Opinion

Each month I want to provide you with regular updates about what’s going on in our nation’s capital and throughout the 4th District of Kansas. Here’s what happened in April.

Dear Doctors: My wife was diagnosed with a C. auris infection while she was in a long-term care hospital. When she gets discharged, will she be able to hug her grandkids, or should she refrain from having any type of close or skin-on-skin contact?

I’ve used this space many times over the years to provide some defense of the political powers and interests of the cities that over 75% of Kansans live in. I did last month in response to a bill in Topeka— which thankfully died in committee—that would have forbidden cities from exercising almost any kind of local control over the businesses which their residents interact with. This month I’m looking at another bill, one that isn’t as egregious a violation of Home Rule on its face, but in the long run might turn out to be just as bad, or worse.

I taught about the range of variations in human reproductive systems in college general biology. Students would leave at the end of class thankful that, for them, everything had “lined up.” They realized how fortunate they were that anatomy matched their XX or XY genetics that matched their hormone balance that matched their brain region (BSTc) that provides gender identity.

Newton is known for a number of things, mainly the Chisholm Trail, cowboys, and especially trains (on the original Santa Fe mainline). A couple of more obscure things are the Meridian Route (predecessor to US81) and flour (Ardent Mills is a significant producer of our nation’s flour – eat pizza, people).

Dear Doctors: Could you please write about hormone replacement therapy in menopause? It got labeled as dangerous due to a single study, which I’ve read is considered to be flawed. I started HRT before that study came out, and it saved my health, my ability to continue working and my marriage.