Alex Acquisto

Kentucky’s Addiction Recovery Care owes DOJ $28M settlement, lawsuit claims The lawsuit was filed by Angelica Capital Trust, a company in the Bahamas that claims ARC is unlawfully holding onto $8M in tax credits.

Addiction Recovery Care has agreed to a settlement with the Department of Justice to the tune of nearly $28 million for alleged Medicaid fraud, according to a NY lawsuit filed Jan. 12.

A Bahamian trust says ARC owes them $8M. @aacquisto.bsky.social

www.kentucky.com/news/state/a...

Herald-Leader chosen by ProPublica for Local Reporting Network partnership Reporter Alex Acquisto will spend the next year on a statewide investigative project that will have wide ramifications for Kentuckians.

Reporter Alex Acquisto will spend the next year on a statewide investigative project that will have wide ramifications for Kentuckians.

The one person who can single-handedly initiate removal proceedings is Gov. Andy Beshear.

Yet, despite pleas from residents in several counties, he has not done so.

In Part 2, we look at Beshear’s inaction and other options for sheriff accountability.

www.courier-journal.com/story/news/i...

My good friend and journalistic partner in crime Andy Wolfson died suddenly last night. I'm going to miss him.

ARC had more than 30 facilities around Kentucky last summer, when the FBI announced it was investigating the company over potential Medicaid fraud.

An ARC spokesperson just told me they now have just 14 locations, a mix of residential, outpatient, and a psychiatric hospital.

KY nixed his idea to treat addiction with a psychedelic drug. Texas said yes Bryan Hubbard in 2023 wanted Kentucky to be the first state to study the psychedelic ibogaine to treat opioid addiction, but he was rejected. Texas just agreed, earmarking $50M for the study.

Remember Bryan Hubbard, who in 2023 proposed studying ibogaine to treat addiction in Kentucky? After Ky said no, he went to Texas. Now, some in the Ky GOP are on board.

KY nixed his idea to treat addiction with a psychedelic drug. Texas said yes

www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

From the in box just now: "Due to the expected passage of the Rescissions Act that eliminates federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), KET has made the difficult decision to eliminate this year’s coverage of the annual Fancy Farm political event."

This Southern Baptist leader in KY is leading the church’s charge to overturn gay marriage Andrew Walker, who teaches at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, wrote the proposal Southern Baptists approved calling on the Supreme Court to overturn the right to gay marriage.

This Southern Baptist leader in KY is leading the church’s charge to overturn gay marriage

www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Judge denies Matt Bevin’s motion to seal divorce, allows adoptive son to intervene A Louisville judge granted Jonah Bevin’s request Friday to intervene in his parents’ divorce case, opening the door for him to receive financial support he says his adoptive parents denied him.

NEW: A judge has denied a request from Former Ky Gov. Matt Bevin & First Lady Glenna Bevin to keep their divorce settlement confidential.

The Friday ruling also allows Jonah Bevin to be an intervenor in their divorce case, giving him the chance to seek financial support.

bit.ly/44GIitu

Kentucky Auditor sues Gov. Beshear for not implementing kinship caregiver law Auditor Allison Ball on Thursday sued Gov. Andy Beshear for stalling the implementation of a 2024 kinship caregiver law. “This issue goes beyond funding and bureaucratic delays,” Ball said.

Kentucky’s Auditor of Public Accounts is suing Gov. Andy Beshear for allegedly refusing to enact a kinship caregiver law, escalating the ongoing tensions in Frankfort over which branch of government should fund the implementation of a 2024 bill.

Via @aacquisto.bsky.social:

Analysis: Our reporters say Kentucky GOP lowered the temperature (slightly) in Frankfort this session Analysis: The Herald-Leader’s Frankfort reporters recount the highs, lows, tension and outright anger that unfolded in this year’s Republican-controlled legislative session.

Death of the GOP aisle crossers, continued transparency concerns, GOP unity, legal battles & more.

