As part of resetting its relationship with rural hospitals, UK will not build a new hospital at interstate junction in southeast Lexington

By Al Cross

Kentucky Health News

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- The University of Kentucky will not build a hospital in southeast Lexington because it wants to do what its network of rural hospital partners want: focus on its mission as a top-level care facility for the sickest patients, a UK vice president told a legislative subcommittee Wednesday.

Mark D. Birdwhistell (UK photo)

The proposed Hamburg-area hospital "was perceived as us stepping outside of our swim lane" by the university's clinical affiliates out in the state, Senior Vice President for Health and Public Policy Mark Birdwhistell told the Budget Review Subcommittee on Health and Family Services.

"We heard loud and clear, 'We want UK HealthCare to focus on taking care of the sickest of the sick. We don't want UK out doing primary care and secondary care.' . . . That was very eye-opening."

Birdwhistell reiterated, "The message we received loud and clear from our clinical affiliates was, 'When our folks get that sick, we want them to come to UK. We want them on campus. We don't them in a community hospital.'"

UK was in the planning process for a new hospital at the southern junction of Interstates 75 and 64, and had bought the property and done some initial work. Baptist Health is in the process of opening a new hospital on an adjacent site.

Instead of a hospital, UK will build a clinic with specialty services like the one it has built in a former department store in the Turfland Center in southwest Lexington, but larger, Birdwhistell said after the meeting: "Turfland plus."

He told the legislative subcommittee that the university will also build other clinics to serve its employees in Lexington and the Bluegrass region, many of whom are "having to get health care outside the system. . . . We feel like that is our obligation."

Birdwhistell spoke to the subcommittee in a new role, which he said will include centralizing the university's "government-relations activities across campus," including "building a better partnership with the General Assembly. I felt I was uniquely positioned to do that."

 

Previously, Birdwhistell was UK HealthCare's vice president for health system administration and chief of staff. He was secretary of the state Cabinet for Health and Family Services under Republican Gov. Ernie Fletcher, and helped Republican Gov. Matt Bevin propose changes to the federal-state Medicaid program, which he had run before becoming cabinet secretary. He appeared with Angela Dearinger, executive vice dean of the UK College of Medicine, who was briefly health secretary at the end of Bevin's term.

The General Assembly is firmly controlled by Republicans. In the recent legislative session, Birdwhistell was the university's point man in changing legislation that helped Pikeville Medical Center and some other rural trauma hospitals but in its original form would have reduced some of the extra Medcaid payments that UK gets for being a "safety net" hospital.

That relates to UK's recent takeover of other hospitals in Ashland and Morehead, which Birdwhistell discussed at Wednesday's legislative subcommittee meeting. Speaking of UK's absorption of King's Daughters Medical Center in Ashland, he said "Where we failed . . . is when you put that UK brand in front of that name, that brings with it an expectation of service, not predator," which he said was the perception of some.

"And so, we're readjusting a lot of the narratives to say, 'When you have UK in front of your name, you go to a partner and say, 'What can we do to help you be successful?' It's not 'What do we do to crush you?' And this is community health care. This is not our forte, so we've learned that lesson. . . . We can grow the workforce for those providers and not have to do it ourselves."

Birdwhistell said UK can also serve as a backstop for its rural partners, noting that UK doctors rearranged their schedules one weekend to keep open the neonatal intensive-care unit at Pikeville, which would have had to close temporarily due to employee vacations. "That's what we do," he said. "That's where we excel and that's where we need to get back to."

UK's latest acquisition is St. Claire Medical Center in Morehead, where it has run a satellite medical-school program for several years. The College of Medicine also has satellites in Bowling Green and Northern Kentucky, and Dearinger said it has seven residency programs in Bowling Green, the state's third largest city, and is starting residency programs in Ashland and Pikeville.

"We are trying to grow the number of doctors to stay in our state," Dearinger said, calling UK's Rural Physician Leadership Program "one of our crown jewels." She said it has produced 120 doctors, most of whom are practicing in Kentucky, "the vast majority" in rural parts of the state. Later, she said 42 percent of all recent medical-school graduates from UK have stayed in Kentucky, far above the 24% of "a few years ago."

Two Democratic legislators from Louisville, Sen. Karen Berg and Rep. Lisa Willner, asked Dearinger if UK has had fewer applicants for medical school or residencies due to restrictions on medical education, by which they meant the recent state law that bans abortions except in cases of threat to the woman's life or permanent damage to a life-sustaining organ.

Dearinger said "To be honest, we have not seen a decrease." She said she has heard anecdotal reports of students or graduates interested in obstetrics and gynecology going elsewhere, but "We are still inundated with OB applicants to do a residency at the University of Kentucky."

Another Louisville Democrat, Rep. Sarah Stalker, noted a May 16 Kentucky Health News story, from Kentucky Public Radio, that said 15% fewer U.S. medical-school graduates applied to Kentucky residency programs in the 2023-24 academic year, and there was a 23% decline in those for obstetrics and gynecology, according to the Association of American Medical Schools., which blamed the decline on the state's near-total abortion ban.

Dearinger said UK is still getting hundreds of "very good applicants, and we don't have any problems filling our residency programs and fellowship programs with very high-quality young physicians. We are prioritizing as much as we can, Kentucky students, so that they will stay" in the state.

Roll call: Most members of the subcommittee did not attend the late-morning meeting. The chairman, Sen. Donald Douglas of Nicholasville, a physician, noted that at the start of the meeting and made an unusually pointed comment: "I expect my colleagues in the General Assembly to show up."

UK is again the top Ky. hospital in U.S. News rankings, followed by St. Elizabeth in Northern Ky. and Baptist Health Louisville

By Melissa Patrick

Kentucky Health News

 

Three Kentucky hospitals, in the state's three largest metripolitan areas, have been named among the nation's "Best Regional Hospitals" in the annual ranking by the U.S. News & World Report magazine. 

The No. 1 hospital in Kentucky is again the University of Kentucky hospital, followed by St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Edgewood and Covington and Baptist Health Louisville.

To make the list, a hospital must offer a full range of services; rank nationally in one of 11 measured specialties, or have seven or more high-performing rankings for procedures and conditions; and have at least three more "high performing" than "below average" rankings for procedures and conditions. 

The report offers an overview of 121 Kentucky hospitals with a breakdown of each of the measured categories, according to the services a hospital provides. 

UK HealthCare, for the ninth straight year, ranks No. 1 in the state with its Albert B. Chandler Hospital.

In cancer care, UK's Markey Cancer Center moved up to No. 36 from No. 44 last year. Markey is Kentucky's only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center, and one of 72 in the nation. 

“Together, these recognitions firmly establish Markey among the nation's top cancer centers, affirming that patients can access world-class cancer care right here in Kentucky,” Dr. Mark Evers, director of the cancer center, said in a news release. 

