Governor John Bel Edwards kicks off his statewide tour to discuss Medicaid expansion. Over the next month, Edwards and DHH Secretary, Dr. Rebekah Gee, will visit cities to raise awareness and answer questions about who will be eligible to enroll for the government health insurance on June 1st. Edwards also announced that the state’s health program has a new name…:
Cut 8 (11) “of Louisiana”
State health officials say the expanded Medicaid program will be able to cover an estimated 350,000 working poor individuals.

Two bills that Edwards supports are advancing, one that seeks to curb the cost of the TOPS scholarship program – which received final legislative approval. It would likely mean students would have to pay part of their own tuition. The Senate approved the Raise the Age bill Monday which would allow 17-year-olds to be tried in the juvenile court system instead of as adults. The measure now heads to the House.

May is Air Quality Awareness month, and the Department of Environmental Quality says Louisiana’s air quality is better than it’s been since the start of the Industrial Revolution. DEQ senior scientist Vivian Aucoin…:
cut 4 (08) “quality standards”
Louisiana Bucket Brigade Director, Anne Rolfes, doesn’t think Louisiana’s air is any cleaner. She says the state does a poor job of monitoring the air in areas where it’s the worst…:
Cut 6 (08) “closely enough”
The DEQ encourages everyone to do their part in helping to keep the air clean, including industry and the public.

In the Concordia Parish town of Monterey, officials say the case of the remains of a missing person that were found last week is now a homicide investigation. The remains have not been identified yet according to authorities, but 35-year-old Hart Tiffee has been named a person of interest in the case.