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Torture a dog or cat? You could be charged with a felony under proposed Kentucky law
Under a bipartisan bill that passed a House committee on Wednesday, Kentuckians who torture a dog or cat could be charged with a felony. House Bill 103 would make it a Class D felony to torture a domestic dog or cat. Two members of the House Standing Committee on Judiciary passed and 15 voted in […]
Bipartisan bill would clear way for distribution of fentanyl test strips in Kentucky
FRANKFORT — Fentanyl test strips could no longer be considered drug paraphernalia in Kentucky under a bipartisan bill that passed a House committee Wednesday. The House Standing Committee on Judiciary approved the measure 17-0, with three members passing House Bill 353, sponsored by Reps. Kimberly Poore Moser, R-Taylor Mill and Rachel Roberts, D-Newport, states: “Testing […]
Bill to ensure proper reporting of child abuse in Kentucky advances
FRANKFORT – A state Senate bill aimed at closing gaps in Kentucky’s child abuse reporting unanimously passed out of committee Tuesday morning. Senate Bill 229 “ensures the reporting of child abuse or neglect is properly communicated to the appropriate external agencies,” the primary sponsor, Julie Raque Adams, R-Louisville, told her colleagues in the Senate Families […]
Juvenile justice bill passes House, would open some minors’ now-confidential records
FRANKFORT —A Republican-backed bill that would reopen a juvenile detention center in Louisville passed the House 79-18 hours after it passed a House committee Tuesday morning. It may now go to the Senate for a vote. Members of the House Standing Committee On Appropriations And Revenue voted 20-2 – with two passes – to advance House […]
Someone who attended the ‘large spiritual revival’ at Asbury University has measles
Someone who attended the “large spiritual revival” at Asbury University on Feb. 18 has measles, the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services announced Friday night. “Anyone who attended the revival on Feb. 18 may have been exposed to measles,” Dr. Steven Stack, commissioner of the Kentucky Department for Public Health, said in a statement. […]
Postpartum depression bill advances in Kentucky Legislature
This story mentions suicide. If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, please call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988. A bill aimed at providing education and resources for new parents passed Kentucky’s Senate unanimously. The legislation can now go to the House for a vote. The Republican-sponsored Senate Bill 135 […]
Bill adding exemptions to Kentucky prior authorization requirements clears committee
A Kentucky health committee passed a bill Thursday that would add exceptions to prior authorization requirements. With 18 yes votes and one against, HB 134, framed as a way to save doctors and patients time, can now move to the House floor for a vote. That’s despite testimony from insurance representatives who asked legislators to vote […]
Bill addressing Kentucky’s health care workforce shortages clears committee
A Kentucky bill drafted to address the state’s health care workforce shortages easily passed a House committee Thursday. The bill, which has bipartisan support, sailed out of the House Standing Committee on Health Services with 18 yes votes and one pass. No one voted against the bill. It now goes to the House floor. House […]
Bills opening way for freestanding birthing centers in Kentucky await votes in both chambers
FRANKFORT — Katelyn Foust delivered her first child in a Louisville hospital. Though “nothing particularly went wrong, physically,” she said, “there definitely wasn’t that support aspect.” So, when it was time to have her second child, she traveled past Kentucky hospitals into Indiana to give birth at a Jeffersonville freestanding birth center. It was that […]
House Republican Whip Jason Nemes proposes exceptions to Kentucky’s abortion ban
House Majority Whip Jason Nemes, R-Louisville, filed a bill Wednesday that would add exceptions for rape and incest to Kentucky’s near-total ban on abortion. House Bill 569 also would allow for abortion when “necessary” — defined as when “there is reasonable medical judgment that there is definitive evidence that the unborn child the pregnant woman […]
Democratic lawmaker introduces bill to restore abortion access in Kentucky
FRANKFORT — Pointing to a November vote in which Kentuckians defeated an anti-abortion constitutional amendment, a state representative proposed legislation Wednesday to restore abortion access. Rep. Lindsey Burke, D-Lexington, acknowledged the difficulty in getting her bill heard. The Republican supermajority is “not interested in bipartisanship,” she said while criticizing the lack of Democratic bills heard […]
Kentucky doctors could get burnout help under bill with Senate approval
This story discusses suicide, burnout and mental health. If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, please call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988. The Kentucky Senate unanimously passed a bill aimed at preventing burnout among physicians on Tuesday. Republican-backed Senate Bill 12 cleared committee last Wednesday, also unanimously. The bill […]