Health update: Former Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco says there’s “no escape” from the incurable cancer that has spread throughout her body. The News Star reports that when Blanco was honored Wednesday by the Council for a Better Louisiana she spoke about her disease and the peace she has made with it. She was diagnosed with ocular melanoma in 2011, and the disease re-appeared during a checkup in 2017. “The cancer has metastasized and spread throughout my body,” said Blanco, who lives in Lafayette. “There is no cure.” Read the full story.
Hit the silence button: The nation’s robocalling epidemic continues apace, with 5.1 billion robocalls nationwide received in November, just slightly below the all-time record set in October, and Baton Rouge beat out every other city for most robocalls per person, according to YouMail, a phone call management company. The South received the most robocalls in November. See the full report.
Boost: U.S. productivity grew at an annual rate of 2.3% in the July-September quarter, slower than the previous quarter but still an improvement over the weak annual gains of the past decade. Labor costs rose at a modest pace in the third quarter. The third quarter gain in productivity was revised up slightly from an initial estimate a month ago of a 2.2% gain, the Labor Department announced this morning. It marks a more modest advance than the second quarter’s 3% annual rate of increase. Labor costs were up at a 0.9% annual rate in the third quarter following a decline at a 2.8% rate in the second quarter. Read the full story.
