Princess Health and Smoking ban bill clears House committee for first time; but sponsor says she won't take it farther this session.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Smoking ban bill clears House committee for first time; but sponsor says she won't take it farther this session.Princessiccia

smokeless tobacco smoking smoking ban state government; General Assembly

Gusty 15:25 Add Comment

A measure for a statewide smoking ban passed the House Health and Welfare Committee today, the first time such a bill has cleared committee in legislative history, Deborah Yetter reports for The Courier-Journal.

But House Bill 289 is not expected to be called for a vote this year, said its sponsor Rep. Susan Westrom, right, D-Lexington. "I'm not someone who wants to shove something down someone's throat," she said, adding she plans to reintroduce the measure next year.

Westrom predicts support will continue to grow as "people come to realize local smoking bans have worked well in cities, including Louisville, Lexington and Owensboro. Already, 23 states ban smoking statewide in indoor public spaces," Yetter reports.

Support for the bill was given a significant boost when the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce stepped behind it. President David Adkisson said the majority of business owners the chamber talked to support a ban. "We now feel like it needs to be statewide and not a patchwork," he said.

HB 289 passed with a 10-2 vote. Rep. Addia Wuchner, R-Burlington, a candidate for Congress in the Fourth District, was one of two Republicans to vote against the measure, calling it "well meaning" but too intrusive on people's rights. "It is not the role of the government to go this far," she said. (Read more)

Princess Health and Campbellsville pharmacists have mixed views about meds-for-meth bill; a good example of localizing a statewide issue.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Campbellsville pharmacists have mixed views about meds-for-meth bill; a good example of localizing a statewide issue.Princessiccia

health journalism methamphetamine pharmacists pseudoephedrine state government; General Assembly

Gusty 15:43 Add Comment

Pharmacists have mixed opinions about a bill that would require a prescription to purchase pseudoephedrine after a monthly or yearly limit has been reached, reports Calen McKinney for the Central Kentucky News Journal in Campbellsville. (Photo by McKinney)

The drug is the key ingredient used to make methamphetamine. Last week the Senate approved a bill that would limit non-prescription individuals' purchases to 7.2 grams per month and 24 grams per year.

Tresa Phillips at Nation's Medicines in Campbellsville told McKinney she feels the system in place now � an instant computer tracking system called MethCheck � is working. "I'm not sure that a new law is going to make a big difference," she said, adding that a person who is buying the drug already has to show state-issued identification.

However, Jay Eastridge at Eastridge-Phelps Pharmacy applauded the move. "It sort of restricts pseudoephedrine getting into the wrong hands," he said. "I wholeheartedly support the bill." Eastridge said pharmacists have become "gatekeepers" in the face of the meth epidemic and "it's just painful to watch" people coming in "from one drug store to the next seeing what they can get."

Ed Baise of the Medicine Centre agreed that pharmacists have "become the police" when it comes to limiting pseudoephedrine. But he said the drug should be put in a class of its own and pharmacists should be responsible for controlling purchases. Baise pointed out allergy sufferers could be inconvenienced by the bill. "This may help some," he said, "but it's not gonna solve the problem." (Read more)

Princess Health and Smoking ban can't get a vote due to Republican boycott over chairman's block of measure for drug tests for welfare recipients.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Smoking ban can't get a vote due to Republican boycott over chairman's block of measure for drug tests for welfare recipients.Princessiccia

ate smoking ban state government; General Assembly

Gusty 15:39 Add Comment

There could have been a vote Thursday on a bill for a statewide smoking ban, but a Republican boycott of the Democratic-controlled House Health and Welfare Committee over another bill prevented that.

"Republicans were upset over the committee chairman's decision not to have a vote on House Bill 26, sponsored by Rep. Lonnie Napier, R-Lancaster, which would require the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to implement a substance-abuse screening program for recipients of public assistance," reports Greg Hall for The Courier-Journal.

