WASHINGTON- Reps. Cindy Axne, Troy Balderson and French Hill last week introduced the Emergency COVID-19 Telehealth Response Act to ensure Medicare reimbursement for clinical social workers, occupational therapists, audiologists, speech pathologists and physical therapists. While CMS has expanded the types of virtual services Medicare pays for during the pandemic, not all practitioners are covered — forcing them either to avoid virtual treatment or deliver it without any payment guarantees.
Such measures could help patients who are currently "forced to choose between taking the precautions of staying home and getting the care they need," Axne said in a news release. Also on telehealth, RSA President Rohit Ghai told Pro Cyber's Tim Starks last week that the world needs to start preparing now for the cyber risks of a post-coronavirus world.
"If during the pandemic we've allowed a lot of our workers to access data from their home environments, is that going to be the new normal going forward?" he said to Tim. "As such, how should our data governance need to evolve? There's going to be a lot of that kind of activity."
GOV. RICKETTS ANNOUNCES BUSINESS TASK FORCE TO "GET NEBRASKA GROWING" & PROVIDES UPDATE ON TEST NEBRASKA INITIATIVE
LINCOLN- Monday, during his daily press conference, Governor Ricketts announced the formation of a business task force to restore growth to Nebraska's economy. The task force will be headed by state economic development director Tony Goins. This task for ce will examine resuming business operations across the state safely, and with cooperation among businesses, banks, the ag community, and economic developers.
Additionally, Governor Ricketts announced that TestNebraska.com, the state's assessment tool has had 89,000 submitted assessments as of Monday morning. Testing sites are expected to be in Grad Island and Omaha later this week. The governor urged those outside of those two cities to also be proactive in taking the assessment.
View Article HERE.
DAKOTA COUNTY ONE OF THE NATION'S FASTEST GROWING CORONAVIRUS HOTSPOTS
SIOUX CITY, IA- The Sioux City, Iowa, metropolitan area -- including Dakota County in Nebraska, tucked on the bluffs of the Missouri River -- has the fastest growth of coronavirus cases in the U.S.
The five-county area encompassing Nebraska, Iowa and parts of South Dakota landed on the top of the New York Times' list of U.S. cities with the highest daily growth rate, charting 131% daily growth in recent days. According to the county's public health department, as of Monday, there are 608 lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in the county of 20,026 people -- meaning 30 people out of every 1,000, or 3% of all residents, have contracted the disease.
The county recorded its first two cases of the disease on April 13 but has since jumped to the No. 5 county in the U.S. in terms of growth rate
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ANTIBODIES: BLOOD WARRIORS WITH A GRUDGE
To track the spread of the coronavirus, researchers are developing antibody tests using blood samples. The COVID-19 antibody test is one way to identify people who have been exposed to the virus – even if they don’t show any symptoms.
While COVID-19 antibody tests are currently in development, scientists have used antibody tests for other illnesses for years. Find out how antibodies could potentially be used to detect, prevent or even treat COVID-19.
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UNMC PROVIDES GUIDANCE ON COVID-19 TEST PROCESSES
OMAHA - Not only are technologists in the Nebraska Public Health Laboratory working overtime testing specimens for COVID-19, they also are making test processes more efficient and safe for lab technologists across the country.
Pete Iwen, Ph.D., director of the Nebraska Public Health Laboratory and professor in the UNMC Department of Pathology and Microbiology, and his colleagues recently published two articles in the American Journal of Clinical Pathology, a major journal referenced by laboratory technologists.
One article provides biosafety instructions for laboratorians; the other focuses on the use of group testing to conserve laboratory test materials. Both articles are considered "hot topics," having received thousands of views and downloads.
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A NEW PROBLEM IS BREWING IN THE BEER INDUSTRY: ONE MILLION KEGS ARE GOING STALE
Millions of gallons of beer stuck in stadiums, concert halls, restaurants and bars are fast going stale, leaving the beer industry with a tricky problem: What to do with all that booze nobody will ever drink?
