Princess Health and Princess Health andProposed waiver from school nutrition guidelines sparks debate.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andProposed waiver from school nutrition guidelines sparks debate.Princessiccia

childhood obesity children children's health nutrition school lunch schools

Gusty 14:02 Add Comment

The controversial school lunch waiver debate that began in Washington has migrated to Kentucky. While supporters claim that the proposal assists rural schools, some opponents say it defeats the purpose of years of work to fight one of the U.S.'s highest childhood obesity rates, John Moritz writes for McClatchy Newspapers, parent of the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Next week the House of Representatives is expected to vote on a measure that would let schools ask for a one-year waiver to get out of the new federal school lunch nutritional standards�if the school can show that meeting those guidelines would require them to keep operating meal programs at a loss. The measure is part of a spending bill for the Department of Agriculture passed by the House Appropriations Committee, headed by 5th District Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Somerset.

Michael Saucedo, 9, eats lunch at Russell Cave Elementary
School in Lexington. (Herald-Leader photo by Pablo Alcala)

USDA guidelines, enacted in 2012, call for schools to serve a fruit and a vegetable with each meal. "The guidelines also mandated a switch to 100 percent whole grains by this summer, required milk servings be 1 percent or fat-free and imposed calorie and sodium limitations based on age group," Moritz writes. "Standards also were set for a limited amount of saturated fats per serving, while banning the use of trans fats."

Although the Fayette County Public Schools lunch program will not likely apply for a waiver because the system's meal program is operating in the black, Director of Child Nutrition Michelle Coker told Moritz the waivers would helps smaller Kentucky school districts.

Scott County Nutritional Services Director Mitzi Marshall told Moritz the district is losing money because fewer students are buying the healthier lunches, and even some students who could get free or on-sale lunches have been bringing food from home. She said the guidelines have "gone a little overboard." Coker said cafeteria workers told her that students do not eat the healthy food, forcing the district to increase trash collection. "She estimated that as much as 75 percent of the fruits and vegetables were thrown away," Moritz writes.

"You can put the best meal out there, the most healthy meal, but if they are not eating it, they are not healthier," Coker told Moritz. Before the new guidelines, schools provided fruits and vegetables as an option for children instead of as a requirement.

Supporters of the guidelines argue that tastes can change and schools need to come up with creative strategies for that. "Our schools need to be an environment that makes the healthier and easier choice for our children," said Susan Zepeda, president of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.

According to a report by the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Kentucky ranks eighth in the nation for obesity among children ages 10 to 17 and third among high-school students.

Anita Courtney, who helped the Better Bites program that aims to offer healthier food items for children at swimming pools, public parks and after-school programs, said, "Great work has been done to shift the food that our tax dollars pay for our kids. It just boggles my mind that [Congress] would consider pulling the plug on that."

Coker said a waiver wouldn't mean a school district reverts to its old ways of offering greasy, fatty and sugary foods, but would give an extra year to meet all the requirements. (Read more)

Princess Health and Princess Health andAltria, parent of Philip Morris, reports spending most on lobbying the 2014 legislature but says it didn't fight smoking ban.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andAltria, parent of Philip Morris, reports spending most on lobbying the 2014 legislature but says it didn't fight smoking ban.Princessiccia

cigarettes e-cigarettes General Assembly legislation legislature lobbying smoking smoking ban smoking bans tobacco tobacco prevention

Gusty 13:53 Add Comment

The parent firm of the nation's largest cigarette company again reported spending more than anyone else on lobbying the Kentucky General Assembly, but says it did not fight the bill that would have imposed a statewide smoking ban in most public places.

"Altria Group, the parent company of Philip Morris USA and U.S. Smokeless Tobacco, reported spending $156,200, "far more than any other company or group, Tom Loftus reports for The Courier-Journal. "And it got the things it wanted from Kentucky lawmakers: tobacco taxes were not increased, no new tax was put on electronic cigarettes and the tobacco-industry supported bill to ban the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors passed."

Spokesman David Sutton "said not a penny of Altria's lobbying campaign went to defeat the so-called 'smoke-free' bill, though he said the company opposes such complete smoking bans within private businesses," Loftus reports. "He said he suspected Altria's lobby spending topped the list because 'We fully disclose everything'," including research time of its legal staff and its "grassroots activation" work to rally its supporters in Kentucky.

The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, "which reported spending $6,284 during the session, earlier this month blamed Altria for leading the successful defeat of the bill to ban smoking in indoor public places like bars and restaurants," The Courier-Journal reports.

"They've spent a lot of money on lobbying for years," the campaign's Betsy Janes told Loftus. "They've sent their message out for so long and have relationships with legislators. It's hard for us to compete with that." (Read more)

The campaign's Amy Barkley told Kentucky Health News that Altria's assertion "is very hard to believe. That said, I don�t have any hard evidence to dispute their claim. We all know the tobacco industry�s influence is very deep in Frankfort, so perhaps they didn�t need to overtly lobby against the smoke-free bill."

