WHAT WITHDRAWAL FROM THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION MEANS FOR PANDEMIC RESPONSE

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump's plan to make good on his threat to withdraw from the World Health Organization has sparked worry from health experts, Brianna Ehley and Alice Miranda Ollstein report. Trump has criticized the U.N. agency for failing to quickly sound the alarm when the virus emerged and accused it of helping China cover up the threat. Friday's news follows Trump's temporary freeze last month on U.S. funding to WHO.

The American Medical Association, the nation’s largest physician group, urged Trump in the "strongest terms possible" to reverse the decision. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the head of the chamber's health committee, warned canceling U.S. membership could disrupt clinical trials for vaccines that will be in high demand around the world.

The Senator said, "Certainly there needs to be a good, hard look at mistakes the World Health Organization might have made in connection with coronavirus, but the time to do that is after the crisis has been dealt with, not in the middle of it.”

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IN NEBRASKA AND IOWA, CORONAVIRUS IS NATIONAL GUARD’S BIGGEST EMERGENCY RESPONSE IN YEARS

OMAHA - National Guard soldiers and airmen in the Midlands, and across the country, nose-swabbing is one of many unexpected duties they’re performing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 600 members in Nebraska have been put to service.

Across the two states, Guard soldiers and airmen have set up and staffed coronavirus testing sites, delivered medical supplies to hard-hit counties, ferried test samples to laboratories and boxed up supplies for food banks. In both states, the Guard response is the largest for a civil emergency in years, larger even than for the massive floods of 2019. The task force’s most visible presence has been the six mobile testing teams that have deployed around the state to collect test samples and bring them to central laboratories.

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COVID’S GLOBAL MARCH

WASHINGTON - This week the world hit a new milestone, averaging 100,000 confirmed new infections each day. The pandemic’s epicenter has shifted to Brazil. One in every two people taking a test in Brazil is positive, indicating the virus is more widespread than officially acknowledged. Even so, the country averaged 19,000 confirmed new cases each day this week and deaths frequently top 1,000 each day.

On a brighter note, Spain has had only four deaths since Tuesday, a remarkable turnaround for a country that just eight weeks ago peaked at 961 deaths in a single day.

Trump cited alleged control by China of WHO today as his core reason for withdrawing the U.S. from the body. So far, the world is yawning, with no official reactions from other world leaders. Upon U.S. withdrawal, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will become the organization's biggest funders. The Gates provide around 12 percent of WHO’s budget, compared to just 0.2 percent coming from China.

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GOVERNOR RICKETTS ANNOUNCES PLAN TO UTILIZE FEDERAL C.A.R.E.S. DOLLARS

LINCOLN- During the his daily press conference last Wednesday, Governor Ricketts announced how he intends the state to spend the federal CARES dollars distributed to Nebraska. Please note that below is a general outline of what has been announced, and we are happy to answer any questions. More information can be expected in regards to many of these programs/actions in the coming days and weeks. 

The total package of $1.25 billion in relief to Nebraska, is planned to be distributed  into the following categories below. To view the entire powerpoint presented by the governor, please click HERE.

GOVERNMENTS: $180 MILLION

State Government $80million

Local Governments $100million

   - Dollars will be for reimbursement of direct costs associated with COVID including PPE, overtime, sanitizing spaces, dedicated payroll for COVID public safety employees. 

   - Counties, in order to be eligible, must have 'business as usual' by June 8th (open public offices and services)

COMMUNITY CARES PROGRAM: $85 MILLION

Being established by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services

   - Behavioral Health Regions $5million

   - Community Collaboratives $20million

   - Providers/Non-Profits demonstrating increased demand and lower donations $40million

   - Shelters/Housing $20million

SMALL BUSINESSES/LIVESTOCK STABILIZATION: $392 MILLION 

Distributed in $12K grants to all qualified   

   - Small businesses between 5-49 employees

   - Livestock operations between 1-10 employees

REMOTE ACCESS, WORKFORCE RETRAINING, GALLUP: $62 MILLION

Rural broadband development $40million

   - Impacting 26,285 households in 41 communities of 1K-5K in population

Workforce Retraining $16million

   - $1.1K grants for students (up to 12K total)

   - Career Coaches/Admin/Faculty $2.4million

Gallup Training $1million

UNEMPLOYMENT TRUST FUND: $427 MILLION

COMMON CAUSE NEBRASKA RELEASES ANNUAL REPORT OF LOBBYING IN NEBRASKA

LINCOLN - Common Cause Nebraska, a nonpartisan, non-profit watchdog in Nebraska published its annual report on May 20, 2020.

