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TORONTO — Shoppers Drug Mart has been granted a licence to sell medical marijuana online.

Health Canada’s list of authorized cannabis sellers and producers has been updated to reflect that the pharmacy can sell dried and fresh cannabis, as well as plants, seeds and oil.

A website has been set up by the company, which says that patients “with a valid medical document will soon be able to purchase a wide selection of medical cannabis products” from Shoppers.

A spokeswoman for Shoppers’ parent company Loblaw Companies Ltd. says it’s too soon to say when people will be able to start making orders.

Granted producer license already

She says the company is still working through a “technical issue” with Health Canada.

The company was granted a medical marijuana producer licence in September, after initially applying in October 2016.

Shoppers has said that it has no interest in producing medical cannabis, but the licence is required in order to sell the product to patients.

Under the current Health Canada regulations for medical pot, the only legal distribution method is by mail order from licensed producers direct to patients.

The first poster for Toy Story 4 has popped up, and it’s a little more downbeat-looking than today’s teaser trailer.

Featuring a lone Woody giving a (goodbye?) hat-tip against a plain background, it definitely lends some credence to the idea that the film might be a little melancholy, after Tim Allen said he “couldn’t even get through the last scene” during recordings.

 

Woody voice actor Tom Hanks has said that the ending is “impactful”, and called the movie a “moment in history”.

Those intense voice lines seem to have arrived quite late, after writers Rashida Jones and Will McCormack dropped out of production, and the original script was reportedly mostly thrown out.

Toy Story 4 is set to hit theaters on June 21, 2019.

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Joe Skrebels is IGN’s UK News Editor, and he is quite afraid of how much he’ll cry at this. Follow him on Twitter.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Missouri Western senior Tiffany Gillaspy and St. Mary’s (Texas) senior Vianna Gutierrez Touchtone were named Louisville/Slugger NFCA Division II National Player and Pitcher of the Week, respectively, for games played over March 16-22.

 

Gillaspy, a native Johnston, Iowa, batted .529 and slugged 1.059 to help the Griffons win all 10 games last week. The senior infielder was 18-for-34 at the plate with four doubles, four home runs and a triple. She knocked in 15 runs, scored 12 times and did not strikeout in 35 plate appearances.

“Being named national player of the week is a huge honor, especially with the week we just had as a team,” said Gillaspy. “I have so much confidence in my team and I can’t wait to see where the season takes us.”

Gillaspy recorded a hit in nine games, which included three, three-hit outings and a total of six multi-hit contests. She posted a pair of 3-for-4 efforts with a RBI and two runs scored in a doubleheader sweep of Southeastern Oklahoma State. The MIAA Hitter of the Week launched two home runs, knocked in three and scored twice versus Concordia-St. Paul and also went 3-for-4 with a double, three RBI and two runs against Wayne State College.

“When she is seeing the ball, she is unbelievable,” head coach Jen Bagley Trotter said. “This past week, I don’t think she was seeing anything else.”

Gutierrez Touchtone went 3-0 in the circle with a pair of complete-game shutouts and a third in which she combined on a no-hitter against Newman with teammate Veronica Garcia. Striking out 21 in 17 innings, she did not allow a run and held her opponents to a .050 batting average (3 hits).

“I’m kind of in shock,” said Gutierrez Touchtone. “I’m very honored. It’s hard coming back from an injury and surgery; to come back and perform like this is pretty amazing if you ask me. I think every athlete has their doubts after they get a pretty serious injury like I had last year when I tore my ACL and meniscus. With the help of my physical therapist and my family, I was able to get through it. Time was my friend. I had a lot of time.”

A native of San Antonio Texas, Gutierrez Touchtone twirled a one-hit shutout with seven strikeouts in a 7-0 win over Newman and closed out the series with five innings of no-hit ball with six strikeouts against the Lady Jets. The righty also earned a five-inning two-hit shutout with eight punchouts versus Texas A&M-Kingsville and went on to be the Heartland Pitcher of the Week.

“We knew going into this year that we wanted to lean on Vianna,” said head coach Donna Fields. “If she could be strong on the mound then we could continue to develop our young pitching staff. She is also very vital for us offensively. Our lineup is that much stronger offensively when she is on the mound. Vianna is a very hard worker and determined athlete. This recognition is a great honor for her.”