The Kentucky Farm Bureau Federation, which gets funding from Altria for some of its programs, lobbied against the smoking ban. It ranked eighth in lobbying expenses, with $68,821. For The Courier-Journal's lst fo top lobbying interests, click here.

Princess Health and Princess Health andAt least one additional health-insurance company is expected to sell policies on Kynect exchange next year.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andAt least one additional health-insurance company is expected to sell policies on Kynect exchange next year.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act health insurance health reform insurance coverage insurance exchange obamacare Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act state government

Gusty 10:15 Add Comment

The five insurance companies that sold policies this year on Kynect, Kentucky's health-benefit exchange, want to return in 2015, and Dayton, Ohio-based CareSource wants to join as well. Officials said they believe other insurers will sign up to sell policies next year, too, which will benefit consumers, Jack Brammer writes for the Lexington Herald-Leader.

""Consumers benefit from the choices that come with more competition," Insurance Commissioner Sharon P. Clark said. Cabinet for Health and Family Services Secretary Audrey Tayse Haynes said she hopes than even more Kentucky residents will set aside time to examine the plans on Kynect when the second round of open enrollment begins Nov. 15.

Anthem, Humana, Bluegrass Family Health, United Healthcare of Kentucky and Kentucky Health Cooperative offered plans on the exchange this year, and Humana was the only one that didn't offer small group market insurance, for two to 50 people. Humana, Anthem and the cooperative offered individual coverage.

Jonathan Copley, CareSource's executive director for Kentucky, said the company's participation in Kynect is "an extension of our commitment to provide affordable coverage to Kentuckians who need it most. We are expanding our reach to one of Ohio's bordering states to offer affordable health care coverage. Kynect represents a successful model on the marketplace, and we are excited to offer CareSource."

Though the tentative deadline for insurers to request to be on the exchange was April 1, the official deadline has been extended as a result of inquiries, Brammer reports.

In Kynect's first open-enrollment period, from Oct. 1 through March 31 about 421,000 Kentuckians enrolled for coverage, and the increasing number of insurers seems to be a sign even more people will sign up next year. Last month The New York Times reported that "8 million people signed up for coverage in 2014 under the federal health care law and that estimates put next year's national enrollment near 13 million," Brammer writes.

This year monthly rates for those enrolled in Kynect ranged from $47 for older couples without dependents to $403 for families of four with a total income of $70,000 per year. Health and Family Services spokeswoman Jill Midkiff told Brammer that an average premium wasn't calculated because of the many variables such as age and family membership. (Read more)

Princess Health and Princess Health andFDA issues warning label for tanning bed use by minors; sponsor of bill for a state ban says he will try again.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andFDA issues warning label for tanning bed use by minors; sponsor of bill for a state ban says he will try again.Princessiccia

dermatology General Assembly legislation legislature skin cancer state government youth

Gusty 09:18 Add Comment

Soon tanning beds will have a "black box" warning that those younger than 18 should not be using them, but some doctors, tanning companies and legislators do not think this will be sufficient to keep minors from tanning. "Consequently, some want a new Kentucky law prohibiting bed use by minors," Annie Garau writes for the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Lexington Herald-Leader graphic

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced May 29 new regulations that moved sunlamps from the category of low-risk devices�like dental floss and tongue depressors�to moderate-risk devices. Tanning beds are dangerous because they emit ultraviolet rays like the ones from the sun. These ultraviolet rays not only cause wrinkles and eye damage but also cause skin cancers, including melanoma, which is the most deadly kind of skin cancer, according to the FDA and local doctors.

"There's really no way to get a tan right now without incurring the risk of cancer," said Dr. John D'Orzio, a researcher and pediatric oncologist at Kentucky Children's Hospital. "I don't want to tell people not to go outdoors at all because that would be ridiculous, but the actual ultraviolet radiation from the beds can be up to 10 times more than from standing in the sun." D'Orazio said his biggest concern is that children under 18 have access to the tanning beds. Currently Kentucky only requires "signed parental consent for teens ages 14 to 17 and in-person parental consent for anyone younger than 14," Garau writes.

Mark Wells and Cheryl Ledford, co-owners of Southern Rays Tanning, do not think the new warnings will turn customers away. "There has always been some kind of warning on the beds," Ledford said, "and they haven't stopped people from tanning."

Wells said there are health benefits to tanning, such as increased Vitamin D, the fading of acne and getting a "base tan" indoors to prevent burning outside. D'Orazio disagreed. "A base tan is not going to help you avoid the risks," he said. "You're still getting ultraviolet radiation while you're getting that base tan. Also, it really only takes about one minute of standing in the sun to get enough vitamin D. . . . This is a multibillion-dollar industry. That's a lot of money going into downplaying the negative consequences."

American Academy of Dermatology President Dr. Brett Coldiron said that although sometimes dermatologists prescribe phototherapy as a treatment, "The difference between phototherapy and indoor tanning is that phototherapy is closely monitored and supervised by a dermatologist. This type of medical care isn't provided at an indoor tanning salon, where operators have minimal knowledge about the potential side effects of UV light, and tanning bed lamps have variable amounts of UVA and UVB light."

