The last cottonwood tree along the U.S.-Mexico border in a remote Arizona town has been felled

Contractors bulldozed the last standing cottonwood tree on the Arizona border earlier this month after armed border control agents raided the camp of protestors who were protecting the tree, arresting at least 10 people, Stephanie Casanova reports for High Country News. The protestors had protected the tree for more than 70 days. 

"Dubbed the 'grandmother tree,' the cottonwood cut down Monday was hundreds of years old. It was one of several that lined the edge of private property along Border Road, a dirt road that runs along the U.S.-Mexico border, in a remote area of Arizona in the San Rafael Valley about 25 miles east of Nogales," Casanova reports. 

Activists established a tree-sit in June to protect the grandmother tree, and at least one person slept in the tree at all times. Their efforts delayed construction of the double-border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border near the remote ranching town of Lochiel. 

Douglas Main of The Guardian reports that "the valley, and the Patagonia and Huachuca mountains on either side of it, form one of the most important regional wildlife corridors between the US and Mexico, providing passage to animals including jaguars, ocelots, bears and even beavers and porcupines in recent years." Main writes that while the border wall cuts off this corridor from the animals, the construction sucks up the water from the trees.

The cottonwood trees "depend on a regular supply of water underground," but construction has dried up wells throughout the region, threatening the flora of this unique landscape. Main writes that CPB won't say how much water they're currently using, "but in 2008 it estimated a smaller wall nearby could use up to 710,00 gallons per mile for construction."

American Academy of Pediatrics renews its call for a ban on drinking raw milk

The American Academy of Pediatrics renewed its call for a ban on the sale of raw milk and dairy on Oct. 5 because of the life-threatening illnesses it can cause, especially in babies, children, pregnant women and those who are immunocompromised, reports Ellyn Vohnoutka for U.S. News. The AAP said claims about raw milk’s health benefits are false. Currently, 27 states allow the sale of raw milk, and more are pushing to do the same.

Many at the forefront of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary RFK Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again campaign tout the benefits of drinking raw milk and are behind efforts to allow the sale of it. Anemona Hartocollis writes for The New York Times that raw milk advocates believe it is healthier than pasteurized milk because it's less processed, and might support the efforts because of that. She added that alignment with the MAHA movement, which favors autonomy over regulated vaccines, often overlaps with this belief.

“Pasteurization heats milk to a set temperature for a minimum amount of time... [and] kills bacteria, viruses and parasites that once made milk a leading source of food poisoning and infant deaths,” Vohnoutka writes. When milk isn't pasteurized, it can carry bacteria like salmonella, listeria and e. coli.

The AAP is also following the trend of drinking raw cow's milk as a possibility for transmitting bird flu. Birds can transmit flu to dairy cows, and so far, it has only infected a few cattle workers. In 2024, it appeared in raw milk samples. While bird flu hasn’t spread to humans through the consumption of raw milk yet, the AAP does regard it as a concern.

There's a new giant pumpkin world record holder; TikTok expands the contests' appeal

As fall festivities kick into full gear across the country, many rural towns are rolling out the scales for their annual pumpkin weigh-offs, and one Rhode Island farmer has reason to celebrate his giant gourd growing efforts, writes Victor Mather of The New York Times. Farmer Ron Wallace's pumpkin just weighed in at 3,156 pounds, smashing the previous record of 2,856 pounds, according to Guinness. 

Pumpkin weighing contests are an American tradition, with contest going back as far as 1900, when the top weights were around 400 pounds, Mather writes. Changes in soil, pruning and pest control, along with genetic changes in seeds, has bulked them up over time. And now, thanks to social media, giant pumpkin farmers have grown in popularity, too. 

One such giant gourd grower, Sarah Whitty in Maine, goes by Pumpkinista on TikTok, and spent the  season this year posting updates about the slow and careful process of growing giant vegetables. Her videos where she details the behind-the-scenes of gourd growing have garnered her nearly 300,000 followers. Her 170-pound giant marrow named Secretariat claimed the North American and U.S. record this year, reports local news station, KTVB7. 