Player of the Week
March 25 – Tiffany Gillaspy (Missouri Western)
March 18 – Tiffany Hollingsworth (Humboldt State)
March 11 – Stephanie Mark (Northwest Missouri State)
March 4 – Jayne MacDonald (Cal State East Bay)
Feb. 25 – Ashley Walker (Winona State)
Feb. 18 – Nicole Nobbe (Cal State San Bernardino)

Pitcher of the Week
March 25 – Vianna Gutierrez Touchtone (St. Mary’s)
March 18 – Hannah Perryman (Missouri-St. Louis)
March 11 – Caitlyn Calhoun (Valdosta State)
March 4 – Courtney Poole (North Georgia)
Feb. 25 – Shea Coats (Oklahoma Christian)
Feb. 18 – Caitlyn Calhoun (Valdosta State)

Selected Top Performances
Columbus State’s Kailey Boone batted .727 (16-22) with three doubles, two home runs, five RBI and eight runs scored to garner Peach Belt Player of the Week honors… Henderson State’s Michelle Sorensen was 2-0 with a save and tossed a no-hitter (6K, 1BB) versus Northwestern State to take home GAC Co-Pitcher of the Week honors… SAC Player of the Week, Sarah Kenley of Lenoir Rhyne, batted .444 with five doubles, two home runs and nine RBI… Megan Miller of Saint Martin’s batted .750 (6-8), which included a game-two cycle, two doubles, a triple and home run, on her way to a GNAC Player of the Week accolade… Lone Star Player of the Week, Katelyn Conlee of Tarleton State, hit .643 (9-14) with four doubles, a walk-off home run and eight RBI… Rollins’ Hailee Keisling took home Sunshine State Player of the Week honors after batting .619 (13-21) with eight RBI and six runs, and did not strikeout… PSAC East Pitcher of the Week, Savannah Nierintz of Kutztown, went 3-0 with a 0.40 ERA and two complete games in three appearances last week… Concord’s Lacey McDougall was selected Mountain East Player of the Week after batting .588 (10-17) with two home runs, one of which was a grand slam, and 12 RBI…Taylor Menhardt of Ashland batted .643 (9-14) with four doubles, a triple, home run, three RBI and six runs scored to earn GLIAC Player of the Week recognition… Florida Tech’s Rachel Pence was tabbed Sunshine State Pitcher of the Week after going 3-1, allowing a run and posting a WHIP of 0.69… Gulf South Player of the Week, Michal Robertson of Alabama Huntsville, batted .786 (11-14) with two doubles, three long balls, eight RBI, five runs and two stolen bases… Cameron’s Tara Martinia launched three home runs with 10 RBI and nine runs scored… West Texas A&M’s Allie Smith batted .538 with two doubles, a home run and 10 RBI in four games… Cal State Chico’s Haley Gilham tossed a pair of complete game shutouts against then-No. 3 Cal State Monterey Bay, surrendering just seven hits, striking out 12 in 14 innings to garner CCAA Pitcher of the Week accolades… RMAC Player of the Week, Western New Mexico’s Mariangela Garcia hit .579 with 11 hits, three doubles, a triple, home run, seven RBI and two stolen bases… Dixie State’s Aryn Feickert tossed a perfect game against Academy of Art striking out seven in five innings, while Paige Crawford of Hawai’i Pacific twirled a no-hitter with seven strikeouts to earn PacWest Co-Pitcher of the week recognition

Nearly six in 10 deaths from treatable conditions in low- and middle-income countries result from low-quality health care — a bigger killer than insufficient access to treatment, say researchers.

Every year, about five million people in these countries die as a result of sub-standard care, according to a report published by The Lancet medical journal.

This was out of 8.6 million total deaths from treatable conditions, and far outweighs the 3.6 million deaths from lack of access to health care.

Overall, deaths from treatable conditions cost the global economy some $6 trillion in 2015 alone, the researchers found, pointing to “systematic deficits” in primary and hospital care.

“For too long, the global health discourse has been focused on improving access to care without sufficient emphasis on high-quality care,” said Muhammad Pate, a co-author of the report by The Lancet Global Health Commission, of which he is co-chairman.

“Providing health services without guaranteeing a minimum level of quality is ineffective, wasteful and unethical,” he said, and warned there was a “vast epidemic of low-quality care.”

Substandard care was a factor in 84 per cent of cardiovascular deaths, 81 per cent of vaccine-preventable diseases, and 61 per cent of post-birth complications.

Epidemic of poor care

Typically, mothers and children in low- and middle-income countries received less than half the recommended interventions — including blood pressure monitoring during birth, and newborn checkups.

Less than half of suspected tuberculosis cases were correctly managed, and fewer than one in 10 people with a major depressive disorder received even minimally adequate treatment, the report said.

