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Mercy, the Chesterfield-based Catholic health system, is suing insurance giant Aetna, claiming the company failed to pay the full amount for care provided to certain newborns. The lawsuit, filed by Mercy on Friday in the U.S. District Court in St. Louis, alleges that Aetna is violating its end of a payment agreement that the two have had in place since 2007. (Liss, 6/21)

Columbus City Council on Monday unanimously passed an amended version of its ordinance to establish a buffer around Planned Parenthood sites, a move that essentially uses a law already in place against disorderly conduct but increases the penalty for violators. Councilwoman Elizabeth Brown had proposed the ordinance as a way to establish a 15-foot buffer around reproductive medical centers and to protect workers and women from aggressive anti-abortion protesters. (Sullivan, 6/20)

A law passed in this year's [Maryland] General Assembly session will allow families and disabled people to set aside up to $14,000 a year — up to $100,000 total — without affecting eligibility for Supplemental Security Income, Medicaid and other government programs. Officials say an estimated 30,000 to 50,000 Marylanders may be eligible to save. (Woods, 6/20)

According to Atlanta Regional Commission, Cobb County has metro Altanta's third-lowest mortality rate, falling behind Gwinnett and Forsyth. But there are still some threats to healthy living that residents should look out for. Cobb County's mortality rate is dominated by three main causes: cardiovascular issues, cancer and external causes. (Santos, 6/20)

Amy Carey's recent Facebook post chronicled how her 3-year-old son, Cason, "almost became 1 of the 40 kids that will die this year from being in a hot car." On average, 37 kids die in sweltering cars each year, according to noheatstroke.org...In her post, Carey explained that she was cleaning in the kitchen on June 15 while her son Cason was "playing 'Minecraft' in his brother's room." Carey is a mom to four boys, between the ages of three and 10. (Ehrler, Haley and Rasheed, 6/20)

Headlines tell of a mental health crisis in this country: Not enough funding to help the most vulnerable people. Poorly run and sometimes dangerous state mental institutions. Troubled people committing terrible crimes. Too many people slip past programs that could help; too many end their lives by suicide. (Robertson, 6/21)

Elmer Bernstam is a professor at the School of Biomedical Informatics and McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. He is heading an initiative to facilitate the sharing of medical records among UT System-owned hospitals and clinics. (Conway, 6/20)

Authorities say a New York City man made off with $5 million in a Medicaid fraud scheme. Authorities arrested Joseph Wright Monday morning and charged him with grand larceny, health care fraud and insurance fraud. Wright is the CEO of Assistance By Improve II, Inc. (6/21)

The Minnesota Department of Health has issued a warning about handling baby chicks or other young poultry. Over the past several months there have been nine cases of salmonella in Minnesota linked to handling young birds. Department veterinarian Stacy Holzbauer said even birds that look clean can have enough bacteria on their down, feathers or feet to make a person sick. (Steil, 6/20)