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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY, APRIL 1, 2014
PAGE 3B
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LBGTQ FROM PAGE 1B
lems at all telling anyone
I was already into LGBT rights, but then coming to KU I met more gay people, and I hate saying it like this because it makes it sound like I was like recruited, but I mean this is how my story is, like if you don't know anyone who's gay, then you don't really know a lot about it. Once you actually start understanding it a little bit more you're like, okay
youngest brother. He was 13 at the time, so it was a little much to handle I think.
this is what I've been missing; this is how I actually do identify. I just didn't know what it was. So that's how I realized I had feelings for girls. But then when I did have a girlfriend I didn't think I needed to come out. You know, that's my business. Once I started to have more pride, I decided to tell my mom. The first thing she said to me was, "Well, I'm not surprised at all. I knew you were gay years ago." The hardest thing was just telling my
Coming out was never that difficult; it was more of when I started changing my appearance that strangers were maybe confused. I mean, I didn't just one day wear a dress then the next day wear a tie. It was a slow progression. I think pretty much my entire life I've always wanted to dress this way. I have two brothers and I can remember always being jealous of what they get to wear. I mean, for me, I don't really feel like I fit a girl's identity, but I don't necessarily feel like I'm a guy either; it's kind of in the middle. That's just how I view myself.
WHAT HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST SURPRISE SINCE COMING OUT?
I never knew I was going to be a part of such a great community. The LGBT community is, for the most part, like tight-
knit and full of really supportive people. I've found that working with Queers & Allies was my passion. I didn't think it was going to change my life, that sounds really cheesy, but it did. The people I've surrounded myself with are different. What is important to me is different. I think that's what surprised me: how much it was going to change my life.
— Edited by Nick Chadbourne
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kansans rush for health care deadline
Teresa Holmer, a health care navigator for the Shawnee County, Kan., Health Agency, counsels Topeka resident Tamika Terry about obtaining insurance.
STATE
ASSOCIATED PRESS
TOPEKA, Kan. — Consumers and health care counselors struggled through problems with the federal government's online health insurance marketplace amid a crush of late requests for help in meeting Monday's deadline to sign up for coverage.
The Kansas Association for the Medically Underserved, a nonprofit group that trained most of the state's 170 or so health care counselors, or navigators, reported that their schedules were packed with appointments ahead of the deadline. The federal health care overhaul, championed by President Barack Obama, requires most Americans to have health coverage or pay a tax penalty.
But technical problems with the federal marketplace's websites were frustrating consumers and navigators alike. HealthCare.gov was out of service for nearly four hours Monday morning, and another problem later temporarily kept new applicants from signing up.
Navigators for the Shawnee County Health Agency in Topeka helped consumers at the public library, but made follow-up appointments when they couldn't use the website Monday. Later, they could access the website, but reported that it was running slowly.
Tamika Terry, a 39-year-old Topeka resident, found the problems annoying. She began working for the U.S. Postal Service in September but hasn't yet qualified for federal benefits and was looking for coverage to tide her over.
She said if workers tried to apply during their lunch breaks, "Thev'd really be out of luck."
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services had projected that 53,000 Kansas residents would enroll in coverage through the marketplace by the end of March. It said about 29,000 had done so by the end of February. In Kansas, navigators were
Senate approved a measure to require health care navigators to register with the attorney general's office by July 2015, pay a $100 annual fee, submit their fingerprints and undergo background checks. Kansas
"They've booked their appointment schedules as tight as they can get them," she said.
The proposal for a compact of states seeking to avoid the federal law relies on an obscure provision in the U.S. Constitu-
swamped, said Katrina McGivern, spokeswoman for the Association for the Medically Underserved.
"The state isn't making it easy to get insurance."
Millions of people nationwide also were potentially eligible for extensions, including those who began enrolling by the deadline but weren't able to finish.
supporters' goal is for the compact bill to clear the Legislature this week.
ANDREW RAMOS Topeka resident
Meanwhile, the Republican-dominated Kansas Legislature still looked for ways to resist the Democratic president's signature domestic policy. Last week, the House passed a bill to bring Kansas into a compact of states hoping for congressional approval for a blanket exemption from federal health care laws.
tion that requires congressional approval for such multistate agreements. It doesn't give the president a role, making the idea attractive for some critics of the health care overhaul. The Houston, Texas group pushing the idea says eight other states have passed similar laws, including Missouri and Texas.
has about 170 navigators.
of the federal website this fall confirmed their wariness.
A Senate committee planned to take up the measure Tuesday. Sen. Mary Pilcher-Cook, a Shawnee Republican and a vocal supporter of the bill, said
Republican Gov. Sam Brownback and GOP legislative leaders view the federal health care law as burdensome and likely to harm the economy. Their opposition kept Kansas from setting up its own online marketplace or partnering with the federal government, and GOP officials said the rocky rollout
Republicans also have prevented the state from expanding its Medicaid program to cover thousands of people who don't qualify for subsidies to buy private insurance.
Also, earlier this month,the
"The state isn't making it easy to get insurance," said Andrew Ramos, a 19-year-old Topeka resident.
Ramos and his mother, Tecia, 47, had an appointment with a health insurance counselor Monday. His father, Salvador, is a self-employed jeweler who hasn't been able to buy health insurance because he's been in remission from cancer for two decades. Tecia Ramos said she tried to enroll for coverage in October and December but was told each time that the family didn't qualify for subsidies. She was going to try ac
was going to try again. "Every time I try, the website's down," she said.
CAMPUS Guth will return to classroom this fall
Guth
Professor David Guth, who drew national attention to the University with a tweet last semester, is
scheduled to return to the classroom teaching two courses in the fall semester.
Guth, who teaches in the journalism school's strategic communications track, will be teaching the History of Journalism and Mass Communication, and Message Development. Both courses are open for enrollment. His scheduled return was confirmed by Dean Ann Brill.
Guth was placed on administrative lead in the fall for his tweet on Sept. 16 that was aimed at the National Rifle Association.
This semester, Guth is on a research sabbatical.
Ashley Booker
CAFE FROM PAGE 1B
cated on Daisy Hill.
The group of students also collected signatures on a petition aimed at KU Dining on GoPetition.com. The petition has 541 signatures at last count.
The group of students was also collecting signatures on a thank you card to thank all of the employees of Mortar and Pestle. With only the grill closing, there will still be employees working at the cafe.
KU Dining will also release their annual survey about campus dining and will ask a question about Mortar and Pestle to help learn how to best serve the patrons of the cafe.
Edited by Austin Fisher
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Don't put your education on hold this summer
Enroll in classes at Johnson County Community College!
- Extensive course selections
- Transferable classes
- Online registration
- Rexible times and locations
Classes begin June 2. Registration begins 8 a.m., April 7. Call 913-469-3803 or visit tinyurl.com/JCCCsummer for more information.
Note: If considering a class with a prerequisite requirement, JCCC requires proof of previous coursework (via official transcript, etc.) before registering for summer classes.
JOHNSON COUNTY
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
12345 College Blvd, Overland Park, KS 68210
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