She is one of dozens of giant pumpkin and vegetable growers gaining in popularity on TikTok, including other growers with large followings, GourdFather and bigpumpki. The new giant pumpkin record holder, Farmer Wallace, told Mather the annual pumpkin growing contests captivate for a simple reason: "A giant pumpkin brings a smile to everybody’s face, and it doesn’t matter where you’re from, what nationality you are," he said. "Giant pumpkins don’t care about any of that," and that when someone sees the giant pumpkins, "everybody is just in awe." 

A federal program that helps landowners restore forests after a disaster has run out of funding

The Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP), an initiative in the Federal Farm Service Agency, has received more requests for aid than it can pay for. Congress created the program in the 2008 Farm Bill, and it provides disaster relief to private, nonindustrial land owners, or reimburses them up to 75% of the cost of restoring damaged woods. 

"Almost two years ago, Congress appropriated $357 million for the program 'to remain available until expended,'" Vivian La reports for Grist. Much of that money was granted to landowners devastated by 2024’s hurricane season, and more recently, to Michigan property owners affected by 2025’s ice storm. Work can include clearing trees to prevent fire risk, replanting or managing invasive species.

Residents say dealing with the federal program "has been mired in delays, confusion about eligibility, and what’s been described by landowners and foresters as little communication from federal officials."

Many homeowners cannot wait for restoration to come, and sometimes, they cannot afford to begin efforts themselves. If they do, they may be disqualified from the program in the future. Tony Fox, a forester in Lake City, also said the EFRP is "a little unfair to the folks at the FSA" because it lumps a forestry program in with a primarily agricultural agency.

As weather conditions become more intense with climate change, foresters stress the importance of the program. U.S. Rep. Jack Bergman, a Republican who represents all of northern Michigan, said, "If Washington calls this emergency relief, it needs to act like it’s an emergency."

Californians are using AI to scour hours of footage looking for wildfires and hoping to prevent their spread

Californians hope artificial intelligence and solar-powered cameras installed in remote areas will help spot wildfires before they get out of control, reports John Branch of The New York Times. The cameras will be placed in some of the most fire-prone areas of rural California, and will be pointed at "the blind spot that local fire officials wanted to see."'

"These are the fire spotters of today — remote, high-tech cameras attached to communication towers, old lookouts or purpose-built tripods on high vantage points," Branch writes. The cameras — being installed by ALERTCalifornia — "have become a vital tool for firefighters and a ubiquitous presence in emergency coverage." 

ALERTCalifornia installs the cameras, and AI scours the footage, often finding wildfires before 911 calls are made, Branch reports. Officials use the feeds to monitor fires and coordinate teams to get to the scene. Live-feeds of the footage are publicly available on ALERTCalifornia's website. The organization is a "public safety program" based at the University of California San Diego specifically focused on technological responses to and prevention of wildfires.

"This system has changed the world of response," Napa County deputy fire chief, J.C. Greenberg told Branch. “We have instant visibility and instant information that we need to make response decisions.”

Rural hospitals often lose maternity care after being bought

The Fitzgibbon Hospital in Marshall, Missouri mirrors an unfortunate national trend: “Rural hospitals are more likely to lose maternity care after they are acquired.” Fitzgibbon, which delivered 252 babies in 2025, filed for bankruptcy and was sold to a new owner, Strawberry Fields REIT, and a new operator, American Medical Administrators, Meg Cunningham reports for The Beacon.

In April, the hospital filed for bankruptcy protection, leading to the sale of its facilities. “Just nine days after the sale closed in early September, Fitzgibbon’s new operator announced the hospital would end labor and delivery services at the end of the month.” More than half of Missouri’s counties have no labor and delivery care. As larger hospitals absorb the responsibility of providing maternal services, ruralites will have to drive two or more hours to receive care.

During the sale, offers to buy the Fitzgibbon went up to $14.5 million, but ultimately, the administration accepted Strawberry Fields and American Medical Administrators’ offer of $10 million because the groups had expressed interest in continuing care using Medicaid. Medicaid covers 47% of births outside of metropolitan areas in the state.

