Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• College grads gain degrees, lose health insurance
  Many college graduates drop off their parents' health insurance before getting a job of their own with health coverage. The National Institute for Health Care Management recognized the problem and called young adult health care a "national imperative."4:44 p.m.
• Heffelfinger lashes out at Justice Department
  Former U.S. Attorney in Minnesota Tom Heffelfinger told a group of lawyers Thursday that something is fundamentally broken at the U.S. Justice Department.5:20 p.m.
• Ham Lake fire reveals extraterrestrial visitor
  This weekend, teams of volunteers will plant trees to help rejuvenate forest areas along the Gunflint Trail, after the big fire earlier this month. Many in the area want those burned areas to look green as soon as possible. But, some think the newly barren ground holds its own different kind of attraction.5:24 p.m.
• The art of death
  Looking good when you're dead isn't easy. Luckily there are people out there who can help.6:20 p.m.
• How's the family?
  A new program, "How's the Family?" delves into the everyday truths about the families we grow up in, and the ones we choose later on. This time, the show looks at what happens when children -- and parents -- do bad things.6:25 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• U.S. Gasoline Prices Rise; the Highest Is in Chicago
  Chicago has beaten out San Francisco for the dubious title of having the nation's most expensive gas. Chicagoans can blame high taxes of almost 80 cents a gallon, along with a special fuel recipe required to protect air quality.
• The Peculiar Role of Gasoline in Consumers' Lives
  Consumers watch the price of gasoline like no other product. As Valerie Folkes tells Robert Siegel, gas is unique. Folkes is a professor at the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California.
• Student Loan Industry Moves to Keep Subsidies
  Critics of proposals to cut subsidies to the student loan industry say they could hurt low-income and black students the most. But at least some of the criticism seems to be orchestrated by private lending companies such as Sallie Mae, which stand to lose billions of dollars if the system is discontinued.
• N.Y. Coroner Links Death to Ground Zero Toxins
  In a reversal, New York City's medical examiner has officially ruled that a woman's death was related to toxic fumes after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Felicia Dunn Jones was working one block from the World Trade Center on the day the towers were destroyed. She died from a lung-related infection several months later.
• Robert Olmstead's 'Coal Black Horse'
  A boy becomes a man by heading out into the middle of a war in search of his lost father. Sound familiar? There's a new version of the tale: Coal Black Horse, by Robert Olmstead. It is a sparely written quest story that can provide hours of rewarding reading.
• Body of Missing GI Identified as Pfc. Anzack
  The body of 20-year old Pfc. Joseph Anzack Jr. of Torrance, Calif., was found floating in the Euphrates River in Iraq; al-Qaida claimed responsibility for his death. Anzack was one of three U.S. soldiers who disappeared outside Baghdad after an ambush May 12.
• Gaps in Mental Care Persist for Fort Carson Soldiers
  An NPR investigation last December found that supervisors at Colorado's Fort Carson punished soldiers who suffered mental anguish. Leaders at the base now attend mandatory training on spotting troubled soldiers, but mental health experts say it may be doing as much harm as good.
• Checking In on Fort Carson, Part II
  Problems at Fort Carson in Colorado, where soldiers were punished despite showing symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and other conditions, prompted the base's commanders to vow that soldiers would get the help they need.
• Bush Hails House War-Fund Bill Free of Timeline
  President Bush says that he is glad the House has agreed to send him a funding bill for Iraq that does not set a timetable for troop withdrawal. The bill funds the war through September, when members of Congress are hoping to hear reports of political and military progress.
• House, Senate Approve Iraq War-Funds Bill
  Congress has approved emergency legislation containing $100 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The measure passed despite widespread opposition in the Democratic majority. It omits the provision for a U.S. troop withdrawal timeline, which prompted an earlier veto.

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