Health Highlights: Oct. 17, 2008

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Social Security Benefits to Rise 5.8% in 2009

A 5.8 percent increase in Social Security benefits next year means the average retiree will receive an additional $63 per month, the U.S. government announced Thursday.

The increase, based on rises in the Consumer Price Index, is the largest since a 7.4 percent boost in 1982 and more than double the 2.3 percent increase this year, the Associated Press reported.

More than 55 million Americans will benefit from next year's cost of living increase, including more than 50 million on Social Security, and others who receive Supplemental Security Income payments for the poor.

The typical monthly Social Security check for one person will go from $1,090 to $1,153 per month, while the average couple receiving Social Security benefits will see an increase of $103 a month to $1,876, the AP reported.

A couple receiving the standard Supplemental Security Income payment will go from $956 to $1,011 per month, while the monthly SSI payment for an individual will go from $637 to $674 per month. The average monthly check for a disabled worker will go from $1,006 to $1,064 per month.

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EPA Tightens Lead Air Pollution Limits

A 10-fold tighter limit on lead air pollution announced Thursday by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was welcomed by environmentalists, who predicted the EPA would have to increase monitoring in order to enforce the new standard of 0.15 micrograms per cubic meter. The old standard was 1.5 micrograms per cubic meter.

"We commend EPA for taking a giant step in the right direction, but they need to greatly expand the lead monitoring network if they hope to enforce this standard," Dr. Gina Solomon, a senior scientist with the Natural Resource Defense Council, told the Associated Press.

The new standard will better protect everyone, but especially children, who can suffer learning, IQ and memory problems when exposed to even low levels of lead early in life, the EPA said.

Under the new standard, the 16,000 remaining sources of lead, including smelters, metal mines, and waste incinerators, will have to reduce their emissions, the AP reported. No later than October 2011, EPA will designate areas of the country that fail to meet the new standard, and state and local governments in those areas will be required to find ways to reduce lead emissions.

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People With Autism Less Likely to React on 'Gut Instinct': Study

A U.K study suggests that people with autism-related disorders are less influenced by "gut" decisions and less likely to make irrational decisions.

Study participants performed a task in which they had to decide whether or not to gamble with a sum of money. People with autism tended to be more consistent in their pattern of choice. Their greater attention to detail may have helped them avoid being influenced by their emotions, according to University College London researchers cited by United Press International.

The findings were published in the Journal of Neuroscience.

The researchers noted that decision making is a complex process that involves both analysis and intuition. Analysis involves computation and more rational thought, making it slower. Intuition is much faster but less accurate because it relies on gut instinct, UPI reported.