Month: July 2026
Each year on July 15, the United Nations observes World Youth Skills Day, highlighting the importance of equipping young people with skills for the future through education and training.
For SLB, that commitment extends beyond a single day. Across the globe, employees volunteer to help expand access to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. Through hands-on learning, mentorship and community partnerships, these initiatives help students build confidence, learn about opportunities in STEM fields and develop practical skills.
Hands-On STEM Learning
In Mexico, students participating in the SLB Excellence in Education Development (SEED) program developed skills in design, programming, construction and teamwork throughout the 2025-26 school year.
Teams took part in national and international robotics competitions, earning recognitions for innovation, excellence and collaboration. Highlights included the program’s first all-female team becoming national champion in its category and another SEED team qualifying for the 2026 World Robotics Championship held in St. Louis, Missouri.
Bringing STEM Learning to Schools
In India, a new initiative called STEM on Wheels is helping address gaps in access to educational resources. Launched by SLB in partnership with a local nonprofit organization, the program brings hands-on STEM experiences directly to schools where access to laboratory facilities and digital tools may be limited. Students participate in interactive experiments, introductory robotics and coding activities with support from SLB volunteers.
Encouraging Girls in STEM
In Ghana, a SEED workshop focused on mentorship and encouragement. Members of a local Girls in Science and Technology Club spent time with SLB volunteers, who shared their experiences and offered guidance. The event included discussions about science and technology, personal development and ways to overcome challenges.
Making Coding More Accessible
In China, technology is helping make STEM education more accessible. Through the SEED-supported AI Programming Project for the Blind, students with sight loss are developing coding skills using voice-enabled programming software. Participants are also learning to operate robotic dogs, creating additional opportunities for hands-on learning and digital skills development.
While each initiative reflects the needs of its local community, all share a common goal: providing opportunities for young people to gain skills, experience and encouragement.
As SLB marks its centennial year, these programs reflect a long-standing commitment to supporting education initiatives in the communities where the company operates.
“At SLB, we believe education creates opportunities,” said Gwen Boyault, vice president of sustainability, SLB. “By supporting STEM learning and mentoring young people in our local communities, we aim to help the next generation develop skills, build confidence and pursue their goals.”
Learn more about SLB’s education and community initiatives in the company’s Sustainability Report.
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As America celebrates its 250th anniversary, Whirlpool Corporation is marking its own milestone: 115 years as the only remaining American-owned major kitchen and laundry appliance manufacturer based in the United States. Starting in July with America’s birthday, the company will celebrate with its 20,000 U.S. employees who power the company’s 11 manufacturing communities and additional corporate offices—and build toward a major consumer campaign to celebrate the company’s official anniversary date on November 11.
As the only American-owned appliance company, Whirlpool Corporation is proud to commemorate the country’s 250-year milestone alongside its consumers. What sets Whirlpool Corporation apart isn’t just its longevity. Approximately 80 percent of the major appliances it sells in the U.S. are produced in American factories—three times more than the average of its major competitors. Whirlpool Corporation has doubled down on American workers, American innovation, and American communities, spending $23 billion on U.S. manufacturing, labor, and logistics over the past decade.
Whirlpool Corporation is also proud to be an embedded part of the fabric of the communities where it operates. The company recently celebrated 27-years of work with Habitat for Humanity, donating $160 million and over 260,000 products, including providing a range, refrigerator and garbage disposal for every U.S. Habitat home. The company’s additional programs and initiatives such as the United Way, Feel Good Fridge, Care Counts, and work with Boys and Girls Clubs of America, support local community services, provide fresh food access to over 25,000 families in need, address student absenteeism in 160 schools and invest millions in local redevelopment and youth programs.
“For 115 years—nearly half of this nation’s history—Whirlpool Corporation has stayed and invested in American manufacturing, American workers, and American communities.”
“For 115 years—nearly half of this nation’s history—Whirlpool Corporation has stayed and invested in American manufacturing, American workers, and American communities,” said Marc Bitzer, Chairman and CEO, Whirlpool Corporation. “As America celebrates its 250th anniversary, we’re proud to honor our shared legacy with our employees, our partners, and the families who have trusted us to be the heartbeat of their homes since 1911.”
In July, Whirlpool Corporation will be kicking off its 115th-anniversary across its manufacturing facilities and corporate offices in Benton Harbor, Mich.; Chicago, Ill.; Amana, Iowa; Cleveland, Tenn.; Fall River, Mass.; Clyde, Findlay, Greenville, Marion, Ottawa, Perrysburg, Ohio; Tulsa, Okla.; and Racine, Wisc.
