Kentucky Governor Vetoes Health Care Bill, Guarantees New Plan

FRANKFORT, Ky. — On March 25, the Kentucky Senate unanimously passed House Bill 5, which would require the Department of Insurance to set up a process for payment disputes between medical providers and Medicaid managed health care organizations. However, Gov. Steve Beshear vetoed the bill last week.

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Study Shows Nursing Staff, Environment Reduces Readmissions

PHILADELPHIA — New provisions to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) penalize hospitals for an excess amount of preventable hospital readmissions, which cost Medicare more than $15 billion every year. However, in January, a study published in Medical Care says that improving nurses’ work environment can help reduce that number.

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Arkansas Begins Controversial Health Care Program

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe is about to conduct an experiment intended to lower his state’s health care costs and make insurance more affordable for its residents. Arkansas ranks relatively low among its fellow states in terms of its citizens’ overall health and income, while simultaneously being on the higher side when it comes to rising health care costs, which have doubled in the last ten years. This creates a difficult situation for the state, its low-income residents and the hospitals they cannot afford to pay.

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