Montana Independent News Weekly Roundup
News published this week and local announcements
U.S. Senate Republicans Insist They Won’t Bow to Trump Demands to Quit Immigration Talks
By: Ariana Figueroa for Daily Montanan WASHINGTON — Top U.S. Senate negotiators said Thursday that final details on an immigration policy deal remain under debate in the U.S. Senate, despite outside pressure from GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump to sink any agreement as he makes immigration his central campaign message.
Rosendale, Gaetz to Tour Montana This Weekend; Bannon Teases "Special Announcement"
By: Blair Miller for Daily Montanan Congressman Matt Rosendale is making several appearances this weekend in Montana alongside Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, and right-wing podcast host Steve Bannon teased a possible “very special announcement” with Rosendale next week on his
Deadly Denials: Older Americans Say They Feel Stuck in Medicare Advantage Plans
By Sarah Jane Tribble for KFF Health News
The Two Health Care Cost Crises
By Drew Altman for KFF* The last Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) report pegged national health spending at $4.5 trillion in 2022, and just over 17% of gross domestic product (GDP). That’s actually lower than in earlier government projections, but now CMS actuaries expect the pace of growth to pick up again. KFF’s 2023 employer
COMMENTARY: Montana’s Medicaid Disenrollment is Even a Bigger Catastrophe Than Previously Reported
By Darrell Ehrlick for Daily Montanan You wouldn’t believe how many different ways I tried to begin this column trying to find the perfect analogy or phrase to sum up just how badly the Gianforte administration has handled Medicaid in Montana. Describing it as a dumpster fire, for example, would imply that a raging fire is contained in a small space. More importantly, it says nothing about the real Montanans who lives are upended by what is a political decision that has more to do with Republicans trying to out-Republican each other than it does with being earnestly concerned about fraud, the reason given for making Medicaid enrollment so severe in Montana.
Make Every Day "Take Back Day" Says DEA
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has launched a new campaign encouraging the public to make Every Day Take Back Day by utilizing year-round collection sites to dispose of unneeded and unwanted medications. The DEA hosted its 25th National Take Back Day in October 2023. Up to that date, Take Back Day had removed more than 8,650 tons of medication from circulation since its inception 2010.
New Special Education Accounts Draw Legal Challenge
by Alex Sakariassen for Montana Free Press Disability Rights Montana and the Montana Quality Education Coalition, two organizations that advocate for public school students, filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging the constitutionality of a new state law that grants parents of students with special needs direct access to state education funding.
The Coverup Is Worse Than The Crime
A Troy man was charged this week with evidence tampering related to the shooting and killing of a grizzly bear on his property in 2020 and the discarding of the bear’s GPS collar in the Yaak River, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said today. According to information filed in U.S. District Court on January 22, Othel Lee Pearson, 80, of Troy, is charged with tampering with evidence, a felony, and failure to report taking of grizzly bear, a misdemeanor. Pearson faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release on the evidence tampering charge and a maximum of six months in prison and a $25,000 fine on the failure to report charge.
It's Winter And Fire Remains a Danger
Due to the mild and dry conditions and number of spot requests the National Weather Service in Billings (NWS) is receiving, NWS will be issuing the Fire Weather Planning Forecast once a day for south central and southeastern Montana, and north central Wyoming until further notice.
$8 million in behavioral health funds to go towards mobile crisis response and worker training
By: Daily Montanan Staff - January 22, 2024 5:05 pm The second slice of the $300 million pie for behavioral health improvements in Montana will be going to mobile crisis response as well as developing training for new mental health professionals. Gov. Greg Gianforte announced the $8 million allocation Monday, with $7.5 million going towards mobile crisis response and stabilization services and $500,000 to the development of a crisis worker curriculum and certification course.
Carbon County Law Enforcement Blotter
TOTAL CALLS FOR SERVICE = 200 WELFARE CHECK = 3 MEDICALS = 12 PRISONER TRANSPORT TOTAL TIME = 23 HOURS DUI = 1 TRAFFIC COMPLAINT = 8 CRASH = 7 ARRESTS = 4 INCARCERATIONS = 3 January 15 A sow black bear and her two cubs were spotted in a tree near Red Lodge. The caller advised that they weren’t doing anything wrong, he just thought it was strange that they were out in the frigid temperatures. Dispatch agreed and forwarded the info to Fish, Wildlife & Parks. Upon closer examination, the bears were simply well-fed turkeys.