What #kyga25, with a little hindsight, looked like. With @aacquisto.bsky.social: www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

‘HB 4 is about hate.’ Gov. Beshear vetoes anti-diversity, equity, inclusion bill “We love and we accept everyone. This bill isn’t about love. House Bill 4 is about hate,” Gov. Andy Beshear said in a video highlighting his action.

Gov. Andy Beshear has vetoed House Bill 4, a GOP-backed bill aimed at restricting, and in some cases dismantling, Kentucky public universities’ efforts on diversity, equity and inclusion. Story w/ @austin-horn.bsky.social & @aacquisto.bsky.social www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

KY Republicans pass eleventh-hour bills blocking some adults access to trans health care KY House passed two bills just before midnight Friday to ban transgender adults in prison, on Medicaid from accessing gender-affirming care, and also to protect conversion therapy.

The clock was running out. Dems were stalling hard.

But with about an hour left, leadership called for HB 495. With unanimous GOP support, KY is now on track to block Medicaid from funding gender-affirming care & roll back conversion therapy restrictions.

www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Most important news of the day in the #KyLeg : Bill Bryant getting recognized for 40 years of working @ WKYT. Bill is also the longtime host of KET's Comment on Kentucky. A titan!

Sen. Reggie Thomas called him Ky's Walter Conkrite. Sen. Gary Boswell: "You are an honor to your profession."

After years of refusals, Republicans move to add medical exceptions to KY abortion ban Republicans advanced bills to relax & clarify medical exceptions in Kentucky’s near-total ban Wednesday, in the first hearings on such bills since Kentucky banned abortion in 2022.

After years of refusals, Republicans move to add medical exceptions to KY abortion ban

www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Bill to protect ‘conversion therapy’ now also bans Medicaid funds for gender-affirming care A bill amended Wednesday would block the use of Medicaid dollars to pay for gender-affirming health care for trans adults, as well as widely reinstate the practice of conversion therapy across Kentuck...

Some Kentucky lawmakers are now targeting gender-affirming care for transgender adults on Medicaid.

New from @aacquisto.bsky.social & @austin-horn.bsky.social: www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

A New Missouri Bill Would Let Residents Donate to Anti-Abortion Centers Instead of Paying Any Taxes Four months after Missouri voted to legalize abortion, Republican lawmakers are proposing a 100% tax credit — capped at $50,000 per year — for taxpayers who donate to crisis pregnancy centers.

Four months after Missouri voted to legalize abortion, Republican lawmakers are proposing to let residents donate to anti-abortion centers instead of paying any taxes (up to $50k).

Teen in KY foster care office causes $27K in damage. Auditor says it’s a ‘systemic failure’ A 17-year-old in the KY foster system being kept in a KY social services office caused more than $27,500 in damage. KY Auditor: it signals “systemic failures within the foster care system.”

A teen held in a Kentucky foster care office caused $27K in damage last month.

As public officials are increasingly scrutinizing Ky social services for temporarily housing kids in gov't office buildings, Ky's auditor says latest incident signals 'systemic failures' w/in system bit.ly/41Grf8T

Bill to ban DEI efforts at Kentucky public colleges advances after tense committee meeting “Historically, America has strived for equal opportunity, not subjective equity, which DEI now pursues through discriminatory admissions, hiring and scholarships,” Rep. Jennifer Decker said Tuesday.

Championing it as a measure promoting “equal opportunity” on Ky’s higher ed campuses rather than the “subjective equity” contrived by DEI initiatives, a GOP-backed bill to dismantle DEI advanced in a party-line committee vote today. W/@monicakast.bsky.social

www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Kentucky version of DOGE advances. GOP sponsor said it promotes ‘fiscal responsibility’ The department would be under the purview of the state Auditor of Public Accounts.

Kentucky version of DOGE advanced through a legislative committee this morning. GOP sponsor said it promotes ‘fiscal responsibility’
www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Amid censorship, spending fights, bill would give more library control to KY politicians Senate Bill 71 follows on changes the legislature made in 2022 to how library governing boards are appointed.

