State's Medicaid program will be handled by managed care companies starting tomorrow

Update, Nov. 1: Kentucky Voices for Health, a coalition of more than 250 health care organizations, individuals and advocates, released its views on the move to managed care, which they said must be as much about improving the quality of health care as it is about saving money. "We want Medicaid managed care to be a positive move for both the fiscal health of Kentucky and the health of Kentuckians, so we must continually strive to ensure that all who are eligible have access to high-quality, affordable, effective health care regardless of poverty status or disability," said Dr. Rev. Marian McClure Taylor, KVH board member and executive director of the Kentucky Council of Churches.

The transition must also run smoothly, said Jody Mitchell, KVH executive director. "Our priority is ensuring that the 540,000 Medicaid members affected continue to receive the best health care possible, without interruption." (Read more)

About 560,000 Kentuckians on Medicaid will have a new way of getting health care starting tomorrow when the state switches to managed care.

So far, 68 acute-care hospitals, including some out-of-state facilities, have signed on to at least one of three of the managed care organizations chosen earlier this year by the state to run the program, reports Beth Musgrave of the Lexington Herald-Leader. Excluding the Louisville area, which has long been and will continue to be served by the Passport managed-care organization, there are 96 acute-care hospitals in Kentucky.

"A significant number of hospitals have signed in the last couple of weeks, and we anticipate that these numbers will continue to grow," said Jill Midkiff, spokeswoman for the Cabinet for Health and Family Services. The state had delayed the switch to managed care, which had been scheduled to begin Oct. 1, by one month to give providers time to sign contracts.

Gov. Steve Beshear said today the federal Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services have approved the transition. "We have worked hard to make the transition as seamless as possible, and I appreciate the collaborative efforts that allowed us to reach this goal under aggressive deadlines."

Switching to managed care has been Beshear's answer to overcoming a Medicaid budget deficit. The program will be run by four managed care companies, which will be paid a predetermined per-patient, per-month amount regardless of what care is needed. Because they won't be paid using a fee-for-service model — believed to be more costly — and will try to streamline care, Beshear (right, photo by H-L's Pablo Alcala) said the move will save $1.3 billion in the next three years.

Delaying the move by another month could have cost the state $9.2 million in savings, Musgrave reports. (Read more)

Most beverage companies targeting kids, teens even more to sell sugary drinks, despite pledges; Pepsi an exception

A study analyzing the marketing practices for 600 products made by 14 companies found there is more advertising of sugary drinks to children, despite industry pledges to the contrary.

Child and teen exposure to TV ads for full-calorie soda doubled from 2008 to 2010. "This increase was driven by Coca-Cola and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group. Children were exposed to nearly twice as many TV ads for sugary drinks from these companies," the report by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity reads. "In contrast, children were exposed to 22 percent fewer ads for PepsiCo sugary drink products." PepsiCo makes Mountain Dew, so sugary and popular among youth in Eastern Kentucky that dentists have identified a tooth-decay syndrome of "Mountain Dew mouth."

Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Dr. Pepper Snapple Group and Kraft Foods produce two-thirds of the 900 products analyzed.

Coca-Cola accounted for three out of four brand appearances seen by children and teens. Nearly two-thirds of all full-calorie soda or energy drink ads on TV included sponsorship of an athlete, sports league or teams, or an event or cause.

In 2010, black children and Hispanic teens saw 80 to 90 percent more TV ads than white children. Marketing on Spanish-language TV is also growing. In 2010, Hispanic children and teens saw nearly twice the number of sugary drink and energy drink ads as in 2008.

The American Academy of Pediatrics says highly caffeinated energy drinks "have no place in the diet of children and adolescents." But in 2010, teenagers saw 18 percent more TV ads and heard nearly twice as many radio ads for energy drinks than adults did. (Read more)

Get Pregnant Fast After A Miscarriage

Getting pregnant after a miscarriage can be difficult, many women find it a major emotional trauma to overcome. There are however several things to keep in mind in order to overcome this emotional trauma and get into a better frame of mind. Having a positive frame of mind will greatly help you to become pregnant again after your miscarriage; thinking in a positive way is the first step to looking ahead. Thinking of how perfect your baby will be once he/she is born, how happy you will be when this day arrives, is the best way to overcome your grief and look to a new and happier day.

