Medicine – United Yam

UPDATE: Ohio moves to close nursing home amid ‘widespread care failures’ after purchase from Catholic nuns #Catholic

Credit: Digital Storm/Shutterstock

Jan 15, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).
The attorney general of Ohio is moving to shut down a nursing home after a congregation of Catholic nuns sold it, amid reports that the facility’s “shockingly poor care” is placing elderly residents in “clear and present danger.”House of Loreto, a nursing facility formerly run by the sisters of the Congregation of the Divine Spirit, has allegedly committed “widespread care failures,” Attorney General Dave Yost’s office said in a Jan. 13 press release. The sisters were involved with the home from 1957, when then-Youngstown Bishop Emmet Walsh asked for the religious to run the facility. The current facility opened in 1963. The Youngstown Diocese said in March 2025 that the home had been acquired by Hari Group LLC, a company based out of Ohio. In its press release announcing the sale the diocese did not note any troubles experienced by House of Loreto at the time. A diocesan spokesman said on Jan. 15 that the home was no longer under Catholic control after the sale.In a court order request filed on Jan. 12, Yost’s office said that state inspectors have observed a “rapid deterioration of care” at the facility, with the filing claiming that “shockingly poor care” was putting residents in “real and present danger.” Among the problems alleged by inspectors include the lack of a director of nursing, leaving the facility “spinning out of control” with repeated resident falls, improper medicine administration, denial of pain medication, and other alleged mismanagement issues. The facility is “so dysfunctional” that the government “lacks any confidence that the current leadership … will be able to right the ship,” the court filing says. The attorney general’s office said it is trying to get the facility shut down and “relocate residents to safer facilities.” In a statement to EWTN News, the Youngstown Diocese said it was “deeply saddened” at the imminent closure of the facility. Youngstown Bishop David Bonnar in the statement said the sisters “poured their lives into creating a home where the elderly were cherished and protected.”“Their ministry at the House of Loreto was a profound witness to the Gospel,” the prelate said. “It is painful to see their legacy overshadowed by the serious concerns that have emerged under the new ownership.”The facility said it takes its name from the Holy House of Loreto in Italy, said to be the home at which the Annunciation occurred and the Word was made flesh.The nursing home said it seeks to foster “an environment where seniors can experience the same love and respect they would find in their own homes —truly standing on the threshold of heaven as they navigate life’s later chapters.”Correction: This story originally identified the House of Loreto as a "Catholic-run" facility based on information from the facility's website. The home is actually no longer under Catholic ownership. This story was updated on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. ET.

unitedyam January 15, 2026

Credit: Digital Storm/Shutterstock

Jan 15, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).

The attorney general of Ohio is moving to shut down a nursing home after a congregation of Catholic nuns sold it, amid reports that the facility’s “shockingly poor care” is placing elderly residents in “clear and present danger.”

House of Loreto, a nursing facility formerly run by the sisters of the Congregation of the Divine Spirit, has allegedly committed “widespread care failures,” Attorney General Dave Yost’s office said in a Jan. 13 press release.

The sisters were involved with the home from 1957, when then-Youngstown Bishop Emmet Walsh asked for the religious to run the facility. The current facility opened in 1963.

The Youngstown Diocese said in March 2025 that the home had been acquired by Hari Group LLC, a company based out of Ohio. In its press release announcing the sale the diocese did not note any troubles experienced by House of Loreto at the time. A diocesan spokesman said on Jan. 15 that the home was no longer under Catholic control after the sale.

In a court order request filed on Jan. 12, Yost’s office said that state inspectors have observed a “rapid deterioration of care” at the facility, with the filing claiming that “shockingly poor care” was putting residents in “real and present danger.”

Among the problems alleged by inspectors include the lack of a director of nursing, leaving the facility “spinning out of control” with repeated resident falls, improper medicine administration, denial of pain medication, and other alleged mismanagement issues.

The facility is “so dysfunctional” that the government “lacks any confidence that the current leadership … will be able to right the ship,” the court filing says.

The attorney general’s office said it is trying to get the facility shut down and “relocate residents to safer facilities.”

In a statement to EWTN News, the Youngstown Diocese said it was “deeply saddened” at the imminent closure of the facility.

Youngstown Bishop David Bonnar in the statement said the sisters “poured their lives into creating a home where the elderly were cherished and protected.”