UK's hospital system also ranked nationally in two other adult specialties: ear, nose and throat and obstetrics and gynecology; and three children specialties: pediatric cardiology and heart surgery, orthopedics and urology.

Six UK HealthCare adult specialties – four more than the previous year’s rankings – also received the “high performing” designation: gastroenterology and gastrointestinal surgery, geriatrics, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopedics, pulmonology and lung surgery and urology. 

The system also was rated "high performing" for 14 procedures and conditions, including heart attack, heart-bypass surgery, heart failure, colon-cancer surgery, kidney failure, back surgery (spinal fusion), stroke, gynecological-cancer surgery, leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma, hip replacement, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung-cancer surgery, pneumonia and prostate-cancer surgery. 

Chandler Hospital was also named Best Regional Hospital for Equitable Access, a new category that recognizes success in caring for patients in historically underserved communities. UK HealthCare was one of 98 medical centers nationwide and the only hospital in Kentucky to receive this recognition.

“We diligently examine our data and metrics to help us identify and quantify disparities that are unique to our underserved populations. That allows us to execute targeted strategies and solutions to address these issues. We are truly the university – and the hospital – for Kentucky," Tukea Talbert, who oversees health equity efforts at UK HealthCare, said in the release.

St Elizabeth's Edgewood and Covington hospitals ranked high performing in 15 procedures and conditions: leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma, colon-cancer surgery, lung-cancer surgery, prostate cancer surgery, abdominal aortic-aneurysm repair, heart attack, heart-bypass surgery, heart failure, kidney failure, stroke, maternity care (uncomplicated pregnancy), hip replacement, knee replacement, COPD and pneumonia.

This is the 11th time that Baptist Health Louisville has ranked No. 1 or tied for that ranking in Jefferson County. The hospital ranked high-performing in nine procedures and conditions: leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma, colon-cancer surgery, abdominal aortic-aneurysm repair, heart attack, aortic-valve surgery, heart-bypass surgery, hip replacement, knee replacement and COPD. The hospital ranked below average for diabetes. 

“We’re incredibly excited to be recognized by U.S. News and World Report for being number one in metro Louisville. It’s a recognition that comes as a culmination of a lot of work from the entire team at Baptist Health Louisville who strive every single day to ensure that the care that we provide is the highest quality and the safest it possibly can be,” Dr. Jonathan Velez, president of Baptist Health Louisville, said in a news release. 

The 35th annual rankings compared hospitals in 15 specialties and 20 common procedures and conditions. Data from the report came from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the American Hospital Association and professional organizations. This year, the report also includes Medicare Advantage data in the rankings, including risk-adjusted mortality rates for its beneficiaries in 11 adult specialties.

Nationally, the report named the top 22 hospitals to the national "Honor Roll." The top hospitals were not ranked again this year, but were instead listed in alphabetical order. Regionally, 466 hospitals were recognized as "Best Regional Hospitals." Click here for a FAQ about how and why U.S. News ranks hospitals.

Bowling Green's Med Center Health acquires Russellville hospital

Sign on chain's flapship hospital in Bowling Green

Kentucky Health News

Med Center Health, the nonprofit hospital chain based in Bowling Green, is now the owner of 75-bed Logan Memorial Hospital, and has changed its name to The Medical Center at Russellville. That extends the chain to seven like-named hospitals in Southern Kentucky, from Russellville to Albany.

Med Center Health said the facility will have will have six ICU/CCU beds and 10 swing beds, and serve a population of about 45,000. The purchase, finalized July 1, also includes three medical office buildings on the main campus as well as rural health clinics in Russellville, Auburn and Elkton.

“Med Center Health’s mission is to care for people and improve the quality of life in the communities we serve,” President and CEO Connie Smith said in a news release. “This acquisition aligns perfectly with that mission as we look to further enhance healthcare services for residents of Logan County and surrounding communities. We have a proven track record of improving access to care and services in our rural communities, and we could not be more excited to do the same for our friends and family in Logan County.”

The hospital was owned by the county until 1989, when it was sold to Nashville-based Hospital Corp. of America, which had managed the facility for several years. HCA later became Columbia/HCA Healthcare. In 1999 the hospital was part of that company's spinoff of rural hospitals into a new firm called Life Point. In 2022, when Life Point acquired Kindred Healthcare, it became part of a new company call ScionHealth, which sold it to Med Center Health.

Dr. Kamal Singh of Russellville, a member of the hospital's board, said in the release, “We are proud of the quality patient care that we deliver at Logan Memorial Hospital to the local families, Individuals, and our neighbors, and we are very pleased with the progress we have made under ScionHealth’s ownership. We are confident that Med Center Health’s breadth and depth of care services will best serve the local community as they seek to expand services and offer the resources of the most comprehensive health system in the region.”

Med Center Health, which grew out of the government-owned Bowling Green-Warren County Hospital, says it has more than 3,500 employees and 150 employed health-care providers.

Rural Tennessee hospitals near Kentucky border remain closed as the Volunteer State keeps spurning expansion of Medicaid

Jellico Medical Center is defunct. (KFF News photo by Taylor Sisk)

By Taylor Sisk
KFF Health News

JELLICO, Tenn. — In March 2021, this town of about 2,000 on the Kentucky border in the shadow of Pine Mountain lost its hospital. It's in Campbell County, which ranks 90th of Tennessee’s 95 counties in health outcomes and has a poverty rate almost double the national average, so losing its health care cornerstone sent ripple effects through the region.

“That hospital was not only the health-care lifeline to this community,” said Tawnya Brock, a health-care quality manager and a Jellico resident. “Economically and socially, it was the center of the community.”

Since 2010, 149 rural U.S. hospitals have closed or stopped in-patient care, according to the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at the University of North Carolina. Tennessee has had the second-most closures of any state, with 15, and the most closures per person. Texas has the most, with 25. Neither state has expanded Medicaid under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as has Kentucky, where only four hospitals have closed.

Jellico Medical Center was a 54-bed, acute-care facility. When it closed, some 300 jobs went with it. Restaurants and other small businesses in Jellico also have gone under, said Brock, who is a member of the Rural Health Association of Tennessee’s legislative committee. And the town must contend with the empty husk of a hospital.

Dozens of small communities are grappling with what to do with hospitals that have closed. Sheps Center researchers have found that while a closure negatively affects the local economy, those effects can be softened if the building is converted to another type of health care facility.

In Jellico, the town owns the old hospital building, and Mayor Sandy Terry said it is in decent condition. But the last operator, Boa Vida Healthcare of Indiana, holds the license to operate a medical facility there and has yet to announce its plans for the building, leaving Jellico in limbo. Terry said local officials are talking with health-care providers that have expressed interest in reopening the hospital. That’s their preferred option. Jellico does not have a Plan B.

