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Medicaid payments increasing in La.
reimbursement rate, Greenstein ment. Officials say higher reimbursements will attract more providers said. That’s because different The increased Medicaid rate ap-
BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer
Doctors’ offices and hospitals will get paid more to treat patients on Medicaid, Louisiana Department of Health officials announced Tuesday. Officials said higher reimbursement rates will attract more health care providers to serve Medicaid patients and increase patient ac-
cess to health care. “Today’s move really creates a space that allows physicians all over the state to be able to take more Medicaid patients in their panel, opening up access for patients,” said Louisiana Department of Health Secretary Bruce Greenstein. “Better reimbursement rates empower doctors to see more patients and potentially open up
more clinics,” he said. Improved patient access should lead to more preventive care and better treatment of chronic conditions, Greenstein said. With the change, Medicaid providers are now getting reimbursed at 85% of the Medicare reimbursement rate. Previously, the rate for professional health care services was, in aggregate, 73% of the Medicare
types of providers, such as primary care doctors, pediatricians, surgeons and psychologists, for example, had different rates. Medicaid is a health insurance program for low-income people run by the state. It’s funded by both the state and federal government, with the latter picking up most of the cost. Medicare, the health insurance program for seniors, is run and paid for by the federal govern-
5th Circuit will reconsider state’s 10 Commandments law
plies to physicians, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, certified nurse midwives and physician assistants, Greenstein said. Health Department spokesperson Emma Herrock said that while some rates had been bumped up in the past, “this is probably one of the most comprehensive increases to rates in a decade.” Dr. Wyche Coleman, a primary
ä See MEDICAID, page 9A
Iberville mourns deputy killed in shooting Another officer wounded in incident BY HALEY MILLER Staff writer
sidered the country’s most conservative federal court of appeals. In the meantime, a U.S. District Court’s preliminary injunction will stand, barring the state from enforcing the law. The Ten Commandments case has been closely watched as a test of the traditional divide between church and state, and legal observers say it’s likely that the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately will hear the case. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said Monday that she looks forward to arguing the case before the full appeals court, known as an “en banc” hearing.
Residents waited somberly outside the Iberville Parish Courthouse on Tuesday, with the flags at half-staff and two mobile blood collection trucks parked outside the entrance — the only indication that something tragic had happened there the night before. They traded rumors and scraps of information as Riley they stood in the grass, preparing to donate blood in honor of a deputy who was killed and a detective who was injured Monday night in a shooting at the courthouse. “This isn’t us,” resident Kayla Garvin said. “This isn’t Iberville.” One deputy was killed, and a detective was critically wounded, during a struggle with suspect Latrell Clark, who was being questioned in connection with a sex crimes investigation, according to the Louisiana State Police. Clark was also killed. According to the Louisiana State Police, Clark attempted to disarm
ä See LAW, page 9A
ä See DEPUTY, page 9A
STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK
Attorney General Liz Murrill speaks alongside Gov. Jeff Landry during a news conference in 2024 regarding the Ten Commandments in schools.
Partial court had already struck it down BY PATRICK WALL Staff writer
A federal appeals court on Monday vacated an earlier ruling that struck down Louisiana’s controversial law requiring public schools and colleges to post the Ten Commandments in classrooms, setting the stage for a new round of arguments in the high-stakes case. In June, a three-judge panel of the 5th
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the law is “plainly unconstitutional” and cannot be enforced. But in a Monday evening order, the court agreed to a request by Louisiana for the full 5th Circuit to rehear the case, nullifying the earlier ruling. The decision by a majority of judges on the court to reconsider the case could lead to a very different outcome than the panel’s ruling. Two of the three judges on the panel were appointed by Democrats, while 12 of 17 active judges on the full court were appointed by Republicans, with six selected by President Donald Trump. The full 5th Circuit is widely con-
Contrasting accounts emerge in Lacy crash investigation 78-year-old Herman Hall, a mili- NFL withdrew its invitation for absolve Lacy of responsibility for State Police maintain tary veteran from Thibodaux. him to participate in the annual the crash — have sparked a mix of public outcry and confusion on soWhile his car never collided with draft combine. stance on 2024 Then, in April, two days before cial media, among sports commenothers, Lacy’s reckless driving fatal collision caused a chain of events that led Lacy’s case was set to appear in tators, and among public officials.
BY AIDAN McCAHILL
Staff writer
Nearly half a year after former LSU wide receiver Kyren Lacy took his life, two contrasting accounts are emerging over how Louisiana State Police handled the investigation that led to his arrest three months before his death. Lacy was accused of causing a Dec. 17, 2024, crash that killed
WEATHER HIGH 89 LOW 70 PAGE 10A
to the crash, State Police say. In January, the 24-year-old turned himself in to State Police on counts of negligent homicide, felony hit-and-run and reckless operation of a vehicle. Lacy was seen by many as destined for a bright future in the NFL. A former transfer from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, he was the SEC co-leader for receiving yards during the 2024 season. After the accident, the
front of a grand jury related to the crash, he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in Houston while fleeing police as a result of a separate incident. On Friday, attorney Matt Ory, who represented Lacy and has claimed his innocence from the beginning, appeared on a news station in Houma to reveal new evidence collected by the Lafourche Parish District Attorney’s Office. The findings — which Ory says
On Monday, the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus called for an independent investigation into the State Police handling of the case. Later in the day, on the nationally televised “Monday Night Football,” former LSU player Ryan Clark described Lacy’s fate as an injustice, a sentiment echoed by other commentators, including Pat McAfee and Scott Van Pelt.
STAFF FILE PHOTO
Kyren Lacy started his college career at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette before ä See LACY, page 9A transferring to LSU.
Business ...................10C Commentary ................3B Nation-World ................2A Classified .....................8A Deaths .........................4B Opinion ........................2B Comics-Puzzles .....7C-9C Living............................5C Sports ..........................1C
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