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West Virginia’s mental health system relies too much on facilities like psychiatric hospitals to treat children and should make changes such as expanding in-home services to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, federal authorities said. (Raby, 6/2)

The D.C. Council gave final approval Tuesday to legislation that would require health plans to authorize the dispensing of up to a year’s worth of birth control at one time — a move that officials hope will decrease the rate of unintended pregnancies by making contraception more accessible. (Stein, 6/2)

The Hogan administration on Tuesday announced plans to begin treatment of heroin addicts in eight Maryland county jails and detention centers with a drug that could keep them from using once they are back on the streets. The treatment — to be funded with a $500,000 federal grant to Maryland — is the first such program initiated by Gov. Larry Hogan (R) to address the state’s addiction problem, which he has called a top priority and which is part of a nationwide crisis. (Hicks, 6/2)

A former money manager with a regional mental health agency took nearly $550,000 in apparent kickbacks from two contractors who were paid about $1 million to renovate agency buildings, according to a state audit released Tuesday. (Bonner, 6/2)

A former insurance broker who stole $10 million from Aetna Inc. by failing to submit health insurance premiums paid by a New Jersey university has pleaded guilty to fraud. Bonney Hebert pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Hartford, Connecticut, to wire fraud and a theft charge. Her sentencing is set for August. The 59-year-old Killington, Vermont, resident faces up to 30 years in prison. (6/2)

As more people continue to move to south Lake [Florida], more hospital visits are inevitable. The increasing population prompted action by South Lake Hospital, which recently added 18 in-patient beds and also opened a 30-bed rehabilitation unit. Founded in 1947 when south Lake was a rural outpost, the hospital now has 170 licensed beds. (Benavari, 6/2)

Will Nebbitt lives on the 5th floor of a new downtown apartment building. From his window, he has a panoramic view of the Los Angeles skyline. He can also see Skid Row, where he spent decades sleeping on the ground. Nebbitt, 58, says his body can’t handle life outside anymore. He has a seizure disorder, heart disease and depression. He’s had four operations, including bypass surgery on his leg in March. (Gorman, 6/3)

When she was a student at Concord High School, McKenzie Thorpe was a dancer. As preparation for performances on stage, she would go tanning almost every day, starting as young as 14. Beginning this summer, most teenagers will not be able to use a tanning bed as Thorpe had as a high school student. Gov. Maggie Hassan signed a bill into law yesterday that prohibits anyone under the age of 18 to tan at a tanning facility in New Hampshire. The law takes effect in 60 days. (Doucet, 6/3)

While health advocates cling to the possibility of Kansas lawmakers using a large tobacco tax increase to help solve the state budget crisis, Statehouse momentum is heading toward a much smaller increase — or none at all. Groups like the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association and the University of Kansas Cancer Center praised Gov. Sam Brownback’s January proposal to raise cigarette taxes by $1.50 per pack and smokeless tobacco taxes by a similarly large amount. (Marso, 6/2)

More than 150 people in southeast Indiana have been diagnosed with HIV, the largest outbreak in state history. Even though the first reports trickled in to state health officials last December, they didn't tell their local counterparts in Scott County for two months when it became a full-blown epidemic. (Cho, 6/2)

On a recent afternoon, Brittany Combs drove a white SUV through a neighborhood at the northern end of Austin, Indiana. In the back of her vehicle, there were hundreds of sterile syringes, each in a plastic wrapper. "Anybody need clean needles today?" she shouted out the window at people sitting on front porches or walking down the street. When Combs, a nurse with the Scott County Health Department, got takers, she made sure they had a unique ID card before opening up the hatch and handing each of them a week's worth of syringes. (Harper, 6/2)

In the last few years, the ER has become a top destination for people seeking addictive prescription painkillers like Vicodin, Oxycodone, or Percocet. In response, hospitals in some states, including New Mexico, Texas and Wyoming, have developed tracking systems specifically tailored to the emergency room. The program at Cheyenne Regional Medical Center's ER, in Cheyenne, Wyo., is just getting off the ground. (Bryan, 6/3)

For Frank Smart, his mother says, it all came down to one pill. On Jan. 4, Pittsburgh police alleged that Smart had tried to buy Steelers tickets with counterfeit bills. They arrested him on forgery charges and booked him into Pittsburgh's pretrial lockup, Allegheny County Jail. The next day, Smart was dead—deprived of his epilepsy medicine, according to his mother, Tomi Lynn Harris. Three additional deaths followed at Allegheny County Jail, the most recent on May 20 and May 21. The county has announced that on Aug. 31, it will end its contract, three years early, with Corizon Health, the biggest company in the nation providing medical services to U.S. jails and prisons. Corizon, with annual revenue of about $1.5 billion, has faced claims from Arizona to Florida, which it denies. Now, New York City may end its contract with Corizon at Rikers Island, according to the news website DNA Info. The deaths shine a light on the industry Corizon leads, which staffs jail and prison medical facilities in 27 states and is responsible for as many as 345,000 inmates. The prisoners, many of whom arrive with existing health problems and a history of inadequate care, are also more vulnerable than people with freedom to circulate. (Stroud, 6/2)