“Their ministry at the House of Loreto was a profound witness to the Gospel,” the prelate said. “It is painful to see their legacy overshadowed by the serious concerns that have emerged under the new ownership.”

The facility said it takes its name from the Holy House of Loreto in Italy, said to be the home at which the Annunciation occurred and the Word was made flesh.

The nursing home said it seeks to foster “an environment where seniors can experience the same love and respect they would find in their own homes —truly standing on the threshold of heaven as they navigate life’s later chapters.”

Correction: This story originally identified the House of Loreto as a "Catholic-run" facility based on information from the facility's website. The home is actually no longer under Catholic ownership. This story was updated on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. ET.

How a Catholic university is combating the health care crisis in Maryland #Catholic

Mount St. Mary’s University Physician Assistant Program Director Mary Jackson, MMS, PA-C, CAQ-EM, demonstrates hands-on ultrasound techniques with students at Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Maryland. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s University

CNA Staff, Jan 3, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).
In response to Maryland’s growing health care crisis, Mount St. Mary’s University is launching a physician assistant program later this month. The private Catholic liberal arts university, located in Emmitsburg, Maryland, is partnering with the Daughters of Charity — the religious order founded by St. Elizabeth Ann Seton — to bring more students into the field of health care.Exterior view of the new Timothy E. Trainor School of Health Professions at Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s UniversityAmid a staffing shortage, Maryland has had the longest emergency room wait times in the nation for nine years, averaging more than four hours. The number of serious medical mistakes that have resulted in death or severe disability for patients has risen each year in Maryland for the past four years, according to a report published in September 2025.A recent projection found that Maryland needs to increase the number of primary physicians by 23% by 2030 to cover the gap in primary care providers.The Maryland Department of Health has cited staffing shortages — among several causes of rising medical errors — as something that Mount St. Mary’s program hopes to mitigate.Ndidi Nwokorie, MBBS, FAAP, medical director of the Mount St. Mary’s physician assistant program, works one-on-one with a PA student. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s UniversityThe program — part of the college’s recent move into the health care arena — will welcome its inaugural class of 43 students on Jan. 20.The school’s new program includes resources for students to prevent burnout through its Center for Clinician Well-Being.CNA spoke with physician assistant program director Mary Jackson about the new program.Kevin Richardson, MSPAS, PA-C, director of assessments for the physician assistant program, leads a classroom lecture. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s UniversityCNA: What inspired the launch of the new physician assistant program? Mary Jackson: The Mount made a very intentional decision to enter the health care education arena as another way to live out our mission. As a Catholic university, Mount St. Mary’s graduates ethical leaders who are inspired by a passion for learning and who lead lives of significance in service to God and others. Preparing future health care clinicians is a natural extension of this mission, one that allows our students to serve individuals, families, and communities at moments of greatest vulnerability. We chose to launch a physician assistant program because the PA profession consistently ranks among the top careers nationally, with strong student interest and growing workforce demand. With a growing health care shortage in Maryland, how do you hope this program will address this crisis? Maryland, like much of the country, is experiencing a significant health care workforce shortage, marked by long wait times, limited access in rural and underserved areas, and an aging population with increasing medical needs.Physician assistants play a vital role in expanding access to high-quality care. By educating future PAs who are clinically excellent, compassionate, and mission-driven, our program aims to strengthen Maryland’s health care workforce and ensure that more patients receive timely, patient-centered care.Associate Program Director Leanne Hedges, MMS, PA-C, demonstrates a comprehensive physical examination as part of clinical training for PA students. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s UniversityHow does your mission as a Catholic university drive the physician assistant program? Our Catholic identity shapes every aspect of the physician assistant program. The Mount’s commitment to service, compassion, equity, and well-being calls us to prepare clinicians who go beyond transactional medicine.We aim to form PAs who care deeply for all patients, especially those who are underserved, while also tending to their own well-being so they can flourish long term in their calling to health care.How did Mount St. Mary’s work with the Daughters of Charity to build this program? The Daughters of Charity have been extraordinary partners in bringing this vision to life. Their legacy of caring for the poor and vulnerable has inspired the program’s mission and helped us ground our work in the values of humility and loving service.The Daughters have generously provided both tangible and in-kind support, enabling our inspiring facility, helping fund our Care for America scholarships, and working with us as thought leaders in this work.

unitedyam January 3, 2026

Mount St. Mary’s University Physician Assistant Program Director Mary Jackson, MMS, PA-C, CAQ-EM, demonstrates hands-on ultrasound techniques with students at Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Maryland. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s University

CNA Staff, Jan 3, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).

