Video summary
Kentucky Governor Andy Basher has introduced a significant initiative designed to eliminate approximately $250 million in medical debt for over 130,000 residents. Through a newly signed executive order, the state established the Team Kentucky Medical Debt Relief Program, which directs funds to a nonprofit organization that purchases and forgives outstanding medical bills. This effort aims to address the financial hardships caused by illness or injury, ensuring that individuals are not burdened by debt simply because they needed medical care. The first phase of this program is expected to erase up to $100 million for roughly 46,000 eligible recipients, with notification letters anticipated to arrive soon.
To qualify for this relief, residents must meet specific criteria regarding their income or the proportion of their debt relative to their earnings. Specifically, individuals are eligible if they owe medical debt equal to at least 5% of their annual income or if their income does not exceed 400% of the federal poverty level. The program is designed to be accessible without requiring applications or extensive paperwork, focusing instead on lifting the burden of debt based on a person's financial situation. Officials emphasize that this initiative helps prevent families from facing long-term financial instability, damaged credit scores, and difficulties in achieving major life goals like buying a home.
Beyond state-level debt relief, health advocates are actively lobbying in Washington, D.C., to secure continued funding for cancer research, with a particular focus on the needs of central Appalachia. A key piece of legislation being pushed is the Clinical Trial Modernization Act, which aims to defer costs such as travel, lodging, and childcare that often prevent rural patients from participating in life-extending clinical trials. Advocates highlight the critical importance of these trials, noting that while a cure is the ultimate goal, interim treatments can significantly extend lives and improve quality of life, potentially allowing families to experience holidays they might otherwise miss.
The broadcast also covered local community efforts, including a sports recap featuring upcoming volleyball and soccer tournaments in the region. Additionally, there was an announcement for a fundraising concert at the Mountain Arts Center scheduled for October 2nd to support veterans through the Disabled American Veterans organization. The event will feature silent auctions, raffles, food vendors, and entertainment by the Shriner clowns, aiming to raise money for disaster relief and support for those who have served. These various segments collectively illustrate a community dedicated to financial justice, medical advancement, and honoring its veterans.
Read the full video transcript
Kentucky Governor Andy Basher moves to
wipe out a quarter billion dollar worth
of medical debt. And we'll hear about
the specific needs of Appalachin cancer
patients. I'm Nick Colum and this is the
Mountaintop Daily.
Governor Andy Basher has launched a new
program aimed at eliminating $250
million in medical debt for more than
130,000 Kuckians.
Basher signed an executive order Tuesday
creating the team Kentucky Medical Debt
Relief Program and directing $2.5
million to undo medical debt, a
nonprofit that purchases and forgives
medical debt. Officials say the first
phase will erase up to $100 million for
about 46,000 Kuckians. Letters notifying
those recipients are expected to begin
arriving next week.
>> Medical debt is a debt of necessity, not
choice. No one plans to get sick or
injured, and no one should face
financial hardship simply because they
needed a doctor. Our work is about
lifting that burden. We purchase medical
debt for a fraction of what is owed and
erase it based on the person's income or
how much they owe relative to what they
earn. There is no application. There is
no paperwork. There are no hoops to jump
through.
>> To qualify, Kuckians must either owe
medical debt equal to at least 5% of
their annual income or earn no more than
400% of the federal poverty level.
Basher says medical debt can
families financially and damage their
credit, making it harder to buy a home
or achieve financial stability.
Health advocates from around the country
spent the day lobbying elected leaders
in Washington to ask them to continue
funding cancer research. Robin spoke
with the West Virginia representative
about the specific needs she sees in
central Appalachia.
Advocates from all over the nation
gathered in Washington DC today to ask
Congress to continue funding cancer
research. Every year ACS CAN meets for
what we call lovingly a lobby day. And
as a representative or as an ambassador
from West Virginia, we actually have it
really good in that we take meetings
with every one of our representatives.
So we have two representatives, two
senators. And at these meetings, what we
do is we ask them one to fund the
maximum amount for cancer research. And
what's great about ACS CAN is we are a
resource for that funding, but we don't
we don't want it. We just want the
cancer research funding to go to where
it needs to go to.