The coronavirus pandemic forced U.S. bars to close ahead of two of the country’s biggest drinking occasions: St Patrick’s Day and the “March Madness” basketball tournament. Beer intended for those events is now spoiling in locked establishments, and brewers are trying to get it back so kegs can be refilled before lockdowns lift. Executives say draft beer typically stays fresh for between two and six months.
“This was the absolute worst time for this to happen for draft beer,” said Craig Purser, chief executive of the National Beer Wholesalers Association, a trade body. “We have never ever seen an interruption like this where everything freezes in place.”
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ZOO CAMS OFFER SOLACE FOR HUMANS ON LOCKDOWN
CHICAGO - Humans are finding common ground with captive animals as the pandemic has forced people inside. Living space is limited, with some apartments not much bigger than a seal enclosure. Food is delivered to the door. Family spats break out.
Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium last month began posting edited videos of its three rockhopper penguins wandering around its newly empty galleries. The videos, which among other things show the penguins staring at beluga whales, stingrays and dolphins, have been collectively seen online 48 million times, the aquarium says. The posts’ popularity hatched ideas for new installments, including videos of the penguins nesting.
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NU ANNOUNCES PLANS TO HAVE CLASSES ON CAMPUS IN FALL
LINCOLN - The University of Nebraska intends to hold in-person classes on all of its campuses in the fall, NU President Ted Carter said Friday.
In a message sent out to faculty, staff and students, Carter laid out the plan for the University of Nebraska system to be open in the fall, while taking into consideration the possibility of continued coronavirus restrictions.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced most colleges and universities nationwide to shift to online classes. The NU system, which has campuses in Lincoln, Omaha and Kearney, made the decision to call off the rest of the spring semester's in-person classes in lieu of remote teaching on March 12. It will continue delivering online courses this summer.
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STOTHERT: OMAHA PARKS WILL REOPEN, AND CITY'S GENERAL FUND COULD TAKE $80 MILLION HIT
STOTHERT: OMAHA PARKS WILL REOPEN, AND CITY'S GENERAL FUND COULD TAKE $80 MILLION HIT
OMAHA - In need of some fresh air and sunshine? Omaha’s parks will reopen Saturday, nearly a week earlier than planned — though restrictions will remain in place. Whether city pools will open this summer remains to be seen.
Mayor Jean Stothert said in a wide-ranging press conference Friday that parks will be open citywide on Saturday with restricted hours, from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. Park users must still follow social distancing guidelines, including limiting groups to 10 and maintaining 6 feet of space. The city’s dog parks also are being reopened, but Omaha’s 197 playgrounds will remain closed. Stothert pleaded with parents to keep children off the playgrounds, because the city can’t keep the equipment disinfected.
“We want you to enjoy the outside, but we really want to protect your safety, too,” Stothert said.
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RICKETTS EASING NEBRASKA CORONAVIRUS RESTRICTIONS AS OF MAY 4; LIMITED REOPENING OF ECONOMY
LINCOLN — By May 4, diners can begin returning to restaurants in the Omaha area and several other areas of Nebraska lightly impacted by the coronavirus, Gov. Pete Ricketts announced on Friday.The decision to begin relaxing the state’s COVID-19 restrictions, the governor said, was based on “hard data” that hospitals and intensive care units are not being swamped, and not on pressure to reopen the economy.
“If we’re not overwhelming our health care system, we’re winning,” Ricketts said.
The decision also includes a resumption of religious services, weddings and funerals, with restrictions. Tattoo parlors, hair salons and massage studios will also be allowed to reopen. And child care centers will be allowed to have 15 children per room, up from 10. Some health professionals, including one with experience in Lexington — one of the state’s hot spots — expressed doubt about relaxing restrictions now.
View article HERE.
