Health-care workers and public-school educators will serve as grand marshals of Gov. Andy Beshear's inauguration parade

Kentucky Health News Kentucky health-care workers and public-school educators will serve as grand marshals of Gov. Andy Beshear's inauguration parade, which is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 12 in Frankfort. The parade will be livestreamed on KET. “We are excited to continue moving Forward, Together for every...

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Uncle Sam wants you ... to help stop health-insurance companies from using misleading tactics to sell Medicare Advantage plans

iStock/Getty Images Plus illustration via KFF Health News By Susan Jaffe KFF Health News After an unprecedented crackdown on misleading advertising claims by insurers selling private Medicare Advantage and drug plans, the Biden administration hopes to unleash a special weapon to make sure companies follow the new...

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Humana and Cigna, a larger insurance firm, are talking merger

Photo by Joe Bulewicz, Bloomberg News Kentucky Health News Louisville-based Humana Inc. is in merger talks with The Cigna Group that would create the nation's third-largest company selling health insurance. The merger would "vault the combined company into the top tier of integrated health-care firms," The Wall Street...

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UK students planning medical careers start student organization to steer rural students into college and health-care opportunities

Jackson Miller, left, and Ethan Morgan started HealthCare Cats to help other students from rural areas navigate the many health-care education opportunities at the University of Kentucky. (UK photo) By Adrienne Clarke University of Kentucky Jackson Miller and Ethan Morgan, former Marshall County High...

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Kentucky Hospital Association says its annual survey shows state continues to have an 'acute shortage' of health care workers

Kentucky Hospital Association graph; to enlarge, click on ot; to download, right-click. By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News The Kentucky Hospital Association's annual Workforce Survey Report says Kentucky suffers from an "acute shortage" of health care workers, with nearly 13,000 job vacancies in hospitals...

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Emergency-room visits for respiratory illness in Kentucky went up for the sixth week in a row, as hospitalizations saw a slight dip

By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News As we head into the full swing of the holiday season and people start to gather indoors to celebrate while taking fewer precautions to protect themselves, respiratory viruses such as influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and Covid-19 are expected to surge.  The state Department...

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Bardstown woman who needs a kidney transplant testifies in Congress to change transplant policy; bill passes

LaQuayia Goldring of Bardstown prepared to testify before a U.S. Senate committee about the organ transplant process as she continues her nine year wait for a kidney. (WDRB photo) A Bardstown woman waiting on a kidney transplant shared her story with Congress and asked them to support legislation that would allow...

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You can get four more free at-home tests for Covid-19, and if you didn't get four already, you can get eight of them, starting Monday

Photo illustration by Patrick Sison, The Associated Press By The Associated Press Americans can order more free Covid-19 tests online for home delivery starting Monday. The U.S. government is offering to send another round of four at-home virus tests ahead of the typical surge in cases during the winter holiday season. Anyone...

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Lost in the mix of 'unwinding' Medicaid to its normal procedures: The state can cut off your health care over a technical error

An attorney who helped Beverly Likens says technical faults in the Medicaid eligibility system and state missteps caused a coverage gap that shouldn't have occurred. (Photo by Veronica Turner for KFF Health News) By Rachana Pradhan KFF Health News The day her Medicaid coverage ended, Beverly Likens was in the hospital...

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UK doctor debunks myths about lung-cancer screening, which can find cancer before it spreads or causes symptoms, and save lives

Photo illustration by dragana991, iStock/Getty Images Plus By Timothy Mullett, M.D. University of Kentucky Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S., claiming more lives than prostate cancer, breast cancer, and colorectal cancer combined. However, it can be a curable disease if detected early through...

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Legislators expect to address youth vaping, maternal mortality, insurance issues and maybe abortion in upcoming session

Rep. Kim Moser, Sen. Stephen Meredith, Rep. Rebecca Raymer and moderator Mark Marsh of Owensboro Health, discuss issues at the Legislative Preview Conference. (Photo by Melissa Patrick) By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News State legislators expect to see bills that address youth vaping, workplace violence, data...

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Kentucky first state with automatic Medicaid renewal for children

By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Kentucky has received federal approval to automatically renew coverage for children in Medicaid or the Kentucky Children's Health Insurance Program for 12 months.  " Kentucky is the first state in the country to implement this kind of flexibility," Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman...

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Kids Count County Data Book looks at the well-being of state's children, county by county, and has some 'warning signs'

Kentucky Youth Advocates graphic By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News The 2023 Kentucky Kids Count County Data Book, which looks at the well-being of children in each county, serves as a guidepost for how Kentucky's children are doing. This year, it comes with some "warning signs." "This year's Kids Count report,...

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Ky. kids' vaccination rates rose last school year, but remained below national average and short of 'herd immunity' level

Graph by Kentucky Department for Public Health from state and CDC data By Al Cross Kentucky Health News More Kentucky children are getting their basic vaccinations, after three years of decline, but the state remains below the national average, and below the level needed to protect the whole population. In the 2022-23...

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More than 1 in 10 minors ambulanced to ERs have behavioral issues, but EMS lacks guidelines in Ky. and most other states

Photo illustration by Maga Doctor News Kentucky Health News Here's another indication that the country has a youth mental-health crisis: More than 1 in 10 minors who were brought to the hospital by ambulance in 2019-20 had a behavioral-health emergency, and 85 percent were between 11 and 18 years old, says a study...

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A warning for the holidays: The risk of getting Covid-19 in a crowded indooor setting is still very high, state health chief says

The novel coronavirus, Covid-19, is not so novel anymore, but it remains the fifth leading cause of death in the United States and will be a threat as families gather indoors on what is forecast to be a cold Thanksgiving weekend, says Kentucky's public-health commissioner. Dr. Steven Stack (WEKU photo) Dr. Steven...

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Opioid panel leader cites support for government-funded research into psychedlic drug; members have robust discussion of the idea

By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News The commission that spends the state's half of opioid settlements with drug makers, distributors and retailers agreed Tuesday to simplify its grant applicaiton process, then had a robust discussion about its chair's proposal to spend up to $42 million on clinical trials that could lead...

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