NOTN- A 35-year-old man was hospitalized early Wednesday after police say he was likely struck by a vehicle on Vintage Boulevard.
The Juneau Police Department said officers received a report around 12:37 a.m. of an unconscious man lying in the roadway near First Bank. When first responders arrived, the man regained consciousness but had injuries to his face, hands and legs.
Pieces of a vehicle were found nearby, and investigators, as well as relatives on Facebook believe the man had been hit by a car.
NOTN- When Emma’s son, Cade, was just five months old, she noticed he was falling behind on developmental milestones. Doctors told her he was “just a late bloomer.” But after years of searching for answers, specialists diagnosed Cade with SPG50, an ultra-rare genetic disease that slowly robs children of the ability to control their bodies.
The Juneau community has rallied behind Cade’s cause, A daylong radiothon hosted by KINY on Saturday raised $35,000 to support 4-year-old Cade Jobsis.
The event, ran from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and featured prizes such as a helicopter ride from NorthStar Helicopters, an Eaglecrest ski pass, and a yearlong membership to the Rainforest Playzone.
Funds will support Cade, who was diagnosed at just 2 years old with SPG50, a rare form of hereditary spastic paraplegia that causes progressive loss of mobility. Fewer than 100 cases are known worldwide.
His mother, Emma, said her family spent years searching for answers before receiving Cade’s diagnosis. Doctors initially told them there was no treatment.
“There’s only around 100 cases in the world, and because of that, there really isn’t any interest in treating this disease or developing treatments for a disease that’s so rare.” Said Cade’s mom, Emma Jobsis, “So when we left the hospital after hearing his diagnosis, the doctors basically told us, there’s nothing we can do. Take him home, love him, he’s going to fade way in front of your eyes, basically. And we were distraught, as any parent would be.”
Because of the disease’s rarity, pharmaceutical companies and government agencies have shown little interest in funding development. Instead, families like Cade’s are leading grassroots efforts to raise millions for research.
“We decided we just have to do it by any means necessary, we have to raise the money and get this drug through clinical trials, because I can’t live with the fact that the next mom is going to be sitting in the office hearing what I heard when there’s a drug that exists, but you just can’t get access to it because it’s not approved.” Jobsis said.
Emma said the Juneau community’s response has been overwhelming.
“My town has pulled off something incredible that I never expected. This kind of showing up from my community.” Said Jobsis, “People that I’ve never met in my entire life are texting, emailing, calling, telling me they heard my story, they heard about Cade, and they want to help. And it’s just, it’s so surreal to feel like the community backs you in such a huge way.”
Listeners heard interviews with Cade’s family and others around the world affected by SPG50, as well as with the Canadian father who helped create the experimental gene therapy.
“I have found so much good in people through this process, through this fundraising and advocacy, I’ve felt so much compassion and generosity.” Jobsis said, “Leaning on each other, that’s what it means to be in a strong community. And I’m so grateful to be here and to all Juneau and beyond, supporting us in this way.”
Organizers say the true prize was seeing the community come together for Cade’s future. Donations can still be made at cureforcade.com.
“I do think it’s important to recognize that we should be seeing thousands of people likely lose coverage from this,” said Jared Kosin, president and CEO of the Alaska Hospital and Healthcare Association.
Speaking to a room at Juneau’s convention center, they said if federal subsidies end, the cost of health insurance would rise so much that many Alaskans will go uninsured, discouraging them from getting checkups that could prevent serious illnesses. Hospitals would see a larger number of emergencies from uninsured people, straining them. It might even lead to an exodus from the state, as people seek alternative options and cheaper places to live.
“I worry about that,” said Kim Champney, executive director of the Alaska Association on Developmental Disabilities. “Because I think people will decide to leave Alaska because we have the most expensive health care in the country.”
Anton Rieselbach, with the Juneau Economic Development Council provided an analysis of cost estimates for Juneau. In Alaska’s capital city alone, 1,389 people receive health care via insurance plans bought through the federal marketplace. Right now, those Juneauites pay an average of $124 per month. If those subsidies expire, that will rise to $1,008 per month, an increase of more than 700%.
The council, a nonpartisan organization devoted to economic growth in the capital city, is worried about what will happen if the subsidies expire.
“We want people to be working and spending money, generating economic activity,” Rieselbach said, “but this just places another huge burden on people’s ability to spend their money in other arenas besides health insurance.”