“We’re just in hopes that maybe someone will take it over,” Terry said. Meanwhile, the nearest emergency rooms are a half-hour drive away in LaFollette, Tenn., and in Corbin, Ky.

MapQuest map, adapted by Kentucky Health News

An hour and a half away in Fentress County, the building that once housed Jamestown Regional Medical Center has been empty since June 2019, when Florida-based Rennova Health — which also previously operated Jellico Medical Center — locked it up.

County Executive Jimmy Johnson said Rennova’s exit from Jamestown was so abrupt that “the beds were all made up perfectly” and IV stands and wheelchairs sat in the halls. About 150 jobs evaporated when the center closed.

Rennova still owed Fentress County $207,000 in taxes, Johnson said, and in April the property was put up for auction. A local business owner purchased it for $220,000. But Rennova was granted a year to reacquire the building for what it owed in back taxes, plus interest, and did so within a few days.

Abandoned hospital buildings dot the map in Middle and East Tennessee. In West Tennessee, some shuttered hospitals have found new life.

The closing of McKenzie Regional Hospital in 2018 was a blow to the local economy. But Baptist Memorial Health Care, which operates a hospital in nearby Huntingdon, bought the assets — including the building, land, equipment, and ambulance service — and subsequently donated the building to the town of McKenzie.

Cachengo, a technology company, ultimately took over the space. Because of hospitals’ electrical infrastructure, the site was a perfect fit for a business like his, said Ash Young, Cachengo’s chief executive. Young said Cachengo is now looking into repurposing abandoned hospitals across the country.

Jill Holland, McKenzie’s former mayor and a local-government and special-projects coordinator for the Southwest Tennessee Development District, believes the town can become a technology hub. “It’s opening a lot of doors of opportunity for the youth in the community,” she said.

But in Jamestown, the vacant hospital is “deteriorating,” said Johnson, the county executive. “It could have been used to save lives.” Rennova did not respond to a request for comment.

The University of Tennessee Medical Center opened a freestanding emergency room elsewhere in Jamestown, sparing residents a half-hour drive to the closest ER. Johnson believes the old hospital building could serve the community as housing for those who are homeless or as a facility to treat substance use disorder.

Brock, the health-care quality manager, thinks things will get better in Jellico, but the community has had its hopes dashed more than once.

Brock believes a freestanding emergency room could be a viable solution. She urges her community to be responsive to “a new day” in rural health in America, one in which a hospital must focus on its community’s most urgent needs and be realistic about what that hospital can provide.

“Maybe it is just the emergency room, a sustainable emergency room, where you could hold patients for a period of time and then transfer them,” Brock said. “And then you build upon that.”

She added, “There are options out there.”

KFF Health News, part of the Kaiser Family Foundation, is a national nonprofit newsroom producing in-depth journalism about health issues.

Bill to help Pikeville hospital turned into a law that will help other rural hospitals after UK saw it as a threat and rewrote the bill

State Sen. Phillip Wheeler discussed his SB 280
 on KET's "Kentucky Tonight." (Screenshot from KET)

By Melissa Patrick
Kentucky Health News

State Sen. Phillip Wheeler of Pikeville says one of the most consequential pieces of legislation passed by state lawmakers this year is a bill he sponsored to funnel more money to rural hospitals in Kentucky. 

Senate Bill 280 allows certain rural hospitals that get at least 35% of their revenue from Medicaid to get the same enhanced Medicaid reimbursement rate as the University of Kentucky or the University of Louisville. 

The hospitals are defined as those that have a trauma center and offer clinical rotations for doctors, nurses and other medical professionals who are in training.

"It kind of levels out that playing field," Wheeler told Kentucky Health News. "And it does this without placing any additional liability for matching funds on the General Fund by allowing local communities to assess a provider tax against the medical provider." Such taxes are applied to revenues of health-care facilities, typically to get more government matching money.

Asked if his bill will keep rural hospitals from closing, Wheeler said, "I wouldn't be so bold as to say that this is the only solution. I think you need to take a multifaceted approach and providing these hospitals with the ability to compete and the funding they need to develop this specialized care is one piece of the puzzle."

Wheeler, a Republican who represents Elliott, Johnson, Lawrence, Martin and Pike counties, said the higher reimbursements will allow rural hospitals to provide a higher level of care, especially when it comes to specialty services. And this, he said, will increase access to care for rural communities. 

"Not only does that make a huge difference to the patients being served, but it also will result in a much larger increase in investment in health care in those communities," he said. "And . . . especially in a lot of rural areas, including where I live in the 31st Senate District, health care has essentially become our largest industry. I mean, the largest employer in my district, by far, is Pikeville Medical Center with over 3,000 employees." 

Wheeler said he didn't think anyone would be harmed by this law, noting that he resolved concerns voiced by UK HealthCare, which has clinical rotations at King's Daughters Medical Center in Ashland, which it recently purchased.

Path to "good public policy" 

Mark Birdwhistell, UK HealthCare's vice president for health system administration and chief of staff, explained that UK and UofL receive enhanced Medicaid reimbursements because they are Level I trauma centers that agree to care for the "sickest of the sick" patients in the state and also house the state's primary educational programs for medicine and dentistry.

UK HealthCare VP Mark Birdwhistell

He said the impetus of SB 280 and its companion bill SB 281, which was not heard in committee, came about when UK bought King's Daughters, which allowed the Ashland hospital to get the higher Medicaid reimbursement. 

The original SB 280 would have given Level II trauma centers -- Pikeville has the only one in the state -- the same enhanced Medicaid rate as UK and UofL. SB 281 said UK and UofL could only take that enhanced Medicaid reimbursement in clinics or hospitals that operated in the county of the educational facility, limiting UK's enhancement to Lexington.

"Both of these had unintended consequences," Birdwhistell said, so UK could not support the bills in their original form. He said they would have left UK with lower Medicaid payments for services provided in any hospital that it has an agreement with to provide care, such as Hazard Appalachian Regional Healthcare. In addition, he said UK has practices in other counties, such as Bowling Green and Manchester, that get enhanced Medicaid payments.   

"That would have been devastating if that had come to fruition," said Birdwhistell, who was state health secretary in 2006-07. Later adding, "It would have significantly reduced funding and would have eventually compromised good patient care in the commonwealth."

That's because the state has to get ongoing approval from the federal government for the special Medicaid payment plans, one for public universities and another for private hospitals. And, he said, if these two pieces of legislation had passed in their original format, it would have triggered an amendment to the current plans, possibly putting them at risk. 

Driven by this concern, Birdwhistell said he suggested that the bill keep the existing enhanced Medicaid plans but have a different solution allowing a third way for hospitals to get the enhanced payments. 

