Scoliotrack is a Safe and Innovative Way to Track One's Scoliosis Condition: Now Available for Android and 17 Languages!

Singapore

23 May 2013

www.ScolioTrack.com

FEATURES VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkmn8Edu3yc

Announcing to a global audience, innovation, technology, and clinically proven method of tracking your Scoliosis condition.  Scoliotrack who’s technology and innovation was recognized and invited to the Wall Street Journal 2011 Asia Innovative Awards, is now in the hands of those that need it.  By consumer demand, easy, affordability, and designed for patients, Scoliotrack has now been released as an App.  

Functions include:

-  New easy to use design.

- Monthly reminders for scoliosis for simple scoliosis monitoring.

-  Designed and compatible for iPhone 4 and 5 with retina display compatibility.

- Compatible with iPhone and  Android.

-  Expanded help and tutorial video to provide the ultimate in ease and convenience of use. 

-  17 new languages supported:  Korean, Japanese, Chinese, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Greek, Finnish, Russian, Swedish, Vietnamese, Thai, Brazilian, Portuguese, and Portugal Portuguese.

The power of the App and the system lies in the technology.  In lieu of the costly and most cases unaffordable Scoliometers, Scoliotrack was designed for immediate and affordable use.  Scoliometers ranged in cost of $50.00(USD).  Now with Scoliotrack, you can own yours for $4.99(USD).  Now you can safely, easily, and affordably diagnose, monitor, and track your monthly progression.  Dr. Lau, with this clinically tested and proven App shows that anyone, from any walk of life, with no medical training can use this App and ensure their health and progression in dealing with Scoliosis.

Scoliotrack, safer than x-ray technology, can be used in between doctor visits to accurately access the progression of condition. From the abnormal spine curve, rib humps, hip protrusion, body alignment, or spinal deviation on your phone.  All your data is securely saved for future use, with all the up to date information you need.

Proven, ease, life changing.  All of the adjectives used to describe this innovation.  Do not delay.  Go to www.ScolioTrack.com today and download this app from the iTunes store or Google Play.  Dr. Kevin Lau’s books and DVD on Nautral Scoliosis Treatment and Prevention having been empowering the lives of scoliosis sufferers worldwide, and this App is the an important extension to your treatment option to keep Health in Your Hands.

About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau is a Singapore chiropractor and the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to:

Website - http://www.hiyh.info.
ScolioTrack Website - http://www.ScolioTrack.com.
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/HealthInYourHands.
Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/user/DrKevinLau.
Twitter - http://www.Twitter.com/DrKevinLau.

Singapore

23 May 2013

www.ScolioTrack.com

FEATURES VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkmn8Edu3yc

Announcing to a global audience, innovation, technology, and clinically proven method of tracking your Scoliosis condition.  Scoliotrack who’s technology and innovation was recognized and invited to the Wall Street Journal 2011 Asia Innovative Awards, is now in the hands of those that need it.  By consumer demand, easy, affordability, and designed for patients, Scoliotrack has now been released as an App.  

Functions include:

-  New easy to use design.

- Monthly reminders for scoliosis for simple scoliosis monitoring.

-  Designed and compatible for iPhone 4 and 5 with retina display compatibility.

- Compatible with iPhone and  Android.

-  Expanded help and tutorial video to provide the ultimate in ease and convenience of use. 

-  17 new languages supported:  Korean, Japanese, Chinese, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Greek, Finnish, Russian, Swedish, Vietnamese, Thai, Brazilian, Portuguese, and Portugal Portuguese.

The power of the App and the system lies in the technology.  In lieu of the costly and most cases unaffordable Scoliometers, Scoliotrack was designed for immediate and affordable use.  Scoliometers ranged in cost of $50.00(USD).  Now with Scoliotrack, you can own yours for $4.99(USD).  Now you can safely, easily, and affordably diagnose, monitor, and track your monthly progression.  Dr. Lau, with this clinically tested and proven App shows that anyone, from any walk of life, with no medical training can use this App and ensure their health and progression in dealing with Scoliosis.

Scoliotrack, safer than x-ray technology, can be used in between doctor visits to accurately access the progression of condition. From the abnormal spine curve, rib humps, hip protrusion, body alignment, or spinal deviation on your phone.  All your data is securely saved for future use, with all the up to date information you need.