A problem years in the making
The upcoming problem stems from federal subsidies enacted by Congress in 2021 and extended through the end of 2025. Those subsidies, known as “enhanced premium tax credits,” were applied on top of subsidies included in the original Affordable Care Act, which established the federal insurance marketplace.
Now, almost anyone who buys an individual health care plan through the marketplace gets some kind of subsidy.
Generally, that includes people whose employers don’t provide health insurance, self-employed people, and people who retired early and aren’t yet eligible for Medicare, which insures people with disabilities and people 65 or older.
Subsidies helped expand the number of people on federal marketplace plans from 11.4 million in 2020 to 24.3 million this year, allowing millions of Americans to get regular health care.
They also came at a high cost to the federal treasury: Extending them for another 10 years would cost $335 billion.
But if subsidies end, Alaska would be exceptionally hard-hit. The state has the highest health-care costs in the nation, which means unsubsidized insurance rates are high.
Of the 28,736 Alaskans who have health insurance policies through the federal marketplace, 25,170 receive the enhanced subsidies, according to figures published by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
If the enhanced subsidies expire, the poorest Alaskans will still see their plans subsidized. Middle-class Alaskans would be hard hit.
According to estimates published in March by the Alaska Division of Insurance, a single 50-year-old who earns $58,650 per year would see their monthly health insurance cost rise from $282 per month to $407 per month for a “silver” plan. If they have a “bronze” plan, their costs wouldn’t change.
But Alaskans who earn more than 400% of the federal poverty line — $78,000 per year for an individual — would see their costs skyrocket.
In 2023, 2024 and 2025, the average cost of a health insurance marketplace plan in Alaska rose by more than 16% each year. In 2023 alone, the cost went up by an average of 18.4%.
That same 50-year-old would go from paying $534 per month for a silver plan to $1,415 per month. Under a bronze plan, their cost would go from $9 per month to $890 per month.
Lori Wing-Heier, the director of the Division of Insurance at the time of those estimates, called the increase “pretty horrific” for affected Alaskans.
“It’s an insane amount,” said Rep. Genevieve Mina, D-Anchorage, talking about the increase.
This spring, Mina sponsored and the Alaska Legislature passed House Joint Resolution 9, a bipartisan letter asking Congress to extend the subsidies.
Across the state this year, the average monthly premium for Alaskans of all ages and all plans was $971.43, but the average subsidy was $866.28, the Division of Insurance said in March.
Kosin, of the hospital and healthcare association, said his group thinks it’s “really important” to extend the enhanced subsidies.
Insurance is based on the concept of sharing risks and costs. The more people in an insurance pool, the better it works. Subsidies encourage healthy people to be a part of the health insurance pool, he said. If people drop off, the cost of caring for any individual person is spread among fewer members, and rates go up.
An extension relies on congressional action
For the moment, Alaskans only have estimates of what will happen if the subsidies expire. Open enrollment on the federal insurance marketplace starts Nov. 1. There’s a “window shopping” period at the end of October that will give a sneak preview.
People must sign up by Dec. 15 to get insurance coverage that starts with the new year. Miss that deadline, and Jan. 15 is the deadline to get coverage that starts Feb. 1.
Kosin said he’s heard the argument that Alaskans could afford health care before the enhanced subsidies came into effect, and so there won’t be many people who drop their coverage.
That fails to take into account the way health insurance costs have gone up since 2020, he said.
In 2023, 2024 and 2025, the average cost of a health insurance marketplace plan in Alaska rose by more than 16% each year. In 2023 alone, the cost went up by an average of 18.4%.
“If there truly is a doubling or tripling of premiums, especially at once, I think I would have to guess it would be a higher percentage than a fifth of the population that would consider themselves priced out of the market,” he said.
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski knows plenty of those people.
“If you are a 60-year-old couple (earning about) $82,000 in Alaska, you would be looking at a premium increase … without enhancements, of $44,556. My husband and I are over 60. Now, granted, we’re not on the exchange, but I have a lot of friends are in that category, and I don’t know very many of them that could swallow an additional $44,000 a year to pay for their insurance if they’re on the exchange,” she said in a Sept. 17 phone call.
Murkowski is among the members of the U.S. Senate who have been trying for months, without success so far, to find enough votes to extend the subsidies.
Impending government shutdown
The issue has now gotten entangled with the impending government shutdown. Senate Democrats have demanded — among other things — a permanent extension of the health care subsidies, without changes, in exchange for their votes on keeping the federal government open.