In response to Maryland’s growing health care crisis, Mount St. Mary’s University is launching a physician assistant program later this month.

The private Catholic liberal arts university, located in Emmitsburg, Maryland, is partnering with the Daughters of Charity — the religious order founded by St. Elizabeth Ann Seton — to bring more students into the field of health care.

Exterior view of the new Timothy E. Trainor School of Health Professions at Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s University

Amid a staffing shortage, Maryland has had the longest emergency room wait times in the nation for nine years, averaging more than four hours. The number of serious medical mistakes that have resulted in death or severe disability for patients has risen each year in Maryland for the past four years, according to a report published in September 2025.

A recent projection found that Maryland needs to increase the number of primary physicians by 23% by 2030 to cover the gap in primary care providers.

The Maryland Department of Health has cited staffing shortages — among several causes of rising medical errors — as something that Mount St. Mary’s program hopes to mitigate.

Ndidi Nwokorie, MBBS, FAAP, medical director of the Mount St. Mary’s physician assistant program, works one-on-one with a PA student. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary's University — Ndidi Nwokorie, MBBS, FAAP, medical director of the Mount St. Mary’s physician assistant program, works one-on-one with a PA student. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s University

The program — part of the college’s recent move into the health care arena — will welcome its inaugural class of 43 students on Jan. 20.

The school’s new program includes resources for students to prevent burnout through its Center for Clinician Well-Being.

CNA spoke with physician assistant program director Mary Jackson about the new program.

Kevin Richardson, MSPAS, PA-C, director of assessments for the physician assistant program, leads a classroom lecture. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary's University — Kevin Richardson, MSPAS, PA-C, director of assessments for the physician assistant program, leads a classroom lecture. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s University

CNA: What inspired the launch of the new physician assistant program?

Mary Jackson: The Mount made a very intentional decision to enter the health care education arena as another way to live out our mission. As a Catholic university, Mount St. Mary’s graduates ethical leaders who are inspired by a passion for learning and who lead lives of significance in service to God and others.

Preparing future health care clinicians is a natural extension of this mission, one that allows our students to serve individuals, families, and communities at moments of greatest vulnerability.

We chose to launch a physician assistant program because the PA profession consistently ranks among the top careers nationally, with strong student interest and growing workforce demand.

With a growing health care shortage in Maryland, how do you hope this program will address this crisis?

Maryland, like much of the country, is experiencing a significant health care workforce shortage, marked by long wait times, limited access in rural and underserved areas, and an aging population with increasing medical needs.

Physician assistants play a vital role in expanding access to high-quality care. By educating future PAs who are clinically excellent, compassionate, and mission-driven, our program aims to strengthen Maryland’s health care workforce and ensure that more patients receive timely, patient-centered care.

Associate Program Director Leanne Hedges, MMS, PA-C, demonstrates a comprehensive physical examination as part of clinical training for PA students. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary's University — Associate Program Director Leanne Hedges, MMS, PA-C, demonstrates a comprehensive physical examination as part of clinical training for PA students. Credit: Photo courtesy of Mount St. Mary’s University

How does your mission as a Catholic university drive the physician assistant program?

Our Catholic identity shapes every aspect of the physician assistant program. The Mount’s commitment to service, compassion, equity, and well-being calls us to prepare clinicians who go beyond transactional medicine.

We aim to form PAs who care deeply for all patients, especially those who are underserved, while also tending to their own well-being so they can flourish long term in their calling to health care.

How did Mount St. Mary’s work with the Daughters of Charity to build this program?

The Daughters of Charity have been extraordinary partners in bringing this vision to life. Their legacy of caring for the poor and vulnerable has inspired the program’s mission and helped us ground our work in the values of humility and loving service.

The Daughters have generously provided both tangible and in-kind support, enabling our inspiring facility, helping fund our Care for America scholarships, and working with us as thought leaders in this work.