"We moved it from a potential where we would not be able to get as much federal Medicaid money in the state to a new program that has the potential of pulling in additional reimbursement and an incentive to focus on access and improved outcomes, improved patient outcomes," he said. 

The revised bill that passed allows an opportunity for hospitals to get comparable reimbursement to what the universities get if they meet the criteria to do so, and Birdwhistell. And this, he said, accomplishes the goal of creating a more "level playing field."

Further, he said SB 280 allows the opportunity for additional Medicaid payments for care provided by other health-care workers, such as advance-practice registered nurses, dentists and social workers. It also says that pediatric teaching hospitals are able to get the additional Medicaid reimbursements for services to patients under 18. 

"So I think we ended up with good public policy that has the potential of improving access and  patient outcomes for the Medicaid population," Birdwhistell said.

He added later, "I think it is transformative because it has the potential of aligning people's incentives around an increased increased physician workforce, opening up additional access, appointment availability. And thirdly, aligning around access and quality." 

Birdwhistell said six or seven hospitals will likely qualify for the enhanced Medicaid payments in the first wave of hospitals. He said the goal is to get the plan submitted to the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services by Aug. 1 and for payments to be approved by January 2025. 

A news release from the governor's office said it estimates that 43 Kentucky hospitals meet the requirements of the new plan, dubbed the Kentucky Medicaid Assistance Program. The plan is contingent upon approval from CMS. Wheeler said they have "very good indicators" that it will be approved. 

Why SB 280 is important

Donavan Blackburn, president and chief executive officer of Pikeville Medical Center, said he'd been working on this bill for the last year and a half "to address the inequality and disparity between us and urban hospitals," which have a greater share of patients with commercial insurance, which pays higher rates. 

He pointed out that his Level II trauma hospital accepts patients from 48 other hospitals in the region who need a higher level of care and that 77% of them are either on Medicaid or Medicare. He said Pikeville Medical Center "serves the sickest of the sick and the most financially challenged in the nation." 

And while he said his hospital could be likened to UK or UofL when it comes to the services it provides, it is not a state-owned hospital or a teaching hospital. The hospital has an agreement with the University of Pikeville and four nursing schools to provide clinical rotations. 

In particular, he said it's his mix of payers that makes SB 280 so important because this extra money will allow the high level of care provided by the hospital to continue. 

"And what that extra payment means is, is that programs like our children's hospital, like our trauma center, like our specialties and subspecialties, endocrinology, rheumatology, all those different specialties that we're able to offer here in our community can stay in our community," he said. "Which means that not only people have access to care, but it prevents a diagnosis that if it goes untreated, becomes advanced, which costs actually the state and federal government even more."

Further, he said it will allow the hospital to retain jobs in health care, which is the top economic driver in the region. 

Blackburn said the success of SB 280 will be evident if they are able to "keep those service lines open and to keep making investments and advancements and to be able to keep up with all the other markets. . . . It's about advancement and sustainability." 

Ky. Hospital Association presents awards at annual convention

Nina Eisner, Lexington (KHA photos)

Kentucky Health News

The Kentucky Hospital Association honored several health-care leaders in the state at its annual convention in Lexington on May 21.

KHA’s highest honor, the Distinguished Service Award, was presented to Nina Eisner and Charles Lovell for untiring and exceptional service.

Eisner has served in clinical and administrative health-care positions for 45 years. In 2002, she became CEO of The Ridge Behavioral Health System in Lexington, She has been a strong advocate for Kentucky’s psychiatric hospitals and their patients and is a long-serving KHA trustee and has served in many other roles with KHA, the association said in a news release.

Charles Lovell, Barbourville

Lovell has been part of the Kentucky and Tennessee health-care landscape for the past 45 years. After serving as an emergency-room nurse in Memphis, he became CEO of several Tennessee and Kentucky hospitals, coming to Kentucky in 2003, to run Caldwell County Hospital in Princeton. He helped build a replacement hospital to serve Caldwell and Lyon counties.

In 2015, Lovell became community CEO at Barbourville ARH Hospital, which added many services and was the 2023 Knox County Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year. Lovell himself was the chamber's Man of the Year. Lovell has also held many roles with the KHA, chairing its Board of Trustees in 2013-14.

KHA’s Award of Excellence, given to individuals who have made significant contributions to health care in Kentucky, was presented to State Rep. Danny Bentley, R-Russell. 

Bentley, a pharmacist, has represented House District 98 (Greenup County and part of Boyd County) since 2017. He is known for helping his neighbors with health issues, and as a legislator helped pass measures that helped rural hospitals.

The KHA Health Care Governance Leadership Award, for individuals who have had a positive and sustainable impact on the quality of care in their communities through their work as hospital trustees, was presented to Gavin Roberts, chair of the Owensboro Health Board of Directors. The hospital is Owensboro’s largest employer, and Roberts has chaired the Owensboro Chamber of Commerce.

Eastern State Hospital is 200 years old; ex-patient, who says it saved his life, urges those who need mental-health care to get it

By Melissa Patrick
Kentucky Health News

This story mentions suicide. If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, please call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988.

Eastern State Hospital in Lexington, which is celebrating its 200th anniversary this month, is the oldest continuously operating state psychiatric hospital in the United States.

When Eastern State opened its doors as part of the old Fayette Hospital on May 1, 1824, it was just the second state psychiatric hospital in the nation, according to a University of Kentucky news release. 

“We believe that health care is a right for all Kentuckians; this includes access to mental-health resources,” said Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman, who spoke at the official observance of the anniversary. “For 200 years, Eastern State Hospital has provided care for Kentuckians in need of help. The staff at Eastern State Hospital is knowledgeable and compassionate. They deserve to be called health-care heroes.”

Lexington lawyer Bruce Simpson – who received treatment at Eastern State following a suicide attempt in January 2023 – shared his personal story and thanked the staff who helped him at the anniversary celebration. Below is a YouTube video, produced by UK, of Simpson telling his story. 

The UK news release notes that after his evaluation at Eastern State, Simpson began medication for his illness and began ongoing therapy, which he says has vastly improved his health. 

“I said, ‘I’m fine’ a million times. I was not fine,” Simpson said in the release. “But we need to talk openly about mental-health treatment. If you have a stomach ache, you’re going to the doctor. If your heart is palpitating, you’re going to the doctor. But if you have depression, you’re just as likely to not see anyone or even acknowledge you have a problem. That is a cultural correction we need to make. Mental illness is just as legitimate as cancer, heart disease, broken bones and a stomachache.”

For Simpson, who said he had dealt with ideas of suicide for nearly four decades, the stay at Eastern State completely changed his life.

