Fresh food tax exemption on the table for Missouri lawmakers

Missouri Capitol

Missouri lawmakers might sweeten the pot for consumers who want to eat healthy and for the growers who provide the food. Legislators return to Jefferson City today to reconsider nearly three dozen measures that Gov. Jay Nixon vetoed in this year’s regular session. The veto session could extend to Friday. One of the bills up…

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Ottawa shooting renews focus on crisis intervention training

Man at memorial

Out of the 8,000 full- and part-time law enforcement officers in Kansas, only 1 in 4 have been trained to handle crisis calls involving the mentally ill. Records show that 80 percent of the nearly 1,800 trained officers work in four high-population counties: Johnson, Sedgwick, Shawnee and Wyandotte. The other 20 percent – about 360…

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Survey Showing Spike In Kansas’ Uninsured Rate Questioned

Kari Bruffett

Remember that headline-grabbing report last week that said Kansas was the only state in the nation to see a significant increase in its uninsured rate? Well, it’s looking more and more suspect. Some officials were immediately skeptical when the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index survey results were released, showing that the adult uninsured rate in Kansas had increased by…

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Poll: Kansas uninsured rate goes up by 40 percent

Healthcare key on the computer keyboard

Kansas was one of just three states that saw their rates of people without health insurance go up since last year, according to a new survey. And, if the poll results are accurate, Kansas was the one whose rates went up the most. The data, collected as part of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, show that…

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2014 primary candidates for Kansas insurance commissioner

No fewer than five candidates are seeking the Republican nomination for Kansas insurance commissioner, an office that has been dominated by Republicans since its creation in 1871. In the 20th century, only one Democrat has held the office, Kathleen Sebelius, who used it as a springboard to become Kansas governor in 2003 and, in 2009,…

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