Ohio Valley Resource

On this West Virginia Morning, farmers are looking to the craft brewing craze to boost a new crop in the region: locally grown hops. We hear from the Ohio Valley ReSource's Nicole Erwin. 

Also, June is Gay Pride Month. Us & Them podcast producer Trey Kay speaks with Charleston resident Bill Richards about living at a time when sodomy was a criminal offense in an excerpt from an episode titled “Sodomy, Stonewall & Pride”.

With a speech planned for Cincinnati’s Ohio River waterfront, President Donald Trump has chosen a fitting venue to talk about infrastructure improvements. The Ohio Valley is home to aging highways, bridges, and dams, poor drinking water systems, and weak internet service for many rural residents.

Nearly half of the people living in rural parts of United States don’t have access to broadband internet, the high-speed connection required for common uses many of us take for granted. Government and survey data show that in 65 counties across Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia, most residents don’t have access to broadband -- that’s a quarter of all the counties in the three states.

On this West Virginia Morning, the Ohio Valley ReSource takes a look at the state of broadband internet  access in West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky. We'll find out about how it's affecting commerce and economic development in central Appalachia.

We'll also hear about some grassroots and legislative efforts aimed at expanding broadband access to areas underserved by commercial communications companies.

On this West Virginia Morning, the Ohio Valley ReSource takes a closer look at small-scale farming in the region. It's one of the most dangerous industries and yet one of the least government-regulated. Find out what's being done to mitigate this growing hazard.

On this West Virginia Morning, we hear more from the Capitol, where lawmakers are taking a recess in the special session until June 5 so leaders of the House and Senate can work on a budget compromise.

We also hear from the Ohio Valley ReSource about how President Trump's latest national budget proposal might affect the region.

The true costs of the deep cuts in President Donald Trump’s proposed budget would fall disproportionately on many of the poor and working class people in the Ohio Valley region who helped to elect him, according to lawmakers and policy analysts.

Deep cuts to subsidized health care, food aid, disability assistance, and addiction treatment services would have the biggest effect in parts of Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia with some of the nation’s greatest needs for these safety net programs.

Trump administration officials have been visiting parts of the country affected by the opioid addiction crisis, including the Ohio Valley region. The administration called it a “listening tour,” and they got an earful in events marked by protests and controversies.

At a March ceremony to sign an executive order reversing Obama-era environmental regulations, coal miners were arranged on stage around President Donald Trump as he took up his pen.

“You know what it says, right?” Trump asked the miners. “You’re going back to work.”

From his campaign rallies to White House events, President Donald Trump has surrounded himself with coal miners and promised to restore their collapsed industry.

On West Virginia Morning, Statehouse Reporter Ashton Marra reports from the Capitol after lawmakers returned for a special budget session last week.

And we hear from the Ohio Valley Resource's Mary Meehan who reports on the addiction crisis in the Ohio Valley which is causing another health problem in the region - a heart infection called endocarditis.

The Ohio Valley’s addiction crisis has brought another health problem, as rising numbers of needle drug users are contracting a serious form of heart infection called endocarditis. The rate of endocarditis doubled in the region over a decade, and many patients require repeated, expensive treatment and surgery as they return to drug use and once again become infected.

On this West Virginia Morning, we very sadly say goodbye to broadcasting icon Beth Vorhees, who retired on April 28 after more than three decades at West Virginia Public Broadcasting. Dave Mistich talks with Vorhees about her career and what's next.

We'll also hear about an effort to identify and study places that are bucking negative statistical trends in the area, including Wirt Couty, West Virginia.

By most measures, health outcomes in the Ohio Valley region are not very good, with many parts of Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia ranking near the bottom among states.

But a team of health researchers may have found a few places within the region that stand out. They see them as potential ‘bright spots’ -- places with some health measures better than expected for the region.

On West Virginia Morning, Dave Mistich talks with Daniel Flatley, a Wheeling native and Columbia University graduate student, about his thesis “Patriot Coal: An American Bankruptcy” and Benny Becker reports from Pikeville, Kentucky where white supremacists are planning a march amid counter demonstrations.  

That’s on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting – telling West Virginia’s story.

On West Virginia Morning, Becca Shimmel with the Ohio Valley Resource reports on the wage gap in the Ohio Valley and we hear from people who experience chronic pain and the stigma that comes with it.

These stories on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting - telling West Virginia's story.

On West Virginia Morning, President Trump has proposed a 20 percent cut in funding for agriculture, just as farmers and food banks have partnered to provide fresh produce to the poor and we’ll hear another conversation about religious faith and cultural identity.

That’s on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting – telling West Virginia’s story.

At a moment when food aid agencies are working to provide healthier food to the poor and the elderly, President Donald Trump has proposed a 21 percent cut in funding for the agriculture programs that support them.

It’s a move that advocates say is bad for people who need food and local farmers who provide it.

On West Virginia Morning, Ashton Marra and Liz McCormick join Beth Vorhees in our studio to talk over the final night of the legislative session and highlight some bills that were passed before the Saturday midnight deadline and Appalachian farmers are waiting for the confirmation of President Trump’s Secretary of Agriculture.

That’s on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting – telling West Virginia’s story.

Federal health researchers are visiting health clinics and medical schools in the Appalachian coalfields to recruit allies in the fight a resurgence of black lung disease. The worst form of the disease may affect as much as 5 percent of experienced working miners in the region, and the researchers fear that rate could be even higher among retired miners.

On West Virginia Morning, the lead sponsor of the senate bill to legalize medical marijuana says he will accept all the changes the house made to the bill and today’s a big day at the legislature.  Both chambers will vote on their budget bills.

That’s on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting – telling West Virginia’s story.

On West Virginia Morning, the House of Delegates voted against a bill that would have eliminated tax credits for filmmakers and the Appalachian region voted overwhelming for Donald Trump for president, but now the President is facing push back over his plan to cut funding for the Appalachian Regional Commission.

That’s on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting – telling West Virginia’s story.

On West Virginia Morning, Republican leaders at the statehouse have unveiled a draft of their proposed state spending plan and Ashton Marra talks with two GOP delegates about their own budget proposal.

That’s on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting – telling West Virginia’s story.

The Road To Recovery

On a recent gray winter morning Tomas Green drove the rain slick streets of Ranson in West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle. No matter the weather, Green helps transport clients working through addiction at the Jefferson Day Report Center get to their treatment sessions and meetings.

On West Virginia Morning, the House of Delegates is passing bills increasing the penalties for drug trafficking.  Liz McCormick has that story and Ashton Marra talks with the state Superintendent of Schools about the challenges facing the state’s public school system. 

That’s on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting – telling West Virginia’s story.

On West Virginia Morning, members of the state Senate are considering a bill to do away with the personal income tax but they learned yesterday it comes at a high price and the Affordable Care Act expanded treatment for substance abuse.  We’ll look at what might happen if the Act is repealed.

That’s on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting – telling West Virginia’s story.