“The clarity of my thinking now is so much better than it’s ever been,” he said in the release. “Eastern State got me on a different track. I want people to know that it is the best place to be if you’re in serious struggles with mental health. I wish I had gotten treated 40 years ago, and I don’t want anyone to suffer 40 years like I did. If things get difficult, don’t be afraid of going to Eastern State.”

"I can't say enough about the care I received at Eastern State along with my fellow patients," he said at the event. "But we're entitled to the same courtesy, respect and treatment as someone that's completely mentally healthy as human beings. And an Eastern State Hospital, I have 100% certainty that that takes place and I applaud the staff and I thank you for saving my life."

Health and Family Services Secretary Eric Friedlander said Eastern State's history "mirrors the many astounding developments in mental-health treatment over the past two centuries, from long-term custodial care in the 19th century, to the advent of modern medications in the mid-20th century, and the present focus on evidence-based, recovery-oriented services. Today the staff of Eastern State provide state-of-the-art care in a state-of-the-art facility to meet its unwavering goal of enhancing the behavioral health and quality of life of the Kentuckians it serves."

At the event, Kelly Gunning, director of advocacy and policy for the National Alliance on Mental Illness Lexington, said in 2002 she understood why her youngest son was "horrified" to be admitted to Eastern State Hospital -- and it had nothing to do with the dedicated staff.

"But the place itself was so foreboding and so off putting and so scary that it was stigmatizing for the patients that had to go there," she said. "Together, we decided we were going to start a campaign to make it better." 

Eastern State Hospital (Photo provided)

The state opened a modern, 300,000-square-foot Eastern State facility on UK’s Coldstream Research Campus in 2013 that houses 195 acute care beds and provides critical, recovery-focused psychiatric care for adults from a 50-county region of the state.

In 2021, then hospital became the first state psychiatric facility to achieve Magnet status, the gold standard for nursing excellence.

Later this summer the hospital will open its new Emergency Psychiatric Assessment Treatment and Healing unit, known as EmPATH. This program will offer an individual-centered, evidence-based care model designed to address the increasing needs for inpatient and emergency psychiatric care across Kentucky, according to the release. 

Hospital association, state Department of Agriculture start 'Food is Medicine' effort to get more local food into Kentucky hospitals

Logo of the program

Kentucky Health News

The Kentucky Hospital Association and the state Department of Agriculture have started an effort to get more local food into Kentucky hospitals.

"A recent survey completed by representatives of 50 hospital systems across the state found that only about 2 percent of the hospital’s budget is spent on local food," a department news release said. "The overall average percentage of local food being served at these same hospitals was 15 percent."

In their “Food is Medicine” campaign, the department, KHA, eight health systems and other organizations "will study how hospitals can play a key role in prescribing food as medicine to patients by creating more access to healthier and local foods," the release said. They will:
· Look at the food a hospital is serving to patients;
· Create partnerships between hospitals and local farmers;
· Connect patients with resources to a consistent healthy food resource;

· Reach out to patients who need a special diet, such as diabetes patients, and who could benefit from having a resource to fresh food.

“Access to nutritious food is critical to maintain a healthy lifestyle,” Agriculture Commissioner Jonathan Commissioner Shell said. “Advocating that connection between food and health is essential to meeting the goal of less chronic disease and longer lifespans. But it’s more than a message about choosing the right foods, it’s also a message about expanding our food distribution networks within the agriculture industry.”

KHA President and CEO Nancy Galvangni said, "Kentucky’s hospitals work every day to improve the health of our citizens and this new collaboration between KHA and the Department of Agriculture will elevate ways in which hospitals throughout Kentucky can address the social drivers of health facing our commonwealth.”

Hollie Harris, president and CEO of Appalachian Regional Healthcare, said "As the largest provider of care in southeastern Kentucky, our responsibility goes beyond treating illness. We want to help people live healthier lives, and that starts with access to healthy foods. . . . We can create partnerships to address our state’s troubling health statistics and make fresh, locally grown foods more available in our communities."

Most Kentucky hospitals in national patient-safety ratings got 'C' grades again; state is 35th in share of hospitals with 'A' ratings

By Melissa Patrick

Kentucky Health News

Most of the Kentucky hospitals graded on a nonprofit group's twice-a-year report card for patient safety again got a C in the latest report. 

The Leapfrog Group, based in Washington, D.C., rates nearly 3,000 general acute-care hospitals based on how well they protect patients. Most of Kentucky's 126 hospitals are relatively small, so they are not rated by Leapfrog; it rated 62 Kentucky hospitals.

The group does not grade small hospitals with "critical access" status because they don't have to report quality measures to the federal government; nor does it grade specialty hospitals, government hospitals, or hospitals that don't have enough publicly reported data.

Leapfrog gave 'A' ratings to 10 Kentucky hospitals; Kentucky's percentage of A grades, 16.4%, ranked it 35th among states. That was up two slots from the last report, when it ranked 37th. Leapfrog gave Bs to 19 Kentucky hospitals, Cs to 27 and Ds to 5.  

The grades are based on more than 30 measures that indicate how well hospitals protect patients from preventable errors, injuries, accidents and infections. 

The spring 2024 report showed 92% of U.S. hospitals have seen improvements in at least one of three infections associated with hospitals. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) decreased by 30%, central line-associated bloodstream infections decreased by 34% and catheter-associated urinary tract infections decreased by 30%. This good news comes after a six-year high for those infections was reported in the fall 2022 report. 

"While today’s results are promising, patient safety remains a crisis-level hazard in health care. Some hospitals are much better than others at protecting patients from harm, and that’s why we make the Hospital Safety Grade available to the public and why we encourage all hospitals to focus more attention on safety,” Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group, said in a news release. 

She added, "According to a summary of peer-reviewed research published in British Medical Journal, an estimated 250,000 people a year die of preventable errors and infections in hospitals, which makes patient safety problems the third leading cause of death in the United States." 

The spring 2024 report also showed some improvements on patient experience measures compared to fall 2023. The release notes that these measures worsened during the pandemic and have still not returned to pre-pandemic levels. These measures look at things that have a direct impact on patient safety outcomes, including nurse communication, doctor communication, hospital staff responsiveness, communication about medicine and discharge information. 

"Patient experience is very difficult to influence without delivering better care," Binder said, "so these findings are encouraging."

The Leapfrog site offers details on the measures for each hospital under the heading Infections. It also provides detailed information under headings titled Problems with Surgery, Practices to Prevent Errors, Safety Problems, and Doctors, Nurses and Hospital Staff. The information is provided in an easy-to-read, color-coded scale that indicates how the hospital is performing.

The report uses data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Leapfrog's own survey and other supplemental data sources. Leapfrog says hospitals are only graded if they have submitted adequate data for evaluation.