SENATOR LOU ANN LINEHAN: TAX REFORM CRUCIAL RIGHT NOW
LINCOLN- In a 'local view' opinion piece, Senator Lou Ann Linehan responded to a recent editorial board release by the Lincoln Journal Star stating that the board was correct in stating “property tax relief for Nebraska’s farmers and ranchers remains sorely needed.” However that is a major divination from the editorial board's opinion:
"That, put simply, means that the state will not have sufficient income to fund the property tax relief proposal without decimating the remainder of the discretionary budget -- the part that funds the University of Nebraska and state agencies, whose services will be needed in the upcoming recovery." ('Virus should lead senators to take new look at taxes' April 17, 2020)
Senator Linehan's response, while offering no new statistics or developed plans for relief, continued to argue that property tax relief is possible, and necessary, even during the projected continued economic downturn. We would note that during a Platte Institute zoom meeting on Thursday, Dr. Ernie Goss estimated losses during a 3 week period at the start of the pandemic at $46.16 Million. Our opinion is that it much to early in the process to determine whether or not it is realistic to proceed with property tax relief.
View the article HERE
OPENING OF NEBRASKA SWIMMING POOLS IN QUESTION AMID CORONAVIRUS
LINCOLN- Some poolgoers, including those in Omaha and Lincoln, should get answers soon about whether their pools will open this summer. This week, Gov. Pete Ricketts reiterated that pools have to abide by the 10-person limit and 6-foot physical distancing as long as directed health measures are in effect.
The terms of those measures vary by county, extending to at least April 30 in Douglas and Sarpy Counties and to May 11 in others. Ricketts has said the state is examining how and when it might go about reopening parts of Nebraska life. However, he also has said people should expect some restrictions to remain in place indefinitely, given that a vaccine is a long way off.
In an April 15 memorandum, the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy encouraged pool operators to delay openings until after restrictions are lifted.
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OFFICIALS SAY FEDERAL MONEY HELPING FIX CANAL THAT SUPPLIES NEBRASKA PANHANDLE FARMERS IS NOT ENOUGH
LINCOLN - Farmers in the Nebraska Panhandle are getting additional assistance in the repair of a crucial irrigation canal, but officials with the irrigation district say more help will be needed.
At the request of Sens. Deb Fischer and Ben Sasse and Rep. Adrian Smith, the Bureau of Reclamation has agreed to reclassify 35% of a $2.3 million loan as a grant. That will spare farmers $800,000 in loan repayments. Gov. Pete Ricketts is also proposing a $3.8 million grant to help toward repairs, and his proposal is working its way through the Legislature.
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LEGISLATIVE CHALLENGER PALMTAG ANSWERS ATTACKS BY HER OWN PARTY
LINCOLN - Legislative candidate Janet Palmtag of Syracuse responded Tuesday to a series of attacks leveled at her by the Nebraska Republican Party despite her own GOP affiliation while pledging to be "a conservative, independent voice" in the Legislature. Palmtag has been the target of direct mail and radio ads by the Republican Party that have accused her of "siding with Lincoln liberals" and having "gone Lincoln" in her approach to some issues.
"Some people in the GOP are angry with me for questioning a 30% raise for the director of corrections," Palmtag said. Ryan Hamilton, executive director of the Nebraska Republican Party, said the criticism directed at Palmtag by the party is "not personal; it's all issue-based."
Palmtag is seeking southeastern Nebraska's District 1 seat, which is now held by Sen. Julie Slama of Peru, who was appointed by Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts to fill a vacancy in 2019. Palmtag has been endorsed by former Governor Dave Heineman and Rep. Jeff Fortenberry.
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TRUMP ADMINSTRATION TO ALLOW SMALL CASINOS TO APPLY FOR CORONAVIRUS LOANS
WASHINGTON- The Trump administration revised guidelines on Friday to allow small casinos impacted by the coronavirus pandemic to receive small business loans. The Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that size-eligible legal, small gaming entities can participate in the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
In the initial package, businesses that received more than one-third of their gross annual revenue from legal gambling activities were ineligible for loans. PPP is now poised to receive an injection of $310 billion after the initial $349 billion was disbursed in less than two weeks.
The American Gaming Association (AGA) celebrated the revised guidelines, noting the industry group has been working “tirelessly” to change the policy.
