State Highlights: Minnesota To Require Documentation After Open Enrollment; Texas Revises Special Education Plans Without Extra Funds

The Star Tribune: MNsure Tightens Rule On 'Special' Enrollments 
People seeking health insurance via MNsure outside the standard open enrollment period will now be required to document their eligibility for "special enrollment" before they can buy a policy. MNsure said the tighter rules should help make sure people don't wait until they are sick to buy coverage, a practice that drives up costs for others. (Snowbeck, 3/19)

Texas Tribune: In New Plan, Texas Education Agency Vows Special Education Overhaul With Limited Dollars
The TEA released the 42-page draft strategic plan Monday, a couple of months after a 15-month federal investigation concluded Texas had not been providing kids with disabilities the tools and services they needed to learn, likely failing to educate thousands of students and violating federal law. Federal officials found the state was effectively incentivizing school districts to keep their special education numbers low and that many teachers fundamentally misunderstood the legal requirements around educating kids with disabilities. (Swaby, 3/19)

The Associated Press: Johns Hopkins Nurses Eye Unionizing Over Staffing, Benefits
Organizers say nurses at Johns Hopkins Hospital are overworked and underpaid compared with counterparts elsewhere and could form a union. The National Nurses United collective bargaining director for the mid-Atlantic region, Corey Lanham, tells The Baltimore Sun that nurse turnover at the hospital is high because of short staffing and declining benefits. (3/19)

Columbus Dispatch: Rise In Alzheimer's Cases Slows In Ohio, But Impact Still Daunting
The number of people living with Alzheimer’s disease in Ohio is projected to increase at a slower rate than in any other state between now and 2025. ...A 13.6 percent increase — or an additional 30,000 people age 65 and older having Alzheimer’s — is still a staggering statistic. And in other measurements, such as the disease’s mortality rate and its impact on unpaid family caregivers, Ohio still lags behind much of the United States. (Widman Neese, 3/20)

Chicago Tribune: UIC Hospital To Close Physical Rehab Unit To Make Room For More Private Hospital Beds
University of Illinois Hospital in Chicago plans to create more private patient rooms by discontinuing its physical rehabilitation division, which has seen declining use over the past few years. The hospital, in the Chicago medical district, filed an application with the state’s Health Facilities and Services Review Board to convert its 18 physical rehab beds to adult medical-surgical beds, which will allow it to repurpose some shared rooms into private rooms. (Elejalde-Ruiz, 3/19)

Arizona Republic: Governor Doug Ducey Releases Gun Control Plan In Wake Of Parkland
Citing lessons learned from the nation's deadliest school shootings, Gov. Doug Ducey released a plan Monday aimed at preventing a similar mass killings in Arizona.Democrats say the plan doesn't go far enough. It could also face hurdles with some conservative state lawmakers who generally support looser gun laws. (Gardiner and Wingett Sanchez, 3/19)

The Baltimore Sun: Mercy Opens Expanded Primary Care And Pediatric Office In Baltimore 
Mercy Medical Center has moved its pediatric and primary care physicians’ office to a larger space in hopes of increasing patient access to medical services. Health Centers of Baltimore has also changed its name to Mercy Family Care Physicians and undergone $4 million in upgrades. The center has moved to a 14,675-square-foot building at the hospital’s Tower Building on St. Paul Place. Before that it was located on Calvert Street. (McDaniels, 3/19)

Texas Tribune: Report: Texas Child Abuse And Neglect Deaths Often Tied To Alcohol Or Drugs
The number of Texas children dying from abuse and neglect decreased by 22.5 percent in fiscal year 2017, but half of the deaths occurred under caregivers using drugs or alcohol, according to a Texas Department of Family and Protective Services report released earlier this month. A similar report last year also found that half of the 222 children who died were being watched by a parent or caregiver under the influence of drugs or alcohol. (Evans, 3/20)

Sacramento Bee: Increase In Influenza B Cases And Flu Outbreaks In Calif.
A surge in influenza B cases is providing a lesson to California residents that they cannot let down their guard just because influenza A activity declines. The H3N2 strain of influenza A grabbed headlines early in the flu season, as Californians learned anew of its deadly force, but now influenza B is causing a growing number of flu outbreaks in the Golden State. (Anderson, 3/19)

Kansas City Star: Johnson County Now Has Eight Measles Cases
The number of measles patients continues to grow, with the reported cases in Johnson County now up to eight. The list of places where people may have been exposed has also grown by one location. (Marso and Horsley, 3/19)

Cleveland Plain Dealer: Akron City Council To Consider Raising Age To Buy Tobacco Products, Paraphernalia To 21
Teens looking to buy cigarettes in Akron could soon leave empty-handed. Legislation introduced to Akron City Council by Mayor Dan Horrigan and At-large Councilwoman Linda Omobien would raise the legal age in Akron to purchase tobacco products and tobacco paraphernalia from 18 to 21 years old. (Conn, 3/19)

Miami Herald: Salmonella Causes Recall Of Coconut Products In 29 States
About three hours after a Monday FDA e-mail announcing the recall of International Harvest’s Go Smiles organic raw coconut in both bulk and bagged form, the recall of Natural Grocers’ store brand Coconut Smiles Organic posted to the FDA site. All Coconut Smiles Organic 10-ounce bags packed before Friday should be tossed or returned for full refund. (Neal, 3/19)

The Baltimore Sun: More Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Open In Maryland 
Just over three months since the first few medical marijuana dispensaries opened their doors amid a shortage of products and some technical difficulties, more than 30 cannabis outlets have opened in Maryland. The 34 dispensaries are maintaining regular hours and are located in all corners of the state, according to a review by The Sun. They are in a dozen counties and Baltimore City, with five more dispensaries licensed but not yet open in five jurisdictions. (Meredith, 3/20)