Gender disparities in VA care targeted

Veterans Affairs Secretary James Peake told female veterans yesterday that the agency is working to eliminate disparities in the care offered to women and men. An internal review by the VA submitted to Congress last week found that women aren't getting the same quality of outpatient care as men in about one-third of the VA's 139 facilities that offer it. (AP)

WINSTON-SALEM - They aren't America's heaviest newborn twins on record, but they certainly tip the scales: Sean William Maynard and Abigail Rose Maynard weighed in at a combined 23 pounds and 1 ounce at birth this week, a North Carolina hospital announced yesterday. Freda Springs, spokeswoman for Forsyth Medical Center, said the twins were delivered two minutes apart by caesarean section Tuesday at the center's Sara Lee Center for Women's Health in Winston-Salem. The boy weighed 10 pounds, 14 ounces; the girl, 12 pounds, 3 ounces. Springs said both babies are in excellent condition after their birth to Joey and Erin Maynard of Winston-Salem. The combined weight of the twins is about 4 pounds shy of the combined weight of twins born in Arkansas in 1927, the hospital said. (AP)

RICHMOND - Authorities are investigating whether a Catholic charity violated state and federal law by helping a 16-year-old illegal immigrant in its care get an abortion. Workers with Commonwealth Catholic Charities helped the girl travel to and from the procedure and signed a consent form, the charity said. Four of its workers were fired. The charity receives federal funds for arranging temporary foster care for immigrant children. (AP)

NEW ORLEANS - For the first time since Hurricane Katrina, the 1920s-era St. Charles Avenue streetcar will clack along its entire 13-mile route tomorrow. Its clanging bell will signal that some aspects of life are returning to normal nearly three years after Katrina flooded 80 percent of the city. Once the final mile or so reopens, tourists, downtown workers, and bar-hopping college students will be able to ride the popular St. Charles line from the downtown business district through mansion-lined streets and other areas nearly 24 hours a day. (AP)