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HHSC whistleblowers on Medicaid, SNAP delays: 'We need resources' | 100K dropped from Medicaid improperly

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Days after a local congressman asked the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to investigate months-long delays in Texas, potentially impacting millions of low-income and vulnerable people in the state, the agency is responding.CMS said in August it required Texas to reinstate Medicaid coverage for around 100,000 people who were improperly disenrolled due to 'systems issues,' which it required the state to fix."Any person being improperly disenrolled from health care coverage is unacceptable to this administration," a U.S. Health and Human Services spokesperson said. "HHS' top priority is people maintaining coverage, whether that is through Medicaid, Medicare, the Marketplace, or employer-sponsored insurance."CMS, which is part of HHS, said it will respond directly to U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin. Doggett sent the agency a letter on Monday calling for it to put the Texas Health and Human Services Commission on a corrective action plan following lengthy de...

Home for the holidays: MN National Guard’s 133rd Airlift Wing returns from deployment

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

Airmen with the Minnesota National Guard’s 133rd Airlift Wing returned from a three-month deployment to the Horn of Africa in support of the U.S. Africa Command.“Today, we met Airmen on the flight line as they arrived home from their deployment to Africa,” the 133rd posted on Facebook on Thursday. “Families beamed with pride, tears of happiness fell, and cheers of excitement rang out as they deplaned, fist-bumping their buddies and hugging their families tight.“We are so proud of these Airmen and their families for the sacrifices they are willing to make for our state and nation. You are what makes us great. WELCOME HOME!”Related ArticlesNews | Deaths from tainted cantaloupe increase to 3 in U.S. and 5 in Canada News | Minnesota flag finalists to be on display at Mall of America this weekend News | 25 schools, 9 Jewish facilities ‘swatted’ with threats about bombings, shootings, says MN law enforcem...

SSM Health Medical Minute: Wentzville clinic offers Long Acting Injectables to treat behavioral health

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

WENTZVILLE, Mo. - It’s a groundbreaking program changing lives of people who battle chronic mental illness and addictions. The L.A.I. (Long Acting Injectable) clinic is designed to help people with chronic mental struggles and addictions comply with the medical prescriptions needed to treat their symptoms.Traditional prescriptions can mean taking a schedule of oral medications to combat mental illness or substance abuse. SSM Health St. Joseph Hospital in Wentzville offers the L.A.I. clinic as part of its outpatient program, which provides patients with a more convenient solution for medication support.Dr. Shinivas Battula is the psychiatrist and manager of behavioral health who says, "A long-acting injection would work for almost a month, and they don't have to be taking the medications on a daily basis.”  Patients receive a comprehensive team of care, including meeting with Dr. Battula, a pharmacist and a nurse, and if needed, a therapist is in the office to meet wit...

Broncos embrace opportunity to play meaningful football in final month of regular season

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

During safety P.J. Locke’s four years in Denver, he has rarely been in a situation where he is playing meaningful football during the final month of the regular season.With the Broncos sporting a 6-6 record and in the playoff hunt during the 14th week of the season, the vibes are a bit different this year.Denver has injected life into its season, which looked lost back in October. Now that each game down the stretch matters, the Broncos have embraced the challenge and are hungry to make a push for the postseason.“It means a lot. Being able to play high-level football at this time of the month is very important,” cornerback Pat Surtain II said. “We got a couple of tough games, so the main thing is winning our matchups.”Playing football with playoff implications has been a rarity for the Broncos since Super Bowl 50. There’ve been four times when Denver had a .500 or better record through 12 games. But the Broncos fell flat each time.Led by former head coach Vic Fangio in 2...

Light snow in Denver on Friday, up to a foot in the mountains

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

Most of metro Denver will see a few inches of snow on Friday, with up to a foot of snow forecasted to fall in Vail and Aspen, according to the National Weather Service.Snow showers in Denver will likely start after 4 p.m. Friday with a 60 percent chance of precipitation and less than half an inch of accumulation, according to the National Weather Service’s Boulder office.Related ArticlesWeather | 10 Colorado search and rescue operations in 2023, from ill-prepared hikers to a dog on a 14er Weather | Colorado weather: Wind gusts up to 70 mph in the foothills Thursday Weather | Denver weather: Cold front, snow on the way Friday Weather | Colorado’s best winter festivals for 2023-24 Weather | Emergency crews find body of kayaker who went missing on Lake Granby in Northern Colorado Up to 1 inch of snow could fall in Denver on Friday night before tapering off Saturday.Between 1 and 2 inches of snow are f...

