DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) — Ford is recalling more than 221,000 cars and vans to fix problems with door latches and seat belts.

The biggest recall covers nearly 205,000 Ford Taurus, Lincoln MKS and Police Interceptor models in North America from the 2010 to 2013 model years. Ford says a door latch spring can become unseated, allowing the door to unlatch in a side-impact crash. The company says it knows of no injuries from the problem. Dealers will inspect the latches and replace door handles if needed.

The second recall covers just over 16,000 Transit Connect small vans in the U.S. from the 2014 model year. Seat belt fasteners can loosen, causing the belts to malfunction. Ford says the problem hasn’t caused any crashes or injuries.

Dealers will replace and tighten the seat belt fasteners.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A former Kansas City chiropractor was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison for Medicare fraud.
Federal prosecutors say 59-year-old Michael Kelly Miller was also ordered Tuesday to pay $879,582 in restitution for proceeds he received as operator of the Waldo Rehabilitation Health & Wellness.

Miller pleaded guilty in April to submitting Medicare claims for nerve block injections and other experimental procedures that were not medically necessary. Between February 2009 and December 2011 Miller billed Medicare for more than $3 million and received nearly $900,000.

Miller, now of Temple Terrace, Florida, has surrendered his chiropractic license.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – During the Senate Republican Leadership Stakeout today, U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.) discussed his support for legislation he co-sponsored with U.S. Senator Ron Johnson (Wis.) to block funding for President Barack Obama’s recent executive actions related to immigration.

As the Missouri Times recently reported, Blunt “has taken the lead in the Senate on opposing President Obama’s executive order granting legal status to thousands of undocumented immigrants bypassing Congress… In the days leading up to the [President’s] announcement, Blunt encouraged voters to call the White House or communicate through one of its various social media accounts. Since that announcement on Nov. 20, Blunt has hardly missed a chance to confront the President – even calling his moves “dangerous” and even ‘illegal.’”

In December 2014, Blunt joined an amicus brief led by U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (Texas) and co-signed by U.S. Senator John Cornyn (Texas) in support of a lawsuit brought by the State of Texas against President Obama’s illegal amnesty. Blunt also voted in favor of a constitutional point of order offered by Cruz and U.S. Senator Mike Lee (Utah) against the president’s executive amnesty.

 

PITTSBURG, Kan. (AP) — The Pittsburg City Commission is willing to gamble on a proposal for a $62 million casino complex that could bring 300 jobs to the southeast Kansas city.

The commission on Tuesday unanimously supported a proposal from JNB Gaming to build a casino, hotel and restaurant complex on land recently annexed by the city.

JNB Gaming’s proposal, called the Kansas Crossing Casino & Hotel, is one of three proposals for a southeast Kansas casino. Applications for all the proposals are due Friday.

The developer said their proposal could generate $1.2 million in revenues a year, which would be divided between the city, Crawford and Cherokee counties.

Commissioners noted the developer is endorsed by Mulvane officials. JNB built a similar project near Mulvane seven years ago.

ONAGA, Kan. (AP) — Pottawatomie County authorities say a juvenile was arrested after a bomb threat caused the evacuation of a school and hospital in Onaga.

Sheriff Greg Riat says a boy under the age of 14 was arrested then released to his parents after being booked.

Riat says someone called the sheriff’s office Tuesday morning and made a bomb threat against the Onaga Elementary School and Onaga Community Hospital.

Onaga Police Chief Dan Costlow says students at the school were sent home for the day.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports patients and staff were evacuated until the hospital was searched and no bomb was found.

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A tax preparer in Johnson County was sentenced Tuesday to 78 months in federal prison for filing false tax returns that cost a Kansas company more than $744,000, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom reported in a media release.

John M. Moore, 53, Lenexa, pleaded guilty to one count of filing a false tax return and one count of wire fraud. In his plea, he admitted a company he owns, Accent Payroll Services (APS), was hired to provide payroll processing services for Tytan International L.L.C. of Lenexa, Kan. From 2008 to 2010, APS was responsible for paying the wages of Tytan’s employees, withholding employment taxes, filing Tytan’s employment tax returns on Internal Revenue Service form 941 and paying withheld employment taxes to the IRS.