“Diagnoses are frequently incorrect for serious conditions” such as pneumonia, heart attacks, or newborn asphyxia, a condition that can cause death by suffocation, it added.

“Care can be too slow for conditions that require timely action, reducing chances of survival.”

Among women receiving medical care during pregnancy, the wealthiest were four times more likely to have urine and blood tests done, and to have their blood pressure monitored.

The highest toll was in India, where substandard health care was responsible for an estimated 1.6 million deaths a year, the researchers said.

“Quality care should not be the purview of the elite, or an aspiration for some distant future; it should be the DNA of all health systems,” said commission co-chair Margaret Kruk of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

“Countries will know they are on the way towards high-quality, accountable health systems when health workers and policymakers choose to receive health care in their own public institutions.”

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Sporting a perfect 5-0 record over the weekend at the USF Softball Classic, Florida (5-0) remained No. 1 in the USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll.

 

The Gators received 24 of 29 possible first place votes and pushed their lead from five to 16 points over the No. 2 Oregon Ducks as the top four spots in the poll remained the same. Their in-state opening weekend in Tampa included a 2-1 win over No. 8 Michigan and a 10-5 triumph over the host Bulls. Florida also picked up three run-rule shutouts against Hampton (17-0), Illinois State (8-0) and Jacksonville (9-0).

Oregon (6-0), Alabama (6-0) and Oklahoma (5-0) all sported undefeated marks. The Ducks (699 points), who picked up four first place votes, lit up the scoreboard at the Kajikawa Classic, totaling 54 runs in six games. They recorded three shutouts against Cal Poly (8-0), Texas (9-0) and Northwestern (8-0) and also topped North Carolina (8-5), Wisconsin (10-2) and Nevada (12-8).

The Crimson Tide (662 points) had their hands full in its season opener at in-state foe South Alabama, edging the Jaguars, 2-1, with a seventh-inning comeback. They went on to go 5-0 at the Sand Dollar Classic (Gulf Shores, Ala.) defeating Eastern Kentucky (8-0), Houston (6-2), Florida Gulf Coast (13-1), Florida International (11-2) and McNeese State (4-0).

Following a dominating performance at the Oceanic Time Warner Cable Paradise Classic in Honolulu, the Sooners stayed strong at No. 4 with one first place vote and 641 points. Oklahoma outscored its opponents 52-5, topping then-No. 25 DePaul (9-2 / 11-3), host Hawaii (7-0 / 8-0) and St. Mary’s (17-0).

Kentucky and Florida State flipped positions after splitting a pair of games against each other at the Seminoles’ Renegade Classic. The Wildcats (566) capped off their 5-1 week with a 3-1 victory over the Seminoles. They also defeated Georgia Southern twice (9-0 / 10-0) in Tallahassee, Fla. and opened the season with a road win at Florida A&M (4-2). The Seminoles edged the Wildcats, 3-2 and also picked up a pair of triumphs over Georgia Southern (8-0 / 4-0).

Louisiana Lafayette moved up two spots to No. 7 after a 4-0 week at home, while Michigan (3-1) remained at No. 8. Rounding out the top 10 are Baylor (5-0) and Georgia (6-0), each jumping up one spot in the poll after undefeated opening weeks at home.

With the exit of No. 25 DePaul, Cal State Fullerton slid into the 25^th spot after a 4-1 week. Co-hosting the So Cal Collegiate Challenge, the Titans defeated then No. 22 Notre Dame, 8-7 as well as Purdue (5-3), Idaho State (3-1) and Northwestern State (6-4).

The USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll is voted on by 32 NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each conference.  Current 2015 records are shown and first-place votes are in parentheses.

USA Today/NFCA Division I Softball Poll – Feb. 10, 2015

Rank

Team

2015 Record

Totals

Prev. Rank

1

Florida (24)

5-0

715

1

2

Oregon (4)

6-0

699

2

3

Alabama

6-0

662

3

4

Oklahoma (1)

