The air quality in the Dayton region received poor marks from the American Lung Association. A recent study ranked the area  24th in the nation for what’s called year round particle pollution. But as WYSO’s Emily McCord reports, the report may be misleading.

The head of Ohio's addictions agency plans to talk about new data showing state residents still dying from drug overdoses at record rates.

Orman Hall is director of the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services. He also will use a news conference Tuesday afternoon to push for addiction treatment and other health care services for all Ohioans.

Data released last week show the number of people who died of accidental overdoses jumped 14 percent in 2011 for a total of over 17 hundred overall deaths.

The Department of Health figures place the blame on prescription painkillers and also a worsening heroin problem.

The continued increase comes as Ohio has launched numerous efforts to crack down on illegal prescription painkiller use and distribution.

It looks like Medicaid expansion won’t likely be part of the proposed two year state budget that will come out of the Ohio Senate.

Governor John Kasich, Business leaders and even Democrats want Medicaid expansion in the Ohio Budget.  But Republican Ohio Senate President Keith Faber says that’s unlikely.

"You need two chambers to move a bill and the house has indicated they simply don’t have the votes to get Medicaid expansion done in the budget," says Faber.  "Therefore I do not believe Medicaid expansion is on the table as it relates to this legislation in the budget."