Moore transferred more than $2 million in employment tax withholdings from Tytan’s bank account to his company’s bank account. However, he only paid the IRS approximately $1.3 million. To keep Tytan from receiving notices from the IRS that taxes were not paid, Moore gave the IRS an address for Tytan at a post office box he controlled.

“These victims trusted Mr. Moore to properly remit their taxes, but instead he used their funds for his own purposes. Unfortunately, these victims are left holding the bag,” said Sybil Smith, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation. “Businesses who utilize a third party for paying their payroll taxes must realize that if the taxes aren’t paid, they are ultimately responsible for the tax liability. The IRS will work with victims to set up payment plans or possibly reduce penalties.”

Grissom commended the Internal Revenue Service, the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley for their work on the case.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Republican lawmakers say requiring photo identification at the polls will prevent voter impersonation fraud.

Bill sponsor Rep. Tony Dugger, of Hartville, said during a House hearing on Tuesday that he has included exemptions for older Missourians and a way for those without a valid, non-expired photo identification to get one free of charge.

The bill would make Missouri one of the strictest states for voter identification.
Only non-expired Missouri or federal government issued ID would be accepted.

Voters must approve a constitutional amendment to allow the state to require photo ID because the Missouri Supreme Court has ruled any photo ID requirement violates individual voting rights.
Opponents say the legislation seeks to disenfranchise groups who traditionally support Democrats and are less likely to have a photo ID.

By ANDY MARSO

The three insurance companies administering Kansas Medicaid now have direct access to the state’s prescription drug tracking system.

Officials from the companies told legislators Monday that the move will enhance patient care by allowing them to more quickly identify prescription drug abuse.

“We take this very, very, very seriously,” said Michael McKinney, CEO of Sunflower State Health Plan. “If you check with your hospitals, you’ll find that the most common overdose in emergency rooms is prescription drugs. It’s not street drugs.”

The Kansas Board of Pharmacy manages the Kansas Tracking and Reporting of Controlled Substances, or K-TRACS, program. K-TRACS allows doctors and pharmacists to access an online database that shows a patient’s prescription history.

Previously, Sunflower State and the other two managed care organizations (MCOs) that administer KanCare had to go through the pharmacy board to get information on how many prescriptions their consumers were getting and from how many doctors.

Debra Billingsley, the board’s executive director, said giving the KanCare companies direct access will simplify the process for all parties involved.

“It will make things easier for us because it will take a lot less of our staff time, and it will be easier for the MCOs,” she said.

McKinney said that in addition to keeping consumers safer, direct access to the information also will help MCOs curb costs by keeping consumers out of the ER.

“The drugs themselves are often cheap,” McKinney said. “But what they go through when they take too much of them is not cheap, and it’s certainly not safe.”

Tim Spilker, CEO of United Healthcare Community Plan of Kansas, which is another KanCare MCO, said his company takes the responsibility for privacy of the K-TRACS data very seriously. He also said the change will make it easier for the company to fulfill its mission of taking care of every aspect of consumers’ health, including identifying and properly treating physical ailments and behavioral problems like addiction.

“We appreciate the fact we have access,” Spilker said. “This is really another data point we can use.”

Billingsley said deaths from prescription drug overdose in Kansas had increased from 3.4 per 100,000 people in 1999 to 9.6 per 100,000 today.

She said part of the problem is that Kansas borders Missouri, which is the only state that does not have a prescription drug monitoring program. But part of the problem is that within the state, some health providers who used K-TRACS to identify patients who were seeking drugs from multiple physicians simply stopped treating those patients rather than getting them help.

Billingsley said her agency is collaborating more with other state agencies to try to follow up with those patients. “Some of these patients can be identified and steered toward drug treatment,” she said. “So they don’t just fire them as a patient and then they become some other doctor’s problem, or they just go to Missouri.”

 

Andy Marso is a reporter for Heartland Health Monitor, a news collaboration focusing on health issues and their impact in Missouri and Kansas.