Liability insurance issues not new
Problems with liability insurance and the overall health system are not new in Pennsylvania. In 1974, insurance companies began to leave the state medical malpractice insurance market. The Catastrophe Loss Fund was set up in 1975 as part of the Health Care Services Medical Malpractice Act to avoid crises by shifting the malpractice payment burden off private carriers and onto the state. The CAT fund's budget comes from physicians who pay in annual surcharges based on their region and specialties. But the surcharges have not kept up with the awards.
( jhaseldi, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

Philipsburg-Osceola seniors earn diplomas
By Anne Danahyadanahy@centredaily.comPHILIPSBURG -- With many cheers and applause, the Philipsburg-Osceola Area School District's seniors officially became high school graduates Friday night during the commencement ceremony at the district's football field.Graduation took place under blue skies and white clouds as 148 seniors earned their diplomas and prepared for the next step in life.
( rmathies, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

State College mulls over downtown improvements
By Adam Smeltzasmeltz@centredaily.comSTATE COLLEGE -- An eight- to 10-screen cinema could be under construction by fall if a key part of a plan to revitalize downtown State College is successful.Capping nearly a year of work, the 22-member Downtown Strategic Steering Committee this week unveiled a draft of its Downtown Vision and Strategic Plan -- a package of ideas intended to diversify the residential population, cultural offerings and entertainment options in the town's core over a 10-year period.
( asmeltz, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

YMCA raising money for building expansion
From CDT staff reportsSTATE COLLEGE -- The State College Area Family YMCA will begin a fund-raising campaign next week to raise another $1 million to fund the final expansion of the building on West Whitehall Road.Dennis Ditmer, chief executive officer, said the YMCA has already raised $1 million from private contributions toward its goal of $3.3 million. That money will be added to what is raised during this campaign, and what is left will be financed, he said.
( pbeebe, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

Nuclear plants guarded with unloaded guns
By Marc LevyThe Associated Press HARRISBURG -- National Guard troops are patrolling Pennsylvania's five operating nuclear power plants with unloaded weapons, giving residents a false sense of security and leaving troops unprotected, a state lawmaker said Friday.While government officials would not confirm whether or not the Guard members' M-16s were loaded, House Minority Whip Mike Veon said a number of troops have complained that they were only allowed to carry bullets in belt clips and were not armed with artillery.
( Wire DataStream, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

Giuliani tells Shanksville grads attacks link their town, New York
By Charles SheehanThe Associated Press SHANKSVILLE -- Former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani told graduating students from the high school nearest the site where United Flight 93 crashed that the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 forever linked the nation's largest city with their rural community.
( Wire DataStream, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

US Airways to locate revived regional airline in Pittsburgh
The Associated PressARLINGTON, Va. -- US Airways, which is seeking federally backed loans and worker concessions under a restructuring plan, announced Thursday that it is reviving a regional airline and plans to base its operations at Pittsburgh International Airport.
( Wire DataStream, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

White supremacist handbills distributed
STATE COLLEGE -- A flier tied to white supremacist William Pierce was found on windows of cars parked in the McCallister Street parking garage Friday, police said.Several people told police about the handbilsl, which call for taking "back our country" and provide information for contacting the National Alliance, a West Virginia organization founded by Pierce.
( adanahy, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

Graduate to get PSU alumni award
From CDT staff reportsUNIVERSITY PARK -- David A. Morrow, a 1956 graduate of Penn State and a former member of the university's board of trustees, will receive the 2002 Lion's Paw Medal from the Lion's Paw Alumni Association today.
( pbeebe, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

Police blotter
Man charged after domestic dispute CENTRE HALL -- Daryl Keith Mitchell, 43, of Centre Hall was charged with harassment regarding a domestic dispute on Thursday.Police characterized the event as a minor physical altercation.Police looking for school vandalsCLEARFIELD -- Police are looking for suspects who climbed on top of the West Branch High School field house and spray-painted its roof.
( jhaseldi, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

You Need to Know
Customers of the Walker Township Water Association who live in the Smokerise Development west of Mingoville will experience low water pressure or no water on Tuesday, beginning at 8 a.m. Workers will be repairing water lines. Service will resume when repairs are finished later in the day.
( pbeebe, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

Crawford County has less indoor plumbing
The Associated PressMEADVILLE -- The number of homes without indoor plumbing actually climbed in Crawford County over the past decade, a trend that officials attribute to the large population of Amish living there.The number of households without modern facilities has declined steadily nationwide ever since the U.S. Census Bureau began keeping track. But in Crawford County census figures show the number of homes without indoor plumbing climbed from 505 in 1990 to 575 in 2000.
( Wire DataStream, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

India quietly readies to launch 'small war'
By Scott Baldauf and V.K. ShashikumarChristian Science Monitor News ServiceNEW DELHI -- India and Pakistan are edging closer and closer to war.Pakistan confirmed earlier this week that it is moving troops away from the Afghan border, where they have been helping the United States hunt for al-Qaida fighters, due to the looming military threat on its eastern flank. U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will head to the region next week to try to defuse tensions.
( rmathies, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)

Court says Congress can't force libraries to filter porn
By David B. CarusoThe Associated PressPHILADELPHIA -- A three-judge panel on Friday overturned Congress' third and latest attempt to shield children from Internet porn, ruling that public libraries cannot be forced to install software that blocks sexually explicit Web sites.
( Wire DataStream, 06/01/2002 03:01 AM EDT)