Coming This Fall: A Consumer Celebration Building to November 11
Three-quarters of U.S. households own at least one Whirlpool Corporation product today, including kitchen or laundry appliances from Whirlpool, KitchenAid, Maytag, Amana, JennAir or InSinkErator, according to a third-party survey.*
Whirlpool Corporation will unveil a major consumer-facing campaign in August designed to thank and celebrate consumers and the story of 115 years of consumer-centered innovation. The campaign will build momentum toward November 11—Whirlpool Corporation’s official 115th anniversary—with activities that celebrate multi-generational family stories connected to Whirlpool Corporation appliances and the legacy of American manufacturing.
“We are grateful to our consumers who keep choosing our brands time and time again. To be present in three out of four households across the United States means a lot to us, and makes us work even harder. The consumer campaign will invite Americans to share special moments, captured by camera, that Whirlpool Corporation brands were part of—whether it’s the appliance their grandparents loved, the kitchen their parents cooked in, or the laundry room where they make sure that soccer jersey is ready for the big game day today,” Bitzer added. “This is about connection, heritage, and family stories.”
View original content here.
*Based on a 2025 independent national survey of U.S. households with $30,000+ household income and owning one or more major kitchen or laundry appliances
Originally published on CVS Health Company Newsroom
HARTFORD, Conn., July 15, 2026 /3BL/ – Aetna®, a CVS Health® company (NYSE: CVS) today announced findings from the second Aetna Provider Survey. The Aetna Provider Survey is a quarterly study that polls the U.S. provider market to better understand their perceptions on payers and the industry, today and into the future. This survey series is intended to solicit timely, objective feedback from the U.S. provider market so we can identify opportunities to change the provider-payer dynamic and deepen trust over time.
The study revealed the average provider-payer trust score on a scale from 1-10 is now 6.1, up from 5.4 in the first quarter (Q1), with 38% of providers ranking payers 8 or higher. Providers are also recognizing that payers are making strides in several areas:
- 52% agree payers consistently deliver on their promises, an increase of 16 percentage points from Q1
- 56% agree payers provide clear coverage information, an increase of 12 percentage points from Q1
- 44% agree payers help patients navigate the health care system, an increase of 6 percentage points from Q1
“Trust is a foundational element of health care today. To truly transform the system, we need to continue to deepen the provider-payer relationship,” said Steve Nelson, Executive Vice President and President of Aetna, “At Aetna, we’ve invested significant time and resources to listen to our provider partners and take actions accordingly. I’m encouraged to see that these efforts are being acknowledged and, while there is more work ahead, we are heading in the right direction today and into the future.”
Reducing administrative burden to unlock more time for patient care
Providers continue to rank administrative burden as their top challenge, pointing overwhelmingly to managing patient records or prior authorization as the single biggest contributor — together, 84% of responses. They identified submitting prior authorization requests (58%), re-entering patient information (42%) and submitting claims (41%) as key pain points that can be unlocked by technology.
By rolling out technology enabled solutions, providers saw meaningful time savings for clinicians that can be redirected to patient care. More than 30% of respondents expect to save more than an hour and 80% expect to save more than 30 minutes daily.
Improving interoperability to help improve patient care
The majority (68%) of providers cited interoperability and data integrity as their top technology challenge, with almost a third (29%) stating that providing real time patient data is the most important action payers can take to help their clinical teams. In fact, almost half of respondents (47%) believe that having this data could save more than 10 minutes per appointment.
Providers cited other tangible benefits to their patients, with the top three answers including:
- More informed treatment decisions at the point of care (63%)
- Fewer claim denials and resubmissions (54%)
- Reduced patient wait times for treatment approvals (47%)
Leveraging digital tools to help members access care
Providers believe that new digital tools from payers – which include apps, portals and messaging tools – can make a significant improvement in patient navigation and engagement.
- 71% agree that payers’ digital services help patients better understand benefits and care options
- 68% agree payers’ digital services help patients better understand status of a prior authorization
- 72% agree that payers’ digital services help patients understand their claims status
Over the next five years, 84% agree that advances in technology will lead to better health outcomes, and 72% expect both population health and the patient experience to improve.
Survey methodology and the Aetna Provider Survey
The national study was conducted in Q2 2026 by Morning Consult, a global decision intelligence company. The survey polled a representative sample of U.S. providers comprised of 723 participants, including hospital system executives, physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and health IT leaders (CTO/CIOs) nationwide. The overall margin of error is ±4 percentage points.
The Aetna Provider Survey is a quarterly study that polls a representative sample of the U.S. provider market to better understand their perceptions, opportunities, and challenges today and into the future. This survey series is intended to solicit timely, objective feedback from the U.S. provider market so we can identify opportunities to change the provider-payer dynamic and deepen trust over time.
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About CVS Health
CVS Health is a leading health solutions company simplifying health care one person, one family and one community at a time. As of March 31, 2026, the Company had approximately 9,000 retail pharmacy locations, more than 1,000 walk-in and primary care medical clinics and a leading pharmacy benefits manager with approximately 88 million plan members. The Company also serves an estimated more than 37 million people through a broad range of health insurance products and related services. The Company’s integrated model uses personalized, technology driven services to connect people to simply better health, increasing access to quality care, delivering better outcomes, and lowering overall costs.