Sen. Dan Sullivan also supports an extension of the subsidies, but “there’s no way I would ever vote for that,” he said of the Democratic plan.
“I do think there’s bipartisan support to get this done. We’ve just got to power through these different issues,” he said by phone.
He identified three hurdles for the subsidies.
“It’s how long you extend them; are there pay-fors (budget cuts to compensate for the cost of the extension) … but the most important and complicated — and we just did a deep dive on this, and I do think there’s bipartisan support on this, is reforms,” Sullivan said.
“We are looking at ways to reform the system to make it work for the people who need it and are using it honestly, but have a disincentive against those who have been abusing it,” he said.
“We’re getting there. It’s complicated. I think the reform piece is going to be the most complicated, but I’m hopeful, and I’m putting a lot of effort into it,” Sullivan said.
Murkowski is more interested in a straight extension without changes. She introduced a standalone two-year measure and voted against both Republican and Democratic proposals to keep the government open, saying one of her conditions was an extension of the subsidy.
Speaking by phone this month, Mina noted that an extension has the support of groups as far afield as the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce.
“I think if you’re directly on the insurance marketplace, you should be concerned. But also, if you care about economic diversification and startups, you should also be concerned,” she said.
If the marketplace doesn’t work, she noted, it would increase the costs of health care for everyone in the state because hospitals are required to treat people regardless of their ability to pay. If people can’t pay, that means their costs get shifted to people who can, increasing the health insurance rates of everyone, not just those on the marketplace.
“What I fear is that we’re regressing to the state that we were in (a decade ago) when we had all of these news articles about people paying like, $800, $1,000 a month for their health insurance, and we were able to stabilize that and find solutions to help people,” Mina said. “We’re just going backwards in that regard.”
This article will contain mentions of suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling please call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
NOTN- September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and advocates in Juneau say the observance is an important chance to break stigma and share resources.
Jessica Gray, of NAMI Juneau, said Alaska continues to face persistently high rates of suicide, with nearly 200 deaths each year.
‘In Alaska, suicide is the second leading cause of death for ages 10 to 24,” Said Gray, “Young people don’t want to feel like a burden. There’s so much stigma surrounding the topic as well. We don’t talk about mental health the same way that we talk about physical health.”
Gray noted that free resources are available statewide, including the Alaska Careline and the national suicide prevention hotline. Both are available 24/7 for people in crisis.
NAMI events throughout September have been aimed at creating open dialogue and community support.
A Wall of Remembrance launched during First Friday at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center.
Gray said building community connections is one of the most powerful protective factors against suicide.
“That’s why Suicide Prevention Awareness Month is so important, because it opens up the conversation, and it gives people a chance to know that they’re not alone, that it is okay to ask for help,” Gray Said “It is okay to have these conversations about such a hard topic. It’s really powerful in that sense, because it builds connection. And we know that connection is one of the primary protective factors for suicide.”
Support group meetings will be taking place for the rest of the month, visit NAMI’s calendar, available at NAMI Juneau’s website for more details.
An Anchorage Superior Court judge’s ruling has cleared the way for the state of Alaska to repeal its “80th Percentile Rule,” enacted by the state in 2004 as part of an attempt to reduce health care costs in the state.
The Dunleavy administration repealed the rule in 2024, saying it was counterproductive and argued it contributed to higher health care costs. Medical providers say that isn’t true and that repealing the rule will cause some clinicians to close down.
In 2023, a group of medical providers sued the state, alleging problems with the process used to repeal the rule. On Aug. 27, following a four-day bench trial in February, Judge Yvonne Lamoureaux ruled in favor of the state.
In her findings of fact and conclusions of law, Lamoureaux concluded that the repeal was not “unreasonable or arbitrary,” and the state did not conduct an improper procedure.
An appeal to the Alaska Supreme Court is possible.
When in place, the rule required that insurance companies reimburse out-of-network medical providers at a rate equal to the 80th percentile of charges for the given service.
If five clinics provide a given procedure, the required payment would be what the second-most-expensive clinic charges.
The rule was intended to prevent Alaskans from being left with large medical bills after visiting out-of-network clinics. The state and Alaska’s largest health insurance company, Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska, contend that it required insurance companies to pay more for services than was warranted, contributing to higher insurance costs.