Of course the main thing is make sure you are healthy, and no physical reasons exist to stop you from getting pregnant again. Once your doctor has performed a physical exam and clears you of any problems, you are free to get in the proper mind-frame that will help in getting pregnant again. Then it’s just a matter of making sure you stay healthy and keep your bad habits (if any) to a minimum. Treat your body as if you were already pregnant, then you won’t have any extreme adjustments to make when you are pregnant again.

Taking care of yourself physically is extremely important of course, the healthier your body is the faster you may see positive results for your new pregnancy. It only makes sense that you are mentally preparing for a new life, and must be in the best health in order to sustain this new life. Eating properly is really critical, and drinking plenty of water as most people will tell you as well. Since most women don’t get enough vitamins from the food they eat, taking a multi-vitamin is important as well. Especially folic acid and the usual calcium, two must-haves for women!

Keep in mind that most research that has been done concerning miscarriages does not lead doctors to believe that having a single miscarriage will statistically lead to others. If you are a healthy woman and in your prime child-bearing years, then it is not necessary to have any concern about having another miscarriage. In fact worrying is the last thing you should do, as it will not put you in the positive mind-frame to relax and let nature do it’s thing. Getting pregnant after a miscarriage is a most wonderful thing that can happen, and if you set this as your goal and visualize that it will happen, before long you may have a wonderful surprise. A new baby on the way! 

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Cyber predators have easier access to children because of phones, video games

Child predators have it easier than ever to entice their young victims, due to the ever-growing accessibility of the Internet. "It's a lot easier now than everybody has the Internet in their pocket," Lexington Police Detective David Flannery told Karla Ward of the Lexington Herald-Leader. "Every day that we think of a way to combat it, people are thinking of a way to get around us," Flannery said. "It changes every day, and you have to keep up with it."

Using the World Wide Web to lure children for sex acts has skyrocketed since 1998, when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received 707 reports of people trying to entice children via the Internet. In 2008, there were 8,787 reports.

"Computers and cell phones remain the primary means of communication, but game systems including Xbox 360, Nintendo DS and Wii also can be connected to the Internet, giving predators another way to gain access to children," Ward reports.

Though parents are becoming more aware, more education is needed, said Erin May Roth, an assistant U.S. attorney and the Project Safe Childhood coordinator for the Eastern District of Kentucky. "What they don't really think about is the fact that their kids are going to sleep with their phone," she said.

Flannery is the only police officer in Lexington assigned full-time to investigate Internet crimes against children. While he does not go into detail about his methods to track down predators, the concept involves pretending. "Anything that a kid can do, we can do," Flannery said.

Sometimes officers from several agencies and departments work together. The Kentucky State Police administers an Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the state attorney general's office has a similar unit, and, because cases can involve a number of jurisdictions, sometimes the Federal Bureau of Investigations, the U.S. Postal Service, the Secret Service and U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement are involved.

Mother Frieda Curry, right, discovered her 14-year-old daughter was entangled with a 38-year-old man who initially pretended to be 16. She contacted the Richmond Police Department and found more than 40 text messages and 10,000 pages of messages and videos on the computer. "I was frantic," she said. "I was in the worst state I've ever been in." (Photo by H-L's David Perry)

But Curry, whose daughter is now in college, dealt with the problem and the predator was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 10 years in prison. Thinking about the crimes can be difficult, but "only by shining a light on the problem will we ever hope to find a solution for it," said Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Lou Anna Red Corn. (Read more)

Brain-injured man disappeared when home staff wasn't looking

On the day of his disappearance, a resident of a personal-care home who was found dead four weeks later had not been checked on by staff for nearly three hours, reports Valarie Honeycutt Spears of the Lexington Herald-Leader, citing documents from a state investigation.

