Mental Health
Missouri Likely To Remain The Only State Without Prescription Drug Database
Missouri has a distinction that troubles many involved in public health: It’s the only state in the country that does not monitor prescription drugs. Some say that heightens the problem of prescription drug abuse. Missouri legislators are trying to create a drug monitoring system, but concerns over privacy have stirred opposition. Rising abuse Since the…
Brownback proposes HCBS waiting list reduction
Mike Shields — KHI News Service LENEXA — Gov. Sam Brownback today said he will ask the Kansas Legislature to approve spending an additional $2.6 million in state funds to help reduce the waiting lists for in-home, Medicaid services for the disabled. If approved, an estimated 209 additional people would receive the services. There are…
Teens help community, themselves heal in aftermath of shootings
The plan was to memorialize each victim with the release of a hot-air-powered lantern, but the first attempt ended with stomps as a gusty wind ignited the white paper. A crew did finally get one to lift off in honor of all the dead. But a tree briefly snagged that one, and it skittered off…
Health Profile: Nathan Jackson, Executive Director, Hope Family Care Center
Mike Sherry – The Hale Center for Journalism Hope Family Care Center provides primary care to three medically underserved, low-income ZIP codes in the urban core of Kansas City, Mo. The faith-based clinic at 3027 Prospect Ave. opened five years ago as an initiative of The Hope Center, a Christian community development organization that has…
Local company part of national ‘Stamp Out Stigma’ mental health campaign
Leawood-based New Directions Behavioral Health is participating in a new national campaign aimed at reducing negative views about mental illness. The Stamp Out Stigma initiative, organized by the Association for Behavioral Health and Wellness, aims to reach 1 million people this year to change perceptions about mental illness and substance abuse, according to a news…
REACH Foundation elects board members
The REACH Healthcare Foundation has added three new members to its board of directors and re-elected another three to a second term, the foundation announced Monday. Based in Merriam, Kan., REACH is a charitable organization that provides grants and other support to improve health care access and quality. It serves six counties in Missouri and…
Discussion aims to put words into action on mental health
Mike Sherry – The Hale Center for Journalism There are, no doubt, a million things teens would rather do on a beautiful weekend morning than talk about mental health with a bunch of adults. Nevertheless, students like 16-year-old Jarel Wilson were among about 100 participants who took part in a discussion Saturday at the…
Kansas City groups pursuing mental health crisis center
By Kansas City, Mo., would be home to a regional facility aimed largely at diverting substance abusers from jail and hospital emergency rooms under a plan that has garnered support from law enforcement officials, political leaders and health care providers. The vision actually represents dual efforts that began independently, but which might coalesce as a…
Medicaid expansion advocates rally at Statehouse
By Jim McLean KHI News Service TOPEKA — Medicaid expansion is nowhere to be found on Gov. Sam Brownback’s list of priorities and those of Republican legislative leaders as they work through a legislative session now dominated by school finance issues. But that didn’t stop nearly 200 expansion supporters from crowding into a wing of the Statehouse…
Improvements suggested for regional health initiative
Leaders of a key initiative to coordinate and expand healthcare services for the region’s low-income residents must sharpen its focus and do a better job of measuring its outcomes, according to a review by an outside consultant. Known as the Regional Health Care Initiative, the effort operates through the Mid-America Regional Council. Major funding…