HHS announces actions to restrict ‘sex-rejecting procedures’ on minors #Catholic

President Donald J. Trump watches as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Health and Human Services Secretary, speaks after being sworn in on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Washington, D.C. / Credit: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 18, 2025 / 13:31 pm (CNA).
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposed regulations today that would seek to end “sex-rejecting procedures” on anyone younger than 18 years old, which includes restrictions on hospitals and retailers.Under one proposal, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) would withhold all funding through Medicare and Medicaid to any hospital that offers surgeries or drugs to minors as a means to make them resemble the opposite sex. The proposed rules would prohibit federal Medicaid funding for “sex-rejecting procedures” on anyone under 18 and prohibit federal Children’s Health Insurance program (CHIP) funding for the procedures on anyone under 19.This includes surgical operations, such as the removal of healthy genitals to replace them with artificial genitals that resemble the opposite sex and chest procedures that remove the healthy breasts on girls or implant prosthetic breasts on boys.It also includes hormone treatments that attempt to masculinize girls with testosterone and feminize boys with estrogen and puberty blockers, which delay a child’s natural developments during puberty.HHS also announced that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is issuing warning letters to 12 manufacturers and retailers that they accuse of illegally marketing “breast binders” to girls under the age of 18 as a treatment for gender dysphoria. Breast binders compress breasts as a means to flatten them under their clothing.The news release said breast binders are Class 1 medical devices meant to help recover from cancer-related mastectomies, and the warning letters will “formally notify the companies of their significant regulatory violations and how they should take prompt corrective action.”Additionally, HHS is working to clarify the definition of a “disability” in civil rights regulations to exclude “gender dysphoria” that does not result from physical impairments. This ensures that discrimination laws are not interpreted in a way that would require “sex-rejecting procedures,” the statement said.HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a news conference that “sex-rejecting procedures” on minors are “endangering the very lives that [doctors] are sworn to safeguard.”“So-called gender-affirming care has inflicted lasting physical and psychological damage on vulnerable young people,” he said. “This is not medicine — it is malpractice.” The proposals would conform HHS regulations to President Donald Trump’s Jan. 28 executive order to prohibit the “chemical and surgical mutilation” of children. The order instructed HHS to propose regulations to prevent these procedures on minors.In a news release, HHS repeatedly referred to the medical interventions as “sex-rejecting procedures” and warned they “cause irreversible damage, including infertility, impaired sexual function, diminished bone density, altered brain development, and other irreversible physiological effects.”HHS cited its own report from May, which found “deep uncertainty about the purported benefits of these interventions” for treating a minor with gender dysphoria. The report found that “these interventions carry risk of significant harms,” which can include infertility, sexual dysfunction, underdeveloped bone mass, cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, psychiatric disorders, and adverse cognitive impacts, among other complications.Stanley Goldfarb, chairman of Do No Harm, a medical advocacy group, said in a statement that the proposed regulation on hospitals is “another critical step to protect children from harmful gender ideology” and said he supports rules that ensure “American taxpayer dollars do not fund sex-change operations on minors.”“Many so-called gender clinics have already begun to close as the truth about the risks and long-term harms about these drugs and surgeries on minors have been exposed,” he said. “Now, hospitals that receive taxpayer funds from these federal programs must follow suit.”Mary Rice Hasson, director of the Person and Identity Project at the Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC), said she sees the proposed restriction on hospitals as “excellent.”“This proposed rule sends a powerful message to states and health care providers: It’s time to stop these unethical and dangerous procedures,” Hasson said. “Puberty is not a disease to be medicated away. All children have the right to grow and develop normally.”“Sex-rejecting procedures promise the impossible: that a child can escape the reality of being male or female,” she added. “In reality, these sex-rejecting procedures provide only the illusion of ‘changing sex’ by disabling healthy functions and altering the child’s healthy body through drugs and surgery that will cause lifelong harm.”In January, Bishop Robert Barron, chair of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life, and Youth, welcomed Trump’s executive action on these procedures, warning that they are “based on a false understanding of human nature, attempt to change a child’s sex.”“So many young people who have been victims of this ideological crusade have profound regrets over its life-altering consequences, such as infertility and lifelong dependence on costly hormone therapies that have significant side effects,” Barron said. “It is unacceptable that our children are encouraged to undergo destructive medical interventions instead of receiving access to authentic and bodily-unitive care.”

unitedyam December 18, 2025

President Donald J. Trump watches as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Health and Human Services Secretary, speaks after being sworn in on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Washington, D.C. / Credit: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 18, 2025 / 13:31 pm (CNA).

