Kenucky’s Latest News – October 25th, 2013

STOLEN TICKETS

Suspect accused of trying to sell Kentucky tickets

MIDLAND, Ky. (AP) — An eastern Kentuckian is facing charges for allegedly trying to sell his neighbor's University of Kentucky basketball tickets in Bath County.

State police say 23-year-old Jackie Baty is charged with receiving stolen property under $10,000 and was being held in the Montgomery County Detention Center.

The arrest stemmed from a complaint to police about a suspicious person at the Frosty Freeze Restaurant in the Midland community.

Baty is accused of trying to sell a set of Kentucky basketball tickets. Police determined the tickets belonged to Baty's neighbor in Clay City.

Police say all of the tickets were in the ticket book except for the Wildcats' first game.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

Effort to curb prescription abuse set for Saturday

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky authorities are urging people to participate in a prescription drug roundup aimed at curbing addiction to pills commonly found in family medicine cabinets.

Attorney General Jack Conway says more than 70 collection sites have been designated across the state on Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. local time.

Drug overdose deaths outnumber traffic fatalities in Kentucky.

State police say those participating can dispose of medications in their original containers. They can also remove the medication from the container and drop it into disposal boxes located at the drop off sites.

All solid dosage medication will be accepted. Liquid products, such as cough syrup, should remain sealed in their original containers.

HEALTH OVERHAUL-GRIMES

Grimes wants health reform penalties postponed

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes is calling for fairness for Americans who have experienced technical difficulties in trying to sign up for health insurance coverage through the federal government's online marketplace.

Grimes said Thursday it makes sense to extend the March 31 enrollment deadline and postpone the $95 penalty for people who fail to meet that deadline for acquiring coverage.

Grimes, the Democratic front-runner in Kentucky's U.S. Senate primary race, is among a growing list of candidates expressing displeasure with the glitches that have plagued the federal website, preventing people from signing up. She said the deadline and penalties need to be delayed until the website issues are resolved.

Grimes is seeking her party's nomination to run against Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, an ardent critic of the health care overhaul.

LOUISVILLE-EXTORTION ATTEMPT

Miss. man charged with extortion attempt of UofL

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A federal grand jury has charged a Jackson, Miss., man with attempting to extort $3.5 million from the University of Louisville Athletic Association.

Prosecutors say 35-year-old Thomas E. Ray used the alias "Melinda White" and sent an email on April 23 threatening to hurt the reputation of the association.

A one-page indictment of Ray unsealed Thursday morning contains few details. Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway was scheduled to speak about the case at 5 p.m.

University of Louisville Athletic Director Tom Jurich said in a statement he immediately reached out to Conway and the FBI after reading an email in April.

Ray had no Kentucky attorney listed in court records. He made an initial appearance Thursday in Mississippi. He is scheduled to appear in court in Louisville on Nov. 7.

DISTILLERY-VISITORS' CENTER

Renovation set for distillery's visitors' center

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Woodford Reserve says it plans to renovate the visitors' center at its bourbon distillery in central Kentucky.

Its parent company, Louisville-based Brown-Forman Corp., said Thursday it expects to invest more than $1.5 million in the upgrade and expansion at the scenic distillery near Versailles. The work will include a tasting room, enhancements to retail space and other improvements.

Work is expected to begin in November. Woodford Reserve will receive tax incentives for the project.

Woodford Reserve was introduced in 1996, and the distillery opened the same year.

The number of visitors to the distillery has grown steadily, with about 135,000 people visiting the site last year.

The most recent expansion at the distillery was completed in 2003.

KENTUCKY MEDICAID

Beshear: Managed care initiative running smoothly

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Gov. Steve Beshear says the Medicaid managed-care system is running smoothly, with payments being processed quickly and fewer complaints.

Beshear said Thursday that managed care, now in its second year statewide, is saving tax dollars while also helping to improve the health of Medicaid recipients by emphasizing prevention and wellness.

Kentucky moved 560,000 Medicaid recipients into the managed care program in 2011 in a cost-saving move at a time when the Medicaid budget was facing a $142 million shortfall.

Beshear said the only other option to balance the Medicaid budget at the time was to impose 30 percent across-the-board rate cuts to doctors, hospitals and other medical providers, which he didn't want to do.

The managed care program, Beshear said, has resulted in meaningful health management for Medicaid recipients.