The report states that lobbyists in the state set a record regarding the amount of earnings that they took in. Lobbying expenditures reached $19.3 million, an increase of $1.5 million when compared with the year prior. In total, Nebraska lobby gross earnings for 2019 equaled $19.4 million. Altria Client Services spend the most on lobbying with a 2019 total of $267,287. The University of Nebraska system spent $732,072 in 2019. Others, like the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce, spent roughly $96,000.

Kissel Kohout ES Associates is proud to be once again named in the top 6 firms over the past 5 years, and to remain in the top 10 for 2019. It is an honor to serve our clients in front of the Nebraska state government. 

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NEBRASKA ECONOMY FARES BETTER THAN MOST STATES AMID PANDEMIC

OMAHA - Nebraska's economy has been devastated by the coronavirus outbreak and unemployment has surged, but the state has fared better than most of the rest of the nation.

Nebraska’s April unemployment rate was 8.3%. While that is not an optimal number, it is still markedly lower than the nation’s average of 14.7%. Nebraska's unemployment rate was the third-lowest in the country. One reason for the low unemployment rate is that Nebraska’s economy is not dependent on tourism or oil.

The Journal Star furthers that the insurance, banking, and government sectors have largely been spared job losses. Unemployment figures show that only about 1 in every 50 workers in those sectors have lost their jobs. In contrast, the downturn from the virus outbreak contributed to the loss of roughly 1 in every 4 service jobs.

Some companies in the state have said that they may end up increasing the number of employees by the year’s end.

Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts was one of only seven governors who never issued a statewide stay-at-home order shutting down all nonessential businesses. Instead, he imposed restrictions on a regional basis throughout the state based on the number of infections and hospitalizations in each area.

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HALLORAN URGES FEDERAL ACTION TO ADDRESS MEAT SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTION

HASTINGS - Sen. Steve Halloran of Hastings and 42 colleagues in the Nebraska Legislature are urging the federal government to let small-scale processors play a larger role in connecting the public with meat products.

Sen. Halloran is the chairman of the Legislature’s Agriculture Committee. In a letter that he wrote to the state’s congressional delegation, Sen. Halloran asked the members to consider amending the Federal Meat Inspection Act to remove restrictions on custom processors to prepare meats for distribution through public and private charitable food assistance programs during meat processing emergencies. The letter included other suggestions such as shifting funding so USDA inspectors can spend more time in small inspected plants, thereby allowing those plants to ramp up their processing capacity by expanding hours of operation or adding employees.

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STATE OWNS LAND IN SOUTHWEST LINCOLN THAT COULD BE USED FOR A NEW PRISON

LINCOLN - Corrections Director Scott Frakes announced in February the state is considering a public-private partnership to build a new, 1,600-bed prison, possibly between Lincoln and Omaha, to help deal with overcrowding and staffing issues. It could have potential to expand by hundreds of beds, Frakes said. Corrections Director Scott Frakes announced in February the state is considering a public-private partnership to build a new, 1,600-bed prison, possibly between Lincoln and Omaha, to help deal with overcrowding and staffing issues. It could have the potential to expand by hundreds of beds, Frakes said.

Nebraska's prison population is at about 5,430, and the department employs about 2,200 staff. The system has hovered around 158% of design capacity, and the Legislature has set a deadline of July 1 to reduce capacity to 140%.

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TESTNEBRASKA INITIATIVE IS STILL FAR FROM HITTING ITS DAILY CORONAVIRUS TESTING GOAL

OMAHA - 1,694 samples were taken from people on Wednesday according to state officials. That's just over halfway to the target announced when Nebraska signed a contract with a group of Utah high-tech firms in April. The goal was to reach 500 tests at each of six mobile sites, or 3,000 tests in total, each day.

Governor Ricketts has maintained that TestNebraska has been a real help. The Governor said, "That's a good thing for the state that we've got more tests.”

