Medicaid

In 2013, Nevada expanded Medicaid eligibility, a move promoted by the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA or ObamaCare) to improve health care to people allegedly then under-served by our health care systems.

In return, the federal government fully funded Nevada’s increased costs through 2016. However, the federal reimbursements slowly decline beginning this year. With the over-spending problems faced by the federal government, there is serious question whether reimbursements will continue after 2020, and if so at what level.

CARSON CITY — The goal of Nevada Health Centers’ Mammovan is to make mammography services accessible and convenient for women by visiting locations across Nevada. The Mammovan will be making a stop in Carson City on Friday, Dec. 1.

Access to Healthcare Network, a Nevada-based nonprofit helping Nevadans receive access to health, would like to remind individuals 60 and above that Medicare open enrollment is Oct. 15 to Dec. 7.

Leaves turning, wind blowing, and all things pumpkin sprouting up everywhere. It is absolutely autumn in Northern Nevada. Get ready for Halloween with your choice of pumpkin patches. Seeliger Elementary School is hosting theirs for the twenty-fifth year in a row. Take a trip on the V and T Steam Train at the Nevada Railroad Museum, actually take several trips. The annual Harvest Train event offers an all-day wristband that allows for as many rides as you’d like, in addition to museum admission. So many more fun activities are available to you, you’ll have to read on to see them all.

Deaths from opiate drugs have reached epidemic levels, according to data released by the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, with lethal overdoses quadrupling nationwide since 1999.

What a day we have in store. Sure, it’s off to school for the kids in Carson City, but this will be a day to remember for another reason, the solar eclipse. A huge swath of our country will see a total solar eclipse, but here in Carson City, only 81 percent of totality will be achieved. That means there is NO time that you can look at the sun without risking injury. I repeat: do NOT look directly at the sun. The Jazz and Beyond Music Festival bids farewell to another year with a free concert in McFadden Plaza featuring the talented members of the Mile High Jazz Band.

It’s a wine-walking kind of day: join in the thirsty Thursday fun in downtown Gardnerville and stick around for the coffee and dessert after-party in Heritage Park. Sneak in an afternoon musical getaway with No Comprende at the Carson Mall. Take a melodious trip around the world with Tom Green: instruments from all over are the focus of a lecture and concert tonight at the Brewery Arts Center. Keep reading and let Thursday surprise you.

THURSDAY: Jazz and Beyond Music Festival

This summer is flying by and the fun is heating up.

The Jazz and Beyond Music Festival has buddied up with something new this year. Today and tomorrow, the Jukebox International Film Festival features fifteen contestants competing in four categories. Youth Theater Carson City and Western Nevada Musical Theater alum, Grant Davis, is back in town to show support for ‘Something Like Summer,’ the Australian musical he stars in. Make sure you’re in McFadden Plaza around 5 p.m. Davis will be performing songs from the movie and music from his debut album on the Third Street Stage.

I’ve got some bad news for the kids in Douglas County – it’s back to school for you today. Carson kids still have one last week to enjoy their summertime freedom and Lyon County has until Aug. 31. Don’t let Monday get you down, though, there’s still plenty to enjoy. Head down to Carson Lanes for beginning and intermediate swing dance lessons, then stick around to put your new moves to the test. The Jazz and Beyond Music Festival continues with a free outdoor concert in McFadden Plaza.

While students gather their books and pencils for the new school year, Carson City Health and Human Services will host back to school special vaccination days August 14-18, and August 21.

The valley is alive with the sound of music: the Jazz and Beyond Music Festival, to be specific. Just about everywhere you go, you’ll be treated to something to soothe the soul or get the toes tapping. Get the kids up early for the Young Eagle Flights at the Carson City Airport – they’re free, but you need to be on time for registration. Keep reading and you’ll find a number of ways to enjoy this sunny summer weekend.

SATURDAY: Jazz and Beyond Music Festival

• -- Hot August Nights

What to do on a Wednesday? If you travel down this list, you’ll find the new Wheeled Food Wednesdays at the Brewery Arts Center featuring a line-up of local food trucks and family fun. Jazz and Beyond brings you a free outdoor concert with Lake Effect in the Comma Coffee Courtyard. Chris Bayer transforms into Major Ormsby at Dangberg Home Historic Ranch’s Chautauqua tonight. Get on the Highway to the Danger Zone and it will take you to Top Gun on the big screen at Galaxy Theaters.

Did you know that not too long ago people did not require medical insurance? Less than fifty years ago people paid cash or used credit for medical care which was true for most of the history of our nation. Indeed, medical care was once so accessible and affordable that most people did not need insurance to pay their medical bills. Then, medical Doctors and Insurance companies began to lobby government to 'regulate' (i.e. monopolize) health care to 'improve' it.

