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Children getting wrongly dropped from Medicaid because of automation `glitch’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Children in many states are being wrongly cut off from Medicaid because of a “glitch” in the automated systems being used in a massive eligibility review for the government-run health care program, a top Medicaid official said Wednesday. The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is asking all states to review their computer-automated processes to make sure that children are evaluated separately from their parents — and aren’t losing coverage merely because of their parents’ ineligibility or inaction. Though federal officials remained vague about the scope of the problem, it likely involves at least half the states and potentially affects millions of children, said Joan Alker, executive director of Georgetown University Center for Children and Families. “I think it’s a very significant problem,” said Alker, whose center is tracking the Medicaid renewal process in each state.In most states, children can qualify for Medicaid at househ...

Prosecutors drop felony charges against Iowa man who had guns, ammunition in hotel room overlooking Chicago lakefront

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

CHICAGO (AP/WGN) — Prosecutors have dropped all felony charges against an Iowa man who was arrested in 2021 by Chicago police for having guns and ammunition in his hotel room overlooking the Chicago lakefront. Cook County prosecutors dropped the felony charges against Keegan Casteel on Monday after he pleaded guilty to reckless conduct, a misdemeanor, and was ordered to pay a $500 fine.The Ankeny, Iowa, man had faced two felony counts of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, but no evidence was ever produced in court files that Casteel had anything nefarious planned, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. ‘I didn’t mean to startle anyone’: Bodycam footage shows arrest of Iowa man found with guns, ammo in hotel Casteel was arrested on July 4, 2021, when a housekeeper found the guns and ammunition in his room at the W Hotel. The weapons — a rifle with a laser sight, a handgun and ammunition — were found on the sill of a 12th-floor window that had a view of Ohio Stre...

CFD: 3 adults, 3 kids injured in Chatham vehicle crash

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

CHICAGO — At least six people, including three children, are in this hospital after a crash in the Chatham neighborhood Wednesday afternoon, according to the Chicago Fire Department.Firefighters said two adults were taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, one in serious-to-critical condition and another in stable-to-serious condition, while a third adult was taken to St. Brainerd Hospital in good condition.Three kids were also taken to Comer Children's Hospital, according to CFD.It is unclear at this time what circumstances may have led to the crash. Prosecutors drop felony charges against Iowa man who had guns, ammunition in hotel room overlooking Chicago lakefront No other information is available at this time.Stay with WGN News as this story will be updated once more information becomes available.

This is how much singles need to live comfortably in Illinois

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

(KTLA) – It’s not exactly breaking news that life has gotten more expensive recently. Across the nation, the cost of home prices, rent, gasoline, utilities, and, well, most things has gone up.Now, a new survey outlines how much someone needs to earn as a “living wage” to live comfortably in all 50 U.S. states.The personal finance website GoBankingRates.com looked at data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and research by the state of Missouri to determine how much single people, not couples or families, pay in necessities each year. Then, those amounts were doubled to factor in discretionary spending and savings.States that require the highest living wage for individuals are Hawaii ($112,411) followed by Massachusetts ($87,909) and then California ($80,013). Student loan debt relief scam: Feds to refund over $9 million, do you qualify? “That’s not surprising when you realize that median home values are also highest in Hawaii, California and Massachusetts,” the study's author...

What's in floodwaters? Hurricane Idalia's surge poses hidden risk, CDC says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) -- Hurricane Idalia left anywhere from a few inches to a few feet of standing floodwaters in cities across the Florida Gulf Coast on Wednesday.Emergency officials urge residents to stay out of the water for a myriad of reasons, including the risk of drowning and injury from hidden debris, but floodwaters also contain many things that pose a serious health risk.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it's impossible to know exactly what is in floodwaters. It could contain sharp debris or even downed power lines obscured by the murky depths. Hernando County officials: areas west of US-19 ‘no longer accessible’ due to flooding Floodwaters can also contain dangerous wildlife. On Wednesday, the Hernando County Sheriff's Office posted photos of a rattlesnake navigating a flooded street.(Hernando County Sheriff's Office)"You never know what could have washed in with the flooding," the sheriff's office said.Floodwaters can also hold hazards t...