Top Scores

Hospitals getting As were Baptist Health La Grange, Baptist Health Lexington, Deaconess Henderson Hospital, Georgetown Community Hospital, Meadowview Regional Medical Center in Maysville, the Medical Center at Bowling Green, Saint Joseph-London, St. Elizabeth Healthcare-Edgewood, T.J. Samson Community Hospital in Glasgow, and TriStar Greenview Regional Hospital in Bowling Green.  

Screenshot of page for Georgetown Community Hospital

Georgetown Community Hospital received an A after getting six consecutive Cs.

Baptist Health Lexington has received an A grade for 13 consecutive grading periods. Deaconess Henderson moved up from a B grade in the fall 2023 report. The rest in this top group also received As in the fall. 

Shifts up and down

Four Kentucky hospitals moved down to a B after getting an A on the last report, including Norton Audubon Hospital, Norton Brownsboro Hospital, Norton Hospital and Norton Women's & Children, all in Louisville. 

Five Kentucky hospitals moved up to a B after getting a C on the last report, including Baptist Health Deaconess Madisonville, Baptist Health Richmond, Harrison Memorial Hospital in Cynthiana, Middlesboro ARH Hospital and the University of Kentucky Albert B. Chandler Hospital. 

Other hospitals with B grades are Baptist Health Louisville, Baptist Health Paducah, Clark Regional Medical Center in Winchester, Owensboro Health Muhlenberg Community Hospital in Greenville, Saint Joseph East in Lexington, St. Elizabeth Healthcare-Fort Thomas, St. Elizabeth Healthcare-Florence, U of L Health Shelbyville Hospital, UK HealthCare Good Samaritan Hospital and Blanchfield Army Community Hospital in Fort Campbell. 

Five Kentucky hospitals moved up from a D to a C: Hazard ARH Regional Medical Center, Jackson Purchase Medical Center in Mayfield, Jewish Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky River Medical Center in Jackson and UofL-Sts. Mary and Elizabeth Hospital. 

Three hospitals moved down from a B to a C: Kings Daughters Medical Center in Ashland, Monroe County Medical Center in Tompkinsville and Whitesburg ARH Hospital. 

The remaining 19 hospitals with a C all got Cs on the last report card too. 

Taylor Regional Hospital in Campbellsville moved down from a C to a D and Jennie Stuart Health in Hopkinsville moved up to a D after being the only hospital in the fall 2023 report to get an F. 

Other hospitals with D grades are Highlands ARH Regional Medical Center in Prestonsburg, Murray-Calloway County Hospital and Pikeville Medical Center. 

No Kentucky hospitals got an F on this report. 

Click here for a list of frequently asked questions about the survey. Click here to see if your hospital was graded. 

Legislative lobbying reports for last session rank pharmacy-benefit managers fifth, hospitals sixth, Altria 11th, Anthem 17th, docs 18th

The legislature meets in the Kentucky State Capitol.

By Al Cross

Kentucky Health News

The trade association for pharmacy benefit managers, which act as middlemen between drug and health-insurance companies, was the fifth largest reported spender on lobbying the state legislature in the first three months of the year, according to a compilation by the Kentucky Legislative Ethics Commission. 

The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association reported spending $94,694 on lobbying the General Assembly from January through March. The session began Jan. 2 and was over for most purposes by the end of March.

On March 28, the legislature gave final passage to Senate Bill 188, which is intended to keep the state's independent pharmacies from closing. It sets dispensing fees, bans PBMs from forcing patients to get their drugs through mail order, and keeps them from steering patients to pharmacies that they own. The PBMs argued that the law will cause insurance premiums to increase and its mandates in the bill won't allow businesses to gain from savings PBMs offer.

Independent pharmacies say they are losing money because of low fees paid by PBMs. The bill sets a minimum dispensing fee of $10.64 per prescription for the state's independent pharmacies until a study of dispensing costs is completed by the state Department of Insurance. This "gap-fill payment floor" will not be available to chain pharmacies. The results of the study will eventually dictate what the dispensing fee should be going forward. The study is to be repeated every two years, with fee adjustments made accordingly.

The law, sponsored by Sen. Max Wise, R-Campbellsville, also prohibits a PBM from reimbursing a pharmacy that it owns at a higher rate than a community pharmacy, or from keeping a community pharmacy from filling a 90-day prescription for a maintenance drug. And PBM will not be able to penalize a community pharmacy from sharing information with a patient on the cheapest option to pay for their medications.

Several other major lobbying interests dealt with health-care issues. The biggest spender was the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, at $151,010, followed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky, at $139,599. Among many other things, the ACLU wants the legislature to enact exceptions to the state's near-total abortion ban.

Ranking sixth, just behind the PBM lobby, was the Kentucky Hospital Association, at $85,835. In 11th place was Altria Client Services, a cigarette company, at $73,309; it supported the successful bill to limit legal sales of vaping products to those approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Ranking 17th was Elevance Health and Affiliates doing business as Anthem Inc., at $59,946. The health-insurance firm was followed by the Kentucky Medical Association, the main lobby for physicians, at $54,051, and the Kentucky Primary Care Association, a trade group for health clinics, at $49,416.

Overall, spending on legislative lobbying for the first three months of 2024 was a record of $9.719 million, the Ethics Commission reported Tuesday: "The previous record for the same period was $9.343 million, set last year; 933 businesses and organizations registered to lobby in Kentucky, spending $9.427 million; 727 lobbyists were paid $8.289 million in compensation, and also reported $291,942 in expenses."

University of Kentucky will buy St. Claire Hospital in Morehead

University of Kentucky trustees Friday approved buying St. Claire HealthCare in Morehead. (UK photo)

The University of Kentucky Board of Trustees voted Friday to approve plans to acquire St. Claire HealthCare in Morehead. The targeted date for UK's takeover is July 1. 

The move will expand clinical and academic programs and provide more access to high-quality patient care for more Kentuckians, UK said in a news release.  

“UK is committed to growing clinical services in the Morehead area as well as expanding programs in many clinical areas to grow the future health care workforce for Kentucky,” President Eli Capilouto said in the release.  

St. Claire is one of the largest employers in the Morehead region, with more than 1,300 employees, including over 50 physicians and nearly 50 advanced-practice professionals in more than 20 medical specialties.

St. Claire has partnered with UK on a number of academic and clinical programs since the 1960s, co-developing the Rural Physician Leadership Program along with Morehead State University and establishing a training and residency site for UK's colleges of Medicine, Pharmacy and Health Sciences. It is also home to the College of Health Sciences's Physician Assistant Program.

St. Claire President and CEO Donald H. Lloyd II, who will remain in that position, said in the release that "UK identified as the natural partner that could carry forward the previous work and ongoing investment while growing the health-care workforce."

