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Kansas health department alerts communities to increased risk of West Nile Virus infections
TOPEKA — Communities across Kansas are at an increased risk for West Nile virus infections, the state health department announced Friday. West Nile virus is the most common cause of mosquito-borne illnesses in the country and spreads from the bug’s bite rather than person-to-person contact. Those in the north-central, south-central, northeast and southeast parts of […]
New broadband initiative promises to aid 21,000-plus Kansas homes accessing internet
TOPEKA — More than 21,000 Kansas homes and businesses in areas that lack high-speed internet will soon see major improvements in web access for the first time through a state Department of Commerce initiative. The state will pay for the work using $83.5 million from the Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund approved by the U.S. Department […]
Senior care panel looks for lasting change in Kansas workforce
TOPEKA — A group of medical advocates and leaders on a state senior care panel are pushing to ensure their work will bring change beyond surface legislation and policy recommendations. The subgroup of the Kansas Senior Care Taskforce, which met Thursday, is charged with studying how to improve safe staffing and ensure employee pay is […]
Kansas City resident hopes closing ‘Bank of KDOT’ will improve safety of Interstate 70 tight curve
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — As Interstate 70 exits Kansas and enters Missouri, a tight right-angle curve is a sight of many accidents over the years, Leo Eilts has witnessed. Eilts, a resident of the Strawberry Hill neighborhood of Kansas City, Kansas, bought a building 16 years ago with a fantastic view overlooking the point where […]
Election officials, advocates remind Kansans of advance voting for August election
TOPEKA — Officials and voting rights groups are reminding Kansas voters that advance voting begins this week, as early as Wednesday in some counties. Races include primaries for governor, state and U.S. representatives, along with the state constitutional amendment regarding abortion. For those who have registered and requested advance ballots, those will be mailed out […]
Kansas City VA clinic opens doors; services include primary and behavioral care
TOPEKA — Paul Mimms said he wants to honor veterans who lost their vision in battle or when they returned home. Mimms, the vice president of the National Blinded Veterans Association, touted a new Veterans Affairs outpatient Clinic in Kansas City for doing just that, providing dedicated services. At the opening of the clinic, he […]
Monkeypox risk to Kansans remains low despite presumed positive case, doctors say
TOPEKA — After the first presumptive positive case of monkeypox in Kansas was identified over the weekend, doctors are confident risks to the public remain low. On Saturday, Kansas and Johnson County health officials announced — based on lab testing — the state’s first presumed case of monkeypox in a Johnson County man. The county […]
Kansas senator seeks dismissal of county health officers over COVID-19 vaccines for children
TOPEKA — Kansas Sen. Mark Steffen is calling for the top health officials in Reno County to resign or be fired for offering COVID-19 vaccines to young children. In a June email to the county health department, the Hutchinson Republican, one of the most vocal legislators speaking out against the safe and effective vaccines, urged […]
Kansas political figures, advocacy groups weigh in on U.S. Supreme Court carbon emissions ruling
TOPEKA — The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision Thursday limiting how the Environmental Protection Agency can regulate carbon dioxide emissions from power plants is putting Kansas political leaders, candidates and advocacy groups’ stances on environmental policy in the spotlight. The 6-3 vote, with the court’s three liberal justices dissenting, stripped the EPA of broad authority to […]
Kansas man sentenced to 27 months in federal prison for hate crime in Paola
TOPEKA — A Kansas man who threatened a Black male juvenile living in Paola with a knife because of his race will serve 27 months in federal prison and 18 months on supervised release for the hate crime. Court documents say Colton Donner, 27, in September 2019 noticed a Black man walking on the sidewalk […]
Kansas veterans and legislators wary of proposal to close VA clinics and cut emergency services
TOPEKA — When retired U.S. Army Col. Lynn Rolf enlisted and went to war, the federal government made a promise it would take care of his medical needs. Rolf, who began his 31 years of military service in 1970 in Vietnam, says he is still fighting the battle to ensure that commitment is fulfilled and […]
Schmidt, Kelly campaigns at odds on approach to Medicaid expansion in Kansas
TOPEKA — Katie Sawyer, Republican gubernatorial candidate Derek Schmidt’s running mate, said neither she nor the attorney general would support Medicaid expansion in its current proposed form. Sawyer made the remarks at a candidate forum in Salina over the weekend in response to a question from an audience member who asked if Schmidt would support […]