Tag: General Assembly
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Louisville opens first needle exchange in state; officials predict rural counties will be slow to follow
Photo by Scott Utterback, The Courier-Journal Louisville Metro Public Health & Wellness opened its mobile needle-exchange program Wednesday, June 10, making Louisville the first place in Kentucky to implement such...
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State health commissioner backs needle exchanges, most controversial part of anti-heroin legislation passed this year
The Kentucky General Assembly cracked down in 2012 on “pill mills” that dispense painkillers irresponsibly, and addicts responded by going for heroin, creating a big problem in much of the...
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New health-related laws deal with heroin, dating violence, end-of-life care, prescriptions, colon-cancer and newborn screening
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News FRANKFORT, Ky. – The Kentucky General Assembly passed several health-related bills this session, including high-profile measures on heroin and dating violence. It did not...
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Heroin bill finally passes and is signed into law; Naloxone program put into motion; dating-violence bill sent to Beshear
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News The long-negotiated bill to tackle Kentucky’s heroin-overdose epidemic passed in the final hours of the 2015 legislative session. Almost immediately after the heroin bill...
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Advocates of state appeals for Medicaid managed-care claims make last-ditch effort to get it passed, by hijacking another bill
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News FRANKFORT, Ky. — Advocates of a bill to create a state appeals process for health-care providers to appeal decisions of Medicaid managed-care companies are...
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Bill to give civil protection to victims of dating violence is poised to become law, addressing a serious health issue for women
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News FRANKFORT, Ky. – Victims of violence between dating partners in Kentucky are about to get a law giving them civil court protection, after years of hitting...
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State Senate passes bill for independent appeals process for managed-care claims; hearing gets into details of the problem
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Managed-care organizations’ contracts allow them to deny Medicaid claims and not reimburse for services if they deem them not medically necessary. That means health-care...
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Senate Republican leaders killed the smoking-ban bill passed by the Democratic House but some of them say its time may come
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News On Feb. 13, for the first time, the Kentucky House of Representatives passed a statewide smoking ban to prohibit smoking in workplaces and indoor...
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Bill to cap co-payments for drugs is backed by emotional testimony, but opposed by health insurers and employer groups
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News FRANKFORT, Ky. — People with chronic conditions are often denied the best medication for their condition because it is not on their insurance plan’s...
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Bill would require Medicaid managed-care firms to pay contracted fees for ER visits; Senate hearing targets two companies
This story has been updated with comments from Wellcare of Kentucky. By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News FRANKFORT, Ky. — Managed care is touted as a way to achieve value-based...