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Lottery system will determine who gets 48 licenses for retailers and 10 for processors of medical cannabis in 11 Kentucky regions
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS Gov. Andy Beshear gave an update on the medical cannabis licensing program Thursday after signing this year’s medical cannabis bill into law the day before. “We have worked hard to create a safe system that limits or eliminates abuse while still providing relief to that veteran suffering from PTSD…
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Flu shots limit infection rates, which are still elevated in Kentucky
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS The Kentucky Department for Public Health still considers hospitalizations for respiratory illnesses high and says flu activity remains elevated. Health officials say the best way to protect yourself from these viruses is to stay up to date with your vaccines. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that…
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Addiction Recovery Care urges Kentuckians with substance-use disorder to seek care
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS With the start of a new year, Addiction Recovery Care is encouraging individuals struggling with substance-use disorder to seek addiction care, noting that January is a time when people are often looking for a fresh start. In January 2023, ARC received nearly 1,000 additional calls from people seeking treatment…
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Emergency-room visits for respiratory illness 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 for Public Health’s weekly respiratory…
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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’
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, more than most, serves as a warning,” Terry…
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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 said in making the announcement Thursday. “It went…
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State’s weekly respiratory-virus update shows hospitalizations of Kentucky children for RSV are increasing
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS The state Department for Public Health‘s weekly respiratory virus update, released Thursday, Nov. 2, showed that COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) activity was moderate, influenza was low but increasing, and hospitalizations for COVID-19 and the flu remain low, but are increasing for children with RSV. The state’s respiratory-virus website, found…
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In the first two months of resumed checks for Medicaid eligibility, almost half of Kentucky members up for renewal lost their coverage
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS The end of the pandemic meant resumption of eligibility verification for Medicaid, and almost half of the Kentuckians who have been asked to renew their Medicaid coverage in the first two months of verification have lost it, mainly because they did not respond. Of the 153,386 people asked to…
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First drug to slow Alzheimer’s disease gets full FDA and Medicare approval for early-stage cases; drug is still in clinical trials at UK
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted full approval for the first drug to slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, opening the door for Medicare to pay for it. “This is the first medicine ever that actually changes the disease in the brain, removes a component of…
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Ticks can’t jump, but static electricity can throw them onto hosts
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS One more thing to know as you work to guard against the influx of ticks in Kentucky this year: Static electricity that is naturally produced by humans and other animals can cause a tick to be pulled onto them, a new study shows. “Until now, we had no idea…
Tag: Melissa Patrick
