(Missouri Independent) – Missouri will enter the new budget year with a record budget surplus and no restrictions on appropriations. The $35.6 billion budget includes rate increases for some Medicaid providers, higher funding for colleges and universities, and new mental health crisis centers. A few hours after lawmakers passed an extension of provider taxes vital to funding […]
As of June 29th, 16 breakthrough cases of COVID-19 had been reported in Grundy County since vaccination began in the county. One of the 38 active cases on June 29th was a breakthrough case. Health Department Administrator Elizabeth Gibson says that is about typical for breakthrough cases. Two thousand four hundred eighty-four Grundy […]
The Livingston County Health Center on June 29th reported nine COVID-19 cases had been added since June 28th. There were 1,993 total confirmed positive cases, and the number of active cases had dropped by 10 to 31. COVID-19 cases had increased by 12 since June 25th for Linn County as of June 29th. The health […]
(Missouri Independent) – A Cole County judge has temporarily blocked the state’s new policy for Medicaid hospital payments which was set to take effect Thursday and ordered a hearing July 9 to determine if the order will become permanent. In response to a lawsuit filed by the Missouri Hospital Association, Circuit Judge Cotton Walker on Friday […]
The highway patrol reports three people were injured, two of them seriously, in a two-vehicle crash involving a UTV and an SUV, early Sunday evening in southeastern Livingston County, three miles northeast of Hale. One of the drivers, 24-year-old Christopher Hartbert of Hale, received minor injuries; however, two female passengers were seriously injured. They are […]
Chillicothe Police report the Friday through Sunday weekend period included 262 calls for service plus the usual traffic stops and business checks. Investigations involved two situations allegedly involving individuals who were said to be considering harm to themselves. Two drug arrests were made following a traffic stop. Among reports from Friday, Chillicothe Police investigated a […]
A Spickard resident died as the result of an accident involving a sports utility vehicle and a semi-truck two miles north of Trenton on Friday afternoon, June 25. The driver of the SUV, 20-year-old (Austin) David Travis, was transported by ambulance to Wright Memorial Hospital in Trenton, where he was pronounced dead. His passenger, 21-year-old […]
(Missouri Independent) – Kendra Findley had thought the Springfield area had seen the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic in December — a month when cases regularly surpassed 200 a day and that saw a record 98 residents die of the virus. Looking back, that was when the Alpha variant, first identified in the U.K., was […]
(Missouri Independent) – A bipartisan coalition handed anti-abortion activists a rare defeat in the Missouri Senate Friday night, rejecting a push to ban Planned Parenthood as a Medicaid provider as it passed a bill to secure billions for the state’s Medicaid program. And only a restatement of the state’s already existing ban on using public funds to […]
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended through July 31, 2021, the moratorium on evictions of the hundreds of thousands of Americans who live in multifamily housing communities supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. “The United States is recovering from a nationwide housing affordability crisis brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s […]
The Highway Patrol reports a Marceline woman sustained moderate injuries when the car she drove slid off a wet road one mile east of Callao Friday morning, June 25. An ambulance transported 40-year-old Melody Clay to the Samaritan Hospital of Macon. The car traveled east on Highway 36 before it struck a guardrail, slid off […]
After about three hours of testimony Thursday, the Missouri Senate Appropriations Committee approved two bills to extend medical provider taxes vital to funding the state’s share of Medicaid. The first bill brought up for a vote would extend the taxes for five years, limit the types of contraceptives available to women on Medicaid and block Planned Parenthood from […]
Representatives from Missouri’s nursing homes, hospitals, and pharmacies are urging state lawmakers to approve an extension for a critical funding mechanism for the state’s Medicaid program, saying jobs and services are at stake. The special session legislation from Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Dan Hegeman would extend the FRA for five years rather than […]
Carroll County Memorial Hospital’s Board of Directors, staff, and community members said their thank-yous, farewells, and well wishes to Chief Executive Officer Jeff Tindle during a Retirement Celebration on June 11. Tindle’s retirement is effective June 30, 2021. Tindle began his service at Carroll County Memorial Hospital as Associate Administrator and Chief Financial Officer in […]
The Grundy County Health Department reports seven new COVID-19 cases since June 21. Thirty-nine cases are active out of a total of 1,206. Sixteen COVID-19 cases have been added in Daviess County since June 16th, making the total 731. Of the 25 active cases, the health department notes eight involve residents at least 60 years […]
The North Central Missouri College Board of Trustees on June 22nd heard about upcoming events involving academic affairs. Vice President of Academic Affairs Doctor Tristan Londre said a dual credit and adjunct workshop on June 23rd will provide professional development for returning faculty and orientation for new instructors. He noted the college hopes to gather […]
The Livingston County Health Center reports three new COVID-19-related deaths, bringing the total to 64. Nine cases have been added since June 21st, making a total of 1,963. Fifty-one cases are active. The number of COVID-19 cases in Linn County has increased by 12 since June 16th to 1,663. The number of active cases dropped […]
(Missouri Independent) – A special session to extend provider taxes essential to the state’s Medicaid program will begin at noon Wednesday, Gov. Mike Parson announced Tuesday afternoon. The announcement was issued just minutes after a noon deadline set by Parson on Monday. The call came after seven members of the Senate Conservative Caucus sent him a letter demanding […]
The Putnam County Health Department reports an additional COVID-19 case, which makes the total 524. One case is active. Thirteen COVID-19-related deaths have been reported. The Putnam County Health Department reports seeing surges in various locations in the state of the Delta variant among young, unvaccinated individuals. The office notes the Delta variant is highly […]
Budget experts warn if Missouri doesn’t renew its Medicaid provider taxes, the state will have to come up with roughly $1.6 billion to make up for it, and cuts would extend to services beyond Medicaid. A bill to renew the tax on hospitals, nursing homes, pharmacies, and other providers stalled before the legislative session concluded […]