Adam Crum, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Revenue, testifies Friday, Jan. 20, 2023, at a meeting of the Alaska Senate Finance Committee in the state Capitol at Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
By: James Brooks, Alaska Beacon
Adam Crum, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Revenue, testifies Friday, Jan. 20, 2023, at a meeting of the Alaska Senate Finance Committee in the state Capitol at Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Adam Crum, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Revenue, will leave his job Aug. 8, according to an announcement published Friday by Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s office.
A person familiar with Crum’s plans said he intends to run for governor in 2026, joining seven other Republican candidates. No independents or Democrats have filed for the primary election, which is 13 months away.
Asked whether he will run for governor, Crum said by text message, “I’ve accomplished a lot to put Alaska on sound economic footing. I’ll have a formal statement on my last day, August 8th. Stay tuned.”
Crum has been part of Dunleavy’s cabinet since the governor took office in 2018. He initially served as commissioner of the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services, occupying that position during the COVID-19 pandemic and during an executive order that split the agency into two separate departments.
In 2022, Dunleavy named Crum as revenue commissioner, and he assumed a seat on the board of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp., whose revenues are the No. 1 source of general-purpose dollars for state services and the Permanent Fund dividend.
Jason Brune, former commissioner of the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, now fills a public seat on the Permanent Fund Corp. board.
Brune said he knows Crum has been considering a run for governor but could not confirm his plans.
“His departure is a big loss for the state,” Brune said by text.
“It was an honor working with him for the five years we served together,” he said, referring to the time they spent on the Dunleavy cabinet.
In a written statement Dunleavy praised Crum’s performance during his time with the state.
“Commissioner Crum has been an exemplary leader whose unwavering dedication and innovative approach have significantly benefited Alaskans,” Dunleavy said. “During his time leading both the Department of Health and Social Services and the Department of Revenue, Adam consistently prioritized Alaska’s economic well-being, public health, and fiscal stability. His collaborative spirit and commitment to serving our communities have made a lasting, positive impact.”
The governor’s office said an acting commissioner will be named soon.
The offices of the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services are seen in Juneau on Friday, July 1, 2022. (Photo by Lisa Phu/Alaska Beacon)
A new federal law signed by President Donald Trump on July 4, 2025, enacts wide-ranging changes to public policy, including major revisions to Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and federal tax laws.
According to officials, Alaska’s Medicaid funding is more stable than other states because Alaska is not subject to some of the structural changes affecting others.
Medicaid is a joint federal and state public health insurance program for people with low incomes, including children, pregnant women, older adults, and individuals with disabilities. 1 in 3 Alaskans are enrolled in Medicaid. While not all enrollees use services every year, about 40% received care in FY25. Most Medicaid enrollees in Alaska are children or adults under the age of 65.
According to current information, the State cannot reliably say how many Alaskans will be affected.
According to the Department of Health, The One Big Beautiful Bill (the bill) establishes new community engagement requirements and requires states to check Medicaid eligibility twice a year for some Medicaid enrollees.
The requirements primarily apply to the Medicaid expansion population – able bodied adults ages 19 to 65 who qualify for Medicaid based on their income.
Many Alaskans will be exempted from the new requirements, making the full impact of the changes complicated to project, they say further analysis is underway.
The bill requires that most able-bodied adults ages 19–64 enrolled through Medicaid expansion must complete 80 hours per month of work or other qualifying activities to qualify for Medicaid coverage. These activities include job training, education, or volunteer service. Individuals must show they met the requirements at least one month before applying and must meet the same requirements when they renew.
Advocates say individuals who use these programs already work, or are unable to do so, and adding qualifying work requirement paperwork could make it more difficult for recipients to apply.
According to the Department of Health, The bill includes mandatory exemptions for individuals who are:
Meet SNAP or TANF work requirements
Pregnant or within the postpartum coverage period
Alaska Native or American Indian
Have a significant physical, intellectual, or developmental disability
Are blind or disabled
Have a substance use disorder or disabling mental health condition
Have a serious or complex medical condition
Veterans with a total disability rating
Enrolled in Medicare
A parents or caregiver for a child under 14 or someone with a disability
Recently incarcerated (within 90 days)
Under age 26 and formerly in foster care
The Department of Health also notes the creation of the Rural Health Transformation Fund, a $50 billion initiative aimed at improving health care in rural communities across the country.
Funds may be used for a wide variety of activities to improve rural health care, including technology modernization, workforce development, innovative care models, and prevention measures for chronic disease and substance use disorder.
