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The late David Bowie has his first-ever #1 song on the country charts thanks to country star Chris Young.Young’s latest single, “Young Love & Saturday Nights,” just hit the top…

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Three Missouri hunters are facing misdemeanor charges related to poaching, after a nine-month investigation identified them as Bonne Terre residents Kevin Click and Travis Wadlow, who collectively face 15 charges.

Illinois is investing $25.3 million in vehicle charging stations, with Madison County receiving $649,240 in grants to install 182 new charging stations along Illinois interstates.

The ownership group of the St. Louis Blues hockey team has purchased the remaining equity stake in Stifel Theatre from Joe McKee III and Chris McKee, assuming complete ownership of the long-term lease for the historic venue.

Link taxes are bad, m’kay? They harm the public. They harm the open internet. And they harm the news orgs themselves. There is no reason to support them at all. But, many (thankfully not all!) media organizations and politicians love them. Media orgs like them because they think it will bring them free money (though, […]

Headway Premium is the revolutionary app designed to help you turn personal growth into a habit. With a lifetime subscription, you get unlimited access to a huge number of non-fiction bestsellers, summarized into 15-minute reads. Be it personal development, business strategies, or health insights, Headway has you covered. It’s on sale for $60. Note: The […]

by Maya Miller and Annie Waldman

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The Biden administration announced on Monday that it has finalized new regulations to strengthen protections for mental health care coverage and hold insurance companies accountable for unlawfully denying it.

The rules update the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which was passed in 2008, requiring health insurance plans to provide the same access to mental health care as medical care. The new provisions will force health insurance plans to collect and report more robust data on how they limit and deny mental health claims. If disparities exist between mental and medical care, insurers will need to lay out how they are attempting to address these gaps.

“Mental health care is health care. But for far too many Americans, critical care and treatments are out of reach,” President Joe Biden said in a press release announcing the final rules. “There is no reason that breaking your arm should be treated differently than having a mental health condition.”

The updated rules seek to address a problem captured in numerous studies and reports and examined in a new level of detail in a recent ProPublica investigation.

Although nearly all Americans have health insurance, millions still can't access mental health care. ProPublica found that insurance companies have interfered with patient care, deployed aggressive audits and set reimbursement rates so low that providers felt they had no choice but to quit insurance networks. Our reporting also documented how consequences can be fatal when patients can’t find therapists or mental health treatment.

Federal regulators have struggled to police insurance companies. Nearly all of the recent reports that the Department of Labor has collected from insurers and health plans have lacked enough detail to determine companies’ compliance with the law, the department reported to Congress last year. Some states have passed laws to close those gaps in information, but we found mental health protections often depend on where one lives.

The new rules require insurers to collect and turn over outcomes data, like denial rates, to measure how often patients access care. The companies will have to disclose details on insurance networks, which may include how regularly patients go out of network for mental health treatment and how reimbursement rates are calculated for mental health providers.

The rules also clarify that patients have the right to access this data and require insurers and health plans to furnish records within 30 days of a request.

Republican U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., who chairs the Committee on Education and the Workforce, said the rules are too burdensome. “These rules do nothing to improve mental health care access and instead put paperwork over patients,” she said in an emailed statement.

But former U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, who sponsored the 2008 parity bill and co-founded the mental health advocacy nonprofit The Kennedy Forum, said the new rules will protect access for patients. “This is an opportunity for consumers to finally have a seat at the table,” he told ProPublica.

The law applies to 175 million people who have private health insurance. Under the new rules, these protections will also cover people with health insurance through state and local governments, about 120,000 additional Americans.

The finalized regulations came after a yearlong review process, in which three departments — Treasury, Health and Human Services, and Labor — collected thousands of public comments. The departments had initially published proposed rules in August 2023. Some of the provisions will go into effect on Jan. 1, said Lisa Gomez, the assistant secretary of employee benefits security at the Department of Labor.

“People living with mental health conditions and substance use disorders continue to face greater barriers,” she said. “That’s not fair, it’s not right and it’s against the law.”

We’re Investigating Mental Health Care Access. Share Your Insights.

