skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Saturday, July 12, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Trump heads to Texas after catastrophic flooding, avoiding criticism he's heaped on other governors; Trump threatens a 35% tariff on Canadian goods, and he may double what most other nations are charged; USDA funding pause could stall conservation momentum in MI, nation; New Ohio weapons plant to bring over 4,000 jobs; Report: Occupational segregation leads to pay gap for MA women.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

NOAA nominee says he supports cutting the agency's budget. Many question why Ukraine's weapons aid was paused. And farmers worry how the budget megabill will impact this year's Farm Bill.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rural Americans brace for disproportionate impact of federal funding cuts to mental health, substance use programs, and new federal policies have farmers from Ohio to Minnesota struggling to grow healthier foods and create sustainable food production programs.

KY Residents with Pre-Existing Health Conditions Worry Over ACA's Fate

play audio
Play

Wednesday, March 11, 2020   

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- Kentuckians living with diabetes, cancer, asthma and other chronic health conditions are worried about the fate of the Affordable Care Act, which bans insurers from denying coverage based on pre-existing medical conditions.

Gov. Andy Beshear has announced his support for House Bill 21, introduced by Rep. Patti Minter, D-Bowling Green, and 38 other legislators that would prevent denial of coverage to the nearly 1.8 million people in the Commonwealth living with pre-existing conditions.

Lexington resident Amanda Perkins, who has Type 1 diabetes, said she sees the bill as a safety net.

"The anxiety and the fear that you have when you don't think that you are going to be able to pay for your life-sustaining medication is very real," she said. "It's consuming. It can take up all your time and all of your thoughts."

Before the Affordable Care Act, Perkins said, she often was denied coverage or was told she could get a policy that didn't cover her diabetes.

If the ACA is overturned, House Bill 21 would require both private and public insurers to continue covering Kentuckians with pre-existing conditions. It has seen a couple of amendments since being introduced in January.

The bill also would ban price-gouging and long waiting periods to obtain health coverage.

Janet Sue Peterson Blyth, who lives in Madison County, was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, or CLL, a few years ago. She said she never imagined having to navigate the health-care system with a pre-existing condition.

"You know, in a lot of cases, in my situation, I have no idea how I got CLL. It wasn't anything that I did," she said. "It is definitely a problem, and it is a problem even when you're on Medicare."

This fall, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case filed by Texas and 20 other states that could determine the fate of the Affordable Care Act.

The text of HB 21 is online at legislature.ky.gov.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
According to the Trump administration's 2026 fiscal year budget, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will cut 22% of its workforce, in addition to the workforce reductions that have already taken place. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Wisconsin's agriculture industry could see both wins and losses under the new federal budget. Climate change isn't a priority for the Trump …


Environment

play sound

Hoosier businesses across the state are feeling the ripple effects of rising tariffs and shifting trade policies, especially in farming, …

Social Issues

play sound

Some 15 community and faith-based organizations gathered again this week outside the Geo Group ICE detention facility in Aurora where longtime Denver …


Authors of the law may add enforcement language, such as fines for parents or involvement from the prosecutor's office, during the committee process. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

By Garrett Bergquist for WISH-TV.Broadcast version by Joe Ulery for Indiana News Service reporting for the WISH-TV-Free Press Indiana-Public News Serv…

Social Issues

play sound

More than 400 teen artists will gather this Saturday in Southern California to learn about equity in arts education. The 3rd annual Arts Advocacy Day …

A seed drill used by New Mexico farmers to plant cover crops causes minimal disturbance to the soil. (photo: courtesy NMhealthysoil.org)

Environment

play sound

New Mexico farmers finding it more difficult to grow historic crops are taking up conservation techniques to meet the challenge. Drought, water …

Environment

play sound

Despite last-minute concessions in the Trump administration's budget, which removes alternative energy tax incentives, rural Alaska power providers …

Environment

play sound

"Don't go into the water" is a warning Illinoisans may want to heed. A 2024 study released this week found all state-border beaches on Lake Michigan …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021