Dr. Gary Anthone, Nebraska's chief medical officer, also expressed optimism about the TestNebraska numbers. Dr. Anthone stated that the state is very getting closer to achieving its goal.

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NEBRASKA IN LINE FOR ABOUT $10.8 BILLION IN FEDERAL CORONAVIRUS RELIEF MONEY, RICKETTS SAYS

KEARNEY - Gov. Pete Ricketts announced Wednesday that Nebraska is in line to get $10.8 billion in federal coronavirus relief money this year. The total includes about $1.6 billion of stimulus payments that were sent directly to Nebraska households. Nearly two-thirds of the rest — some $6.4 billion — is going out through the Paycheck Protection Program to help small businesses keep employees on their payroll.

Governor Ricketts stated that, “I think it’s appropriate when we have an emergency like this pandemic, which we haven’t had in over 100 years, the federal government takes steps to make sure that we can protect ourselves and recover.”

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COLLEAGUES EXPRESS CARE, CONCERN FOR NEBRASKA STATE SENATOR HOSPITALIZED WITH COVID-19.

LINCOLN - Gov. Pete Ricketts expressed hope Tuesday that State Sen. Mike Moser of Columbus would have a “full and complete” recovery from his hospitalization with coronavirus.

His illness prompted messages of care and concern from colleagues in the Legislature and in Columbus.

Senator Adam Morfeld tweeted “All of my thoughts are with my colleague Senator Mike Moser and his family for a quick and speedy recovery from COVID” on Tuesday.

Senator Dan Hughes, chair of the Natural Resources Committee, said that he was very concerned.

Moser, a moderate Republican, was elected to the Legislature two years ago with the support of his predecessor, Paul Schumacher. The two have been friends since being on the same the debate team at Platte Junior College, now Central Community College, in Columbus.

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COVID-19 SPURS DROP IN GLOBAL CLIMATE INVESTMENT

WASHINGTON – According to the International Energy Agency, “The coronavirus pandemic could cause the steepest decline in global energy investment in history.” The agency expects global energy investment to drop by one-fifth — or about $400 billion — compared with 2019, with global spending on oil potentially falling by $1 trillion this year. IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol called the investment drop "deeply troubling" in a statement, adding it could undermine "the much-needed transition to more resilient and sustainable energy systems."

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THE MOST EFFECTIVE BIOTERRORIST

WASHINGTON - National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins told health care reporter Zachary Brennan today that the coronavirus is “absolutely not” man-made but also that he could not rule out the idea that it escaped from a lab in Wuhan, China.

Collins said, “Nature created this virus, and has proven once again to be the most effective bioterrorist.” Collins refused to comment on his agency’s decision to pull funding from researchers studying how coronaviruses spread from bats to people.

Read the full article HERE

LASTING SCARS

WASHINGTON - The vast majority of Covid patients make full recoveries from the disease. But doctors are worried about the long-term damage from severe infections. The military isn’t taking any chances: The Pentagon says Covid survivors are barred from joining. And as cases continue to grow, more and more people will survive Covid but suffer from lasting health effects. Your host spoke with three physicians today who are on the frontlines of treating Covid patients and managing their recovery to talk about what they know so far about the virus’ lasting impact.

Additionally, recovering in isolation could heighten depression and other mental health disorders faced by Covid survivors, said Aaron Bunnell, a physician at the University of Washington’s Department of Rehabilitation Medicine.

Already about half of people admitted to the ICU with acute respiratory distress syndrome, which many Covid patients get, don’t return to work within a year, probably because of decreased endurance and physical function and impaired cognition and mental health, Bunnell said.

Read the full article HERE

CVS TO OPEN COVID-19 DRIVE THROUGH TESTING SITES IN LINCOLN

LINCOLN - CVS has announced plans to set up four drive-thru COVID-19 testing locations in Lincoln and three in the Omaha area.

The tests will be performed at drive-up windows at the sites via a self swab. People getting tested will be handed a testing kit and will swab themselves with direction from a CVS pharmacy employee. CVS will send tests to a commercial lab, and results usually come back in 2-4 days.

Larry J. Merlo, president and CEO of CVS Health said, “Opening access to testing in more locations using our drive-thru window represents an important milestone in our response to the pandemic.” The CVS sites will add to other drive-thru testing sites in Lincoln run by Bryan Health, CHI Health, Test Nebraska and other health providers.

