MyAJC.com provides in-depth coverage of the top stories affecting metro Atlantans. Here are three highlights from this past week that you might have missed. Get more details on myAJC.com by clicking on the links below.
TAX CUTS FOR GEORGIANS ... BUT NOT DELTA: The Georgia House and Senate overwhelmingly backed legislation Thursday to cut state income tax rates. That's good news for Georgia residents, but the votes were in the national news for another reason: what was dropped from the legislation — a fuel tax break that would have saved Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines tens of millions of dollars annually. That plan was axed from the tax bill after the airline dropped its discount for National Rifle Association members in the wake of the deadly Florida school shooting and ensuing gun debate. As Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle tweeted: "I will kill any tax legislation that benefits @Delta unless the company changes its position and fully reinstates its relationship with @NRA. Corporations cannot attack conservatives and expect us not to fight back." Gov. Nathan Deal signed the bill into law on Friday, and it's expected to cut taxes on Georgians by an estimated $330 million over the next five years.
• THE TAX BILL: What it means for Georgia taxpayers
• IT'S OFFICIAL: Governor signs tax break for residents
• AMAZON EFFECT? Does punishing Delta put 50,000 possible jobs from Amazon at risk?
• WHERE LEGISLATION STANDS: The session is officially halfway over. Click here for the AJC's Legislative Navigator to check the status of bills.
FLU SEASON ISN'T QUITE OVER: While health experts say the worst may be behind us, Georgia residents should remain wary of the flu. In the week ending Feb. 17, Georgia reported 19 new flu-related deaths, for a seasonal total nearing 100. While Georgia's flu-related hospitalizations announced last weekend finally seem to be plateauing, for the first time they surpassed 2,000. Even this late in the season, with people still being infected and still being hospitalized, it's worth it to get the flu shot, said Ted Ross, the director of the University of Georgia's Center for Vaccines and Immunology. Officials with the Atlanta-based U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommend it, spokeswoman Kristen Nordlund said.
• TRACKING THE TOLL: Georgia flu keeps rolling
• VACCINE PATCH HAS ROOTS IN ATLANTA: Click here to watch the Channel 2 Action News report
• NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE: Could the worst be over for U.S.?
MAJOR OPIOID RING: Forty-four people were arrested Thursday as part of a huge metro Atlanta opioid ring led by a nationally known pathologist who authorities say traded prescription drugs for sex. Federal authorities allege that Dr. Joe Burton — who once served as medical examiner for Cobb, Gwinnett, DeKalb, Clayton, Douglas, Paulding and Rockdale counties — was the "central figure" in a massive prescription drug ring that put some 108,000 pills, including Oxycodone, hydrocodone and methadone, on the streets.
• RENOWNED MEDICAL EXAMINER CHARGED: More details in the case
• DOCTORS AND THE OPIOID CRISIS: An AJC national investigation
