Outgoing Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin says the stress he faced associated with Voting Controversies was part of why he didn’t seek re-election. Colleen Crain has the story…
Cut 1 (31) “…I’m Colleen Crain.”
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BESE approved a policy to create an appeals process for students who are unable to pass the LEAP test in order to graduate. Teiko Foxx has more…
Cut 2 (34) “…I’m Teiko Foxx.”
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With federal pandemic protections no longer in place, 160,000 have been removed from Louisiana Medicaid coverage. Brooke Thorington has more.
Cut 3 (33) …I’m Brooke Thorington.”
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Outgoing Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin says he didn’t seek re-election because his health began to suffer due to the stress and pressure he faced associated with voting controversies. Ardoin says he faced harassment and intimidation
Cut 4 (11) “…harassment.”
Ardoin tried to replace outdated voting machines but in his last attempt in 2021, he received pushback as opponents of the Dominion Voting systems wanted them eliminated as an option. Ardoin says the controversy was one of the reasons he’s leaving after this term
Cut 5 (10) “…evidence.”
Ardoin says the intimidation he faced has taken a tool but says he is turning his attention to his family and regaining his health.
Cut 6 (09) “…that back.”
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The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education has once again approved an appeals process to give students who are unable to pass the LEAP test another option to graduate. Some politicians are saying the plan does not make the grade. In order to apply for an appeal, President Dr. Holly Boffy says appeals will be administered by local school systems.
Cut 7 (13) “…for employment.”
Louisiana is one of eight states that still require minimum standardized test scores for graduation. And is the only state that has not offered an appeals process.
In a six to five vote, BESE approved lowering the bar for graduating high school seniors. Louisiana Senator John Kennedy believes BESE is taking a massive step backward.
Cut 8 (10) “…can’t read.”
Boffy says four percent of high school seniors are unable to graduate because they can’t pass the LEAP test. That could mean the students are poor test takers not because they can’t read. She points out that students achieve at different levels.
Cut 9 (12) “…air conditioning.”
Kennedy says just over a third of Louisiana public high school students perform on grade level. He says helping a student graduate counts towards the school’s accountability score.
Cut 10 (13) “…the school.”
The House Education Committee has scheduled an oversight hearing for Thursday to review the policy.
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160,000 individuals have been removed from state Medicaid rolls since April after federal pandemic protections ended and a third of them are children. Executive Director of the Louisiana Budget Project Jan Moller says they expected many would lose coverage because the state could once again review income eligibility.
Cut 11 (11) “…junk mail.”
Since 2020, anyone who was on Medicaid could not be dropped due to pandemic protections, and when that changed, Moller says almost a million people on Medicaid had to have their eligibility reviewed.
Moller says to the state’s credit they’ve done a very good job notifying those on Medicaid of the need to revisit their eligibility. He says a large number of individuals who’ve lost coverage will probably have their status restored…
Cut 12 (09) “…very regularly.”
With annual income eligibility reviews back in place, Moller says several will churn off and on Medicaid coverage, especially those who do not seek regular medical care.
Cut 13 (07) “…sometimes.”
An average of three out of four Louisiana Medicaid patients have lost coverage due to procedural reasons, for example, incomplete paperwork or outdated contact information. If you need to renew your Medicaid coverage call (888) 342-6207.
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Fog and marsh fires were major contributing factors to the massive car pile-up on I-55 in Saint John the Baptist Parish Monday morning. The low visibility resulted in multiple fatalities, injuries, and crashes. Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says low water levels have only made marsh fires worse.
Cut 14 (07) “…for months.”
In addition to a large marsh fire east of New Orleans, Strain says there are also other marsh fires in the state. Those combined with individuals burning trash piles, have significantly decreased visibility for motorists. He urged individuals to abide by local burn bans because the marsh fires can burn for months versus days…
Cut 15 (05) “…the burn ban.”
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After two weeks off, Louisiana Tech is back in action tonight as the Bulldogs host New Mexico State. The Aggies are 5-and-3, 3-and-1 in Conference USA, and coming off a three-touchdown victory over longtime rival UTEP. Tech Coach Sonny Cumbie is impressed with their dual-threat quarterback Diega Pavia…
Cut 16 (16) “…very powerful.”
Pavia has thrown for 18-hundred yards and 16 touchdowns. He’s rushed for 527 yards and four touchdowns.
One of Louisiana Tech’s best defensive players is defensive back Willie Roberts, who ranks second in the country with ten pass breakups this season. Cumbie says Roberts has been that locked-down corner they’ve needed
Cut 17 (17) “…this year.”
Kick-off at Joe Aillet Stadium is at 6 p.m.
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Since playing as bad as they could possibly play against Ole Miss, LSU’s defense has made stride during this three-game winning streak. This past Saturday, the Tigers held an undermanned Army team to 193 yards of offense. Defensive tackle Maason Smith says the addition of 82-year-old Pete Jenkins to the coaching staff has helped
Cut 18 (13) “…long way.”
Smith was recruited by former head coach Ed Orgeron when he came to Terrebonne High School as the state’s top-ranked player in the Class of 2021. Orgeron learned how to coach D-linemen from Jenkins and Smith says there’s a comfortable level with Coach Pete…
Cut 19 (16) “…for us.”
Cut 20 (20) “…on Saturday