Home Care In Bossier City, LA

BOSSIER CITY, La. (KSLA) - A Bossier City mother is sounding the alarm about a prescription mix up at a local pharmacy.

Tarah Thomas is warning others to double check their new medicines after her 13-year-old son was given the wrong prescription. Now, CVS pharmacy is responding to the incident.

According to the Mayo Clinic, metoprolol is used to treat high blood pressure, and trazodone is used to treat depression. But now, Thomas is trying to figure out how her teenage son was prescribed these two medications after being diagnosed with COVID.

“He was supposed to have a cough medicine, antibiotic,” said Thomas.

Thomas says while she was at work, her husband went to the CVS pharmacy on Barksdale Boulevard at Jimmie Davis to pick up prescriptions for their son, but when it was time for another dose that night, Thomas’ husband told her something didn’t seem right.

“When I got home, he said time to give nighttime, he realized it was off. He said, ‘Come and look at this this, sounds like a tranquilizer,” Thomas said. “It said take for 90 days at nighttime and I googled it and I said why would ???

It was at that point the family realized they were given the wrong prescriptions.

The medication Thomas’ 13-year-old was taking was actually for a 30-year-old man who suffers from high blood pressure and depression. The two happen to have similar first names, the same last name, and the same birth month and day. However, their addresses are different.

“It actually hit me the address was wrong before I realized the name was wrong,” Thomas explained.

The mother reported the mix up to CVS’s corporate office and filed a report with the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy.

“I would hope the pharmacy would do something to make sure it doesn’t happen again. It seems like that they are understaffed,” Thomas said.

CVS issued this statement:

“We apologized to Ms. Thomas when she notified us that her son received the wrong prescription. We encouraged her to consult her child’s provider before giving him any additional medications and are looking into how this happened to help prevent a similar error in the future. The health and well-being of our patients is our number one priority, and we have comprehensive policies and procedures in place to support prescription accuracy. Prescription errors are a rare occurrence, but if one does happen, we use what we learn from it to continuously improve quality and patient safety.”

“If they know they are understaffed and they have staffing issues, will they change that or is it an acceptable risk for them?” Thomas questioned.

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BOSSIER CITY, La. (KSLA) — A bill at the Louisiana Capitol is drawing concern at school districts throughout the state. One of those districts is right here in the ArkLaTex.

The Bossier Parish School Board (BPSB) passed a resolution Tuesday (March 26) expressing its opposition to state legislation that would establish education savings accounts (ESAs), including Louisiana House Bill 745, which creates the LA GATOR Scholarship program. The program would provide public dollars for private school tuition and educational expenses.

Saying the state has failed to adequately fund public education for the past 20 years, BPSB members are asking the area’s delegates to Baton Rouge to vote no on any bill proposing an education savings account that would provide funding for private education.

HB 745 would create a school choice program that would provide state funding for various educational options.

The possibility of public funds going toward private school tuition is one of BPSB’s concerns.

“Public funds are going to replace the cost of tuition for students that attend approved private schools that are outside the public school system,” Bossier schools Superintendent Jason Rowland said of HB 745.

Lack of oversight of how dollars will be used is another concern that Rowland raised.

“We take on every student that comes, we take on students with disabilities, we take on low-income, we take on high-income, we take on every, we take on EL students. |And so what’s going to happen though is admissions with choice are going to segregate those type things out,” Rowland said.

Bossier businessman Doug Rogers also disagrees with taking revenue and students out of public schools. “Number one, public schools are currently underfunded as it is. But number two, the kids need to be able to learn how to work together and talk together.”

Rogers described Bossier Parish public schools as a stabilizing force in the community. “If we start pulling off pieces and people and funding, that’s not going to be good for the collective group. And that was the whole idea behind public education.”

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Jimmy Watson

Louisiana Tech football fans will get an early look at a guy who could be the school’s next great receiver on Tuesday when the Bulldogs visit Bossier City’s Freedom Fields for a workout before Saturday’s spring game.

Former Green Oaks wide receiver De’Coldest Crawford, who signed with Nebraska in 2021 after decommitting from LSU, is slated to be on hand for Tech’s Red River Run Through, which opens for fans at 5:30 p.m. next to First Bossier Church.

Crawford, a former 3-star recruit and Shreveport Times All-City player, caught 50 passes for 813 yards as a junior at Green Oaks, and had 30 catches for about 200 yards as a senior with a freshman quarterback. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Crawford was injured in the 2022 Husker fall camp and was redshirted his only season with the Cornhuskers.

Huntington’s Zyion Claville and Kendrick Rucker, Airline’s Daxton Chavez, Benton’s Logan Smith, Loyola’s Ean Burch and Northwood’s Ja’Marrion Kennedy are additional Shreveport-Bossier athletes expected to participate.

PORTAL ENTRY:Nebraska’s De’Coldest Crawford enters transfer portal

NEBRASKA SIGNEE:Green Oaks receiver De’Coldest Crawford, a former LSU commit, signs with Nebraska

While attendance and parking are free for the fan-friendly event, food trucks will be on hand selling food. There will be tailgate games and the Bulldogs will arrive at 6 p.m. with their practice session to begin by 6:30 and end at 8 p.m.

Following the practice, there will be an autograph signing session with the players.

"Our staff and football team are excited about returning to the Shreveport-Bossier area for our annual spring practice," Tech coach Sonny Cumbie said in a release. "Last year's practice was a huge success, and this year will be no different with the support of all of our alumni, fans and lettermen in the Shreveport-Bossier area."

Tech’s spring game is slated for 11 a.m. Saturday inside Joe Aillet Stadium.