Chairman Tom Burch, D-Louisville, said he didn't allow a vote because he didn't want to "embarrass" Napier. "Whether he admits it or not, you don't embarrass somebody by killing their bill in front of them," he said. "You just hear it."

Just eight of 16 committee members were present; at least nine are needed to move a bill. Six of the absentees were Republicans; two were Democrats. "Without a committee majority present, no vote was take on HB 289, the smoking ban sponsored by Rep. Susan Westrom, D-Lexington. Burch said he likely will call a special committee meeting early next week to hear the bill," Hall reports. (Read more)

Princess Health and Senate panel and House OK bills to tackle prescription-bill abuse.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Senate panel and House OK bills to tackle prescription-bill abuse.Princessiccia

pain clinics pain management pill mills prescription drug abuse state government; General Assembly

Gusty 15:34 Add Comment

Two bills aimed at attacking the state's prescription drug abuse problem made headway yesterday, with a major difference between the House and Senate measures, reflecting possible turf battles between state agencies and doctors' desire to maintain as much control over regulation as they can.

Senate Bill 2 would keep the state drug monitoring system � known as the Kentucky All Schedule Prescription Electronic Reporting, or KASPER � the responsibility of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services. House Bill 4 would give it to the attorney general's office.

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved Senate Bill 2 on an 8-to-1 vote. House Bill 4 passed the full House 81 to 7. The bills' low numbers reflect their importance to legislative leaders in both chambers.

Lawmakers feel the issue will ultimately be taken up near the end of the session in a conference committee, whose members represent the House and Senate and come together to come to an agreement between the two chambers, reports Jack Brammer for the Lexington Herald-Leader.

SB 2 originally required that doctors use KASPER when dispensing narcotics and get a KASPER report before issuing a prescription. At the request of the Kentucky Medical Association, bill sponsor Sen. Jimmy Higdon, R-Lebanon, changed that stipulation, requiring the Kentucky Medical Licensure Board, made up mainly of doctors, to issue regulations on how doctors should use KASPER. Higdon said he made the change in order to get the bill out of committee, a move that angered Sen. Ray Jones, D-Pikeville, who accused the KMA of trying to "gut the bill." (Read more)

HB 4 would still require the use of KASPER, used by only less than a third of doctors, and "would bolster regulation on pain clinics and call on coroners to perform mandatory drug tests in cases of deaths with an unknown cause," reports Tom Loftus for The Courier-Journal. "It also would give commonwealth's and county attorneys access to the data in KASPER and would require that pain clinics be owned by a licensed physician or an advanced practice registered nurse." SB 2 would allow only doctors to own pain clinics, but Sen. Brandon Smith, R-Hazard, said clinics with non-physician owners should be grandfathered in if they have not have previous problems with the law.

As for whether the KASPER should stay in the cabinet or go to the attorney general, Sen. Tom Jensen, R-London, said he doesn't has one strong feeling over the other. "We have to make sure the enforcement is there, whoever is doing it. properly," he told Ryan Alessi on CN|2's "Pure Politics." 

Princess Health and Kentucky ranked sixth in nation for obesity, fourth in high blood pressure, second for diabetes.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Kentucky ranked sixth in nation for obesity, fourth in high blood pressure, second for diabetes.Princessiccia

blood pressure diabetes health rankings obesity

Gusty 07:03 Add Comment

A new report shows 29.5 percent of Kentuckians are obese, sixth highest in the nation. The state ranked second in the nation for the highest percentage of diabetes, with 13.7 percent of Kentucky residents diagnosed with the disease, and fourth in high blood pressure, at 36.3 percent.

According to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, West Virginia had the highest rates of obesity (35.3 percent),  diabetes (15.7 ) and high blood pressure (38.9) in the country. Colorado had the lowest, with 18.5, 6.8 and 22.6, respectively. Colorado "is the only state where fewer than 20 percent of adults are obese," reports Elizabeth Mendes for Gallup. West Virginia's obesity rate is the highest for any state since the study began in 2008.

