HAVANA - The Cuban government sought to reassure citizens after Fidel Castro temporarily ceded power for the first time in 47 years, releasing a statement from the world's longest-serving head of government saying his health is stable, his spirits good and the defense of the island guaranteed.

Tempe police have found a 71-year-old man who suffers from a condition that affects his memory and motor skills. He is safe and in good health.

I feel it has become an embarrassment to the community of Gilbert to have three very radical (Town) Council members. No other neighboring city councils have such radicals that would want to protest federal grants for seniors and the needy.

A man responsible for the rape of an 81 year-old woman has been sentenced to 14 years of prison and a lifetime of probation.

Long ago, some guy drew a line in the dirt. Then he said to the guy on the other side of the line, "This is my country, and that’s your country."

Mr. McVickers (Letters, Sept. 12) appears to be concerned about the funding of health care for some persons. He states “...non-citizens and illegal aliens living amongst us will not have to be insured. In other words, the rest of us will continue to fund their health care as we do now.”

WASHINGTON — Capping an epic struggle, congressional Democrats put the final touches Thursday to historic legislation enshrining health care as the right of every citizen. Republicans vowed to campaign for repeal in the fall election season, drawing a quick retort from President Barack Obama: "I welcome that fight."

More than 3,000 Arizonans have lost public health insurance in the past year because they couldn’t prove U.S. citizenship, though it’s unknown how many, if any, were in this country illegally.

February 27, 2005

For some of the 1,000 people gathered for a festival at a Mesa park Saturday, the event was as much an opportunity to seek health care as it was a party.

Linda Turley-Hansen: No one knows who to believe, or where to seek reliable information. Thus, I borrow from two exceptional Wall Street Journal articles to continue in my efforts to warn of the attacks against our most basic freedoms.

Star Parker: Political freedom and capitalism work so well because they reflect the truth that human beings have free choice. But this means individuals take personal responsibility. The left has always been in denial about this, which is why they’re endlessly trying to expand government and reduce freedom. They see individuals as hapless victims the state must take care of. 

Nation must address the mentally ill

“Fathom the odd hypocrisy that Obama wants every citizen to prove they are insured, but people don’t have to prove they are citizens.” — Ben Stein

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality has extended its air health watch into today.

Joseph A.J. Felcon: I do not understand those who felt compelled to spend a trillion dollars to free Iraq and are now concerned about the deficit. Why is health care for all Americans less of a moral imperative?

Once again, the nageling nabobs of negativism, or as they would like be referred to — the tea party — are once again screaming in the media about how evil the federal government is and how un-American it would be if all citizens were forced into purchasing a private health care plan under Obamacare. The coercion. The heavy handedness. The death panels. The costs.

As pets have become more and more like members of the family, it's gotten easier to blur a few lines.

First Baptist Church of Maricopa is bringing a pair of health professionals out of Africa to speak about the work they have done in impoverished villages and give advice on how to implement a community health nurse program locally.

Pairing a YMCA with an osteopathic graduate school may sound odd, but it makes perfect sense to people working to make exactly that happen in southeast Mesa.

Once again, the nageling nabobs of negativism, or as they would like be referred to — the tea party — are once again screaming in the media about how evil the federal government is and how un-American it would be if all citizens were forced into purchasing a private health care plan under Obamacare. The coercion. The heavy handedness. The death panels. The costs.

Well, cheers to former state Sen. Tom Patterson (Opinion 2, Sunday) for finding a new approach in the Republican battle against federal health care legislation, but jeers for a somewhat ridiculous and wholly specious argument based on states' rights.

We're frequently reminded that 47 million Americans lack health insurance. Their number has fluctuated between 14 percent and 16 percent of the population for the past 15 years, yet left wingers insist that only a government-managed universal health care system can resolve this crisis.

We’re frequently reminded that 47 million Americans lack health insurance. Their number has fluctuated between 14 percent and 16 percent of the population for the past 15 years, yet left wingers insist that only a government-managed universal health care system can resolve this crisis.