View the article HERE
MCCONNELL SPARKS BIPARTISAN BACKLASH WITH STATE BANKRUPTCY REMARKS
WASHINGTON- Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is facing blowback from across the political spectrum after he suggested states should be able to declare bankruptcy as they face severe budget holes sparked by the coronavirus outbreak.
"I would certainly be in favor of allowing states to use the bankruptcy route. It saves some cities. And there’s no good reason for it not to be available. My guess is their first choice would be for the federal government to borrow money from future generations to send it down to them now so they don’t have to do that. That’s not something I’m going to be in favor of," McConnell said.
The remarks were met with quick and fierce backlash by lawmakers and local officials from states hit hard by the spread of the coronavirus, including members of McConnell’s own party. Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.), who is retiring, called McConnell the “Marie Antoinette of the Senate.”
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WARREN BUFFETT'S 'FORTRESS' IS BREACHED BY CORONAVIRUS-RELATED SHUTDOWNS
OMAHA- Even as market watchers await Warren Buffett's splashy move to seize on fallout from the current crisis, his Omaha-based Berkshire Hathaway hasn't been spared by the pandemic.
Coronavirus-related shutdowns across the U.S. have hit Berkshire units including See's Candies, a shoemaker and industrial behemoth Precision Castparts. That could leave a few scars on the conglomerate that gives the billionaire investor his ammo and has been pumping out more than $20 billion in annual profit in recent years.
Buffett's business partner, Charlie Munger, put it bluntly. "We've got a few businesses, small ones, we won't reopen when this is over," he told the Wall Street Journal, without naming the units.
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NEW NEBRASKA JOBLESS CLAIMS CONTINUE ROLLING IN, SWAMPING UNEMPLOYMENT SYSTEM
LINCOLN — The wave of new jobless claims continued in Nebraska last week, as coronavirus-related layoffs and furloughs swamped the state’s unemployment system.
The Nebraska Department of Labor reported Thursday that 12,340 workers had filed first-time unemployment claims during the week just ended. That was down from 16,391 the previous week, but several times the pre-pandemic levels.
The five-week total of new claims exceeded 96,000 workers. The crush of claims has slowed processing and left unemployed workers waiting weeks to get their first payments. It also is taking a toll on the state’s economy. One new study used those jobless claims to estimate the economic impact on Nebraska at $835 million between March 14 and April 4.
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SENATOR LOU ANN LINEHAN: TAX REFORM CRUCIAL RIGHT NOW
LINCOLN- In a 'local view' opinion piece, Senator Lou Ann Linehan responded to a recent editorial board release by the Lincoln Journal Star stating that the board was correct in stating “property tax relief for Nebraska’s farmers and ranchers remains sorely needed.” However that is a major divination from the editorial board's opinion:
"That, put simply, means that the state will not have sufficient income to fund the property tax relief proposal without decimating the remainder of the discretionary budget -- the part that funds the University of Nebraska and state agencies, whose services will be needed in the upcoming recovery." ('Virus should lead senators to take new look at taxes' April 17, 2020)
Senator Linehan's response, while offering no new statistics or developed plans for relief, continued to argue that property tax relief is possible, and necessary, even during the projected continued economic downturn. Relying on grossly simplified and context-less statistics, Senator Linehan paints an incomplete picture of current Nebraska spending and tax structure while continuing to hold firmly to her position of no compromise with parties opposed to her current proposal.
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'UNPRECEDENTED DROP IN VOLUME' AT U.P. LEADS TO 4 MONTHS OF STEEP PAY CUTS
OMAHA - Fifteen percent of Union Pacific Railroad’s 37,500 employees will take steep pay cuts through August, the Omaha-based railroad told its employees Tuesday.
Executives will take a 25% cut from May through August, and employees not covered by union contracts, such as managers, must take unpaid leave for one week each month through August, U.P. said. The unpaid leave will result in a pay cut of close to 25% for those employees.
U.P. spokeswoman Kristen South said the 12-member board of directors, which includes CEO Lance Fritz, will absorb the cut as well. Eleven of those directors received compensation ranging from $46,667 to $356,411 in fiscal year 2019, according to a financial statement. Most board members received in the vicinity of $300,000, the statement said.
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