Proven, ease, life changing.  All of the adjectives used to describe this innovation.  Do not delay.  Go to www.ScolioTrack.com today and download this app from the iTunes store or Google Play.  Dr. Kevin Lau’s books and DVD on Nautral Scoliosis Treatment and Prevention having been empowering the lives of scoliosis sufferers worldwide, and this App is the an important extension to your treatment option to keep Health in Your Hands.

About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau is a Singapore chiropractor and the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to:

Website - http://www.hiyh.info.
ScolioTrack Website - http://www.ScolioTrack.com.
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/HealthInYourHands.
Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/user/DrKevinLau.
Twitter - http://www.Twitter.com/DrKevinLau.

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Natural News Blogs tell the truth about America and plight

 

Ever heard the story of the prison guard who loved breaking the rules himself, until he winded up on the other side of the barbed wire, where the repeat offenders talk about their “innocence” and their “Bill of Rights” that is gone? The IRS is the new bull on the “block” and they might not like reaping what they’ve sown:

http://naturalnewswatch.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/top-irs-official-now-seeks-refuge-in-bill-of-rights-even-after-her-departments-attack-on-the-constitution/

 

 

When natural disaster strikes a city, town, state, or region in the U.S., the President and CNN are always quick to “cover” the tragedy, but how fast is FEMA to react. In the recent past, we’ve seen nothing but extended wait nightmares. It’s time to rely on yourself, before the next disaster spins your way:

http://naturalnewstracker.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/natural-news-health-news-on-line-tornado-tears-oklahoma-apart-natural-news-offers-help/

 

Ever heard the story of the prison guard who loved breaking the rules himself, until he winded up on the other side of the barbed wire, where the repeat offenders talk about their “innocence” and their “Bill of Rights” that is gone? The IRS is the new bull on the “block” and they might not like reaping what they’ve sown:

http://naturalnewswatch.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/top-irs-official-now-seeks-refuge-in-bill-of-rights-even-after-her-departments-attack-on-the-constitution/

 

 

When natural disaster strikes a city, town, state, or region in the U.S., the President and CNN are always quick to “cover” the tragedy, but how fast is FEMA to react. In the recent past, we’ve seen nothing but extended wait nightmares. It’s time to rely on yourself, before the next disaster spins your way:

http://naturalnewstracker.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/natural-news-health-news-on-line-tornado-tears-oklahoma-apart-natural-news-offers-help/

Read More

Judge orders Medicaid managed-care firm to pay for school health services, including $8 million in claims; appeal possible

Medicaid managed care company Kentucky Spirit must cover preventive care services provided by local health departments in schools, a judge has ruled.

Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd of Frankfort said the company must pay $8 million for the services already provided by school nurses, which would be only .07 percent of its estimated profit for 2013, according to the updated earnings report of Centene Corp. of St. Louis, the parent company for Kentucky Spirit. The company is the only one of the five managed care organizations in Kentucky  that had disputed the coverage of school health services.

Kentucky Spirit stopped providing coverage for school health services last summer, saying its state contract didn't require payment for such services,but Shepherd noted that the state reimbursed health departments for school services before it transitioned to managed care, reports Tom Loftus of The Courier-Journal. “Kentucky Spirit is not free to disregard this longstanding interpretation of Medicaid eligibility and unilaterally re-interpret these to the detriment of local health departments,” Shepherd wrote.

Health departments and school districts will now find some relief because many school nurse programs were threatened by cutbacks and closings as a result of Kentucky Spirits failure to pay for services. “It’s great news because there have been dozens of districts that have had to either say they are going to cut back on nurses, or that they are going to close clinics, or that they are going to dip into their reserves to try to cover the additional costs,” Kentucky School Boards Association spokesman Brad Hughes told Loftus.

Gov. Steve Beshear said Kentucky Spirit had “sought a loophole” in its contract to avoid paying for school health services covered by Medicaid, writes Loftus. Centene released a statement later Tuesday saying that the company is reviewing options and considering an appeal.

This isn't the only payment Centene is trying to avoid. A ruling is expected soon in a lawsuit the company filed against the state last year seeking to end its contract a year early, saying the state rushed to privatize Medicaid in 2011 and provided incorrect cost information to the bidders, causing the firm to lose about $120 million.