The sale was not finalized at its Aug. 31 deadline because the new owners raised concerns about Fitzgibbon’s operating costs. To avoid closing the hospital, Fitzgibbon sued to force the sale through, then alleging American Medical Administrators had proposed cutting services, reducing outpatient care and backing away from Medicare commitments.

Dr. Abdullah Arshad, the chief medical officer at American Medical Administrators, said it later became clear the hospital couldn’t sustain maternal care after reviewing costs. The hospital will have the emergency equipment to handle a birth, and will staff a 24/7 OB-trained nurse, which Arshad said is rare in rural hospitals.

Study says urban trees are more resilient than rural trees

Trees in urban areas are actually thriving better than those in rural areas, Matt Simon reports for Grist. Trees in urban cities are vulnerable to vandalism, pests and diseases, and the heat island effect — the phenomenon of cities being warmer than rural areas at night because concrete traps heat. But a new study led by ecologist Zhengfei Guo at the University of Hong Kong shows they are more resilient to stresses like extreme heat than their country counterparts.

The study shows that urban trees lose less green vegetation, recover faster from losses and experience longer growing seasons. Researchers said this may be because urban trees are better tended to, or because there are surprising advantages to how cities are structured. They add that urban areas are harsher in terms of pollution and air quality, but crews in cities consistently tend to intentional green spaces and advocate for ways that residents can keep them healthy.

Cities tend to funnel water into sewers as quickly as possible to prevent flooding and pooling on top of concrete. When rainwater cascades, the only place it can collect, if not on concrete, is in green spaces. For hydrated plants, high heat due to the heat island effect can provide extended growing seasons, although such heat is harmful to human health.

“Urban vegetation is often pampered compared to what’s growing wild in the countryside,” Simon writes. “This is an advantage in the long term, but doubly so during relentless droughts and increasingly miserable heat waves. While rural trees desiccate, their compatriots in cities are regularly attended to.”

Jin Wu, coauthor of the study, said that even though urban trees are resilient to extreme environments now, they won’t always be. Cities are already taking steps to stock up on native seed species and saplings that fare well in heat in other parts of the world, and cities like Los Angeles are reimagining their water systems.

Six dead after Hurricane Isaias strikes U.S.; cleanup impacts areas devastated by 2024's Hurricane Helene

Four deaths, including those killed when trees fell on their homes, were reported out of Alabama and Florida after category two Hurricane Isaias made landfall, according to a report by The Guardian.

Isaias made landfall in Florida on Friday, Oct. 9, with maximum winds of 105 mph, before being downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone. 

“The storm felled trees and ripped the roofs off buildings. Alabama, Florida and Georgia all declared states of emergency ahead of its arrival, while both Florida and Alabama issued mandatory evacuation orders to thousands of people,” reports Madeline Halpert for the BBC.

 
Cleanup of Hurricane Isaias is under way, spanning areas of North Carolina previously devastated by Hurricane Helene in 2024. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state, with help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, “is ready to submit a major disaster declaration to get people back on their feet,” Katie Streit reports for Spectrum News.

 

“Once complete and when the power’s back up, counties can begin doing their own individual damage assessments, which they then submit to the Florida Division of Emergency Management,” DeSantis said. “And then the state will then conduct our own damage assessments. We definitely are going to qualify for that.”

Rural communities use telehealth less, but not because they don’t want it

Rural communities face a higher chronic disease burden — whether in the form of high blood pressure, diabetes, COPD or lower back pain — but they aren’t using telehealth as much as their urban counterparts. 

Liz Carey reports for The Daily Yonder the results of a study by Elevance Health Public Policy Foundation that found only 4.6% of chronic care visits in rural areas were executed via telehealth, compared to 7.5% in urban areas, no matter the insurance type. Since an initial telehealth surge during the COVID-19 pandemic and a spike in 2022, rates have been down everywhere. Rural communities are consistently at the tail-end. 

The study didn’t look at the causes for this gap, but “it does show that more needs to be understood in terms of how rural communities use telehealth.” Medicare clients, who are mostly elderly, use telehealth the least. 

