing what the country might look like without one of its dumbest statutes. The results are in, and they embarrass a century’s worth of U.S. lawmakers and defenders. The statute is the Jones Act, passed in 1920 to rebuild and protect the U.S. merchant marine fleet after World War I disrupted American shipping capabilities. It requires that any vessel moving cargo between two American ports must be built in an American shipyard, be American-owned and be at least three-quarters American-crewed. Miss any one of these ...

Breaking up with the in-laws — again

Dear Annie: I’ve been married to a wonderful man for 30 years. His family has always made me feel like an outsider — rude, dismissive, the works. Ten years ago, I finally stepped back from them. We reconnected briefly five years ago when his father passed, mostly with his mother, but this year they’ve slid right back into their old habits. It’s to the point where it’s affecting my health: I’ve developed real anxiety, even depression, over it. I’ve decided to cut them off again, for good this time. I’ve given them more chances than they deserved. What I don’t know is ...

High-dose statin appears to be too much for cholesterol patient

DEAR DR. ROACH: I had a preemployment physical for my current position as a firefighter/EMT back in January. I had another preemployment physical for a new position with the fire department last month, and both physicians suggested a statin based on my high cholesterol. Both tests had similar results; my cholesterol was 272 mg/dL, my HDL was 52 mg/dL, and my LDL was 199 mg/dL. My other blood tests and electrocardiogram were fine. I figured that I should probably try to get on a statin and manage the situation. I had a telehealth visit with a physician’s assistant who put me on 40 mg ...