Appalachian Regional Healthcare, the largest health-care system in Eastern Kentucky, filed suit in April of this year against Kentucky Spirit for $5.9 million in unpaid claims. This suit is still pending, and was filed just before Centene raised its full-year forecast for premium and service revenue to $10.1 billion to $10.4 billion, Reuters reports.

Medicaid managed care company Kentucky Spirit must cover preventive care services provided by local health departments in schools, a judge has ruled.

Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd of Frankfort said the company must pay $8 million for the services already provided by school nurses, which would be only .07 percent of its estimated profit for 2013, according to the updated earnings report of Centene Corp. of St. Louis, the parent company for Kentucky Spirit. The company is the only one of the five managed care organizations in Kentucky  that had disputed the coverage of school health services.

Kentucky Spirit stopped providing coverage for school health services last summer, saying its state contract didn't require payment for such services,but Shepherd noted that the state reimbursed health departments for school services before it transitioned to managed care, reports Tom Loftus of The Courier-Journal. “Kentucky Spirit is not free to disregard this longstanding interpretation of Medicaid eligibility and unilaterally re-interpret these to the detriment of local health departments,” Shepherd wrote.

Health departments and school districts will now find some relief because many school nurse programs were threatened by cutbacks and closings as a result of Kentucky Spirits failure to pay for services. “It’s great news because there have been dozens of districts that have had to either say they are going to cut back on nurses, or that they are going to close clinics, or that they are going to dip into their reserves to try to cover the additional costs,” Kentucky School Boards Association spokesman Brad Hughes told Loftus.

Gov. Steve Beshear said Kentucky Spirit had “sought a loophole” in its contract to avoid paying for school health services covered by Medicaid, writes Loftus. Centene released a statement later Tuesday saying that the company is reviewing options and considering an appeal.

This isn't the only payment Centene is trying to avoid. A ruling is expected soon in a lawsuit the company filed against the state last year seeking to end its contract a year early, saying the state rushed to privatize Medicaid in 2011 and provided incorrect cost information to the bidders, causing the firm to lose about $120 million.

Appalachian Regional Healthcare, the largest health-care system in Eastern Kentucky, filed suit in April of this year against Kentucky Spirit for $5.9 million in unpaid claims. This suit is still pending, and was filed just before Centene raised its full-year forecast for premium and service revenue to $10.1 billion to $10.4 billion, Reuters reports.

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Sick of all the bad facts about Kentucky's health? Here's encouraging news about oral health and drug treatment

Despite the plethora of bad news about Kentucky's poor health status, there are many positive initiatives for Kentucky's oral health and substance abuse treatment, which were stories buried under health news headlines about Medicaid expansion and low health rankings.

The Kentucky Board of Dentistry recently established the position of public heath dental hygienist, permitting hygienists to go into Kentucky schools to assess teeth on the front lines, which will provide basic preventive dental care to underserved kids with tooth problems through local health departments, Al Smith, left, reports in an opinion piece for the Lexington-Herald Leader.

"These hygienists will be able to do school fluoride varnish programs, place sealants, refer kids in pain, and promote dental health programs (like brushing and better nutrition) in the schools without being supervised by a dentist," Dr. Rankin Skinner, director of the Clark County Dental Health Initiative, told Smith. "I think this is a major step in developing dental health program like ours across the state and moving our kids towards better health in general."

The initiative, comprising 17 dentists and 127 volunteers, was selected as a national model by a national association of all the health departments. "It isn't often that a private volunteer program in Kentucky sets a national standard," Skinner told Smith.

Meanwhile, in Florence, Kentucky's first lady, Jane Beshear, a Democrat, joined her Republican co-chair of Recovery Kentucky, Lexington homebuilder Don Ball, to celebrate the Brighton Recovery Center's fifth birthday and nearly 800 graduates.

Brighton is one of the 10 new homes for Recovery Kentucky, a program that is also becoming a national model, Smith writes. Since its inception during the Fletcher administration, the program has provided supportive housing and addiction recovery programs to over 10,000 men and women, writes Smith.

Beshear said the next steps are for her and Ball to create more drug-free housing and jobs for graduates of the program, Smith reports. This goal creates hope for other successful initiatives and shines a ray of light at the end of a dark and dreary tunnel.