He added, “In an ever-changing health care landscape, both St. Claire and UK are deeply committed to accessible and high-quality patient care and strategic collaborations that will enhance services to benefit Kentuckians throughout northeastern Kentucky for many decades to come.”

According to the release, St. Claire HealthCare includes a hospital with 139 licensed beds and seven primary-care clinics in five counties, a multi-specialty medical pavilion, two urgent-care centers, a pediatrics clinic, a retail pharmacy, a counseling center, an outpatient center and a medical equipment and supply store. St. Claire also provides home health and hospice services in eight counties.

This is UK's second major foray into hospital care in northeastern Kentucky in recent years. In 2021, the university created a joint venture with King's Daughters Memorial Hospital in Ashland in which UK holds the assets and manages the hospital system.

MedCenter Health, chain based at Bowling Green hospital, to expand medical specialty offices at new building in Glasgow

The ceremonial groundbreaking
(Photo by Michael Crimmins, Glasgow News 1)

Kentucky Health News

The small hospital chain based in Bowling Green, MedCenter Health, is expanding its medical-specialty offerings in its largest close neighbor, Glasgow.

MCH has had a presence in Glasgow for “a number of years,” but will now have a building of its own and start providing specialty medical care, Wade Stone, executive vice president of MCH, said Thursday at the groundbreaking for the facility on South L. Rogers Wells Boulevard.

Stone said the facility will allow MCH to continue combating the nationwide physician shortage, especially with regard to specialty services, spurred by the chain's partnership with the University of Kentucky College of Medicine, reports Jack Dobbs of the Bowling Green Daily News.

“As Med Center Health has evolved into an academic teaching institution we’ve been able to successfully recruit many of those specialties and grow those programs,” Stone said. “We can deploy those specialists to other rural communities.”

MCH Glasgow, which is expected to open in about a year, will also "allow patients to complete pre-op and post-op procedures locally, instead of having to commute to Bowling Green," Dobbs notes.

One of the specialists will be Paul Moore, who has been cardiothoracic surgeon in Bowling Green for 30 years, Dobbs reports: "He said he has been treating patients in Barren and surrounding counties for the past six or seven years, but described MCH Glasgow as a central location."

Dobbs told Glasgow News 1, “We have a number of patients that come from here, not just from Barren County but Adair County, Clinton County, Monroe County; this seems to be a central location they can all get to easily. I’m at the point now where I want to get out and see the patients who really need access and the care I can give that’s not given locally and that’s really important.”

Other specialties listed in a press release were Vascular Surgery, ear/nose/throat, hematology/oncology, neurosurgery, urology and orthopaedics/sports medicine. Stone said three or four full-time primary-care physicians will also practice at MCH Glasgow, which will have 22,000 square fete of floor space,

Glasgow's hospital is the locally owned T.J. Samson Community Hospital, which has a branch in Columbia. MedCenter Health, which grew out of the publicly owned Bowling Green-Warren County Hospital, has hospitals in Albany, Franklin, Horse Cave and Scottsville.

Louisville's Norton Healthcare receives $20 million gift to support Parkinson's disease programming and research

Norton Healthcare has received a $20 million gift for the "Just Imagine" campaign to support programing and research in Parkinson's disease and movement disorders at the Norton Neuroscience Institute.

 
The Just Imagine campaign aims to ensure greater access to medical expertise; expand innovative clinical translational research; and recruit, train and attract even more best-in-class specialists.

The gift comes from the estate of Dr. Elizabeth Pahk Cressman, a Louisville anesthesiologist who died in 2021.

“Dr. Cressman’s vision has helped elevate the care for Parkinson’s patients, helping to create a nationally known program through Norton Neuroscience Institute,” Lynnie Meyer, senior vice president and chief development officer of Norton Healthcare, said in a news release. “She also was the catalyst behind funding Parkinson’s disease research that already has helped transform the lives of many patients and families through access to more groundbreaking treatments.”

Cressman worked at what is now Norton Women’s & Children’s Hospital, while her husband, the late Dr. Frederick K. Cressman, was a pathologist for Norton Healthcare. This latest gift brings Dr. Elizabeth Cressman’s total support of initiatives at Norton to $28 million.

Nearly 1 million Americans have Parkinson’s disease, and that number continues to grow. The movement disorder generally develops in people 55 to 75 with the main symptom being bradykinesia, or slowness of moment. It also can cause tremors and muscle stiffness.

“Parkinson’s disease can be extremely debilitating and, unfortunately, there currently is no cure,”  Dr. Justin T. Phillips, movement-disorders neurologist with Cressman Parkinson’s & Movement Disorders Center, said in the release. “With Dr. Cressman’s generosity, we are able to build upon the work we already do and offer even more options for patients. She has already had a great impact on people with Parkinson’s in our community, and that will continue for years to come.”

Bills to become law on vaping, pharmacy reform, vaccinations, drugs, at-home blood testing, coverage of cancer screening, more

Kentucky State Capitol (Photo via Wikipedia)

By Melissa Patrick
Kentucky Health News

In its 2024 session the Kentucky General Assembly has passed dozens of health-related bills that address a range of topics. With one day left in the session, here are some of them: 

Vaping: House Bill 11 limits legal sale of vaping products to those approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. It also creates a database of retailers that sell the products and sets fines for retailers, manufacturers and wholesalers who violate the law.

HB 142 requires school districts to adopt specific policies that penalize students for possession of "alternative nicotine products, tobacco products or vapor products" and report nicotine-related incidents to the state Department of Education. Changes in the Senate, accepted by the House, allow schools and their governing bodies to apply for grants related to nicotine usage and remove the mandate that schools suspend students with a third possession violation. 

Pharmacy reform: Senate Bill 188 changes laws governing commercial pharmacy benefit managers, with requirements aimed at saving the state's independent pharmacies from closing.  It provides for dispensing fees, bans PBMs from forcing patients to get their drugs through mail order, and keeps them from steering patients to pharmacies that they own.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Max Wise, R-Campbellsville, also prohibits a PBM from reimbursing a pharmacy that it owns at a higher rate than a community pharmacy, or from keeping a community pharmacy from filling a 90-day prescription for a maintenance drug. And a PBM will not be able to penalize a community pharmacy from sharing information with a patient on the cheapest option to pay for their medications.

Reducing barriers to screening

Cancer detection: HB 52 will require health-insurance plans to cover all preventive cancer screenings and tests that are consistent with nationally recognized clinical practice guidelines without requiring patients to pay any cost-sharing requirements, including a deductible charge for the services.

The sponsor, Rep. Deanna Frazier Gordon, a Republican from Richmond, told Kentucky Health News in February that the cost for screenings is often a barrier for people who often don't get screened because they don't have symptoms.

