State Troopers are investing three traffic fatalities on roadways in Elmore and Lowndes counties. Troopers said preliminary investigations indicated that alcohol was a factor in all the crashes. Troopers said 51-year-old Tonya Webster died in a single-vehicle crash on Little Steel Bridge Road in Elmore County. The accident happened Sunday just before 6 a.m.
38-year-old Kenyatta Coleman of Hayneville was killed in a single car crash on Lowndes County Road 2. The crash occurred around 2 a.m. Sunday.
Investigators said 22-year-old Kaysha Bell of Montgomery died when the car in which she was a passenger overturned on Alabama 22, near Hayneville early Sunday just after midnight.
Abortion Law
A federal judge in Montgomery says he will rule by June 28th on whether to temporarily block a new Alabama law setting stricter requirements for abortion clinics. Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union are suing to block a portion of the law that requires doctors at abortion clinics to have approval to admit patients to a nearby hospital. The plaintiffs say that will force three of Alabama's five abortion clinics to close. They have asked Federal Judge Myron Thompson to issue a temporary restraining order stopping the new law from taking effect as scheduled on July 1st.
Restructuring Medicaid Meeting
Alabama's revamped Medicaid program will be the subject of a stakeholder's meeting today in downtown Montgomery. State Health Officer Don Williamson is expected to unveil a proposed map showing the five managed care organizations spread over the state. Each region will receive a monthly payment from Medicaid to provide health care for recipients in its regions. Dr. Williamson has repeatedly said that recipients won't see any changes in Medicaid services.