Despite the plethora of bad news about Kentucky's poor health status, there are many positive initiatives for Kentucky's oral health and substance abuse treatment, which were stories buried under health news headlines about Medicaid expansion and low health rankings.

The Kentucky Board of Dentistry recently established the position of public heath dental hygienist, permitting hygienists to go into Kentucky schools to assess teeth on the front lines, which will provide basic preventive dental care to underserved kids with tooth problems through local health departments, Al Smith, left, reports in an opinion piece for the Lexington-Herald Leader.

"These hygienists will be able to do school fluoride varnish programs, place sealants, refer kids in pain, and promote dental health programs (like brushing and better nutrition) in the schools without being supervised by a dentist," Dr. Rankin Skinner, director of the Clark County Dental Health Initiative, told Smith. "I think this is a major step in developing dental health program like ours across the state and moving our kids towards better health in general."

The initiative, comprising 17 dentists and 127 volunteers, was selected as a national model by a national association of all the health departments. "It isn't often that a private volunteer program in Kentucky sets a national standard," Skinner told Smith.

Meanwhile, in Florence, Kentucky's first lady, Jane Beshear, a Democrat, joined her Republican co-chair of Recovery Kentucky, Lexington homebuilder Don Ball, to celebrate the Brighton Recovery Center's fifth birthday and nearly 800 graduates.

Brighton is one of the 10 new homes for Recovery Kentucky, a program that is also becoming a national model, Smith writes. Since its inception during the Fletcher administration, the program has provided supportive housing and addiction recovery programs to over 10,000 men and women, writes Smith.

Beshear said the next steps are for her and Ball to create more drug-free housing and jobs for graduates of the program, Smith reports. This goal creates hope for other successful initiatives and shines a ray of light at the end of a dark and dreary tunnel.

Read More

Pikeville Medical Center joins Mayo Clinic Care Network

Pikeville Medical Center President Walter May and Dr. 
Stephen Lange, Mayo Clinic's Southeast medical director

Pikeville Medical Center joined the Mayo Clinic Care Network last week, extending the clinic's knowledge and expertise to PMC staff, which the hospital says will improve health care delivery for 420,000 Appalachians while allowing them to stay close to home.

Some of the resources that will now be available to PMC physicians and providers include its online point-of-care information system and electronic consulting that connects physicians with Mayo Clinic specialists about diagnosis, therapy or care management, says a PMC news release.

“Pikeville Medical Center is honored that we have been asked to become a member of Mayo Clinic Care Network,” says Walter E. May, president and chief executive officer of PMC. “I have admired Mayo Clinic for many years and tried to make Pikeville Medical Center more like the Mayo Clinic. This new agreement will take our hospital to the next level.”

The primary goal of the Mayo Clinic Care Network is to offer Mayo Clinic expertise close to home so that patients only travel when necessary, says the release. The network was launched in 2011 and has member organizations based in Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Puerto Rico and Mexico. See details about specific hospitals in the map below.

“We are pleased to welcome Pikeville Medical Center and its more than 2,000 employees into our Mayo Clinic Care Network family,” says Stephen Lange, M.D., southeast medical director of the Mayo Clinic Care Network. “Our mission is to work collaboratively to improve the quality of health care and value for our patients. We are very excited to work together with Pikeville to find bold and innovative ways to enhance the quality of life for the patients in that region of the country.”

PMC serves 420,000 people and 15 counties in Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia, and the hospital is currently undergoing a $150 million expansion.

Pikeville Medical Center President Walter May and Dr. 
Stephen Lange, Mayo Clinic's Southeast medical director

Pikeville Medical Center joined the Mayo Clinic Care Network last week, extending the clinic's knowledge and expertise to PMC staff, which the hospital says will improve health care delivery for 420,000 Appalachians while allowing them to stay close to home.

Some of the resources that will now be available to PMC physicians and providers include its online point-of-care information system and electronic consulting that connects physicians with Mayo Clinic specialists about diagnosis, therapy or care management, says a PMC news release.

“Pikeville Medical Center is honored that we have been asked to become a member of Mayo Clinic Care Network,” says Walter E. May, president and chief executive officer of PMC. “I have admired Mayo Clinic for many years and tried to make Pikeville Medical Center more like the Mayo Clinic. This new agreement will take our hospital to the next level.”