5-0

641

4

5

Kentucky

4-1

566

6

6

Florida State

3-1

553

5

7

Louisiana Lafayette

4-0

520

9

8

Michigan

3-1

509

8

9

Baylor

5-0

466

10

10

Georgia

6-0

454

12

11

Tennessee

4-0

413

13

12

UCLA

4-2

410

7

13

Minnesota

5-0

390

15

14

Arizona

3-0

369

14

15

Washington

4-1

337

11

16

LSU

5-0

281

19

17

Auburn

6-0

268

20

18

Missouri

0-0

247

17

19

Nebraska

4-1

199

18

20

Notre Dame

4-1

193

22

21

Arizona State

4-3

128

16

22

Tulsa

4-1

91

21

23

Texas A&M

3-2

73

24

24

South Alabama

3-2

43

23

25

Cal State Fullerton

4-1

41

RV

Dropped out: No. 25 DePaul 

Others Receiving Votes: Texas (37), UCF (34), James Madison (17), California (16), South Carolina (15), Hofstra (8), Stanford (7), USF (7), Virginia Tech (5), Cal State Northridge (4), North Carolina State (4), Mississippi State (3).

Once again it’s tax time and that means it’s also time for my annual battle with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), but it’s not for the reason you might think. I’m not averse to paying taxes. I am annoyed at the CRA’s continuing discrimination against those of us who wish to file a paper return.

The federal government’s commitment to electronic filing is all well and good, particularly for those taxpayers who wish to choose that option. But that fact doesn’t give the CRA the right to undercut those of us who still choose the paper-filing route.

I have my reasons for choosing paper, including being more comfortable with paper filing, the ease of relying on past paper records, and the government’s questionable record implementing and maintaining electronic online systems (the Phoenix pay system, the Canada.ca project and the long-gun registry, to name but three). It seems that whenever the feds try to implement a government-wide computerized system, the only thing that increases are the cost overruns.

In any event, I’m not sure why I should have to justify my preference for paper filing. After all, I’m trying to give the government some of my money, so presumably they would want to make that easy for me.

Needless to say, the CRA does not go out of its way to accommodate paper filers. In fact, the last 10 years has seen them make it increasingly difficult to submit a paper return. The most egregious step was the elimination of the annual mailing of personalized forms to those still filing by paper, a step that was hardest on low-income filers and those with no (or poor) internet connections.

Luckily, it appears that there have been enough complaints from Luddites like me that the government has reversed that policy. For the past few years, I either had to order the forms online and hope that they actually showed up, or visit my local Canada Post outlet. I’m happy to report that because I filed a paper return last year, a paper return for the 2018 tax year recently showed up in my mailbox.

Sadly, that victory did not come without cost. A recent visit to my local Canada Post outlet revealed no 2018 income tax packages. Instead, there was a notice urging taxpayers to file electronically, print the forms themselves or order them online (an option that, in my experience, is somewhat unpredictable).

Still, there was another small tax form victory for the little guy this year. If you’re running a small business (in my case, a Lilliputian writing business with barely a four-figure income), it used to be you could order the required form online in as many numbers as you needed.

Two years ago, that changed. You were not allowed to order that particular form (form T2125 for those with a bureaucratic bent). Instead, you had to print it from the CRA website which was no easy matter for folks who didn’t have an internet connection and a printer.

Again, the Canada Revenue Agency relented and is once again allowing people to order form T2125 online, but with one small catch: you can only order one copy. When I tried to order a second copy for my wife’s business, the system blocked me.

I then phoned the CRA personal tax line and talked to a nice young woman who offered to help me out. But when she tried to order the form, the order was again blocked. Since our one-year-old printer is no longer functional, she suggested we go somewhere and make a copy at our expense. When I politely asked to speak to her supervisor, she took down my number, claimed to transfer my call and promptly disconnected me.

The fact that I’m not alone in receiving sub-par service from the CRA is small comfort.

I’m not sure why the CRA continues to make life difficult for the little guy. Unlike rich tax avoiders with their offshore holdings, wealthy corporations with their maze of tax loopholes and deferments, and the cash-under-the-table tax evaders, we paper filers are simply honest citizens trying to pay our taxes and do the right thing. Sadly, that seems to count for little these days.

Have you been affected personally by this or another issue? Share your story on HuffPost Canada blogs. We feature the best of Canadian opinion and perspectives. Find out how to contribute here.

CHADRON, Neb. – The thoughts of the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and the entire softball community are with the Chadron State softball program, CSC’s entire athletics and campus community as well as family and friends of sophomore infielder Fatima Larios (Seaside, Calif.), who passed away unexpectedly early Saturday morning.

 

A candlelight vigil is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Tuesday night at the Chadron State College Softball Field to honor the life of Larios. Members of the CSC softball team are asking those who knew Larios to bring candles. They are also encouraging others to share photos and memories.

A memorial service is tentatively planned for next week on campus. Details will be released once they are finalized.

— Information and image courtesy of CSC Athletics