State Rep. David Watkins, a Democrat and retired physician from Henderson, wanted to prevent Kentucky minors from using tanning beds without a medical prescription, but the Senate Health and Welfare Committee killed his House-passed bill. "I think I'm going to have to work a little harder and make sure my colleagues in the Senate understand that I'm not trying to limit freedoms," Watkins told Garau. "I'm trying to protect some of our most vulnerable constituents." (Read more)

Princess Health and Food Reward Friday. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Food Reward Friday. Princessiccia

Food reward Fridays

Gusty 04:00 Add Comment

This week's lucky "winner"... kettle corn!

Read more �

Princess Health and Princess Health andLexington auto mechanic becomes neurosurgeon; now researching traumatic brain injury diagnosis and treatment.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andLexington auto mechanic becomes neurosurgeon; now researching traumatic brain injury diagnosis and treatment.Princessiccia

research traumatic brain injuries University of Kentucky

Gusty 14:23 Add Comment

In the early 1980s, Geoff Manley was a mechanic, and some of his clients were University of Kentucky faculty. That is how he met microbiology professor Shelly Steiner and started on the road to a new career: neurosurgery and a multi-million-dollar research project.

"Some kids are polite�you know, 'Yes, yes, sir'�but disengaged. Geoff was clearly intelligent and focused," Steiner told Laura Dawahare of UKNow. "You can talk to someone for just a few minutes and know right away how bright they are. Geoff was like that."

Because no one in Manley's family had gone to college, Steiner's suggestion that he finish his GED and attend UK, was a "transformative moment," Manley said. He graduated in 1988 then earned his MD-PhD at Cornell University. Now he is the vice chair of neurosurery at the University of California-San Francisco.

"Manley's earlier work with Steiner and a colleague in the lab influenced his decision to pursue a career in the neurosciences; his particular interest is in traumatic brain injury, or TBI," Dawahare writes.

Though the public often hears about athletes' concussions, TBI results even more often from auto accidents or slips-and-falls. Every year at least 1.7 million people in the U.S. get medical attention for TBI. "I did a lot of bench work earlier in my career, but I was torn between my interest in the basic sciences and my desire to do something directly relevant for TBI patients," Manley said. "So I began to explore a new translational research approach to TBI."

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) gave him $18.8 million over five years to do worldwide research about concussion and traumatic brain injury. TBI is complex, which makes diagnosis and therapy development difficult. Dr. Manley and his colleagues want to change the current TBI measures. "Here we are in the 21st Century, and we classify TBI in one of three ways: mild, moderate or severe," Manley said. "Cancer, by comparison, can be characterized in a very precise way, and treatments are customized to each patient's needs." Therefore, Dr. Manley wants to establish a set of classifications for TBI that are as detailed as the ones used for cancer.

"We expect that our approach will permit researchers to characterize and stratify patients more effectively, will allow meaningful comparisons of treatments and outcomes and will improve the next generation of clinical trials," Manley said. "Advancing our understand of TBI will ultimately lead to successful, patient-specific treatments."

Manley said that Steiner's encouragement helped him not only finish his GED and college but also get where he is today. Steiner said, "Geoff would have made it anyway�he had the intellectual octane and the motivation. He may think others helped him, but it really was his trip." (Read more)

Princess Health and Princess Health andWellCare of Kentucky removes co-pays for most Medicaid members and offers to pay for GED course for many.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andWellCare of Kentucky removes co-pays for most Medicaid members and offers to pay for GED course for many.Princessiccia

education health insurance insurance coverage managed care Medicaid

Gusty 13:25 Add Comment

WellCare Health Plans Inc. is improving its Medicaid benefits in Kentucky by removing most members' co-pays and covering the cost of the General Educational Development test and its corresponding coursework for eligible members.

The co-pay and GED benefits will become available on July 1 and continue through the end of the year, except in Medicaid Region 3, comprising 16 Kentucky counties near Louisville. Region 3�s benefits will be determined in fall 2014 to align with its open enrollment. Region 3 is Breckinridge, Bullitt, Carroll, Grayson, Hardin, Henry, Jefferson, LaRue, Marion, Meade, Nelson, Oldham, Shelby, Spencer, Trimble and Washington counties.

Open enrollment for the rest of the state ends Wednesday, June 18, so WellCare is offering the new benefits as an incentive for Medicaid recipients to switch form other managed-care companies.

All WellCare of Kentucky Medicaid members will have no co-pays except for non-emergency visits to the emergency room and, only in the Louisville region, a $4 co-pay for preferred-brand medications.

Recipients  of the GED benefits must be at least 16 years old, must not be currently enrolled in high school, cannot be graduates from an accredited high school and cannot have received a high school equivalency certificate or diploma. Members need to complete the required GED coursework at an adult testing center.

For more information about these and other WellCare Medicaid benefits in Kentucky, please visit http://kentucky.wellcare.com/member or call 1-877-389-9457.