Dear Friends:

In an effort to keep you informed about the activities at your State Capitol and how those activities may impact your lives, I am offering a regular electronic newsletter. This column includes information about bills making their way through the legislative process, including legislation that directly affects the citizens of Kansas City. I welcome your feedback and encourage you to contact my office with any questions or concerns you may have.

Thank you.

Many understand the importance of oral health and its link to a person's overall health care. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I'm proud to announce $48 million in federal and state funding has been included in our state's FY 2015 spending plan. The Appropriations Committee is now going line by line through the budget before it is delivered to the full Senate for its approval.

These funds will go toward much-needed dental care for more than 300,000 adults enrolled in Missouri's Medicaid program. These individuals will be able to receive basic dental coverage and funding will be used to increase dentists' rates and establish regional pilot programs. The Department of Health and Senior Services reported $6.6 million was charged to Missouri's Medicaid program in 2011 due to citizens utilizing emergency rooms for dental treatments. With inclusion of these Missourians to dental coverage through Medicaid, this should dramatically reduce the number of ER visits throughout our state and within our communities. Coverage for dental care could begin the first of the new fiscal year, starting July 1, 2014.

Restoring dental care for hundreds of thousands of Missourians has been one of my goals since dental coverage for adult Medicaid recipients was unfortunately eliminated in 2005. This restoration is a step in the right direction for our state, however, I am still focusing my efforts on Medicaid expansion to ensure health care coverage for low-income Missourians.

Coast2Coast is the City's prescription discount card program for metro-area residents to use at participating pharmacies for discounts on brand name and generic drugs. The City is renewing its participation in this highly utilized and extremely important program that helps all residents afford their prescriptions when the drugs are not covered through their health insurance or if they have a high deductible.

Those enrolled in the program typically save up to 75 percent off the retail price of their prescription drugs. These discounts even extend to some dental, vision, hearing and diabetes needs, and even imaging tests. The program can also be used for pet prescriptions.

It's important that we continue to provide ways in which citizens in our community can afford their prescription medications, instead of having to decide between buying their medicine versus feeding their families or paying their bills.

The prescription discount card is accepted at most pharmacies. (To see a list of participating pharmacies, visit coast2coastrx.com/index.php/pharmacy-locator.) The money the City receives through royalties when each prescription is filled goes to the Employee Health Care Trust. That means nearly $30,000 goes toward administering the City's self-funded health care plan and free employee health clinic, which offers a variety of wellness and health education programs.

There is no enrollment form, no membership fee, and no restriction on age, income or health for those who want to participate in the program. To download a free card, visit www.coast2coastrx.com/cities/mo/kansascity or kcmo.gov/prescriptioncard. You may also call Keema McCoy, Legislative aide to Councilman John Sharp, at (816) 513-6525 for more information.

Missouri's Show-Me Green Sales Tax Holiday runs from April 19-25. This sales tax holiday encourages citizens to save money, conserve energy and stimulate our economy by purchasing ENERGY STAR®-qualified appliances in portions of Clay, Platte and Cass counties and part of Kansas City located in Jackson County. Areas participating in the sales tax holiday will be exempt from city, state and county sales tax. To see a list of the participating cities, visit dor.mo.gov/business/sales/taxholiday/green/cities.php, and to see a list of the counties participating in the sales tax holiday, visit dor.mo.gov/business/sales/taxholiday/green/counties.php.

The tax holiday applies to qualified appliances that are $1,500 or less; if an appliance costs more than $1,500, then the first $1,500 will be exempt from the applicable sales tax.

Here's a list of appliances that qualify for the sales tax holiday:

• Washing machines
• Water heaters
• Dishwashers
• Air conditioners
• Furnaces
• Refrigerators
• Freezers
• Heat pumps

There are no limits on the number of appliances citizens may purchase under the sales tax holiday. For more information about the Show-Me Green Sales Tax Holiday, visit dor.mo.gov/business/sales/taxholiday/green/faq.php or email salesuse@dor.mo.gov.

Click on the image above to see the 6th Annual Civil Rights/Fair Housing Summit flyer.

On Friday, April 25, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., the City's Civil Rights Division within the Human Relations Department will host its sixth annual Civil Rights/Fair Housing Summit to commemorate Fair Housing Month. April celebrates the anniversary of the passing of the Fair Housing Act, and recommits its goal to eliminate housing discrimination and create equal opportunity in every community. The event is free and open to the public. However, if you'd like to attend, you must register online at kcmo.gov/civilrights or call (816) 513-1888.

This year's theme is "The 50th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act...The Struggle Continues." The summit will explore the accomplishments of the civil rights movement since the Civil Rights Act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. Participants in the summit will also discuss issues that confront the civil rights movement today.

Speakers for the event include Will Jordan, executive director of the Metropolitan St. Louis Equal Housing Opportunity Council, and keynote speaker Jeff Johnson, partner and chief of strategy for the Baltimore-based branding firm Illume Communications who is also an award-winning journalist, communications specialist and thought leader.

The summit will also feature a panel led by local judges discussing youth civil rights issues, an insightful presentation on hate crimes, a workshop on employment law, and a documentary film on the history of local political organizations.

For more information on this upcoming submit, please visit kcmo.gov/civilrights or call (816) 513-1888.