The survey asked respondents if they had been diagnosed with diabetes or hypertension. to measure obesity, "participants were asked to report their height and weight, allowing Gallup to calculate their body mass index," reports The Huffington Post. A person with a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese. (Read more)

Princess Health and March 24 is World Tuberculosis Day; 71 Kentuckians got the airborne disease last year.Princessiccia

Princess Health and March 24 is World Tuberculosis Day; 71 Kentuckians got the airborne disease last year.Princessiccia

public health tuberculosis

Gusty 04:31 Add Comment

March 24 is World Tuberculosis Day, an observance meant to spread awareness about the disease, which is the second leading cause of death worldwide after HIV/AIDS. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate about 2 million people die each year from TB.

"Many people assume that TB is no longer a concern in this country, but we continue to see cases each year � in Kentucky and around the U.S.," said Steve Davis, acting commissioner of the state Department of Public Health. "While public health has made great strides in preventing the spread of the disease, our work continues."

In 2011, 71 active TB cases were diagnosed in Kentucky, though the state falls below the national average of 3.6 cases per 100,000 people.

TB is an airborne disease, transmitted when an infectious person coughs, shouts, sneezes, speaks or sings. It generally attacks the lungs, but can affect any part of the body, including the kidneys, spine and brain. If left untreated, the disease can be fatal.

People exposed to TB can also get a latent TB infection, which has no symptoms but can still be spread to others. That infection can progress into full-blown TB. Symptoms include coughing up blood, loss of appetite, chest pain and fatigue. (Read more)

Princess Health and Number of teens and young adults who smoke, use smokeless tobacco is on the rise.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Number of teens and young adults who smoke, use smokeless tobacco is on the rise.Princessiccia

cigarette tax cigarettes smokeless tobacco smoking tobacco tobacco prevention youth

Gusty 16:35 Add Comment

A "shocking" number of American teenagers smoke cigarettes and/or use smokeless tobacco, the first U.S. surgeon general's report on youth tobacco since 1994 has found. (Photo by Karen Bleier, AFP/Getty Images)

"The numbers are really shocking," Surgeon General Regina Benjamin said, noting the data show 1 in 4 high school seniors and 1 in 3 young adults under age 26 smoke. "It's a problem we have to solve."

Though there was dramatic progress in reducing youth smoking rates from 1997 to 2003, the 899-page report shows the decline has flattened. "Smokeless tobacco is up among white high school-age boys, and cigar smoking appears to be rising among black high school girls," reports David Brown for The Washington Post.

Data from the 2010 Kentucky Youth Tobacco Survey show that almost 25 percent of the state's high-school students are smokers. Although the prevalence of smoking among youth has declined in the past few years, the smoking prevalence among teenagers and young adults is higher than among other adult populations.

"Two people start smoking for every one who dies from the habit each year," Benjamin said. "Almost 90 percent of those 'replacement smokers' first try tobacco before they are 18."

The findings showed smoking can damage lung function at a very young age. One study of "nearly 700 children from East Boston found that those who started to smoke at age 15 exhaled 8 percent less air in one second � a key measure of lung function � than non-smoking teenagers. The growth of lung capacity stopped a year earlier in smokers � at 17 in girls and 19 in boys � than in non-smokers," Brown reports.

Another study showed how smoking affects the cardiovascular system. Researchers looked at autopsy results of white men ages 25 to 34 who were killed either by trauma or homicide. Smokers were two times as likely to have advanced damage of the abdominal aorta as non-smokers. "They also had somewhat greater damage to the blood vessel most often implicated in acute heart attacks," Brown reports.

Danny McGoldrick of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids told USA Today's Wendy Koch tobacco marketing "is a big cause of the problem." He pointed to his organization's report revealing the tobacco industry's relationship with convenience stores to blatantly advertise and display tobacco products.

The industry's success in fighting increases in tobacco-related taxes is considered to be another factor. But industry officials like Ken Garcia of Altria Group, parent company of Philip Morris USA, said "there's already quite a (tax) burden on adult smokers." (Read more)