The primary goal of the Mayo Clinic Care Network is to offer Mayo Clinic expertise close to home so that patients only travel when necessary, says the release. The network was launched in 2011 and has member organizations based in Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Puerto Rico and Mexico. See details about specific hospitals in the map below.

“We are pleased to welcome Pikeville Medical Center and its more than 2,000 employees into our Mayo Clinic Care Network family,” says Stephen Lange, M.D., southeast medical director of the Mayo Clinic Care Network. “Our mission is to work collaboratively to improve the quality of health care and value for our patients. We are very excited to work together with Pikeville to find bold and innovative ways to enhance the quality of life for the patients in that region of the country.”

PMC serves 420,000 people and 15 counties in Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia, and the hospital is currently undergoing a $150 million expansion.

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Religious business owners and corporations have filed half the lawsuits over health reform mandate to cover contraception

By Molly Burchett
Kentucky Health News

Some religious business owners are filing suit against the government, saying the health-reform law violates the constitutional freedom of religion by mandating employee contraceptive and abortion-inducing drug coverage; the lawsuits are expected to land in the U.S. Supreme Court, and a case filed by Hobby Lobby is the first of this kind to be heard by a federal appeals court.

Challenges to the mandate that will require businesses with more than 50 employees to provide no-cost coverage of all contraceptives, sterilization procedures, plus education and counseling, are not just coming from Catholic entities with a religious, moral objection to contraception. About half of the cases have been filed by corporations, reports Robert Barnes of The Washington Post.

There are now 60 cases involving 190 individuals representing hospitals, universities, businesses, schools and people opposed to the mandate, says the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. The Becket Fund maps the cases, as shown below; for the interactive version, click here.

Since the law mandates contraceptive coverage, groups such as Catholic bishops have accused the Obama administration of waging war on religious liberty, reports Barnes. In February, the administration announced an exemption for faith-based organizations from covering employees' contraception costs because the conceptions would be covered by a third party. Self-insured organizations like Catholic schools sued, arguing that the accommodation would not apply to them because there is no third-party insurer to cover contraception. But those cases have been dismissed in court because such organizations are given a one-year grace period to comply with the mandate, reports Laura Bassett of the Huffington Post.

Businesses don't qualify for faith-based exemption from mandates

Hobby Lobby's David and Barbara Green

Business do not meet the new exemption either, because they are not religious organizations. However, some businesses like Hobby Lobby, which was founded and is still owned by an evangelical Christian family that believes life begins at conception and already covers contraceptives through existing employee health coverage, are fighting the law's mandate to cover abortion-inducing drugs or devices, like morning-after and week-after pills.

"They ought to be able — just like a church, just like a charity — to have the right to opt out of a provision that infringes on their religious beliefs," said Kyle Duncan, who argued the case Thursday before the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of the Green family, and a sister company, Christian booksellers Mardel Inc, reports The Associated Press.

Other suits have been filed by religious business owners of diverse enterprises, from a company that makes wooden cabinets to owners of Panera Bread restaurants, reports Barnes, but all the cases base their arguments on the First Amendment guarantee of free exercise of religion and on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993. The Hobby Lobby case also specifies that the mandate violates freedom of speech and the Administrative Procedure Act because it was imposed without prior notice or sufficient time for public comment.

In the early stages of litigation, lower courts have split on the issue. Some have rejected Hobby Lobby's request for an exemption to the mandate, and requests by other businesses for a temporary injunction, saying for-profit businesses aren't covered by the faith-based exemption. However, courts in St. Louis and the Seventh Circuit have granted temporary injunctions. (Read more)

By Molly Burchett
Kentucky Health News

Some religious business owners are filing suit against the government, saying the health-reform law violates the constitutional freedom of religion by mandating employee contraceptive and abortion-inducing drug coverage; the lawsuits are expected to land in the U.S. Supreme Court, and a case filed by Hobby Lobby is the first of this kind to be heard by a federal appeals court.

Challenges to the mandate that will require businesses with more than 50 employees to provide no-cost coverage of all contraceptives, sterilization procedures, plus education and counseling, are not just coming from Catholic entities with a religious, moral objection to contraception. About half of the cases have been filed by corporations, reports Robert Barnes of The Washington Post.

