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Nearly 200K have left Medicaid in Louisiana, numbers show Either fewer going without care or becoming less dependent, experts say
BY TYLER BRIDGES Staff writer
STAFF PHOTOS By MICHAEL JOHNSON
DJ Shon spins music on the stage during Night Market BTR in Baton Rouge on Saturday.
NIGHT ON THE
TOWN
Crowds gathered downtown Saturday for the fourth annual Night Market BTR. Nearly 60 vendors were on hand focused on Asian American food, beverages and art. Song, dance and DJ performances kept things lively. A portion of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the Southern Lotus Lion Dance Association.
ABOVE: Dancers from the Lao Fawn Crew perform at Night Market BTR on Saturday. LEFT: Trent Angelloz walks around with three different taco combinations from Sushi Iku on Saturday.
Nearly 200,000 people have left the Medicaid rolls in Louisiana over the past 12 months, raising this question: Are they better off because they are now covered by private insurance? Or are they now without health insurance at all? Having more people covered by health insurance — either by Medicaid or an employer-sponsored plan — means more people are getting treatment from doctors and nurses for preventive care and chronic illnesses. That matters, especially in Louisiana, since the state typically ranks as the unhealthiest in the country. But whether the drop in enrollment is viewed positively seems to depend on a person’s philosophical views. Gov. Jeff Landry, Health Depart- McMath ment Secretary Bruce Greenstein and key Republican state legislators count the reduction as a success, saying it’s a sign that fewer people in Louisiana are dependent on government. “People who are eligible are getting the services they need, and people who are not eligible are not costing the taxpayers any more dollars,” said state Sen. Patrick McMath, R-Covington, who chairs the Senate Health and Welfare Committee.
ä See MEDICAID, page 8A
Bill sets tougher penalties for attacking teachers Students would be expelled, get anger management classes
BY ELYSE CARMOSINO Staff writer
Officials say state needs seismic network It would help understand rash of earthquakes in northwest Louisiana
tions mount over whether activity related to oil and gas production is to blame. Earthquakes have been occurring in northwest Louisiana at least since 2019. But a run of earthquakes starting in late 2025 and peaking with bigger quakes in early March, when Red River Parish BY DAVID J. MITCHELL was struck with three temblors between Staff writer magnitude 4 and 5, have drawn new State regulators and LSU officials are attention to the issue. working to create a seismic monitoring Researchers revealed those big earthnetwork to understand a rash of earth- quakes appeared to have caused land in quakes in northwest Louisiana as ques- a coal mine reclamation area on timber
WEATHER HIGH 91 LOW 74 PAGE 8B
property to liquefy and collapse. They also pointed out that some occurred under the Red River and its earthen levees, though damage wasn’t documented there. Laura Sorey, a petroleum scientist and geology manager for the state Department of Conservation and Energy, told a state legislative panel Tuesday that Louisiana “lacks adequate seismic monitoring across the state, which makes it extremely difficult to calculate the depth
Louisiana schools must take stricter disciplinary action against students who attack public school employees under a bill the Legislature passed last week that requires districts to expel students found guilty of assault. The House voted 98-0 Wednesday to approve a final version of House Bill 283 by Rep. Candace Newell, D-New Orleans, which mandates that students who assault a school employee be au- Newell tomatically expelled for at least two semesters and undergo anger management classes. The measure, which now heads to Gov.
ä See EARTHQUAKES, page 9A
ä See BILL, page 6A
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