Bluegrass Institute President Jim Waters talks charter school legislation, pension reform

by Kevin Wheatley – Legislation authorizing public charter schools in Kentucky isn’t exactly how Bluegrass Institute President Jim Waters envisioned, but he expects they will improve student achievement in a state where performance has lagged. Waters said he would have liked to see additional charter school authorizers in the final version of House Bill 520 considering some…

Sen. McConnell names new chief of staff

WASHINGTON (AP) – Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell has named a new chief of staff in his Senate office. Phil Maxson, his current legislative director, will be the new chief of staff, replacing Brian McGuire. McGuire has worked for McConnell for 10 years. McConnell says in a release that Maxson has worked “tirelessly over the years” on Kentucky’s interests.…

Bristol-Myers Squibb Wants More Kentuckians To Participate In Clinical Trials

by Lisa Gillespie – Pharmaceutical company Bristol-Myers Squibb is looking to Kentucky to reach more oncologists and cancer patients to participate in clinical trials. The commonwealth ranks in the top 10 states for rates of breast, colorectal, cervical and lung cancers. And in Kentucky, deaths related to smoking are three times higher than deaths from drug overdoses. Clinical trials usually…

Support grows for smoke-free law in Kentucky

by Deborah Yetter , @d_yetter – Dr. Salvatore Bertolone, pediatric oncologist, talks about a smoking ban, e-cigarettes and a cigarette tax. Jessica Ebelhar, The C-J Encouraged by a poll that shows a growing number of Kentuckians support a statewide smoke-free law, a major state health policy group said it is ready to join the battle for such a law in a…