Nevada’s insurance carriers that make up the state-based health insurance exchange will participate in three counties: Clark, Washoe, and Nye beginning in 2018, leaving Carson City, Douglas, Lyon, Storey and 10 other counties in Nevada without access, health officials learned Wednesday.

I hope that no one is thinking that the middle of the week has nothing to offer. You’ll find some melodic rock all the way from Los Angeles when The Battlefield hits the stage at Sassafras. If you live or work downtown, the Public Meeting regarding the upcoming Epic Rides event will of great interest to you. Meet local artist, Carol Brown, at the reception celebrating her work in Comma Coffee’s Backseat Gallery. Wind down with some Jack Daniel’s at the Fox Brewpub – they’re celebrating Whiskey Wednesday in the Fox’ Den.

As the thermometer approaches 90, remind yourself that snow fell a few weeks ago and the heat is well overdue. We bypassed spring and lept right into summer. Enjoy a bluesy morning in Silver City as local musician, Mylo McCormick, takes the stage for a free acoustic concert. Bad man, John Wayne, tussles with an angel at tonight’s Classic Cinema Club offering at the Brewery Arts Center. Bring plenty of water, sunscreen, and a friend on today’s Conditioning Hike up Goni with Muscle Powered.

TUESDAY:

Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval signed dozens of bills Thursday including measures related to autism, group homes and renewable energy.

The Carson Animal Services Initiative is making low-cost spay and neuter vouchers available to low-income pet owners in the Carson City area.

The Ronald McDonald Dental Care Mobile comes to Carson City June 6 and 7, and will be found in the parking lot of the McDonalds Restaurant at 3905 South Carson Street. The Care Mobile welcomes children of all ages for dental cleanings, exams, x-rays and more. All dental insurances are accepted, including Medicaid and Nevada Check-up. A sliding fee scale is available for those without insurance.

For six years, most Republicans campaigning for federal office pledged to repeal ObamaCare. According to national polls, a majority of Americans have consistently opposed ObamaCare even when they otherwise approved of Barack Obama as president.

A pilot program using the drug Vivitrol to fight opiate addiction will be introduced to inmates beginning in April at the Warm Springs Correctional Center in Carson City and the Southern Desert Corrections Center in Las Vegas, state public safety officials announced Tuesday.

Nevada Health Centers is excited to welcome Amani Altamimi, M.D. to our team in Carson City. She will be an asset to the Sierra Nevada Health Center team and its patients. Dr. Altamimi received her Medical Degree from King Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

She completed Residency programs at East Orange General Hospital in East Orange, New Jersey and Central Michigan University in Saginaw, Michigan. She is active in several professional organizations including the American College of Physicians and American Geriatric Society.

After years of being a “donor state” that gives more to the federal government than it gets back, Nevada’s become a “recipient state” that gets more than it gives — mainly due to an influx of new federal money from the state’s move to expand Medicaid beyond the poorest of the poor.

This is the third column in a series presenting the findings and conclusions of Nevada’s 2016 Popular Annual Financial Report (PAFR), posted at controller.nv.gov. Here, we address health and social services.

The figures reported in the PAFR and discussed here come from the actual numbers in the state’s official financial reports. They are not estimates, future projections or budgeted or requested amounts. Just the actual revenue numbers from state books and records.

The Nevada Health Centers Mammovan is going to be making stops in the coming days to Gardnerville, Carson City, Reno, Smith Valley and Hawthorne.

Here is the 2017 State of the State presented by Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval.

This is the second column in a series presenting the findings and conclusions of Nevada’s 2016 Popular Annual Financial Report, posted at controller.nv.gov. Here, we address state revenues.

The tax and other revenue figures reported in the PAFR and discussed here come from the actual numbers in the state’s official financial reports. They are not estimates, future projections or budgeted or requested amounts. Just the actual revenue numbers from state books and records.

This column is the first in a series presenting the findings and conclusions of Nevada’s 2016 Popular Annual Financial Report, which we wrote and issued (on line at controller.nv.gov) as part of the Controller’s office normal activities and duties. Here, we address state spending.

The spending figures reported in the PAFR and discussed here are taken from the actual numbers from the state’s official financial reports. They are not estimates, future projections or budgeted or requested amounts. Just the actual spending from the state books and records.

According to the recent CDC Weekly Influenza Surveillance Report, the number of reported flu cases in the region — Carson City, Douglas and Lyon counties — has shown a significant increase.