>> Right now, ACS CAN is pushing for a bill
that will benefit rural areas like
central Appalachia. We are asking them
to co-sponsor a bill, the Clinical Trial
Modernization Act, which is a mouthful
to say, but this could be a real
gamecher for people in West Virginia and
Kentucky rural areas. What it will do is
it will allow anyone who wants to
participate in a clinical trial to have
some of those costs deferred. the costs
that prevent us from going because you
know most people especially in West
Virginia have to travel to get to a
clinical trial and so you have travel
costs, you have lodging, you have child
care, all these things and this is going
to help some relieve some of those costs
and make clinical trials more accessible
for us and it's really exciting. So we
would like for our representatives to
co-sponsor that. Summers explained why
clinical trials are so important to
those dealing with cancer. Clinical
trials and money for research all go
hand in hand, right? And while we always
want or we always seem to focus on
finding a cure. And of course, we want
to find a cure. What we don't realize is
on the way to finding a cure, we find
treatments that extend life and better
life. Take for instance pancreatic
cancer. The new drug that recently came
out was shown to extend a life by a
matter of months. Now, I know that kind
of seems like, okay, a matter of months,
but my mother passed away this June from
pancreatic cancer. She would have been
eligible for that drug, but it didn't
get out in time and she had nowhere to
go for the clinical trial. And so, a
matter of months to us and her
grandchildren meant maybe another
Christmas. So this act not only helps
offset the cost and it will not raise
taxes. It's nothing like that. It, you
know, will help patients get to the
trial, but will also help the trial get
to the patients as well. You can keep up
with this bill and other cancer related
issues by going to fightcancer.org.
Click on public policy, then use the
drop-own menu to find research, funding,
and drug development. Reporting for
Mountaintop News, I'm Robin Tilman.
>> Coming up after the break, a night of
music at the Mountain Arts Center will
raise money for area veterans. We'll
tell you how when the Mountaintop Daily
continues. But first, sports and
weather.
How's it going everybody? I'm Jackson
Lucas and this is your Mountaintop
Sports Recap.
We will be bringing you live coverage of
the 15th region volleyball as the
Paintsville Lady Tigers travel to Shelby
Valley to take on the Lady Wildcats.
This will be the tiebreaking game as the
score is one to one with the Paintsville
Tigers picking up the latest win to
secure the 15th region all championship.
First serve scheduled for 7 p.m.
Pikeville soccer will host their first
round game of this all state tournament
on Thursday. This will be the first time
that they host taking on Meny County
with game time set for 7 pm. Join us
Thursday night at Buffalo Wild Wings for
Sideline with Zack Acres and Denny Palé.
This week we will have special guest Wes
Hager, head coach of the Preensburg
Black Cats. If you can't join us, tune
in to our Facebook page or the
Mountaintop TV app to watch. That's your
Mountaintop Sports Recap. For the latest
in sports, be sure to follow Mountaintop
Sports on Facebook, Instagram X, or
visit mountain-topsports.com.
>> [music]
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>> The Veterans Coalition for Quality
Health Care and Village Caregiving will
host a fundraising concert next month to
benefit area veterans. Proceeds from the
Operation Honor Our Heroes event will go
to the Disabled American Veterans to
benefit those who served and disaster
relief efforts. Connor has the details.
Coming up on the 2nd of October at the
Mountain Arts Center is the Honor Our
Heroes event to raise money for our
veterans. The event will start at 5:00
p.m. An entry will be $25. And here we
have Danny Shepard, the DAV Kentucky
senior vice commander to tell us more
about the event. And
>> we'll have some vendor tables out here.
So, we'll have silent auctions. We'll
have raffles. Uh we'll have a bunch of
stuff. Uh I know one person uh got a
quilt, a handmade quilt they're raffling
off. We'll have some giveaways. Some of
the companies will be in there giving
away some stuff and everything. And then
um opening ceremonies will be at 5:45.
And also, uh we will have the Shriner
clowns here. So, they'll be uh greeting
people come through the door. We'll also
have the branch church here doing the
face painting. So, they're going to do
some patriotic face painting for me.
We're going to have the Floyd County
Shriners here selling food. So, come on
out for raffles, silent auctions, some
good food, see some clowns, you know,
get your face painted.
>> With the community coming together to
help with this event, it shows just how
much our Commonwealth truly cares about
its veterans.
>> All right. Also, I just wanted to show
you the flyer. You know, I really want
to thank my sponsors and my co-sponsors.
I have my sponsors listed on the uh on
the flyer. You know, without without you
all, this wouldn't be possible. And plus
our co-sponsors and stuff and our
entertainers
u the Shriners. Give a big thank you out
to the Shriners. And also for the ones
who have wrote me to give me the names
of the banner of honor. It will be hung
up the night of the event with all 50
names. We are we have 50 names on there
now. So, mark it down your calendars.
Tell your friends, tell your family,
tell your neighbors. Wake them up, take
them with you. Come out and get some
tickets. It's all for a good cause. We
appreciate you all and thank you all
very much. And even if you don't come,
share our post. Get the word out for us.
Thank you'all.
>> Reporting for Mountaintop News, I'm
Connor Kit.
>> That will do it for this edition of the
Mountaintop Daily. Be sure to check us
out at 6 pm every weekday on Mountaintop
TV, the Mountaintop TV app, and the
Mountaintop News Facebook page. With
your Mountaintop Daily, I'm Nick Colum
for Mountaintop News.