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Ky. Rural Health Association’s annual conference to be held in Bowling Green Nov. 15-16; registration prices go up Nov. 2
The 20th annual conference of the Kentucky Rural Health Association will be held in Bowling Green Nov. 15-16 at Western Kentucky University‘s Knicely Conference Center, 2355 Nashville Rd. Through Thursday, Nov. 1, the...
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Providers didn’t give reason for prescribing opioids 1/3 of the time; study says better documentation could decrease prescribing
An analysis of medical records from 2006 to 2015 found that doctors didn’t record a diagnosis for opioid prescriptions almost one-third of the time. “The findings help support criticism by...
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Need for improved staffing in nursing homes and hospitals was among timely topics at annual Health Watch USA conference
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Several speakers at the Oct. 4 Health Watch USA Healthcare Transparency and Patient Safety Conference in Lexington talked about the importance of adequate staffing in nursing...
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Legislators say nursing-home staffing issues need a hearing soon, but co-chair of health panel suggests there’s no time before 2019
State legislators want a hearing on nursing home staffing in Kentucky, following a series of stories in the Lexington Herald-Leader that showed how some residents have died as a result of neglect. “A Republican leader...
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Congress sends President Trump a huge, comprehensive, bipartisian bill to fight the opioid epidemic; he says he will sign it
By a 98-1 vote Wednesday, the Senate passed the final version of a comprehensive package to address the opioid epidemic and sent it to President Donald Trump, who is expected...
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Panel at health policy forum cites alternatives to opioids for pain, and the need for a culture shift on the topic
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Kentucky has a new law restricting painkiller prescriptions to three days for acute pain, but an anecdotal story from one of the state’s leading...
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Red Bird dental clinic fixes teeth of people in drug treatment, preparing them for work and cutting need for painkillers
A dental clinic in southeastern Kentucky, with help from dental-school students, is pulling teeth and providing dentures for residents of drug-treatment centers “in hopes of building their self-confidence and putting them...
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U.S. Medicaid boss defends work rules and other ‘community engagement’ requirements, says they will thwart dependency
By Al Cross Kentucky Health News The director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services gave a spirited defense of work rules and other “community engagement” requirements in state Medicaid programs,...
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Federal judge strikes down state law Bevin cited, requiring abortion clinics to have agreements for ambulance service
Kentucky abortion clinics do not need to have written agreements with an ambulance service and hospital for patient care in the event of an emergency, because such restrictions are unconstitutional,...
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Kentucky loses a health champion who advocated for health equity and community-based solutions; Dr. Gil Friedell was 91
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Dr. Gilbert Friedell, who was a fierce advocate for health equity and finding community-based solutions to the many health issues that plague Kentucky, died...