Fatal shooting of college student who tried entering wrong home 'justifiable': South Carolina authorities

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WSPA) — The fatal shooting of a University of South Carolina student has been ruled justifiable, authorities confirmed Wednesday. Nicholas Anthony Donofrio, 20, of Connecticut, was shot and killed Sunday morning while attempting to enter the wrong home. Police said Donofrio lived on the same street where he was shot but that he had attempted to enter another home. Following an investigation, the Fifth Circuit Solicitor's Office and the Columbia Police Department now say charges will not be filed against the homeowner and ruled the shooting justifiable. Person gets sick, dies from amebic infection after swimming in Texas lake Police said Donofrio repeatedly banged and kicked the door, then broke the glass window and reached inside for the doorknob. That's when police said the homeowner shot and killed Donfrio. Authorities have not released any additional information about the homeowner. His parents declined to comment about the shooting to Nexstar's WTNH, saying th...

Person gets sick, dies from amebic infection after swimming in Texas lake

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — A person in Texas got sick and died after developing an illness caused by an amebic meningitis infection after swimming in Lake Lyndon B. Johnson earlier this month. Austin Public Health reported the death and urged people to take precautions when swimming in natural bodies of water amid the ongoing, intense heat Texas is experiencing. Toxic algae confirmed in several Austin waterways, including Barton Springs According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, amebic meningitis, or primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), is a rare brain infection that is caused by Naegleria fowleri and is usually fatal. Naegleria fowleri is a free-living amoeba that lives in warm fresh water and soil around the world and infects people when it enters the body through the nose. A teenager in Georgia died from the same cause last month, also after swimming in a lake. "Although these infections are very rare, this is an importan...

$72 million in student loans canceled by Biden administration: Who qualifies

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is canceling $72 million in student loans for 2,300 borrowers who say they were cheated by Ashford University, a former for-profit college that was purchased by the University of Arizona in 2020.The Education Department announced the action Wednesday, saying it will seek to recoup the money from the University of Arizona. The university did not immediately provide a comment.Before its sale, Ashford was an online for-profit college that enrolled more than 100,000 students. It was owned by the company Zovio and based in San Diego.A California court in 2022 found that Ashford frequently lied to students to get them to enroll. Its recruiters misled students about the college's accreditation, costs and the amount of time it would take to graduate, the court concluded. Who qualifies for $0 student loan payments? That lawsuit, brought by the state of California, was the basis of the Education Department's cancellation.President Joe Biden said hi...

WATCH LIVE | First Lady Jill Biden visits Chicago, speaks at Federation of Labor event

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

CHICAGO — The Chicago Federation of Labor (CFL) began its Labor Day celebrations Wednesday which includes First Lady Jill Biden headlining a McCormick Place event.Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is also expected to speak, and there may be an appearance by Governor JB Pritzker, both of whom met Biden on the tarmac as she arrived at O'Hare International Airport. McConnell freezes for 2nd time while taking questions The CFL, the third-largest council of the national American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), holds the annual Labor Day reception as it builds toward its Labor Day parade and Eddie Fest.WGN plans to livestream the speaking portion of this event within this story beginning at approximately 3:15 p.m.

LIVE: TEA allows for alternative to state intervention for Austin ISD special education department

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:25:00 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – The Texas Education Agency granted a request from the Austin Independent School District on Wednesday for less severe state intervention in the district’s special education services, according to AISD officials.The TEA announced in March its recommendation for a state-appointed management team to direct the operations of the Austin ISD special education department. The team would be able to make decisions for the district, as it relates to special education.The recommendations came after the TEA released a report finding the district repeatedly missed strict state and federal deadlines on evaluating students suspected of needing special education services.The report found the district had in some cases waited up to nine months to evaluate students.The district appealed TEA’s recommendation in April 2023, requesting instead the state appoint a monitor. A monitor, according to the TEA, would only be able to report activities of the board of trustees or the superintende...