Boulder County bighorn sheep was single, ready to mingle … and stuck on a roof

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

A bighorn sheep became stuck on the roof and deck of a Boulder County home for more than 24 hours this week, likely while he was looking for a mate, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.A bighorn sheep became stuck on the roof and deck of a Boulder County home for more than 24 hours on Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023. The ram eventually left after Colorado Parks and Wildlife cut a space in a deck railing. (Provided by Colorado Parks and Wildlife)Wildlife officers responded to a call about a ram stuck on the roof of a house in unincorporated Boulder County on Tuesday, said spokesperson Kara Van Hoos​e. The ram likely became stuck in the morning.“We were hoping he would come down on his own because he’s on the roof and realizes this is not a great spot for him to be,” Van Hoose said.The ram made it down to the deck of the house at some point and officers hoped he might be able to make it all the way down on his own, Van Hoose said. But after a day and a half, the ram wasn’t showing signs he...

Police step up patrols during Hanukkah celebration in Beverly Hills

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

As the first of the eight-day celebration of Hanukkah kicks off, some in the Jewish community have expressed concern about the rise in antisemitic sentiment amid the war between Israel and Hamas, while others say the point of the Festival of Lights is to celebrate outwardly and proudly. The ancient tradition of Hanukkah marks the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem and the miracle of a small pot of oil lasting for eight nights.  The fear for some of those observing the tradition is that displaying their Jewish symbols and religious practices could make them a target.  “I definitely have felt and have seen a rise in antisemitism,” Alexandra Novak told KTLA’s Rachel Menitoff. “You see it around town, but obviously, we are still going to celebrate Hanukkah.”  The Anti-Defamation League reports a staggering 300% rise in hateful incidents and rhetoric targeting the Jewish community since Oct. 7 when Hamas launched its brutal and bloody attack on Israeli soil.  Sti...

Hunter Biden indicted on 9 tax charges, adding to earlier gun charges

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

By Lindsay Whitehurst | Associated PressWASHINGTON — Hunter Biden was indicted on nine tax charges in California on Thursday as a special counsel investigation into the business dealings of the president’s son intensifies against the backdrop of the looming 2024 election.The new charges — three felonies and six misdemeanors — come in addition to federal firearms charges in Delaware alleging Hunter Biden broke a law against drug users having guns in 2018.He had been previously expected to plead guilty to misdemeanor tax charges as part of a plea deal with prosecutors who said he failed to pay taxes on $4 million in personal income in 2017 and 2018. Defense attorneys have signaled they plan to fight any new charges.The agreement imploded in July after a judge raised questions about it. It had also been pilloried as a “sweetheart deal” by Republicans investigating nearly every aspect of Hunter Biden’s business dealings as well as the Justice Department’s h...

Rising Haley takes the brunt of attacks at Trumpless debate

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

By Bill Barrow and Jonathan J. Cooper | Associated PressTUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Four Republican presidential candidates were given several opportunities Wednesday to criticize former President Donald Trump, who was absent from the debate again. But they mostly targeted each other, with former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley taking the brunt of the attacks as she gets more interest from donors and voters.With just over a month before the 2024 primary calendar begins, the debate demonstrated how firm Trump’s grip remains on the party.But the focus on Haley reflected how other candidates perceive her as a threat to their chances of taking on Trump directly. Aside from former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, most the candidates have spent more time in debates going after each other than taking aim at Trump, reflecting the former president’s popularity among Republicans and what many see as diminishing returns in attacking him.The last scheduled debate before Iowa’s GOP...

Former Warriors GM Bob Myers shares a regret from 2020 NBA Draft

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 16:38:44 GMT

Former Warriors general manager Bob Myers revisited the pivotal 2020 NBA Draft and shared a little remorse.A disastrous 2020 season for the Warriors gave them the opportunity to draft a player second overall into a still-open contention window. They took James Wiseman, a raw 7-foot center out of Memphis who did not pan out in Golden State; that whiff became even more costly as the players they passed on, such as 12th-overall pick Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton, took off.On a pre-game segment for the In-Season Tournament on Thursday for ESPN’s “NBA Countdown,” Myers said he should have known Haliburton would be a star when the guard impressed Golden State’s brass in a pre-draft workout four years ago.“Let’s talk about that. That workout was a few miles from here in Vegas,” Myers said on the show. “Myself, Steve Kerr, Joe Lacob and he did what he does. He made a ton of shots and we looked at each other and said ‘he might be ...