(Missouri Independent) – In the first test of a 2020 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, drug middlemen last week argued that federal law gives them a right to limit which pharmacies patients with health insurance can use — or at least make it more expensive if patients get their medicine at a shop that isn’t preferred […]
Tag: problems
November trial set for lawsuit challenging $1.4 billion Missouri prison health care contract
(Missouri Independent) – A trial will be held in early November to determine whether a subsidiary of St. Louis-based Centene will take over the contract for prison health care in the Missouri Department of Corrections. In a hearing Thursday, Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green set Nov. 3 as the first day in the trial where current […]
Trenton Park Board discusses installation of permanent cornhole boards
The Trenton Park Board September 1st discussed the possibility of concrete cornhole boards being installed at Eastside Park. Park Superintendent David Shockley said he had received several requests for cornhole boards. Park Board President Curtis Crawford said cornhole is a popular game, and boards could be put near the horse shoe pitching area at Eastside […]
Lawsuit filed over $1.4 billion contract for Missouri prison healthcare
(Missouri Independent) – The dispute over the $1.4 billion contract to provide prisoner health care in Missouri is moving into the courts. Corizon Health, which has held the Department of Corrections contract since 1992, filed a lawsuit Monday in Cole County alleging that unfair treatment and improper scoring gave the contract to Centurion Health, a Virginia subsidiary of […]
Advocates press for reform before student loan repayment deadline
In January, student loan borrowers will have to start paying off their loans again, as the pandemic-related pause on payment is set to expire. Now, a new report looks at ways to fix problems in the student loan system. Report co-author Michelle Dimino – senior education policy advisor at Third Way, a public policy think tank in […]
Attorneys argue Missouri is violating federal law, courts on Medicaid expansion delays
(Missouri Independent) – Attorneys who successfully sued to force Missouri to enact voter-approved Medicaid expansion argued in a letter to state officials Thursday that delays in implementation violate not only the court order but also federal law. The plaintiffs’ attorneys, Chuck Hatfield and Lowell Pearson joined with Joel Ferber, director of advocacy for Legal Services […]
Missouri Secretary of State uncovers voter fraud and demands prosecution
Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft released the findings from an investigation pertaining to individuals who allegedly voted more than once in the 2020 general elections. Based on probable cause statements issued by Ashcroft’s office, two individuals, both of St. Charles County, voted at least twice using mail-in ballots sent to Florida and then voted in-person […]
Livingston County Deputies respond to call of man jumping from a moving van and a call about a partially nude man
Livingston County Sheriff Steve Cox reports his office responded to calls involving a man who allegedly jumped from a moving van north of the Chillicothe Correctional Center the afternoon of August 24. He says dispatch received a call from a woman reporting her adult grandson jumped from the van and walked into a field. The […]
AARP calls for vaccine mandates as COVID re-enters Missouri nursing homes
(Missouri Indepentent) – With cases on the rise among both residents and staff, the nation’s leading advocacy group for retirees is calling on nursing homes to mandate COVID-19 vaccines. The number of COVID-19 cases reported each week in Kansas and Missouri nursing homes is rising again for the first time in months. Missouri, where weekly […]
Princeton City Council approves contract with Mercer County Sheriff’s Department
The Princeton City Council approved a contract with the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office and a resolution involving Mercer County Area Development on August 9. City Clerk Cory Willett reports the sheriff’s contract says the office will enforce Princeton’s ordinances. The resolution involved Mercer County Area Development’s Main Street program being approved. The program is in […]
Spickard Board of Aldermen set tax levy; “Fun Day” planned for September 11
At meetings Monday evening, the Spickard Board of Aldermen approved setting the tax levy at nearly $1 (.9917) on the 100 dollars of assessed valuation. The 99 cent tax levy is the same rate as last year in the town of Spickard. During the regular meeting, aldermen voted to table the water user agreement until […]
Audio: MoDOT has lost more than half of its 5100-person workforce over the past four years
Like many industries dealing with worker shortages, so is the Missouri Department of Transportation. MoDOT Director Patrick McKenna says his department has had a high turnover rate for several years. The current state budget includes a pay raise for MoDOT workers, but Missouri still has one of the lowest-paid state workforces in the […]
Advocates say Missouri’s eviction crisis could be a ‘humanitarian tragedy’
(Missouri Independent) – Melissa Pashia is hoping for any kind of good news today. The federal eviction moratorium ended Saturday, and she’s got her fingers crossed one of her clients will finally get approved for the rental assistance that they applied for in April through the State Assistance for Housing Relief Program (SAFHR). The aid approval […]
Coalition of lawmakers urge Biden administration to drop proposed tax hike on farm families
U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.), along with the entire Senate Republican caucus, sent a letter to President Biden urging him to abandon his effort to impose a capital gains tax increase on family-owned businesses, farms, and ranches. Repealing this part of the tax code would have a devastating effect on multi-generation operations, which could lead […]
Woman arrested for fake COVID-19 immunization and vaccination card scheme
A California-licensed homeopathic doctor was arrested for her alleged scheme to sell homeoprophylaxis (the controversial use of homeopathy as a preventive against serious infectious diseases) immunization pellets and to falsify COVID-19 vaccination cards by making it appear that customers had received the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized Moderna vaccine. Juli A. Mazi, 41, of […]
Governor Parson signs SB 262 into law, increasing transportation funding for critical infrastructure projects
Governor Mike Parson has signed SB 262 into law, which will increase transportation funding for critical state and local infrastructure projects across the state of Missouri. “With nearly $1 billion in unfunded transportation needs each year, we can no longer wait for another day or another generation. We must change course and address these problems head-on,” Governor Parson said. “SB […]
Spickard Board of Aldermen address damage to sewer system
Spickard’s Board of Aldermen were told Monday evening that products not meant to be flushed were being flushed down toilets causing damage and additional expenses for the pumping stations. Problems are being experienced at the south lift pump station and it is being recommended that the pumps be replaced along with the electrical panel. Aldermen […]
Prognosis worsens COVID-19 outcomes in patients with diabetes
More than a year into the global pandemic, many things are still unknown about COVID-19; however, like many other illnesses, studies are showing that having diabetes is not only tied to a worse prognosis but also an increased risk of death. Diabetes is more common among those with severe COVID-19. One study from Diabetologia showed […]
Missouri man defrauds St. Louis residents out of $81,000
Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s Securities Division is seeking penalties and restitution from a Missouri man and his Chesterfield-based company after St. Louis residents were allegedly defrauded out of $81,000. Between January 2017 and June 2018, Loy Dennis Maxey and his company, Fresh Start Credit Services, LLC, allegedly sold promissory notes and misappropriated a […]