Media contact
Phil Blando
Phillip.Blando@cvshealth.com
Originally published on Guiding Stars Health & Nutrition News
As a dietitian, I often extol the nutrition benefits of eating a variety of foods. You know the drill: more variety equals a wider range of nutrients and other healthy food compounds. But there’s another side to the story that we often ignore: sometimes the pursuit of variety can work against you. Shocked? Don’t worry, I’m not advocating for boring food or eating the same thing all the time forever and ever. But sometimes variety makes sense, and other times it adds unwelcome complexity.
When More Variety Makes Eating More Complicated
In busy seasons of life, making a big effort to maximize variety in your meals means increased decision fatigue. And often these extra decisions only lead to unnecessary additional work. Think about how much time and effort is required to change things up. Researching new recipes, adding options to every grocery trip, rotating different snacks, meal prepping, cooking, and cleaning up afterward—whew! And don’t forget about planning ahead. The later in the day it gets, the harder it is to make healthy meal decisions. This isn’t to say that we should forget about variety completely. It just doesn’t need to show up everywhere, all the time. When life is chaotic, having a smaller set of familiar, healthy, and reliable meals can make day-to-day eating easier.
Variety May Lead to Eating More
Our brains are wired to respond to novelty. New flavors, textures, cuisines, and foods are simply more stimulating to us. But research consistently shows an association between greater food variety and increased food intake. This occurs in both animals and humans, and it helps explain some of the appeal of buffet-style meals. Sensory-specific satiety is a term that refers to our natural decline in interest in food that we’ve already sampled, while foods we haven’t yet eaten are still enticing. No wonder it’s hard to say “no” to dessert even though we’re already more than full! And greater variety among what scientists call “highly palatable foods,” like sweets and snacks, can also lead to overeating.
“Default Meals” Can Make Healthy Eating More Automatic
Limiting meal variety can support your eating and health goals if you do it with intention and forethought. Here’s how: come up with a few “default meals” that you enjoy, and are also healthy and balanced. These meals only limit variety in your diet in the sense that you’re not eating something different every single night. It’s not that the meals themselves don’t include a variety of foods—default meals definitely don’t have to be boring! And in exchange for less meal variety, you free yourself from coming up with new menus each day, or new entrees for dinner each night.
What types of meals should be default meals? You get to decide! You already know what types of meals work for your diet goals, so start with those as default choices. And if they’re easy to prepare, like sheet pan meals for example, even better. Many people benefit from reducing breakfast decisions to get out the door faster in the morning. So having 2-3 breakfast ideas and at least 3 dinner ideas may be all you need. You’ll find that default meals reduce decision fatigue and simplify meal planning and grocery shopping. They can also help you keep portions and nutrients more consistent day to day.
Keep Variety Where It Matters Most
Variety is a central principle for a healthy diet, and has the ability to boost overall nutrition. You can still take advantage of variety’s benefits by maximizing it where it does the most good. Here is where I’d suggest indulging your variety vibe:
- Fruits and vegetables
- Whole grains
- Legumes, pulses, nuts and seeds
- Plant-based protein sources
This doesn’t mean you won’t eat any other types of foods. But you’ll reap more nutrients if you mix it up in the categories above. Be strategic in support of your dietary goals by simplifying your choices in some areas, and diversifying them in others. For example, animal proteins are still fine to eat, but you may opt to limit variety for health reasons. Maybe you’ll emphasize mostly chicken, fish, eggs, and lean beef options to keep saturated fat levels down. Or minimize your intake of highly processed meats like lunch meats, frozen chicken tenders, and hot dogs. Using Guiding Stars shelf tags to find items that are more nutritious can also be a great grocery shopping hack to save time as you pick out these items at your store.
Support Weight Management: Minimize Variety in Certain Food Categories
Since our brains love novelty, it can be tough not to pick up a new flavor of ice cream, cereal, or granola bar. But plentiful options of desserts and sweet snacks are probably not going to do you any favors. Instead, they’ll likely make it harder to stick to your healthy eating habits. Don’t let yourself be distracted by every new treat that shows up on the store shelves. Instead, find a few things you enjoy and can work into your eating plan occasionally, or learn to make healthier treats for yourself.
Guiding Stars is an objective, evidence-based, nutrition guidance program that evaluates foods and beverages to make nutritious choices simple. Products that meet transparent nutrition criteria earn a 1, 2, or 3 star rating for good, better, and best nutrition. Guiding Stars can be found in more than 2,000 grocery stores, in Circana’ Attribute Marketplace, and through the Guiding Stars Food Finder app.