Additionally, Falmouth Nursing Home did not have a policy to make sure residents were under constant supervision and "the facility failed to establish" one, investigators found.

Larry Joe Lee, right, was a ward of the state and had a brain injury stemming from a childhood accident. He was "schizophrenic, bipolar and diabetic," Spears writes. He disappeared from the nursing home Aug. 4. His body was found Sept. 3 near the Licking River by bow hunters. The cause of his death has not yet been determined.

Spears' calls to the  home were not returned. It has since submitted a plan of correction to the state, which includes professional development for staff and new policies to keep track of patients' whereabouts.

"Since Lee's death, advocates and state lawmakers have been questioning whether personal care homes are the appropriate plate for people with brain injuries," Spears reports. Republican Sen. Jimmy Higdon, who comes from Lee's hometown of Lebanon, said he is on a fact-finding mission to see what changes need to be made to prevent a similar occurrence from happening. (Read more)

Low Sex Drive or Low Libido in Women

Low sex drive or low libido in women is a health disorder characterized by persisting or recurrent lack of interest in lovemaking. This disorder is influenced by both physical as well as psychological factors. Lifestyle changes like menopause, pregnancy and illness play vital roles in developing this hypoactive sexual desire disorder. You can easily diagnose low desire problem by performing pelvic exam. It helps in easier identification of problems like vaginal dryness, thinning of genital tissues and triggering spots. At present there are lots of cures available for treating low sex desire problem. Some among the best recommended drugs and treatments are given below.

Seeking counseling from a sex therapist is a best natural technique to cure low sex drive in women. It is a perfect treatment option prescribed for those females suffering from psychological issues. Undergoing therapy helps an individual to attain self understanding of their goals and values. It improves relationship and helps in finding a resolution to issues. Improving self esteem, managing anger, grief and depression are other highlighting benefits of undergoing therapy from a certified health practitioner.

Performing estrogen therapy is a widely prescribed treatment option to cure low sex drive in women. This is a technique to heighten the estrogen concentration of your body. Today, estrogen replacements are given in versatile forma like skin cream, vaginal ring, and estrogen patch. Apart from improving desire in women, estrogen therapy also helps in reducing hot flashes, relieving insomnia, reducing genital wall irritation and eliminating tooth decay.

Intake of saw palmetto is a safe treatment option available to cure low sex drive in women. Maintaining hormonal balance is an important advantage of using saw palmetto extract. It is well known as a rejuvenator and as an aphrodisiac. Regular intake of saw palmetto as per the guidance of physician improves desire and strengthens the functioning of reproductive organs. Treating impotence, stimulating breast enlargement, treating bladder inflammation and preventing thyroid inflammations are other advantages of using saw palmetto extract. Similar to saw palmetto, sarsaparilla is another natural cure used for treating low desire in women. It relieves the troubles of nervous disorders and helps in curing frigidity, infertility and impotence.

Kamni capsule is one of the best treatment options to cure low sex drive in women. This herbal supplement is a blend of ras sindhoor, bangbhasm, nagbhasm, lauhbhasm and abhrakh bhasm. It is found to be safe and very effective for the treatment of low desire problems. Improving lubrication of genital walls, increasing sensation, enhancing energy levels, intensifying orgasms and arousal are some among the key advantages of using Kamni capsules. Similar to Kamni capsule, Fantasy capsule is another safe remedy available to cure low desire in women. It is a composition of active herbal ingredients like shatavari, shilajit, musli safed, jaiphal and swarnapatra. Patients suffering from lack of desire are advised to intake this herbal supplement twice per day with milk or water. Treating PMS symptoms, curing leucorrhea, improving fertility, normalizing hormonal secretion and enhancing orgasm level are other advantages of using Fantasy capsules.

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