But Dr. Sira Haeni, a maternal fetal medicine specialist and the CEO of Ouma Health, a maternity telehealth practice with clients in all 50 states, said he doesn’t see a gap; many of his patients prefer telehealth to avoid long driving times to and from a city. He thinks underutilization of the technology in rural areas is because of broadband access.

“If you look at the independent research on this, broadband itself explains a lot of this utilization gap, and the counties that lack the broadband access oftentimes have the lower utilization,” he said. “It’s not so much that the rural patients don’t want to access telehealth, it’s just that they can’t access telehealth. As a country, we’ve failed rural America in terms of getting the broadband access that was promised to them over the last few administrations.”

Trump administration to reimagine Endangered Species Act, removing protections for at-risk species

The Endangered Species Act is credited with saving the American alligator, bald eagle, grizzly bear and nearly 300 other species from permanent extinction, but last month, the Trump administration put that law in danger. The administration has proposed changes in the act's enforcement, including deciding that razing habitat where endangered or threatened species live, breed and eat will no longer incur federal penalties, Grist staff reports. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service implements the Endangered Species Act and determines which species are "threatened" or "endangered." When a private or federal development project may harm a species, developers must consult with the service or receive a permit before construction. The interpretation of "take" and "harm" in the law means that any attempts to kill or capture an at-risk species are penalized, including attempts to degrade their habitats.

In an internal memo, the Trump administration proposed changing this understanding of "take" to mean only intentional attempts at killing an animal, which would disregard the unintentional damage to habitats that threaten species survival. According to Grist reporters, this would remove protections from some of the first animals who received them under the Endangered Species Act, and would further harm animals who never received any protections at all. Harm may come in the form of human development and unregulated pollution on at-risk animals’ land.

According to the Grist report, the following species may struggle in light of the changes:

• North Atlantic right whale
• Eastern massasauga rattlesnake
• Bull trout
• Florida panther
• California sea otter
• Rusty patched bumble bee
• Eastern hellbender
• Red-cockaded woodpecker
• Palila
• Chinook salmon

Experts warn that bipartisan legislation meant to counter Medicaid cuts won't do enough to offset the loses

The $50 billion fund created in 2025 to counter Medicaid cuts from the One Big Beautiful bill (OBB) will not be enough to save rural hospitals or "prevent the overwhelming health care harms" caused by the bill, writes Dustin Pugel of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy. In fact, the Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) was "never intended to be a replacement for lost Medicaid funds." 

For example: Pugel writes that Kentucky’s 2026 RHTP award is $212.9 million, but "the estimated cuts to Kentucky’s Medicaid program in rural areas is $10.9 billion over the next decade." So, even if Kentucky gets the same amount of RHTP funds every year for five years, "funding from that project will make up for less than 10% of the cut to Medicaid in rural Kentucky," Pugel writes. 

Pugel writes that rural hospitals are disproportionately affected by the policy changes, and most of the RHTP initiatives can't be used to help them. Liz Carey of The Daily Yonder, though, reports that several "Congress members from all over the country, and from both parties, have introduced legislation aimed at helping rural hospitals" in addition to the RHTP. 

One such effort is the Rural Health Agenda, a package of bills being advanced by Tennessee Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn. The Rural Health Agenda includes at least four pieces of legislation that would help support rural hospitals through reimbursement and Medicare changes, and create a new loan program through the USDA. 

Straight of Hormuz closure raises fertilizer prices for farmers, food shortages could happen as a result

Many farmers stock up early on fertilizer for next spring’s growing season. Last year, farmers who bought fertilizer in the fall were able to avoid the higher prices fertilizer saw in spring 2026, which rose when President Trump authorized the Iran war. This year, farmers won’t be able to avoid higher prices, Neal Burnette-Irwin reports for RFD-TV News.

“Fertilizer prices went up a lot this spring, but the one ... benefit to farmers is a lot of farmers had their fertilizer purchased earlier last fall before the prices really went up,” which helped them avoid impacts of higher prices in 2026, said Gregg Ibendahl, an agricultural economist at Kansas State University.

