Category: YOUR HEALTH
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This year’s smoking-ban bill is dead; Senate advocates have bill to make insurers provide all smoking cessation treatments
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Despite early hope, the bill to ban smoking in Kentucky workplaces was likely dead on arrival this year. “I haven’t heard anything about the...
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Hard-fought bill to protect independent pharmacies passes Senate committee; would regulate pharmacy benefit managers
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Update March 28: SB 117 passed the Senate March 14 with a 38-0 vote and passed the House March 25 with a 97-0 vote....
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First case of Zika confirmed in Ky., from traveler to Central America; no threat to Kentuckians unless they visit affected areas
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News After the first case of Zika was confirmed in Kentucky March 9, health officials held a news conference at the Capitol to raise awareness...
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McConnell touts bill to fight opioid abuse; blocks extra funding, says money is available and more should require cuts elsewhere
The U.S. Senate passed a bill 94-1 March 10 aimed at “the growing epidemic of painkiller and heroin abuse,” Karoun Demirjian reports for The Washington Post. “Drug abuse has been...
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Bill to keep dirty needles out of landfills hijacked with amendment to require needle-exchange programs to be one-for-one
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News A House bill to educate the public about how to safely dispose of hypodermic needles easily passed was hit with a surprise amendment that...
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Low-income workers say to keep Kynect and Medicaid expansion; advocates wonder how new insurance exchange will work
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News As Republican Gov. Matt Bevin’s administration moves forward with plans to dismantle Kynect, the state’s health insurance exchange, several working Kentuckians shared stories at...
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About 60% of Ky. schools give all students free breakfast and lunch; federal program for those with mainly low-income students
photo: Kentucky Department of Education During the 2014-15 school year, 104 of the 173 public school districts in Kentucky provided free breakfast and lunch to all students, with 610 schools...
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Poll: Most Kentucky adults, especially the poor, say time, money and motivation make it hard to improve their health status
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Regardless of how Kentucky adults describe their health status, almost two-thirds of them said it would be difficult or very difficult to make positive...
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Bevin administration will still have state health-insurance exchange but use federal exchange for enrollment; cost debated
By Melissa Patrick and Al Cross Kentucky Health News Republican Gov. Matt Bevin appears to have found a way to abolish the Kynect health-insurance exchange without chasing away insurance companies...
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Whistleblower lawsuit accuses Humana of billing fraud in Florida, says misleading data in medical records put patients at risk
By Fred Schulte Center for Public Integrity Louisville-based Humana Inc., which operates some of the nation’s largest private Medicare health plans, knew for years of billing fraud at some South...