Health Care

Deputy jailers did not follow proper protocols before sending 10 prisoners out of the jail for medical treatment, a representative of the jail's contracted health care company told the Clark County Fiscal Court Tuesday. “You've actually had about 10 individuals that the staff did not follow protocols in the evening, that were submitted off-site and sent, not even sure if the doctor was called or not just because there was no protocol to follow this and the rationale behind it,” said Michael Coffey, an expense analyst for Advanced Correctional Healthcare.

If you read all the celebrity magazines like I do, then you know all about all the things one can do to push back the wrinkles of time and to make one look young and beautiful again. Years ago we lived on the upscale island of Key Biscayne. We had an oceanfront condo in the famous Towers and just one floor above us lived a friend named Fred - Dr. Fred - and his specialty was plastic surgery. I remember many times sitting in our kitchen with him as he described this miracle injection drug named botox, and I also remember how I wished I could do such a thing.

A Medicare voucher system is an ill-conceived plan. That places the burden of rising health care costs on either the state or future retirees. The concept that competition among insurance providers will provide better coverage for less money is a joke.  If competition among insurance companies were the answer, then we would not even be having this discussion, because we would all be able to pay for our own health insurance. A true national health care program would cover every American citizen from conception to the grave.

Changes to the state Medicaid program could lead to the end of a partnership between the Clark County Health Department and the Clark County Board of Education. In November 2011, the state began contracting with managed care organizations,¿Kentucky Spirit Health Care, Coventry Cares and Wellcare, to operate the Medicaid program. Since then, the Health Department has seen a dramatic decrease in payments for Medicaid patients, and a lawsuit between the state and Kentucky Spirit has put a halt to reimbursement for health services provided in public schools.

Ephraim McDowell Health Care Foundation is the only Kentucky recipient of a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant through the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Monday that the foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, will receive $160,264 to help provide full-field digital mammography, dedicated high-speed phone lines, computerized radiology and a new state-of-the-art mobile medical vehicle for its  health-care system. Randy Green, the foundation’s interim executive director, said no one from the foundation had received official notification of the award at press time, but he expressed excitement about the announcement.

McDowell Place of Danville will host a health care decisions educational series beginning April 9. The free educational programs are designed for seniors and they focus on helping individuals make informed decisions about their health care.   The dates and topics of the educational opportunities are as follows: April 9: “Balancing an Investment Portfolio to Meet Long Term Care Expenses” by Bill Griffin, financial advisor with Edward Jones April 11: “Medicare Review and Will Obamacare Affect You?

In his 46 years in the Senate, no other legislator did more to improve health care for Americans than Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. Early in his career, he secured funding to build community health clinics, educate physicians to serve poor parts of the country, and expand research on cancer. As a more seasoned lawmaker, he was able to work with both Democrats and Republicans to pass important health laws such as the State Children's Health Insurance Program, the Family and Medical Leave Act and the COBRA rule to make employee health insurance portable.

Dear Editor, I find it quite unbelievable that people who call themselves Christians could be so vehemently against everyone having health care, or Medicare, especially since all our congressmen and women have it. Is it because some of us will pay higher taxes? Maybe some of us look down on those who have lost a job, or who are not as well educated as we are, or perhaps they aren't the right color, or - heaven forbid ? not born in this wonderful country. Jesus said "?

President Bush recently vetoed two bills that would have more than doubled funding for the State Children's Health Program. Good for him. The federal government in 1997 created SCHIP, as it's known, to provide health insurance for children of low-income families. These households earn too much for Medicaid, but not enough to afford medical insurance. More than 6 million children participate in the $5-billion-a-year program. Currently, eligibility is limited to those who earn 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

The Winchester-Clark County Chamber of Commerce is hosting a seminar on the new health care reform law and how it affects employers and the affect it will have on their businesses. With the passage of the most significant reform of America's modern-day health care system, many small business owners and human resources professionals are trying to assess what the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) means for their organizations.   The seminar will be held Thursday, April 26,  from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. at Clark Regional Medical Center, 1 Hospital Drive.  Cost is $10 per person for Chamber members and $15 for nonmembers - breakfast is included.  Deadline to register is April 20.  Call 859-744-6420 to register.  Seating is limited.