The Bulldogs are seeking improvement from last season’s 3-9 record, which included six consecutive losses to end the campaign. Tech will have six home games this fall including bouts with FCS Nicholls State and Tulsa.

Jimmy Watson covers Louisiana sports for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @JimmyWatson6.

La. Tech schedule:

5:30 p.m. | Gates Open

6 p.m. | Team Arrives

6:30 p.m. | Practice begins

8 p.m. | Practice Concludes / Autograph Session

Food Trucks: Bayou Two (Cajun Food), Shakes N' Tenders (Chicken and Shakes), C's Unique Snoballs and More (Snow Cones)

Vendors on Site: La. Tech Bookstore, Pattons, Simply Chic Boutique (Bossier), Mallory Patterson Design

BOSSIER CITY, La. - A plan for new townhomes in the Stockwell area is creating opposition from lots of neighbors.

Guidry Land Development wants to build townhomes called Lakewood Villas. There will be 468 2-bed, 2-bath townhomes built on 43 acres of land located at the dead end of Shed Road and butting up against a sewage treatment plant.

But not everyone is happy about having new neighbors. Many who live in the area have taken their concerns to the Bossier MPC.

One worry is the potential impact more kids would have on the already full Stockwell Place Elementary School.

"They say that this won't have any impact but it will because what will happen is you guys will say, well that's up to the school board to make that decision, and the school board's decision to be able to accommodate their new students is going to be to rezone Dogwood and send existing students from a A+ Blue Ribbon School to a B- and C-rated schools and how that's fair to our children and their future," said Tiffany Shatto.

The developer said he doesn't expect many kids to live in the development.

"Typically, it'll be a single mother or father with a kid, maybe two kids and you know they can afford this. This rate starts at $1,600 a month. We don't typically see a lot of kids in these typical developments. You primarily see retired people to be honest with you," said developer Cliff Guidry.

Another concern is the additional traffic the new households would create.

A traffic report was done and showed that the townhomes will have no impact. However, surrounding residents still have doubts.

"Despite the traffic survey, there will be an increase in traffic. There's no way you can't with that many units in a small area like that," said David Phillips.

Neighbors also worry about flooding since that area is already being used as an outflow for excess water.

"Our neighborhood was developed with the intent that the storm water from our neighborhood be intentionally discharged onto the property in question," said Sara George.

"I mean you're not only generating more runoff, which I understand there's detention for, but you're displacing all of that flood plane area," said Bryan Butler, engineer and neighbor."

"What we have to do is although they drain onto us, we have to pick up the drainage from that point. As Andy said and put that into our drainage system and then goes to the outfall, which we're going to have plenty of storage capacity to do because that's going to be reflected by the drainage impact analysis," said Guidry.

The MPC decided to delay the vote on the development pending a drainage report to address the concern with flooding. Once that report is completed, the MPC will take another look and make its decision.

Construction on the $270 million Live! Casino & Hotel renovation in Bossier City has started after The Cordish Companies chose AnderCorp as the project's general contractor.

AnderCorp, which is headquartered in Gulfport, Miss., has already provided preconstruction services, design review and managed early-stage demolition of the old Diamond Jacks Casino property to set the stage for the project, which will be the first land-based casino in the Shreveport-Bossier market.

Leaders for both companies now say construction is in "full swing." Cordish plans to open the casino in 2025.

“The vision and design for Live! Casino & Hotel Louisiana is spectacular, and we are excited to be a team member with Cordish and its designers in transforming the site into an exciting destination resort in Bossier City,” said Roy Anderson III, AnderCorp's chairman and chief executive, in a statement.

Cordish executives and local and state officials hosted an on-site groundbreaking ceremony last month, where Jon Cordish told USA Today Network the project will be transformative.

"It's going to have a quality and energy that when you walk into this property you'll feel like you're in a premier casino and resort in the top gaming markets, including Las Vegas," Cordish said. "I guarantee you this is going to be game-changing and set a new standard in the market."

Rob Norton, president of Cordish Gaming Group, doubled down on that assessment in a statement this week.

"Live! Casino & Hotel Louisiana will be a transformative development, bringing first class gaming and entertainment to millions of visitors, creating significant new jobs and generating millions of dollars in economic benefit for the community,” Norton said.

The former Diamond Jacks Casino has been shuttered since 2020.

It was abandoned by previous owners after they twice tried twice to move the casino to St. Tammany and Tangipahoa parishes, but voters there turned them away.

Last year the Louisiana Gaming Board approved the sale of the Diamond Jacks license, one of only 15 in the state, to Cordish, whose owners pledged to revive the casino at its current location in Bossier City.

Bossier City Mayor Thomas Chandler called the project "the largest venture that has happened in our area in a long time."

Among the highlights of the Live! project: Sports & Social sports bar and restaurant curated by James Beard Award nominee Chef John Suley; PBR Cowboy Bar; Luk Fu, a restaurant featuring the traditional flavors of Southeast Asia; and a fine dining steakhouse yet to be branded.

It will also create 750 construction jobs and 750 permanent jobs.

"It will bring economic opportunities for all involved," Norton said.

Cordish, a century-old family-owned company headquartered in Baltimore, has extensive international operations in gaming, entertainment, residential and hospitality. It operates casinos in Maryland, Philadelphia, Pittsburg, Tampa and Hollywood, Fla.

Cordish's signature "Live!" entertainment districts are located in major markets like Arlington, where its Texas Live! district is nestled between the Texas Rangers’ Globe Life Park and the Dallas Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium and anchored by a Loews hotel.

The company said it has more than $1 billion under construction adjacent to its Texas Live! development alone.

More:Can Diamond Jacks transformation reverse declining Shreveport-Bossier gambling market?

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.