Read more by clicking HERE

ANOTHER 5,875 NEBRASKANS FILE JOBLESS CLAIMS DURING CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

OMAHA - Another 5,875 Nebraskans filed first-time unemployment claims last week, as economic woes caused by the coronavirus continue. The state saw 60,296 continuing claims, down from 62,962 the previous week. The number of initial filings has plummeted from the all-time record of 27,054, set in the week ending April 4.

Read the full article by clicking HERE

THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA SYSTEM CONSIDERS ENDING FALL SEMESTER BEFORE THANKSGIVING

OMAHA - The University of Nebraska is considering starting its fall semester in early August and concluding before Thanksgiving in order to avoid classes during a potential second wave of the coronavirus. When talking about the proposal, President Carter said "We studied it. I'm going to be putting a proposal in front of our Board of Regents here very soon and we'll be ready to make an announcement.”

Creighton and other Nebraska colleges have already committed to a similar plan.

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NEBRASKA LEGISLATURE EXPECTED TO RECONVENE IN JULY

LINCOLN - The speaker of the Legislature notified state senators Monday he intends to call them back into session beginning July 20 to work on state budget changes, priority bills, and property tax cuts.

His decision, Speaker Jim Scheer said, was based on the current belief that the COVID-19 cases will have peaked by that time and that it will not surge again midsummer as restrictions are gradually loosened. If everything goes as planned, the session would run through Aug. 13. The plan is to meet two full weeks in July, Aug. 3-6, and Aug. 11-13.

However, Speaker Scheer has made it clear that he can alter the dates for unforeseen challenges. Because there are a number of priority bills to debate in the 17 remaining days, including adjustments to the 2020-21 state budget, Scheer is scheduling late-night sessions, sometimes as late as 10 p.m., except for the last day of each workweek.

Procedures used in March when the Legislature met for three days to pass emergency COVID-19 funding will be continued. Those included no media on the floor of the Legislature and no notes coming in from the lobby.

View full article HERE.

SEN. PATTY PANSING BROOKS SEEKS REMOTE VOTING FOR WHEN THE LEGISLATURE RESUMES IN JULY

OMAHA – Senator Patty Pansing Brooks called for a legislative rule change that would allow state senators to vote on bills remotely when this year's session resumes on July 20. The proposal was outlined in a memo written to fellow lawmakers. However, legislative leaders have said the Nebraska Constitution requires state lawmakers to vote in-person.

Pansing Brooks made a similar argument in March, just before lawmakers briefly reconvened to approve emergency state funding to fight the coronavirus. Lawmakers still met in person those days, but Speaker Jim Scheer imposed rules to restrict their movement and limit access to the legislative chamber. A few senators chose not to attend, and Pansing Brooks argued that the constituents of those lawmakers need to be represented.

Gov. Pete Ricketts announced earlier this week that local city councils, county commissions, and school boards will have to meet in-person starting in July. He previously issued an executive order to let them meet through online video-conferencing but said he will let that order expire at the end of June.

View full article HERE. 

FIRST PIECE OF DISPUTED KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE FINISHED IN MONTANA

BILLINGS, Mont. — A Canadian company has built the first piece of the disputed Keystone XL oil sands pipeline across the U.S. border and started work on labor camps in Montana and South Dakota. But it has not resolved a courtroom setback that would make it hard to finish the $8 billion project.

The 1,200-mile pipeline from Alberta to Nebraska was stalled for much of the past decade before President Donald Trump was elected and began trying to push it through to completion. Work finally started in April at the border crossing in remote northern Montana. That 1.2-mile section has now been completed except for some site reclamation activity, TC Energy spokeswoman Sara Rabern said.

The Calgary-based company has started site work for labor camps near Baker, Montana, and Philip, South Dakota, but it has not set a date to occupy them.

Earlier this week Vice-President Biden's campaign said that if elected he will rescind the Keystone XL Pipeline permit, which was initially killed during the Obama administration. The proposed 1,200-mile, $8 billion pipeline would carry up to 830,000 barrels of oil from Alberta, Canada to Nebraska, where it would then be transferred to refineries along the Gulf of Mexico. 

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