HB 115 will eliminate co-payments and cost-sharing requirements for high-risk individuals who need follow-up diagnostic imaging to rule out breast cancer. Currently, screening mammograms are covered by insurance, but follow-up exams are often not. 

“Thousands of Kentuckians require diagnostic and supplemental breast imaging every year, yet many forgo them due to out-of-pocket costs. Not any more,"  Molly Guthrie, vice president of policy and advocacy at the breast-cancer foundation Susan G. Komen, said in a news release. "This life-saving legislation means they will now receive the breast imaging they require, leading to an earlier breast cancer diagnosis and often better health outcomes."

Vaccines and drugs  

Vaccinations: HB 274 will allow Kentucky pharmacists to order and administer vaccinations to children as young as 5. The state's routine vaccination rates for kindergarteners remain below pre-pandemic levels.

Pseudoephedrine: HB 386 will raise the annual purchase limits on pseudoephedrine to help people with chronic allergies legally obtain enough of the medication to meet their needs. The bill changes the current 24-gram annual limit to an 86.4 grams, and remove the limit on the number of packages per transaction, said sponsor Robert Duvall, R-Bowling Green.

Kratom: HB 293 will regulate kratom, a natural herbal supplement that is not currently regulated. It is often used for anxiety, pain, PTSD and opioid withdrawal. The bill defines kratom, prohibits sales to people under 21, puts it behind the counter and provides guidelines for manufacturing and labeling. It also says federal law supersedes state law on the matter. 

Blood thinners: HB 31 allows Medicaid patients in Kentucky who are on blood thinners to use at-home machines to test their blood. Patients on some blood thinners, like warfarin, now require a weekly trip to the doctor's office for blood work that looks at how fast their blood clots.

Amanda Crabtree, a registered nurse at University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital, told WKYT-TV that she hopes that other states will follow Kentucky's example in this legislation. Crabtree said she expects that Medicaid patients could receive their at-home machines as soon as this summer.

Health-care business issues

Provider liability: HB 159 will protect health-care providers from criminal liability when a medical error harms a patient unless the harm results from gross negligence or wanton, willful, malicious or intentional misconduct. 

This effort was led by the Kentucky Nurses Association, which said the bill "will prevent health-care professionals from being charged criminally for making a medical error; that makes it good for nurses and nursing, and puts Kentucky at the forefront of developing laws to protect health-care workers." 

Workplace violence: HB 194 extends to contract workers, such as travel nurses, the law that makes violence against health-care workers a third-degree assault. It also extends this protection, now limited to hospitals, to contract employees at health clinics, doctor offices, dental offices and long-term care facilities. 

Sepsis: HB 477 establishes diagnostic criteria for sepsis allow hospitals to preserve current rules used for reimbursement of sepsis care, which allow payment when it is detected early, instead of only allowing reimbursement after organ failure occurs. 

"We know that if sepsis is caught early, the likelihood of survival is great," Jim Musser, vice president for policy with the Kentucky Hospital Association, told Kentucky Health News in March. "But for every hour that we wait, the chance of mortality increases by 7 percent." In sepsis, "The body responds improperly to an infection," says the Mayo Clinic. "Sepsis may progress to septic shock . . . When the damage is severe, it can lead to death."

Other health bills that passed

Youth medical records: HB 174 allows parents have access to their child’s medical records until they turn 18. Right now, children 13 and older must sign a waiver for parents to have access to them. HB 174 also updates the state's Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment form, which defines a person's end-of-life wishes.

Veteran suicide prevention: HB 30 calls on the state Department of Veterans Affairs to create a suicide prevention program for service members, veterans and their families.

Stuttering: SB 111 eliminates some insurance coverage limits on speech therapy for stuttering. It was promoted by former UK basketball star Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who has overcome stuttering.

Medicaid: SB 71 is designed to keep people from coming to Kentucky to establish residence so that they can sign up for drug treatment to be paid for by Medicaid. One challenge resulting from this practice, according to Rep. Shane Baker, R-Somerset, is that when they leave the program, they are often homeless. 

SB 280 will allow Level II trauma centers that partner with a  university to get the university-hospital rate for services delivered as part of that residency program.

ED visits, hospitalizations for respiratory disease decline in state

State Department for Public Health graphs, adapted by Kentucky Health News

By Melissa Patrick
Kentucky Health News

Kentucky's influenza levels remain elevated, but are declining, and hospitalizations for overall respiratory illness are moderate and declining, according to the state Department for Public Health.

In the week ended March 9, emergency-department visits for the three main respiratory diseases showed a 16% drop in visits for Covid-19, flu and RSV, to 2,734. Of those, 79% of the visits were attributed to the flu. 

Hospital admissions for the diseases dropped 28% in the week ended March 9, to 387. Of those admissions, 216 were for the flu, 154 were for Covid-19 and 17 were for RSV (respiratory syncitial virus).

In the week ended March 9, 10 Kentucky counties had a Covid-19 hospital admission rate between 10 and 19.9 admissions per 100,000 people, a rate that is considered "medium" by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

Those counties were McCracken, Marshall, Lyon, Livingston, Hickman, Graves, Crittenden, Carlisle and Ballard, in West Kentucky, and Letcher, on Kentucky's southeastern border.

The state reported 2,762 laboratory-confirmed cases of the flu in the week ended March 9 and 1,605 lab-confirmed cases of Covid-19. Both of these numbers have dropped for four weeks in a row. 

Since the flu season began in October, the state has recorded 439 Covid-19 deaths, 110 flu deaths and two co-infection deaths, both reported in recent weeks. One Covid-19 victim and one flu victim were children.

U of L is opening its new hospital in Bullitt County on Monday

University of Louisville photo illustration

Kentucky Health News

The University of Louisville is opening its UofL Health–South Hospital Monday, March 18, with a community breakfast and open house at 8 a.m. and a ceremonial ribbon-cutting with Gov. Andy Beshear at 10 a.m. The hospital will accept its first inpatients that afternoon, a university news release said.

"The $78 million acute-care hospital opens with 40 in-patient beds, and shell space for an additional 20 beds," the release said. "The new hospital fills an access gap in Kentucky’s 10th most populous county, allowing local patients to get their care closer to home. Bullitt County was previously the largest county without an inpatient hospital."

Google map by Kentucky Health News

The hospital is at Exit 121 of Interstate 65. "South Hospital is ideally positioned to support one of Kentucky’s fastest growing regions," the release says. "In addition to inpatient beds, including a 10-bed intensive care unit, the new full-service acute care hospital is bringing more providers. It will also provide enhanced heart-care services . . .for faster treatment of acute heart attacks, expanded emergency capabilities including a ‘fast track’ area for quicker treatment and discharge, expanded cardiopulmonary services, state-of-the art pharmacy, laboratory and sterile processing areas and increased surgical suites for inpatient and outpatient procedures."