Author: Al Cross
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Surge by a stronger strain of the flu is another warning that the season for the disease is not over; shots still available and useful
“Though influenza activity typically peaks by February’s end, the flu season isn’t over – and a harsher strain called H3N2 has increased in circulation both nationwide and in Kentucky,” reports Caroline Eggers...
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Guthrie tries to preserve funding for Medicaid program that gets beneficiaries out of facilities and into community-based support
Brett Guthrie (Ft. Collins Coloradoan photo) — U.S. Rep. Brett Guthrie is working to find money to save a program aimed at moving Medicaid beneficiaries, mainly those with disabilities, out of...
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Studies show that volunteer work helps your health; Kentucky’s level of volunteerism depends on how you measure it
Most Kentucky adults are involved in some community activity, broadly defined, but the state ranks below average, 36th, in the latest state-by-state ranking of volunteerism. “Volunteering can improve a community’s health and...
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Health providers and advocates oppose Medicaid co-payment, say it creates barrier to care and administrative burden
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Health advocates at a regulatory meeting about the state’s new Medicaid co-payment requirements said the new rule is riddled with problems, all of which they anticipated....
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Bill to raise legal age to buy tobacco products to 21 fails on 4-6 committee vote; bill’s effectiveness questioned, called ‘PR move’
Sen. Steve Meredith, middle, with Altria Vice President David Fernandez, right, and Juul Labs lobbyist Jennifer Cunningham on his bill to raise the legal age for buying tobacco products. (Photo: Adam Beam, The Associated Press)...
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Ambulance runs for rural patients are 76% longer when their hospital closes, and for seniors, it’s 98% longer, study finds
When a rural hospital closes, it’s logical to assume that patients in its former service area will spend more time in ambulances getting to an emergency room farther away. A University...
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Report on Medicaid pharmacy managers confirms they make a profit at the expense of pharmacies; calls for new payment model
Sen. Max Wise has been outspoken in his criticism of pharmacy benefit managers. A “long-awaited state report” on how pharmacy benefit managers are paid seems to confirm the suspicion that...
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Tobacco-free schools bill is in trouble in the House; sponsor, a Republican, can’t get enough of her party’s members to be for it
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News A bill to make all Kentucky school properties and events tobacco-free is in trouble in the state House, prompting advocates to mount a rescue...
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Ky. officials rejected infectious-disease chief’s plea to move faster against hepatitis A outbreak, now nation’s largest and deadliest
As part of a package of stories about Kentucky’s hepatitis A outbreak, which is the “worst this century, sickening nearly 4,100 and killing 40,” Laura Ungar and Chris Kenning of...
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Poll finds those with dental insurance are more likely to visit the dentist, and insurance often depends on income
Nearly 60 percent of Kentucky adults saw a dentist in the past year, but 26 percent said they delayed dental care because it cost too much, according to the latest...