Hilarious or depressing? Kimmel interviews Americans who actually believe MLK endorsed Donald Trump
January 19, 2016
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Mississippi, notoriously the state that originated the legal challenge that led to the demise of Roe v. WadeRoe v. Wade, also happens to be one of just ten states, all controlled by Republicans, that still rejects federal funding for Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act.
That decision has put their hospital system on the brink of collapse, The New York Times reported on Tuesday.
"In Mississippi, one of the nation’s poorest states, the missing federal health care dollars have helped drive what is now a full-blown hospital crisis," reported Sharon LaFraniere. "Statewide, experts say that no more than a few of Mississippi’s 100-plus hospitals are operating at a profit. Free care is costing them about $600 million a year, the equivalent of 8 percent to 10 percent of their operating costs — a higher share than almost anywhere else in the nation, according to the state hospital association."
Medicaid expansion in other states has been a lifeline to rural hospitals, who tend to see fewer patients, are less likely to be affiliated with large hospital systems, and serve remoter, poorer areas — the type of hospital that has been disproportionately vanishing around the country, leaving already distressed areas with few health care options.
READ MORE: Oversight GOPer's history of grand jury leaks casts shadow over his investigations
In Mississippi, more than half of adults unable to access insurance because of the lack of Medicaid expansion are Black.
"Expanding Medicaid would uncork a spigot of about $1.35 billion a year in federal funds to hospitals and health care providers, according to a 2021 report by the office of the state economist," said the report. "And it would guarantee medical coverage to some 100,000 uninsured adults making less than $20,120 a year in a state whose death rates are at or near the nation’s highest for heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, kidney disease and pneumonia. Infant mortality is also sky-high, and the Delta has the nation’s highest rate of foot and leg amputations because of diabetes or hypertension. Health officials blame those numbers in part on the high rate of uninsured residents who miss out on preventive care."
According to the report, Mississippi Republicans, while still resisting ACA Medicaid expansion, have relented somewhat in the face of their dire situation, by expanding Medicaid to pregnant women for 12 months after they give birth, and they are also planning a one-time $83 million bailout of hospitals.
This comes as Mississippi faces another scandal for diverting tens of millions in funds intended for antipoverty programs for personal luxuries for state officials, and on "speaking fees" for retired NFL quarterback Brett Favre. The scandal began under former Gov. Phil Bryant, and Gov. Tate Reeves has come under fire as well, particularly after firing an attorney investigating the University of Southern Mississippi's role in the scandal.
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A federal judge has ordered parents fighting an Alabama ban on gender-affirming care to turn over their children's medical records.
Five parents who filed a lawsuit challenging a 2022 state law they say deprives them of the right to make important decisions about their own children's health care, which prompted state attorney general Steve Marshall to ask for medical and mental health records related to their children's treatment for gender dysphoria, and U.S. District Court judge Liles Burke ruled Monday those records were relevant to the case, reported AL.com.
“The Parent Plaintiffs claim that any disruption in their children’s care, whether it is the care they are currently receiving or the care they intend to seek in the future, would have devastating effects on their mental health, possibly including self-harm and suicide,” Burke wrote in the ruling. “Ultimately, the Plaintiffs have the burden to prove the allegations in their complaint.”
The Vulnerable Child Compassion and Protection Act (SB184) bans puberty blockers, hormone therapy and gender-affirming surgeries for minors, and outlines felony charges and 10-year jail terms for doctors or "any other individual" who “prescribes or administers” those treatments, and the plaintiffs noted that the records Marshall requested could be used as evidence against them.
READ MORE: Oversight GOPer's history of grand jury leaks casts shadow over his investigations
Burke ruled that all records that are turned over would remain confidential, and the plaintiffs and Marshall entered into a protective order last year that restricts access to the children's personal health information.
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An admission by House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) that he helped publicize a 2015 leak of a journalist’s private emails is casting a cloud over his investigations into President Joe Biden's administration but also his desire to question Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
As the Daily Beast's Roger Sollenberger wrote, Comer "'confirmed, for the first time' that he had helped orchestrate the 2015 leak of a journalist’s private emails. His campaign then used the leak -- unsuccessfully -- to combat domestic abuse allegations during Comer’s ill-fated Kentucky gubernatorial run."
That, in turn, has raised questions about Comer's ethics, to say nothing of the hypocrisy, as he attempts, as he did on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday to make his case that he wants to investigate the Manhattan grand jury proceedings looking at Donald Trump.
According to the Beast report, "During the 2015 primary, the Comer campaign tied those leaked emails to a grand jury investigation into local blogger and erstwhile attorney Michael J. Adams, who had been publishing rumors of the abuse allegations since the early stages of Comer’s run. But the Comer campaign was itself responsible for putting that grand jury into motion in the first place, when Comer’s running mate, Chris McDaniel, passed other emails he’d received from the blogger to a county prosecutor, Rob Sanders—who also happened to be a political ally."
READ MORE: Trump might be forced to shut up if he's finally charged with a crime
Congressional Integrity Project president Kyle Herrig is now questioning Comer's use of his committee and said an investigation into his prior activities is warranted.
“While Comer may have grown accustomed to leading political stunts that don’t pack much of a punch, a law enforcement investigation in Kentucky into his apparent admission that he illegally hacked a server and leaked documents would have serious consequences,” he told the Beast.
You can read more here.
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