Ky Senate just passed a bill to give more library control to politicians.

From Owensboro GOP Rep. Gary Boswell, it stems from a right-wing group in Owensboro— Citizens for Decency—who've tried to remove "controversial" books from library shelves. Boswell has supported their cause. bit.ly/3DfdxAv

Tonight at 8/7 on KET's "Comment on Kentucky," it's Alex Acquisto of the Lexington Herald-Leader, Isaiah Kim-Martinez of WHAS11 Louisville and Melissa Patrick of Kentucky Health News. ^JC

As some KY Republicans see the need for abortion ban exceptions, others hold the line Republicans at a Right to Life rally in Frankfort emphasized a need to maintain the state’s strict abortion ban without exceptions. Meanwhile, GOP bills to add exceptions haven’t moved.

At March For Life rally this wk, members of the Ky GOP told a crowd there are ppl who want "to destroy all the work that we’ve done" & "God is behind what we're doing."

As some KY Republicans see the need for abortion ban exceptions, others hold the line
www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

'I don't have anybody': Adoptive teen son of a KY governor talks about life on his own • Kentucky Lantern Jonah Bevin, adoptive son of former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, is speaking out to expose the abuse he and other boys suffered in a facility in Jamaica.

Heck of a story this morning from @dyetter.bsky.social about Jonah Bevin, adopted son of former Gov. Matt Bevin.

‘I don’t have anybody’: Adoptive teen son of a KY governor talks about life on his own
kentuckylantern.com/2025/02/28/i...

House OKs ending KY’s drinking water fluoride mandate. Experts say kids’ teeth will suffer A perennial bill from a Republican lawmaker to make drinking water fluoridation optional has momentum in the Kentucky General Assembly. Dental providers warn against it.

House OKs ending KY’s drinking water fluoride mandate. Experts say kids’ teeth will suffer

www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

234 people have died in Kentucky jails since 2020. Critics call it a ‘systemic failure’ The Herald-Leader analyzed 5 years of KY Department of Corrections death logs, lawsuits, autopsy reports and death certificates. Here’s what we found.

234 people have died in Kentucky jails since 2020. Critics call it a ‘systemic failure’

Crucial reporting from
@taylorsixhl.bsky.social

www.kentucky.com/news/local/c...

GOP lawmakers want to bring DOGE, MAHA movement to Kentucky. What does that look like? Actions taken by Elon Musk and RFK Jr. are inspiring legislation in Kentucky with the “KY DOGE” project and a Make America Healthy Again project.

Republicans in the House and Senate have filed efforts to establish a state version of the Department of Government Efficiency and create a Make America Healthy Again Kentucky Task Force.

From @aacquisto.bsky.social & @austin-horn.bsky.social: www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Kentucky senator wants to ban “discriminatory concepts” of DEI in K-12 schools, government A pair of bills filed by Republican Sen. Lindsey Tichenor aim to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion practices in state and local government and in public schools in Kentucky.

Sen. Lindsey Tichenor, one of the most vocal opponents of diversity, equity & inclusion initiatives in the Kentucky legislature, has filed two new bills to end DEI in K-12 schools and state & local government.

Per @monicakast.bsky.social & @aacquisto.bsky.social: www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

There are fewer than 100 trans inmates in Kentucky. GOP bills would restrict their care An opponent called the Senate GOP proposal a “politically motivated attack against one of our smallest and most vulnerable communities.”

There are fewer than 100 trans inmates in Kentucky. GOP bill would restrict their care. Democrats questioned why the Ky GOP is giving it such high priority.

www.kentucky.com/news/politic...

Senate Minority Floor Leader Gerald Neal asked Wilson: "do you have any medical training w/respect to this?"

Wilson: "Sen. you know I do not."

Neal: "I just to put that on the record bc that's what we're doing here."

Wilson: "Well, we do that all the time, senator"