Kansas Department of Health and Environment

Company Won’t Suspend Dental Services In Kansas Nursing Homes

By Andy Marso • Jan 26, 2017

An Oklahoma company said Thursday it has reached an agreement with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and won’t have to suspend dental services to about 360 Kansans in nursing homes.

Leaders of Sterling Dental said earlier in the week that they would halt services to Kansans whose Medicaid applications are pending because of payment delays caused by a persistent backlog of applications.

Dental Care Provider Halts Services At Kansas Nursing Homes Amid Medicaid Backlog

By Andy Marso • Jan 26, 2017
Andy Marso / Kansas News Service

Updated Thursday, 4:23 p.m.: Kansas News Service's Andy Marso reports that Sterling Dental has reached an agreement with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment on payments and will no longer suspend services to Kansans on the Medicaid backlog.

Original story:

Colyer: State Addressing Federal KanCare Concerns

By Andy Marso • Jan 23, 2017
Kansas News Service/File photo

Editor’s note: This story was updated at 5:05 p.m. Jan. 23 with information from legislative hearings.

As Kansas lawmakers move forward with efforts to increase oversight of KanCare, Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer says Brownback administration officials are addressing the issues that federal regulators cited in denying a one-year extension of the program last week.

Colyer still says he thinks politics played a role in the decision, which came in the final days of Barack Obama’s presidency.

Kansas Environmental Group Wants Grass Burning Limits For Flint Hills

By Abigail Beckman • Jan 3, 2017
Dan Charles / NPR

The Kansas chapter of the Sierra Club has asked the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to step in and order Kansas to impose tighter controls on grass burning to protect air quality in the Flint Hills.

Kansas Stuck In The Middle In Overall Health Even As Obesity Rate Climbs

By Meg Wingerter • Dec 16, 2016
America’s Health Rankings/United Health Foundation

Kansas was the only state where the obesity rate went up significantly in 2015, according to an annual report, and state officials are trying to figure out why and how to reverse the trend.

The state also lagged on vaccination rates and remained stuck in the middle on overall health, according to the America’s Health Rankings Report, which was released Thursday.

Infant Mortality Rate In Kansas Hits Record Low

By • Sep 29, 2016
kdhe.gov

A new report shows the infant mortality rate in Kansas has reached a historic low.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment says 230 infant deaths were reported last year, the lowest figure ever recorded.

That put the infant mortality rate at 5.9 per 1,000 live births in 2015—down from 6.3 from a year before. It’s slightly better than the national rate, and below the target rate of 6 set by the federal health initiative Healthy People 2020.

West Wichita Neighborhood Impacted By Groundwater Contamination

By Abigail Beckman • Sep 14, 2016
Abigail Beckman / KMUW

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment held a meeting last night in Wichita after several domestic wells near Central and Tyler were found to be contaminated by underground petroleum storage tanks leaking a chemical component of gasoline called MtBE. 

Public Meetings Scheduled Over Possible Groundwater Contamination In West Wichita

By Abigail Beckman • Sep 8, 2016
commons.wikimedia.org

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) is studying two areas in west Wichita where the groundwater is thought to be contaminated with the synthetic chemical tetrachloroethylene, or PCE. The agency is holding two public information sessions on the issue next week.

Kansas Employee Health Insurance Will Cost More In 2017

By • Aug 11, 2016
kdhe.gov

Health insurance costs for state employees in Kansas will be rising again next year.

The increases vary depending on the plan, but rate hikes range from around 9 to 30 percent, with additional increases for dental and vision coverage. Rebecca Proctor, with the Kansas Organization of State Employees, says there are some state workers making around $12 to $14 an hour, so the rising costs really hit their bottom line.

Lake Afton Listed Under Blue-Green Algae Warning

By Abigail Beckman • Jul 29, 2016
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, flickr Creative Commons

Lake Afton in western Sedgwick County is under a blue-green algae warning.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) has also issued warnings for Atchison County Park Lake in Atchison County and Overbrook City Lake in Osage County. The lakes under warning aren’t closed, but according to the KDHE, contact with the water can cause serious illness and should be avoided. Pets that swim in or drink the water, or that eat dried algae along the shore, may become seriously ill or die.

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