TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A 72-year-old Topeka woman has been identified as the victim of a fatal mobile home fire earlier this week.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the Shawnee County coroner’s office determined Marjorie Shaffer died of smoke inhalation in the Wednesday morning blaze.

Firefighters were called at 7:41 a.m. to the residence near the south end of the mobile home park and found heavy smoke and flames coming from the home. They pulled Shaffer out of the residence but efforts to revive her failed and she was pronounced dead at the scene.

A neighbor said he saw Shaffer lying on a hallway floor but was unable to get to her because of the heat and smoke.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

McPHERSON COUNTY- A Kansas woman was injured in an accident at noon on Saturday when she fell asleep at the wheel.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2002 Honda Civic driven by Lori A. Schmidt, 45, Salina, was southbound on Interstate 135 four miles south of the Kansas 61 Junction when she dozed off.

The vehicle struck the guardrail on the east side of the roadway, bounced off the guardrail and struck the guardrail on west side.

The vehicle came to rest in the center lanes of the Interstate.

Schmidt was transported to the hospital in Newton.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported she was properly restrained at the time of the accident.

WINFIELD, Kan. (AP) — With only a few days remaining before the state’s first-ever bloom of the rare, stinky corpse flower, a Kansas college has set up a 24-hour webcam for those who want don’t want to miss the big event.

Max Thompson, biology professor and greenhouse supervisor at Southwestern College in Windfield, said a corpse flower — otherwise known as the Amorphophallus titanum — bloomed last fall in Omaha, Nebraska, and another bloomed in Oklahoma City a few years ago.

But so far, Thompson tells The Wichita Eagle that he knows of no other blooms occurring in Kansas.

People flock to the corpse flower because it is huge and rare — and because they are drawn to the odor of rotten meat.

The webcam link is at www.gosc.com .

 

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SALINA, Kan. (AP) — Construction is underway in Salina on a new research center devoted to the science of moving and mixing bulk solids such as pellets, granules, powder and grain.

The Salina Journal reports the Kansas State University Bulk Solids Innovation Center will be among only a few in the world. It’s a partnership of the city, the university and two Salina-based companies that design and make equipment for handling bulk materials.

Speakers at Thursday’s groundbreaking for the 17,000-square-foot building said they’ve already heard interest from some of the nation’s largest manufacturers in having their problems researched at the center.

Such problems could occur at a bread factory that mixes flour, yeast, salt and sugar but is having trouble with the flow of sugar from a hopper.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A bitterly contested Republican congressional race unfolding in south-central Kansas is testing the political influence of big corporate money in the backyard of two billionaire brothers who have poured millions into races across the nation.

The 4th District GOP primary Aug. 5 pits U.S. Rep. Mike Pompeo of Wichita against the popular conservative Republican who previously held that position. Former congressman Todd Tiahrt, also from Wichita, gave up the House seat in 2010 in an unsuccessful primary run for the U.S. Senate.

Tiahrt’s primary challenge comes in the home district of Charles and David Koch, who have sent much of their personal fortunes to a network of conservative organizations nationwide. Koch Industries’ employee political action committee, KochPAC, supports Pompeo and has given him the maximum allowable amount.

 

JAMIE STENGLE, Associated Press

DALLAS (AP) — Efforts to eliminate extra pay for teachers who earn advanced degrees are gaining momentum in a small but growing number of U.S. schools. The issue is stirring a national debate about how best to compensate quality educators and angering teachers who say the extra training is valuable.

More than half of the nation’s teachers have master’s degrees or higher, but the changing salary structure is giving pause to others considering the same path. Texas’ two largest school districts, in Houston and Dallas, recently eliminated advanced degree pay going forward. And North Carolina lawmakers last year started phasing out the practice.

Those championing dropping the extra pay say advanced degrees don’t necessarily translate into better student test scores. But some teachers say extra education gives them more tools in the classroom.

WASHINGTON, D.C.–This morning, Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins (KS-02) spoke on the House Floor in support of H.R. 4718, a bill to help America invest and create jobs. H.R. 4718 – in which Congresswoman Jenkins is an original cosponsor – passed the House of Representatives by a bipartisan vote of 258 – 160, and now awaits action in the Senate.

Following are Congresswoman Jenkins’ remarks on the House Floor:

“I rise today in support of this bill to make 50 percent bonus depreciation permanent because it grows the economy and creates jobs.

“Short of comprehensive tax reform, a permanent extension of bonus depreciation is our best option to grow the economy, create jobs and lift wages.

“This bill is important to Kansas manufacturers, and to Kansas farmers and ranchers.

“The Tax Foundation found that permanent bonus depreciation would grow the economy by 1 percent, adding $182 billion dollars to the economy; increase wages and create 210,000 jobs.

“The Joint Committee on Tax, estimates that this legislation will increase economic growth and could reduce the debt by as much as $10 billion.

“But most importantly, today’s bill moves our tax code in the right direction. It is broad based in that it does not pick winners and losers and does not favor one type of investment over another.

“Simply, it favors investment in the types of capital goods that create jobs and puts more money in peoples’ pockets.”

By Scott C. Brunner, M.A.
Health Policy
Cheng-Chung Huang, M.P.H.
Public Health

TOPEKA — The Kansas Health Institute has released its Annual Insurance Update, providing an in-depth look at insurance coverage in the Sunflower State. The report examines public and private insurance coverage using data from the 2012 U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS). This information may be used to better understand how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and other federal health policy changes could affect decision-making in Kansas.

Uninsured Kansans

About 359,000 Kansans – or 12.6 percent of the population – were uninsured in 2012, similar to the rate in 2011, but significantly lower than the national rate of 14.8 percent. Of this number, approximately 56,000 are children. However, the rate of uninsured children in Kansas has been declining since 2008, from 9.3 percent to 7.3 percent in 2012.

70.8 percent of all uninsured Kansans are between the ages of 19 and 44. Two-thirds have family incomes above the federal poverty level ($23,050 annually for a family of four in 2012).
Although employment improves a person’s chance of being insured, more than three out of four uninsured Kansas adults are working.
The ACA’s health insurance marketplaces provide tax subsidies for those who qualify (incomes between 100 and 400 percent of the federal poverty level) to help cover the cost of plan premiums. Sixty-one percent of Kansans who are uninsured could be eligible for this financial assistance when purchasing coverage.

Kansans with Insurance

More than half – 52.2 percent – of all Kansans are covered through employment-based health insurance and 29.4 percent have public coverage, such as Medicare or Medicaid.

Over half (51.5 percent) of Kansas children are covered through their parents’ employment-based health insurance plan, and 35 percent receive public insurance.

Essentially all Kansans over the age of 65 have public insurance, primarily Medicare or a combination of Medicare and Medicaid.
Consistent with national trends, the rate of uninsurance for 19-25 year-olds has declined significantly since 2009 (26.8 percent to 22.3 percent), likely a result of the provision of the ACA which allows dependents to stay on their parents’ insurance until age 26.
“This analysis helps us inform policymakers about the important trends in insurance coverage, especially with the implementation of federal health reform,” said Scott Brunner, senior analyst and strategy team leader. “The Annual Insurance Update provides context and historical information about health insurance coverage as Kansans try to understand the potential impacts of the ACA.” Brunner is a former Medicaid director for the state.

The report also provides information related to insurance coverage by race and ethnicity, as well as maps that depict differences in coverage and Medicaid participation across the state. Finally, the report examines how insurance coverage in Kansas has changed since the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010, which provides some insight into how the economy, job market and changes in federal and state health policy affect coverage.

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