GRAFTON — Families and nature enthusiasts are invited to a unique blend of outdoor activities and wildlife education on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, at Pere Marquette State Park. The event, organized by IDNR urban fishing coordinator Scott Isringhausen, will feature an annual fishing and owl program beginning at 5:30 p.m. and transition into an owl-themed presentation starting at 7:30 p.m. The evening will kick off with a talk about local fish species by Isringhausen, who has been leading these programs for several years. Following the educational session, participants will engage in a fishing activity at the bluegill pond next to the visitor center. At 7:30 p.m., attendees will gather for an indoor program showcasing eight different species of owls, all presented as taxidermy specimens. After the presentation, the event will move outdoors for a two-mile guided hike aimed at calling and observing owls in their natural habitat. The hike will include five to six stops where participants

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JERSEYVILLE - A Jerseyville man with multiple prior domestic battery charges has been charged once again with domestic battery after allegedly stabbing a family member. David T. DeSherlia, 52, of Jerseyville, was charged with one count of aggravated domestic battery, a Class 2 felony. On Sept. 4, 2024, DeSherlia allegedly stabbed a family member “in the right side of his torso,” causing “great bodily harm” to the victim. He also reportedly cut the victim’s arm, according to a petition to deny DeSherlia’s pretrial release. DeSherlia’s extensive criminal history includes multiple prior domestic battery arrests and dates back to 1990, when he was charged and convicted of aggravated battery of a peace officer. He has since been charged in at least two domestic battery cases, including a case from earlier this summer for which he was convicted on July 29, 2024, as well as a prior battery conviction from 2023. “The Defendant has

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EDWARDSVILLE - The 2024 Miles of Possibility Route 66 Conference will return to the Wildey Theatre just off Route 66 in Edwardsville, where the very first Miles of Possibility was held in October 2015. This year's 9th annual conference will take place at the Wildey Theatre Thursday-Saturday, October 31-November 2 with additional activities on Sunday, November 3, at other locations. This year's conference carries the theme “Giants of Route 66.” The keynote speaker is Joel Baker, founder of American Giants and the nation’s leading authority of – and advocate for – the identification, preservation, and restoration of the giant fiberglass statues known as “muffler men” produced in the 1960s by International Fiberglass Company, once located in Venice, California. “Muffler men” got their name from their advertising use at automotive shops. Baker has established an American Giants Museum in Atlanta, Illinois. The slate of speakers

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5 On Your Side is helping Warners' Warm-Up collect coats for children in need with Kurt and Brenda Warner.

The brewery produced 24,000 barrels of beer in 2023, making it the city's fourth-largest brewery.

BELLEVILLE/GRANITE CITY/MARYVILLE – Two Chestnut Health Systems™ employees have been selected to showcase their artwork in the 2024 Art of Recovery project. This initiative, launched by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Office of Recovery, is part of the observance of National Recovery Month this September. Shalon Brouk , a Recovery Coach from Granite City, IL, and Jordan Reifschneider , a Behavioral Outreach Specialist from Belleville, IL, drew upon their personal experiences to create powerful, recovery-inspired art. Their submissions are featured in the virtual exhibit Gallery of Hope , which includes over 250 visual art entries submitted to the Art of Recovery project. The gallery shines a light on the transformative impact of art in mental health and substance use recovery, with entries ranging from paintings and drawings to mixed media and photography. All works were contributed by individuals with lived

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The next gambling director could face the prospect of regulating sports betting.

Heart is getting back out on the road in 2025.After postponing their 2024 Royal Flush tour following Ann Wilson’s revelation about her battle with cancer, the Rock & Roll Hall…

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The restaurant chain will “slowly transition to a new name” of Session Taco, it said Monday.

CHICAGO – The Mega Millions Jackpot for tomorrow night’s drawing has soared to $800 million - the seventh largest Mega Millions jackpot in history. However, someone in Illinois is already celebrating after snagging a cool $1 million over the weekend. The winning Mega Millions ticket was purchased at Gas Express in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood, located at 501 W. 31st Street. The lucky winner matched all five numbers, 6-23-42-59-63, to win the $1 million prize in Friday night’s drawing. “I guess you can say ‘luck is in the air’ at Gas Express in Bridgeport," said Faris Saleh, owner of Gas Express. “This is the second big winning lottery ticket we’ve sold at our store this year - a $400,000 Lucky Day Lotto ticket in April and now a $1 million Mega Millions ticket – so exciting!” For selling the winning ticket, the retailer will receive a bonus of $10,000 which is one percent of the prize amount. “My employees

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