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Irish Independent
23-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Dart extension to Wicklow town pushed back to 2030
The National Transport Authority included the extension as part of their Greater Dublin Area Transport Strategy 2022-2042 that was adopted in 2023. An extension of the line to Wicklow town is currently under active review with battery-electric carriages, which are undergoing testing and expected to be used when the service begins operations. The line extension has been hit with many false starts in recent years. In 2019, it was announced that the Dart for Wicklow town would begin serving passengers by 2023-2024. Timeframes for 2025 and 2026 were also promised but were subsequently missed. In February 2025, representatives from Irish Rail met with members from the Transport, Infrastructure Delivery and Emergency Services, Strategic Policy Committee of Wicklow County Council where they were told that an hourly service would be introduced by the end of 2028. This follows a presentation from then NTA CEO Anne Graham and now interim chief Hugh Creegan to Wicklow County Council's monthly meeting in October of last year, confirming that the NTA are looking at a four-to-five-year timeframe to introduce the service. Now in a parliamentary update to Wicklow TDs John Brady and Jennifer Whitmore Transport Minister Darragh O'Brien confirmed that it won't be until the end of this decade when trains will begin carrying passengers on a more frequent basis. 'The new battery-electric Dart carriages will first be deployed from Dublin to Drogheda from next year. As more carriages arrive, it may be feasible to also deploy them to extend Dart services to and from Wicklow, subject to funding and approvals for the required charging infrastructure. The NTA is currently examining this issue with a view to progressing the extension around 2029.' he added.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Maine won't require medical cannabis to be tested for contaminants -- this year
Jun. 11—Maine's medical cannabis providers have once again fought off a controversial requirement to start testing their products — at least for now. A legislative committee killed one bill and carried over another that would have instituted testing and tracking requirements that industry members have said for years would put them out of business or force price increases. While Maine's recreational cannabis market requires testing for contaminants and potency and includes potency limits, the medical market requires neither. Maine is the only state that doesn't mandate medical cannabis to be tested. LD 104, proposed by the state's Office of Cannabis Policy and sponsored by Rep. Marc Malon, D-Biddeford, would have required seed-to-sale plant tracking and standardized chemical, mold and heavy metal testing between recreational and medical cannabis. LD 1847, sponsored by Rep. Anne Graham, D-North Yarmouth, sought to do the same while also adding potency caps on edibles. The latter will be taken up again next year. "I have listened and I've read testimony and I've worked with public health advocates to make sure that the medical cannabis industry survives, thrives and (can) be regulated so that when patients buy cannabis, they know that they have a safe product and they know what the potency is," Graham said. " ... Clearly our regulations and how we look at (testing), it needs work, a lot of work." But it's also "hugely complicated," she said, and needs more time. Jennifer Belcher, president of the Maine Cannabis Union, said there's a "sense of relief now that we know that nothing is going through this year. If either bill passed as written, she said "the medical program would be done." Belcher was encouraged by how receptive the committee was to the industry's concerns, and while "it is nerve-racking that we are going to face this next session," there's also an exciting opportunity for collaboration. "(LD) 1847 gives us an opportunity to focus on the facts, the research, the science," she said. AN ONGOING FIGHT John Hudak, director of the office, has been clear that implementing a testing program is a top priority, but this session was the first time since he was appointed to the office in late 2022 that an official proposal has been before the committee. Following a 2022 law, any major substantive rule-making from the department must be approved by the Legislature. "If a business model is one in which producing clean cannabis is too costly, there's something wrong with the business model," he said previously. "We're not going to focus on profits at the expense of patients' health." Supporters of the bill have referenced a 2023 report by the Office of Cannabis Policy that found about 45% of the cannabis in Maine's medical market would fail the standards set for the recreational market. They also pointed to the influx of suspected illegal growers allegedly tied to Chinese organized crime who have been selling bulk cannabis at "rock bottom" prices to legal dispensaries. However, in a public hearing last month, dozens of medical cannabis caregivers and consumers testified in opposition to the bills and the committee received roughly 1,000 pieces of written testimony. They criticized the state's testing program, citing several recalls in the recreational program last year that have brought the science behind the tests and the state's standards into question. The recent recalls, they argue, prove the testing doesn't work and shouldn't be forced on the medical program. The fight is just the latest in a series of uphill battles for Maine's medical cannabis providers. Oversaturation, competition with recreational cannabis and high costs have caused revenue to plummet and people to leave the industry in droves. Unlike many other states, Maine's medical cannabis market has always outperformed its recreational counterpart. But the gap between the two is narrowing, and last year the medical market brought in about $280 million (down from $371 in 2021), while the recreational market brought in $217 million. The number of providers, known in the industry as caregivers, has been cleaved in half from its 2016 peak of 3,257 to 1,627 in May, according to state data. "We are literally fighting for our lives at this point," Belcher said. OTHER BILLS The committee carried over several other bills, including one that would require the director of the Office of Cannabis Policy be confirmed by the Legislature rather than appointed by the commissioner of the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, which oversees the office. Sen. Craig Hickman, D-Winthrop, who drafted the bill, said the committee needed time to investigate whether there are other directors, like the heads of the state's alcohol and gambling control agencies, that should also be subject to legislative approval. Lawmakers also carried over a proposal to allow cannabis "social clubs" or public consumption, based off recommendations in a task force report this winter. Earlier this session, the committee killed two bills that would have implemented revenue sharing across Maine's cannabis industry, meaning towns and cities that allow recreational businesses could receive a portion of the tax revenue they generate. Legislators hoped the bills would encourage more towns and cities to allow cannabis shops and help them recoup the costs of overseeing the recreational program. Copy the Story Link We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. 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Irish Independent