Since prices increased significantly this spring, they are likely to rise even more going into fall 2027, which means that this time around, there will be no cheaper season that farmers can use to "stock up."

One-third of the world’s fertilizer shipments pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which is currently closed due to the war, reports Josie Fischels and Xavier Walton for News Nation. “ICC Secretary-General John Denton says available fertilizer capacity has fallen nearly 40%, taking roughly 2.7 million tons off the market.”

 
Ibendahl said farmers will have to pay. Fischels and Walton estimate that farmers will pay 15.3% more on fertilizers this year. The high prices may mean food shortages in the coming months because high fertilizer and fuel costs are limiting what farmers can provide this season.

Mini solar-powered boats use ultrasound to kill bacteria in rural water systems

Small yellow vessels topped with solar panels — akin to a toy boat in appearance — float on the surface of Lake Paradise’s reservoir in small-town Mattoon, Illinois. They are called Solarafts, reports Ilana Newman for The Daily Yonder, and they are making waves — literally.

The rafts use solar-powered ultrasonic waves to kill cyanobacteria in water. On the surface, this bacterium is known as blue-green algae. If unchecked, it can produce a toxin deadly to humans: microcystin. Mattoon issued a “do not drink” order in July 2025 after toxins grew out of control when Solarafts were down. The toxin blooms from heat, slow-moving water, low turbidity or too many nutrients — say, from agricultural or wastewater sectors.

"'A harmful algal bloom is not algae,' said Amy Weckle, a program manager for the Illinois Water Resources Center (IWRC). The misnomer is confusing, she said, because algae is beneficial and feeds aquatic species, while cyanobacteria, one of the oldest organisms on earth, is the actual cause of what is referred to as harmful algal blooms.”

 
The rafts are produced by Hydro-Bioscience and use ultrasound to break open the membranes of bacteria and kill them in a way that Todd Austin, the company’s customer accounts manager, likens “to an opera singer breaking a glass — at a certain frequency of sound, the glass will break.” The company aims to support rural water districts by keeping their resources and limitations in mind.

 
Treating water with ultrasound is a modern upgrade from treating it with chemicals, like carbon. In 2025, Mattoon went from using 150 to 600 pounds of carbon a day. Solarafts reduce chemical use by about 50-60%, which lowers the cost of keeping drinking water sources clean.

Rural character of towns across the U.S. is literally becoming a chicken fight; roosters bring noise complaints

A fight over the character of rural towns has been playing out across the U.S. and it all comes down to one of the most ubiquitous of barnyard animals: the not-so-humble rooster. "It all stems from a collision: more people adopting chicks and more people moving within earshot of them," reports Rukmini Callimachi for The New York Times. 

Town and city councils from New Hampshire, Indiana, Idaho, Pennsylvania, Washington state and Louisiana have been met with complaints and ordinance-change proposals since the COVID-19 pandemic led to a boom of "backyard homesteaders," Callimachi writes. The vice president of a mail-order hatchery told her that "people [were] panic-buying chickens like they did toilet paper" at the time. A second wave of chicken collecting came in 2022 when egg prices rose sharply. 

Callimachi reports that 8.5 million households owned backyard chickens by 2025 — up by 50% since 2018. But many of the hen hobbyists didn't understand that it's incredibly difficult to determine the sex of chicks. Many times, people don't know they've adopted a rooster until they starte crowing early in the morning. 

This was the case for Nixon, a Vermont rooster named for the former president "because he was a jerk," according to his owner. Nixon mostly minded his own yard in Pittsfield, Vt., but one day began traveling to the neighbors where he'd wake them up at 3 a.m. The neighbor took the fight to the town hall, where Callimachi reports the "private spat became a fight over the town's character," and after four meetings, the board didn't pass an ordinance for that reason: they wanted to protect that character. 

Sadly, the decision didn't help Nixon, who was literally "taken to the woodshed" by his owner after the town council asked him to handle the issue privately, Callimachi reports. And while other towns have passed noise ordinances and enacted new fines, Mayor Lee Dragna of Morgan City, Louisiana — who faced a rooster fight after egg prices rose — told Callimachi they came to a different solution: Band them, and wait them out; roosters typically only live three to four years. 