There are now 60 cases involving 190 individuals representing hospitals, universities, businesses, schools and people opposed to the mandate, says the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. The Becket Fund maps the cases, as shown below; for the interactive version, click here.

Since the law mandates contraceptive coverage, groups such as Catholic bishops have accused the Obama administration of waging war on religious liberty, reports Barnes. In February, the administration announced an exemption for faith-based organizations from covering employees' contraception costs because the conceptions would be covered by a third party. Self-insured organizations like Catholic schools sued, arguing that the accommodation would not apply to them because there is no third-party insurer to cover contraception. But those cases have been dismissed in court because such organizations are given a one-year grace period to comply with the mandate, reports Laura Bassett of the Huffington Post.

Businesses don't qualify for faith-based exemption from mandates

Hobby Lobby's David and Barbara Green

Business do not meet the new exemption either, because they are not religious organizations. However, some businesses like Hobby Lobby, which was founded and is still owned by an evangelical Christian family that believes life begins at conception and already covers contraceptives through existing employee health coverage, are fighting the law's mandate to cover abortion-inducing drugs or devices, like morning-after and week-after pills.

"They ought to be able — just like a church, just like a charity — to have the right to opt out of a provision that infringes on their religious beliefs," said Kyle Duncan, who argued the case Thursday before the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of the Green family, and a sister company, Christian booksellers Mardel Inc, reports The Associated Press.

Other suits have been filed by religious business owners of diverse enterprises, from a company that makes wooden cabinets to owners of Panera Bread restaurants, reports Barnes, but all the cases base their arguments on the First Amendment guarantee of free exercise of religion and on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993. The Hobby Lobby case also specifies that the mandate violates freedom of speech and the Administrative Procedure Act because it was imposed without prior notice or sufficient time for public comment.

In the early stages of litigation, lower courts have split on the issue. Some have rejected Hobby Lobby's request for an exemption to the mandate, and requests by other businesses for a temporary injunction, saying for-profit businesses aren't covered by the faith-based exemption. However, courts in St. Louis and the Seventh Circuit have granted temporary injunctions. (Read more)

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Website eases application process for SNAP, formerly food stamps, and promotes healthy food

With a federal grant, the state Department for Community Based Services has launched a customer service website to promote healthy foods by assisting the families receiving food benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly called food stamps.

The portal allows people to check their eligibility for SNAP and apply for benefits with a shorter application that will be followed by a DCBS interview. They can also check their benefit status, report changes and receive electronic notices.

The agency says an online application eliminates any transportation issues a family may have with visiting a DCBS office, and encourages applications. “Modern improvements like this make it easier for families to apply for benefits and ultimately increase access to healthy food,” said Audrey Haynes, secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which houses DCBS.

“SNAP helps people of all ages afford healthy food,” said DCBS Commissioner Teresa James. “For some of our DCBS customers, it means the difference between having a family meal or nothing at all. This website makes applying for benefits, making updates or accessing information even easier since customers don’t have to make an office appointment or even pick up the phone to get help.”

Since the portal’s launch on March 11, DCBS has received more than 1,000 electronic applications. Click here to learn more about SNAP. 

With a federal grant, the state Department for Community Based Services has launched a customer service website to promote healthy foods by assisting the families receiving food benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly called food stamps.

The portal allows people to check their eligibility for SNAP and apply for benefits with a shorter application that will be followed by a DCBS interview. They can also check their benefit status, report changes and receive electronic notices.

The agency says an online application eliminates any transportation issues a family may have with visiting a DCBS office, and encourages applications. “Modern improvements like this make it easier for families to apply for benefits and ultimately increase access to healthy food,” said Audrey Haynes, secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which houses DCBS.

“SNAP helps people of all ages afford healthy food,” said DCBS Commissioner Teresa James. “For some of our DCBS customers, it means the difference between having a family meal or nothing at all. This website makes applying for benefits, making updates or accessing information even easier since customers don’t have to make an office appointment or even pick up the phone to get help.”

Since the portal’s launch on March 11, DCBS has received more than 1,000 electronic applications. Click here to learn more about SNAP. 

Read More