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposed regulations today that would seek to end “sex-rejecting procedures” on anyone younger than 18 years old, which includes restrictions on hospitals and retailers.

Under one proposal, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) would withhold all funding through Medicare and Medicaid to any hospital that offers surgeries or drugs to minors as a means to make them resemble the opposite sex. The proposed rules would prohibit federal Medicaid funding for “sex-rejecting procedures” on anyone under 18 and prohibit federal Children’s Health Insurance program (CHIP) funding for the procedures on anyone under 19.

This includes surgical operations, such as the removal of healthy genitals to replace them with artificial genitals that resemble the opposite sex and chest procedures that remove the healthy breasts on girls or implant prosthetic breasts on boys.

It also includes hormone treatments that attempt to masculinize girls with testosterone and feminize boys with estrogen and puberty blockers, which delay a child’s natural developments during puberty.

HHS also announced that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is issuing warning letters to 12 manufacturers and retailers that they accuse of illegally marketing “breast binders” to girls under the age of 18 as a treatment for gender dysphoria. Breast binders compress breasts as a means to flatten them under their clothing.

The news release said breast binders are Class 1 medical devices meant to help recover from cancer-related mastectomies, and the warning letters will “formally notify the companies of their significant regulatory violations and how they should take prompt corrective action.”

Additionally, HHS is working to clarify the definition of a “disability” in civil rights regulations to exclude “gender dysphoria” that does not result from physical impairments. This ensures that discrimination laws are not interpreted in a way that would require “sex-rejecting procedures,” the statement said.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a news conference that “sex-rejecting procedures” on minors are “endangering the very lives that [doctors] are sworn to safeguard.”

“So-called gender-affirming care has inflicted lasting physical and psychological damage on vulnerable young people,” he said. “This is not medicine — it is malpractice.”

The proposals would conform HHS regulations to President Donald Trump’s Jan. 28 executive order to prohibit the “chemical and surgical mutilation” of children. The order instructed HHS to propose regulations to prevent these procedures on minors.

In a news release, HHS repeatedly referred to the medical interventions as “sex-rejecting procedures” and warned they “cause irreversible damage, including infertility, impaired sexual function, diminished bone density, altered brain development, and other irreversible physiological effects.”

HHS cited its own report from May, which found “deep uncertainty about the purported benefits of these interventions” for treating a minor with gender dysphoria. The report found that “these interventions carry risk of significant harms,” which can include infertility, sexual dysfunction, underdeveloped bone mass, cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, psychiatric disorders, and adverse cognitive impacts, among other complications.

Stanley Goldfarb, chairman of Do No Harm, a medical advocacy group, said in a statement that the proposed regulation on hospitals is “another critical step to protect children from harmful gender ideology” and said he supports rules that ensure “American taxpayer dollars do not fund sex-change operations on minors.”

“Many so-called gender clinics have already begun to close as the truth about the risks and long-term harms about these drugs and surgeries on minors have been exposed,” he said. “Now, hospitals that receive taxpayer funds from these federal programs must follow suit.”

Mary Rice Hasson, director of the Person and Identity Project at the Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC), said she sees the proposed restriction on hospitals as “excellent.”

“This proposed rule sends a powerful message to states and health care providers: It’s time to stop these unethical and dangerous procedures,” Hasson said. “Puberty is not a disease to be medicated away. All children have the right to grow and develop normally.”

“Sex-rejecting procedures promise the impossible: that a child can escape the reality of being male or female,” she added. “In reality, these sex-rejecting procedures provide only the illusion of ‘changing sex’ by disabling healthy functions and altering the child’s healthy body through drugs and surgery that will cause lifelong harm.”

In January, Bishop Robert Barron, chair of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life, and Youth, welcomed Trump’s executive action on these procedures, warning that they are “based on a false understanding of human nature, attempt to change a child’s sex.”

“So many young people who have been victims of this ideological crusade have profound regrets over its life-altering consequences, such as infertility and lifelong dependence on costly hormone therapies that have significant side effects,” Barron said. “It is unacceptable that our children are encouraged to undergo destructive medical interventions instead of receiving access to authentic and bodily-unitive care.”