A voice for animal rights and Bluegrass music: Derby-winning breeder Arthur B. Hancock III dies at 83

Arthur B. Hancock III passed away on Sept. 18 at 83. His grandfather established the thoroughbred breeding operation Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky. Hancock strayed away from the family business, pursuing a passion for Bluegrass music, but revisited horse breeding in 1972 — purchasing Stone Farm and raising three Derby winners, reports Joe Drape for The New York Times.

In his youth, Hancock expected the Claiborne Farm to be passed down to him; instead, it was given to his younger brother. Hancock’s father did not view him as “serious enough,” given his penchant for country music, drinking and gambling.

He went on to produce four original albums covered by Bluegrass stars. “Time (Old Faithful Friend of Mine)” was recorded by Ray Price in 1972, and “Nashville on My Mind” by Grandpa Jones in 1974. Hancock is to be “inducted posthumously into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame next month.”

Hancock’s purchase of Stone Farm after his father’s death produced Derby winners like 1982’s Gato Del Sol, Sunday Silence, an unwanted colt with a crooked leg who would win the 1989 Derby and inspire Hancock to stop drinking, and 2000’s Fusaichi Pegasus.

Outside of music, he and his wife, Staci Hancock, voiced an unpopular opinion: Horse-racing was too full of performance-enhancing drugs and suffering. They started the Water Hay Oats Alliance, an antidrug, anti-slaughter coalition, and lobbied. “The group was instrumental in establishing federal oversight of thoroughbred racing.”

Community colleges serve rural areas to meet North Carolina's higher education recipient goal of 2 million

With an increasing number of job shortages and a growing aging population, rural counties in North Carolina are hoping a statewide push to educate youth through community colleges and trades will save local industries, and keep their communities alive.

 

North Carolina’s legislature set a goal in 2019 to “have 2 million 25- to 44-year-old residents with degrees or industry-recognized credentials in the state by 2030,” reports Kate Denning for Carolina Public Press and Rural News Network. One initiative, myFutureNC, is credited with helping reach this goal by supporting work-based learning and career planning for many rural students.

In October, an estimated 277,000 students are needed to enroll in higher education programs and enter the labor force to meet that goal. MyFutureNC adjusts that number when people move or age in or out using census records, FAFSA completion, pre-K enrollment records and chronic absenteeism rates. With the Workforce Act of 2026, the state gave myFutureNC $8 million to continue its programs.

 
MyFutureNC reports that the state has a 95% high school graduation rate — the highest in the South. Still, there is work to be done. Reading rates for both school children and higher education students are especially low. Stanly Community College in Albemarle is introducing context-based programs, where courses like ENG111 focus on career-related readings. Re-enrollment programs aim to reintroduce education to many ruralites, offering daycares and guaranteed quick advising appointments.

U.S. Supreme Court takes up a number of cases that could impact rural places

The U.S. Supreme Court was back in session on Monday, and several cases that impact rural places and people are on the docket, reports James Romoser of The Wall Street Journal.

First up was a case about "whether local governments can sue oil companies for damages to their communities allegedly caused by climate change. Dozens of such lawsuits are percolating around the country, threatening the energy industry with billions of dollars in potential liability," Romoser reports. 

He writes that "this term centers more on the sorts of traditional culture-war schisms that have defined the court’s shift to the right over the past two decades" — issues that have been hot-button in rural areas, and in rural elections in recent years. The cases will be about "guns, religion and transgender minors," Romoser writes. 

One case is about whether state and cities can ban AR-15 assault rifles and similar automatic weapons. Another is about whether Colorado can refuse state funds to religious preschools that won't accept children from LGBTQ+ households, and another is about "the ability of transgender children to access gender-affirming care." Romoser also writes that the court is deciding whether to take a case about the rights of medical care for transgender prisoners, and another about requiring the Ten Commandments to be posted in Texas schools.  

