Here are your morning headlines for Thursday, June 13:
- State delays vote on adding autism, anxiety to medical marijuana qualifying list;
- Budish brings back former Cuyahoga County prosecutor;
- Toledo nurse strike could soon end;
- Cavs hire female assistant coach;
- Ohio State University faces five more lawsuits;
State delays vote on adding autism, anxiety to medical marijuana qualifying list
The State Medical Board of Ohio has postponed a vote on adding anxiety and autism spectrum disorder to the list of qualifying conditions for using medical marijuana. A physician panel last month recommended that anxiety and autism be added to the list of 21 conditions for which physicians can make a patient recommendation for medical marijuana. The board voted against adding opioid use disorder, depression and insomnia as qualifying conditions, which the physician panel did not recommend. More than 30,000 people have registered to buy cannabis in the state with about half making purchases since dispensaries opened in January.
Budish brings back former Cuyahoga County prosecutor
Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish has selected a familiar figure to lead his administration. Cleveland.com reports that Budish named former county Prosecutor Bill Mason as his chief of staff. The choice could stabilize a tenure mired by a corruption investigation and scandals in the county jails. Mason was prosecutor for 12 years and became one of Cuyahoga County’s most powerful politicians with a reputation for fairness. In a statement, Mason said he looks forward to promoting justice and equality in county government, and cited one issue in particular that drew him back into public life – the impact of climate change.
Toledo nurse strike could soon end
After more than a month, a strike involving about 950 nurses at a Toledo hospital may be over. The United Auto Workers said a tentative agreement was reached with Mercy Health St. Vincent Medical Center. Nurses have been on strike there since May 6, claiming staffing shortages were forcing them to routinely work extra hours and be on-call day after day. They called the environment unsafe for both them and patients. In a statement, the hospital said it is pleased nurses decided to end the strike. The union plans to vote on the contract Thursday and Friday. Technical workers and non-medical support staff reached contracts June 1.
Cavs hire female assistant coach
In a rare move, the Cleveland Cavaliers have hired a female assistant coach. While not the first woman in the league, Lindsay Gottlieb of University of California - Berkley is the first woman to jump to the NBA from coaching college basketball. She joins former Michigan coach John Beilein in hopes of rebuilding the Cavs. The 41-year-old Gottlieb led the Golden Bears to seven NCAA Tournament appearances as head coach.
Ohio State University faces five more lawsuits
More Ohio State alumni are suing the university over how school officials dealt with a team doctor who sexually abused at least 177 young men between 1979 and 1997, an investigation concluded. The federal case filed Wednesday by 16 alumni is the fifth pending lawsuit alleging university officials knew of concerns about Richard Strauss, but didn't do enough to stop him. Strauss died in 2005. Ohio State has argued in earlier suits that such claims are time-barred by law, but said it's not dismissing the accusers and their experiences. A judge directed the earlier lawsuits to mediation.
