Category: News

More than 336,000 Tennessee residents will split $10 million in refunds from health insurance companies because of a provision in the Affordable Care Act.
The refunds will average $53 per family and came about because of the medical loss ratio rule in the law. That provision requires insurers to spend at least 80 percent of insurance premiums on patient care and quality improvement efforts. The refunds are for premiums paid in 2013.
For 2012, refunds to Tennesseans totaled $5.6 million.
The actual total for refunds in Tennessee is $10,037,932.

A boating accident occurred late Wednesday night/early Thursday morning on Normandy Lake.
Two occupants received minor injuries from the crash. One victim showed up at United Regional Medical Center on Thursday around 1pm. That’s when the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency was notified.
Agent Tim Hancock says that it appears the vessel struck the Anthony Bridge (Fire Lake Bridge) and veered off and hit the bank. The two occupants were thrown from the ski boat into the water. The vessel then sank.
Authorities were able to identified and accounted for the occupants. The TWRA and Coffee County Rescue Squad recovered the boat and remain in possession of vessel until the investigation is completed.

Officials and inmates at the new Coffee County Jail found out Thursday night that the fire sprinkler system in the facility works like it is supposed to do.
The sprinkler system in one cell was activated after Faith Marie Tomes, 20, of Tullahoma apparently set fire to an item and held it up to the sprinkler, according to Coffee County Sheriff’s Investigator Sgt. Danny Ferrell.
“The sprinkler immediately activated in the cell and extinguished the fire,” the investigator said. Tomes cell was quickly filled with water and it also ran out into the day room of the jail.
Jail personnel removed her from the cell and cut the sprinkler off. Tomes was then moved to an isolation cell.
She has been charged with arson and vandalism. Her bond was set at $10,000 and she is to appear in court on May 18.
Last week female inmates set a fire in the old jail causing officials to quickly move inmates outside while Manchester Fire Department made sure the fire was out.
“Six inmates will be charged in connection with that fire this week,” Ferrell said. He explained that he is concluding his investigation into that fire.
Tomes was serving time in the Coffee County Jail on charges of forgery, domestic violence, burglary and theft of property.

Concerned over traffic issues the Coffee County Commission passed a resolution to stop the resale within Coffee County any ticket, pass, admission card, token, access bracelet or any other evidence of entitlement to admission to an entertainment event. An example would be Bonnaroo.
In April the City of Manchester passed a similar resolution.
Anyone found in violation of the provision will not only have to forfeit each ticket in question but also be fined $50 for each one.
The ban apparently does not pertain to online reselling via the Internet, but only to physical reselling in public areas around the time of the events themselves.
Manchester Alderman Cheryl Swan says the main reason for the city passing this new law is safety. She says that sometimes tickets sellers will just walk out into traffic to sell tickets or buyers will stop their vehicles in the middle of a street or highway to purchase.

What are some of the best towns to live in the U.S? Local.Niche.com ranks towns based on livability using grades for weather, safety, schools, and access to activities, jobs, housing, and transportation. A high ranking indicates that a town offers a high quality of life to its residents. Note: “Towns” exclude cities with over 100,000 residents.
In Tennessee, Tullahoma ranks 6^th. The town of around 18,000 residents was graded high for; things to do, easiest commute and education. Manchester ranked 39^th. The town of 10,000 people received its highest grades in housing and outdoor activities. Winchester ranked 34^th, Shelbyville 37th. Tennessee’s top ranked town was Franklin.

Facebook users have the chance to win $200 worth of local meats from a nearby farm. A contest is being conducted by Pick Tennessee Products, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture’s program that connects farmers directly to consumers. A total of 12 winners will be randomly chosen at noon on June 15 and notified by Pick Tennessee Products. Contestants must choose which farm they would visit to collect their meats, then submit that choice with their own contact information. To enter, search for “Pick TN Products” on Facebook. You will also find a link to the contest page on www.picktnproducts.org. There is no cash prize. Entrants win the opportunity to go to a farm or local meats business and choose up to $200 of Tennessee meats. All funds will go directly to the farmer or business to reimburse them for their products.

Two planes collided at the Tullahoma Airport on Wednesday night sending one person to the hospital.
The two small planes collided around 7:20 p.m. Wednesday with one ending up on top of the other.
One plane was operated by Tom Hartvigsen and the other by Gary Meuer.
The Tullahoma Fire and the Tullahoma Police Departments responded to the accident along with Coffee County EMS personnel. The ambulance personnel transported Meuer to the waiting helicopter.  He was taken to Vanderbilt Hospital and at last report was listed in stable condition.
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating and the National Transportation Safety Board will determine the probable cause.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has issued a warning about a potentially dangerous drug found in pills that otherwise appear to be oxycodone.
Recently, a Tennessee law enforcement agency recovered what appeared to be several 30mg pills of oxycodone during a traffic stop. Each was the same size and featured the signature A/215 stamp characteristic of oxycodone. However, laboratory analysis performed by TBI Forensic Scientists indicated the pills were counterfeit and did not contain oxycodone. Instead, they contained fentanyl, a pain killer 50 times as potent as heroin that can be deadly in high doses.
“This disturbing discovery only compounds the problem of fighting drugs in Tennessee,” said Tommy Farmer, TBI Special Agent-in-Charge and Director of the Tennessee Methamphetamine and Pharmaceutical Task Force. “We want those addicted to prescription drugs to get help, not seek pills from illicit sources. It’s just a matter of time until it costs someone their life.”
Last year, in anticipation of a explosion of fentanyl abuse in Tennessee, TBI Director Mark Gwyn proposed the agency launch a program to protect Agents and Forensic Scientists who may come into contact with fentanyl with auto-injectors containing naloxone, which can potentially save an individual from a fentanyl overdose.
Consumers should only use prescription medications obtained through a licensed pharmacy and avoid purchasing prescription medications online.