Officials say the state is “well-positioned” to secure a strong share of those dollars, helping improve access to health care and supporting long-term improvements to health outcomes in underserved areas.
Health care costs. Stethoscope and calculator symbol for health care costs or medical insurance
By: Yereth Rosen, Alaska Beacon
Health care costs. Stethoscope and calculator symbol for health care costs or medical insurance (Photo by Valeriya, provided by Alaska Beacon and Getty Images)
Health insurers must provide speedier responses to prior authorization requests for certain medical treatments and services, under a bill that went into law on Monday without Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s signature.
The measure, Senate Bill 133, requires insurers to notify patients within 72 hours whether the requested services are authorized in cases when requests are sent by fax or by other routine means. In cases of expedited requests, the insurer must provide answers within 24 hours, under the bill.
The bill, which passed unanimously in both the Senate and House, is intended to prevent delays in patient treatment, said the main sponsor, Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, R-Nikiski.
“Alaskans should not have to fight with their insurance company to get the care they need,” Bjorkman said in a statement. “This bill makes the process quicker, clearer, and fairer for everyone.”
The bill was officially sponsored by the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee, which Bjorkman chairs.
It was supported by medical organizations, including the Alaska Hospital and Healthcare Association, the Alaska State Medical Association and the Alaska Native Health Board.
It also got some qualified support from Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska, the state’s largest health insurer.
In a March 25 letter to Bjorkman and members of the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee, Premera said that the version that emerged through the committee process had “some reasonable sideboards as well as incentives that will help plans modernize and improve their prior authorization systems so that these systems optimally serve providers, patients and plans alike.”
Premera said in its letter that it requires prior authorizations for care in only about 2% of cases, unlike insurers that “have been exceedingly aggressive in this space,” requiring prior authorization for up to 20% of all claims.
The bill has some exceptions, caveats and special provisions. For example, it does not prevent insurers from requiring generic versions of medicines prescribed by providers. It also has a section giving guidelines for insurers to grant exceptions for cancer patients who are covered by “step therapy” protocols. Those protocols provide patients with the least expensive medications first before advancing to more expensive medications.
Additionally, the bill gives insurers up to 14 working days to obtain more information from providers if they determine that there is a lack of sufficient information for decisions on prior authorization requests.
The new law goes into effect on Jan. 1, except for a portion that directs the state Division of Insurance to start drafting regulations. That portion went into effect immediately.
Harlequin Beach on Amchitka Island is seen in this undated photo. The island, now part of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, was the site of atomic weapons tests in 1965, 1969 and 1971. (Photo provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
By: Yereth Rosen, Alaska Beacon
People who might have been exposed to radiation from atomic weapons tests conducted in the Aleutians half a century ago have extra time to apply for compensation from a federal program, under the sweeping tax and budget bill passed by Congress and signed into law last week.
The bill, which was signed by President Donald Trump on July 4, includes a provision reviving the Radiation Compensation Exposure Act, which was enacted in 1990.
The act’s compensation system distributed one-time payments to people who were exposed to radiation from the weapons tests and who later were diagnosed with certain types of cancer. The program has distributed about $2.7 billion to date, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
While most of the tests covered by the act were conducted in Nevada, the program also covers health damages from underground weapons tests conducted on Alaska’s Amchitka Island in 1965, 1969 and 1971.
The program covers former uranium mine workers, as well, many of whom were Navajo Nation members.
The compensation program had been on track to expire, with a previous deadline of June 10, 2024, for any new claims.
The budget bill extends the deadline for new claims to Dec. 31, 2027, and it sets a Dec. 31, 2028, sunset date for the trust fund that administers the claims.
The bill also raises compensation amounts. For “downwinders,” people who were not on site at the time of the tests but may have been exposed to radiation carried by the wind, the compensation is hiked from $50,000 to $100,000. For on-site workers, the compensation is raised from $75,000 to $100,000.
Of the Alaska weapons tests, the third — called Cannikin — was the most controversial.
It was the biggest underground nuclear test ever conducted by the United States. The tested bomb was 5 megatons, about 250 times as powerful as the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945. There was widespread opposition to the project, including from environmentalists who later founded the organization Greenpeace.
Legal opposition to the test went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ultimately allowed the project to proceed.
The test created what was the equivalent of a magnitude 7 earthquake, killing up to 2,000 sea otters and thousands of fish.