SNAP enrollment has dropped sharply since 2025, rural areas likely more affected

Enrollment in the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) has dropped by 13% since June, writes Tracy Roof for The Conversation, and rural areas could feel the decline sharply. About 36.4 million people were enrolled in the program in 2026, down from 42 million in 2025. Roof writes that dropping enrollment could be due to the Trump administration's "tax-and-spending package the president signed into law in July 2025." 

That law "caused some immigrants residing legally in the country ... to no longer be eligible for SNAP benefits," and "more people enrolled in SNAP now may only get up to three months of benefits if they don't work, engage in training programs or volunteer at least 80 hours a month," Roof writes. Those work requirements used to end at age 54, but that has been raised to 64, and "parents of older children ages 14-17 are now expected to meet these work requirements."

Rural places are likely to suffer more from lack of enrollment, according to a 2025 report from the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC). Rural areas have higher rates of enrollment in SNAP overall, with one in seven rural households relying on the program, compared to one in eight in urban areas. Rural poverty and food insecurity rates sit at around 15% each, higher than the 11% and 12% national averages.

"These elevated rates reflect deeper structural issues: limited job opportunities, aging infrastructure, higher costs of living, and a shrinking share of the national economy," Gina Plata-Nino reports for FRAC. She writes that a Biden administration law "attempted to tackle" such issues, but it will take years to see results, adding that "rural communities remain vulnerable, especially as key industries like agriculture, mining, and manufacturing shrink due to automation."

'Dangerously' high measles cases in rural New York force governor to declare state of emergency

Measles cases have "increased dangerously" in rural New York, spurring Gov. Kathy Hochul to declare a statewide public health emergency, Joseph Goldstein reports for The New York Times. As of Oct. 3, 108 measles cases had been reported in the state, the most since 2019, and most of those cases are in the rural Finger Lakes region. In counties with the most cases, fewer than 80% of children have been vaccinated by age 2. 

Houchul's declaration will make it easier for midwives, pharmacists and other health care workers to administer measles shots. Hochul said the declaration would "strengthen our ongoing efforts to confront this disease," and that "no one should get seriously ill or die from a vaccine-preventable disease." 

Goldstein reports that the U.S. is facing a "resurgence in measles, driven by declining vaccination rates, with case counts soaring in 2026." There have been nearly 4,000 cases recorded in 2026 so far, "by far the highest in more than 30 years." He writes that South Carolina and Utah have been "especially hard hit," and that Pennsylvania has had more than 1,000 cases and five deaths from measles this year.

Measles is highly contagious, and can cause swelling in the brain that leads to blindness. Babies who are too young to be vaccinated are at high risk for the disease. Measles had been largely eradicated from the U.S. 25 years ago, but fears about the MMR vaccine causing autism have led to decreased vaccination rates, even though many scientific studies have debunked those claims. 

Tennessee botches lethal injection of Christa Gail Pike

Christa Gail Pike, 50, was scheduled for death by lethal injection in Tennessee on Sept. 30 for murdering and carving a pentagram into her JobCorps classmate, Colleen Slemmer, in 1995 in Knoxville. But Pike’s execution failed, with the media hearing her loudly snoring behind the curtain for nearly 40 minutes after being dosed with pentobarbital.

Pike survived two doses. At 7:46 p.m. on Sept. 30, prison officials closed the curtains to the media. They were reopened three minutes later, to Pike snoring, and closed again at 8:06 p.m., reports Tony Gonzalez, Catherine Sweeney and Tasha A.F. Lemley for Louisville Public Media. "At that time there was an announcement to escort media witnesses out of the area."

The Tennessee Department of Corrections issued a statement saying every protocol was followed, and Gov. Bill Lee said a third party would investigate what happened. This isn't the first botched execution in Tennessee. The lethal injection of Tony Carruthers was called off in 1994 after Tennessee executioners failed for over an hour to place an IV to administer pentobarbital.

According to Billy Witz and Emily Cochrane for The New York Times, Pike’s lawyers "called for Gov. Bill Lee to reduce her sentence to life in prison, calling the botched attempt to end her life with two doses of pentobarbital "cruel and torturous." Pike likely survived because the drug was degraded or did not enter her bloodstream. Slemmer’s mother wants to move forward with the execution.