14-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Delivery of Dart to Wicklow town meets with delay as new deadline set
Plenty of what proved to be broken promises have been made down the years regarding the introduction of the service. In 2019, it was announced that the Dart for Wicklow town would be operational by 2023-2024. Timeframes for 2025 and 2026 were also announced, but were subsequently rowed back on. NTA CEO Anne Graham and NTA Deputy CEO Hugh Creegan both gave a presentation at Wicklow County Council's monthly meeting in October of last year, confirming that the NTA are looking at a four to five year timeframe to introduce the service. However, during a meeting hosted by the Transport, Infrastructure Delivery and Emergency Services and the Strategic Policy Committee of Wicklow County Council in March of this year, those in attendance were informed that the target for the arrival of the Dart to Wicklow town had been reduced to an expected arrival at the end of 2028. But now Deputy Whitmore has been informed that the service won't be introduced to Wicklow town until 2029. She stated: 'Last month in the Dáil, we were given firm timelines for the Drogheda Dart, so why not for Wicklow? Drogheda is set to expect its battery-electric Dart service from 2026, and yet Wicklow keeps being delayed and delayed without any firm commitment. 'Iarnród Éireann recently informed me that a capacity study is being carried out for Wicklow, wherein the battery-electric Dart fleet will be considered for use on this line. I welcome this study and look forward to its publication, but it is long overdue, and the fact that the electric Dart is now a mere consideration for Wicklow is deeply concerning.' Despite multiple promises and shifting deadlines, the project has most recently been pushed back to 2029. 'The new battery-electric Dart was first promised in 2019 when then Minister Shane Ross stated his expectation that we would see them by 2023-2024. Since then, we have seen delay after delay - in 2021, a local government backbencher ambitiously stated that the carriages would be operational in Wicklow by 2025,' explained Deputy Whitmore. 'A year later, Iarnród Éireann reiterated that statement, heralding that 95 electric and battery-electric rail cars would enter into service in 2025. In 2022, former Minister Stephen Donnelly announced that the electric Dart would be operational by 2026, then in February of this year the date was pushed back to 2028. We are now being told that it won't be until 2029 that Wicklow sees a battery-electric Dart. "This continuous shifting of deadlines is completely unacceptable. Every time we ask, it gets moved out another year. This is more than a political issue – people are making huge life decisions based on these promises, promises that directly impact where they can live and work. Insufficient and inefficient public transport options are not just an inconvenience; they are a barrier to economic growth and quality of life.' ADVERTISEMENT Deputy Whitmore feels even once the Iarnród Éireann study has been carried out, it will still take some time to implement any of the changes. She said that she would push for a bus service from Wicklow town to Greystones. She added: 'It is incredible that, in 2025, there is no connecting service between these two commuter towns and Wicklow town is only serviced by two peak morning trains. The government talks about providing infrastructure and public services, yet two large towns, in a county only an hour and a half away from Dublin, still have no connecting service.'
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Maine lawmaker wants MaineCare to cover Ozempic and other weight loss drugs
Mar. 4—The Maine Legislature is considering a bill that would require MaineCare to cover popular weight loss drugs like Ozempic. The proposal went before the Health and Human Services Committee for a public hearing on Tuesday. Ozempic and other similar drugs such as Wegovy and Zepbound can help people lose weight by controlling appetite and reducing cravings. But the drugs can be pricey, with 30-day prescriptions typically around $1,000 to $1,500. The cost is causing some private insurance to exclude them from coverage in their policies, although that practice has also resulted in lawsuits, including two in Maine. Despite the cost, the drugs are popular, and according to a 2024 KFF poll, one in eight adult Americans have taken the Ozempic class of medications. Ozempic and similar drugs were originally approved by the Food and Drug Administration as diabetes medicine, but they have also been found to help control weight. However, of the adults taking the drugs, about 40% are using the medications to treat diabetes, 22% were taking them primarily for weight loss, and the remaining for other reasons. Anne Graham, D-North Yarmouth, a retired nurse practitioner, and the primary sponsor of the bill, L.D. 480, said MaineCare should cover the popular weight loss medications because patients should have access to all available tools to help them be healthier. "Everyone should have access to obesity treatment, including these weight loss medications," Graham said. Thirteen states — including New England states Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island — have approved the Ozempic class medications for their Medicaid programs. MaineCare is the state's name for Medicaid, which is a federal program operated by the states funded with a mix of federal and state dollars. Dr. Allen Browne, of Falmouth, a retired pediatric surgeon, testified in favor of the bill, and said it is "wrong" to tell patients that a drug "exists, is safe and effective, but it's not available due to the cost." Browne said some health care providers will not even mention the weight loss medications to their patients, knowing that it's too pricey for their patients to afford. But Courtney Pladsen, MaineCare's medical director, testified against the bill, arguing that it would simply be too costly. "Our conclusion is that the cost of adding this coverage would be prohibitive," said Pladsen, who pointed out that children in the MaineCare program can currently be prescribed Ozempic or similar drugs, but that the drugs are not available in MaineCare to adults. Pladsen said that adding the medications would cost MaineCare $42 million in 2026 and $53 million in 2027. "Requiring MaineCare to cover (these drugs) for treating obesity would have a significant fiscal impact. This is untenable given MaineCare's current budget shortfall," Pladsen said. MaineCare is currently facing an $118 million shortfall in the current fiscal year. Under Gov. Janet Mills' budget proposal, a number of controversial cutbacks would be made to stabilize the MaineCare budget, including eliminating a cost-of-living increase for direct care workers and reductions of stipends for child care workers. Mills' overall $11.6 billion biennium budget calls for some cutbacks, but also raises revenue with a cigarette tax increase from $1 to $3 per pack, and a 40% increase in the adult use cannabis sales tax, to 14%. Copy the Story Link
