LEXINGTON, Ky. – The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that 24 million people would lose coverage by 2026 under the American Health Care Act, and almost a half-million Kentuckians are included in that number, according to the Urban Institute.

The American Health Care Act (AHCA) would effectively eliminate the Medicaid expansion and change existing tax credits to be based on age instead of income. That could reduce assistance in paying for coverage by as much as $6,000 a year.

Dustin Pugel, research and policy associate with the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, says Kentucky has drastically reduced the number of uninsured in the last seven years, and under the House plan, the change will be felt in a big way.

"The states that gained the most have the most to lose, and by several measures, Kentucky has gained the most," he explained. "We've seen one of the largest declines in our rate of uninsured. Our folks are able to get to the doctor better like never before. Many of them are reporting actually having better health already."

The CBO report also highlights the fact that insurers will be able to charge older Americans five times more than their younger counterparts. With potentially fewer people insured, Pugel and others predict insurance pools will be made up of sicker people, driving up the demands on insurers and therefore the cost of insurance. Supporters of the AHCA say they are trying to fix a flawed system.

As it stands, the AHCA also would cap federal payments to a certain dollar amount per Medicaid enrollee starting in 2019. Pugel says Kentucky then would have to make up the difference, or drastically reduce benefits.

"It shifts billions in responsibility to the state, making the state responsible for paying more and more, and having a shrinking pot to be able to do that," he said.

Reducing the affordability and availability of coverage also would mean thousands of Kentuckians suffering from illnesses that require expensive prescription drugs will go untreated, and the amount of uncompensated care for hospitals and doctors will increase.

Pugel says capping what the state can spend per person will make it difficult for the state to respond to outbreaks such as Zika or addressing Kentucky's Opioid addiction epidemic.


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With flu and COVID-19 cases increasing during the holiday season, a Georgia doctor said now is the time to take steps to protect yourself and your loved ones.

Dr. Michael Satchell, family medicine physician at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, encouraged everyone to consider flu and COVID-19 vaccinations to reduce the risk of serious illness, especially for those most vulnerable.

"Those who are vaccinated are actually 60% less likely to get a serious form of COVID or to be hospitalized," Satchell pointed out. "We're seeing that the vast majority and greater than 90% of those who are hospitalized are those who have not been vaccinated."

Satchell recommended everyone six months and older think about getting vaccinated, especially older adults and those with existing health conditions, to stay safer during the holiday season.

He acknowledged symptoms of flu and COVID-19 can overlap with a common cold but Satchell advised testing if you have symptoms like persistent cough, fatigue, or loss of taste and smell. He noted COVID-19 tests are still available online, and added it is important to consult with a provider if symptoms persist or exposure is suspected.

"It's important because there are still people dying from COVID," Satchell emphasized. "In Georgia, almost 300 people died in the last 3 months. So we're still seeing a lot of hospitalizations last season, the 2023-24 season, we had over 900,000 people across the country were hospitalized with COVID. So it's still out there."


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Groups fighting to improve access to health care are asking the U.S. Senate to reject Robert F. Kennedy Jr's nomination for Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Kennedy is an environmental lawyer who ran for president, then threw his support to Donald Trump in August.

Matthew Herdman, California state director for the nonprofit Protect our Care, said Kennedy has falsely linked vaccines to autism.

"When he went to American Samoa to talk about vaccine safety there, almost immediately afterward, there was a large measles outbreak that led to 83 Americans losing their lives," Herdman recounted. "I would be terrified to see that happen, spread nationwide across our country."

Kennedy has said one of his priorities would be to reexamine pesticides that are legal in the U.S. but banned or being phased out in Europe. He has also promoted raw milk, despite warnings from the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that unpasteurized milk can carry salmonella, E. coli, Listeria and the virus that causes bird flu.

Dr. Diana Dayal, an emergency room resident physician at UCLA Medical Center and a union representative, said she's troubled by Kennedy's beliefs.

"He has touted countless baseless claims time and time again that have later been contradicted by expert review," Dayal pointed out. "From his takes on vaccine development to fluoride safety, he misrepresents isolated data as conclusive and then interprets other studies incorrectly. Conveniently he then ignores vast scientific evidence and peer review that runs counter to his beliefs."

Chris Noble, organizing director for the group Health Access California, noted Kennedy once called the COVID-19 vaccine the "deadliest vaccine ever made."

"RFK Jr. will continue to propagate medical conspiracies that further erode trust in evidence-based medicine that will result in preventable death and grave threats to public health if given a seat of power," Noble contended.

Billions of dollars in federal subsidies for health plans on CoveredCA are set to expire next year unless the Republican-controlled Senate reinstates them. Kennedy has so far not taken a public position on the issue.

A new report on lung cancer by the American Lung Association showed Maryland has quite a bit of room to improve diagnoses and treatment but experts said the state has taken some big steps in tackling it.

The report showed almost 17% of Marylanders at high risk for lung cancer were screened, a little less than the national average. Maryland fared better in other metrics, including lower rates of adult smokers and people unable to access treatment.

Aleks Casper, Maryland director of advocacy for the American Lung Association, said to improve the state's standing, Marylanders at risk of lung cancer need to be screened at higher rates.

"If we can get people screened, our chances of impacting all the other metrics improve," Casper explained. "If we get people screened and we can find it early, then we can connect them to treatment and we can connect them to surgery, which impacts outcomes."

The report also noted Latinos in Maryland are the least likely group to be diagnosed early.

Casper pointed out certain policies in Maryland have removed barriers to diagnosis and treatment. Just this year, Maryland became one of 15 states to require insurance to cover biomarker testing, including for lung cancer. The National Cancer Institute described biomarker testing as using a sample of tissue, blood or other fluid to look for genes or chromosomes which could increase a person's likelihood of developing certain cancers, which Casper emphasized is critical.

"Being able to test and determine what the best type of treatment for that person's disease, that kind of really individualized care and giving people access to that, is really important," Casper added.

Those who want to find out if they're eligible to be screened for lung cancer can take a quick test at savedbythescan.org.


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