WRITER: Chad Lawhorn

As LMH CEO nears retirement, he opens up about Medicare for all and other aspirations for the health care system

LMH Health President and CEO Russ Johnson has made a career of watching the money in health care. As he gets set to retire this summer, he made an observation about money and medicine. There’s probably too much money in the industry for it ever to change on its own. Johnson, when chatting with me for an article earlier this week about his pending retirement, didn’t rule out playing a role of advocate for ...

Crime reports on KU campus continue to fall; university in midst of multiyear decline of drug cases

Reported crime on the University of Kansas’ Lawrence campus hit another low in 2024 — fueled, in part, by a dramatic multiyear drop in drug offenses — university leaders announced Wednesday. The KU Police Department took 481 criminal offense reports in 2024, according to the latest statistics. That’s down about 6% from a year ago. The 2024 mark is lower than any year in the last decade, other than the ...

KU to cut back on hiring as federal funding concerns grow; 'we should all prepare for disruptions,' Girod says

Updated at 1:50 p.m. Tuesday, March 25 The University of Kansas is clamping down on its hiring process as it faces possible reductions in federal funding, Chancellor Douglas Girod said Tuesday. KU will require all new hiring decisions to go through an additional review process by KU’s “University Cabinet,” which includes the chancellor, the provost, the chief financial officer and other top executives ...

LMH president and CEO to retire in August; hospital to conduct nationwide search to replace Russ Johnson

Story updated at 4:28 p.m. March 25: LMH Health President and CEO Russ Johnson will retire in August, the hospital announced on Tuesday. The pending change means the hospital will be looking for new leadership for the first time in nearly a decade, as the regional health care market becomes more competitive and as LMH works to remain an independent, community-owned hospital. “The (LMH) board asked me what ...

Plans filed for drive-thru bakery at former Henry T's site in west Lawrence; new report ranks Panasonic battery plant project

Some news and notes from around town: ••• The only thing standing between me and a fresh-baked treat is a city permit. No, both I and a city clerk somewhere are thankful there’s no such thing as a pastry permit. Instead, a new bakery is planned for west Lawrence, but its proposed home first needs to win a city permit for a drive-thru. Plans have been filed to convert the former Henry T’s building ...

Local housing market shows signs of tightening in early 2025; a closer look at how much property values have increased

Turnovers are creating all types of heartburn in Lawrence — some on the basketball court and some in the real estate market. There’s probably no need for a reminder about the problems turnovers caused on the basketball court. (It is unclear whether the T.V. still works at my house, nor whether it needs to.) On the court, too many turnovers were the problem for an entire season. In the Lawrence home ...