Traffic relief: Mayor Kip Holden and other city leaders will cut the ribbon Thursday on the Essen Lane at Interstate 10 Widening Project, which is part of the city-parish’s Green Light Plan. The widening project is aimed at easing congestion in one of the most heavily trafficked areas of the city, Essen Lane between Perkins Road and Jefferson Highway, with 55,000 daily drivers. The ceremony will be at 10 a.m. at the Burden Museum and Gardens at 4560 Essen Lane.
Out of pocket: The U.S. Justice Department says a Louisiana shipbuilding company will pay more than $8 million to settle a 2011 lawsuit arising from modifications made to vessels for the Coast Guard. The Associated Press reports the lawsuit alleges that Bollinger Shipyards of Lockport made false statements about the strength of eight patrol boats it had lengthened for the Coast Guard. The lawsuit says the hull of one of the vessels, the Matagorda, buckled at sea in September 2004. The Coast Guard revoked its acceptance of all eight ships in 2007; the Justice Department sued in 2011 under the federal False Claims Act.
Wasteful spending: Doctors and hospitals in Louisiana overbilled Medicare for more than $59 million in 2014, making the state the fifth-worst in the country for Medicare waste per beneficiary, according to the Council of Medicare Integrity. According to the Washington D.C.-based nonprofit organization, Louisiana serves slightly more than 547,000 Medicare beneficiaries. That comes out to $107.88 wasted per beneficiary. The nonprofit organization released its study today using tallies from 2014, which is the most recent Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data available. Washington, D.C., led the pack with $177 wasted per beneficiary. See the full study.
