coronavirus
Study: Saint Louis University face mask policy reduced quarantines, COVID cases
Tying quarantine requirements to the Saint Louis University face mask requirement successfully reduced the number of students sent to isolation and helped cut COVID-19 infections this spring, according to a study published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Under the university’s rules, students without masks who had close contact with an infected […]
Lawmaker asks Missouri agency to document its oversight of emergency COVID purchasing
The ranking Democratic member on the House Budget Committee requested Wednesday that state officials document oversight of emergency purchases during the pandemic — and questioned why emergency, no-bid contracts are still being granted. Rep. Peter Merideth, D-St. Louis, sent a letter to state Budget Director Dan Haug that built upon lawmakers’ questioning of the Office […]
Lawmakers seek accounting of emergency purchasing authority given to Missouri agencies
Missouri lawmakers pressed for more details Wednesday on the unprecedented decision by state officials to suspend some procurement rules at the beginning of the pandemic to allow agencies to make large purchases without obtaining prior approval. Rep. Peter Merideth, a St. Louis Democrat and ranking minority member of the House Budget Committee, asked the Office […]
Records document millions spent by Missouri agencies under emergency COVID authority
It was mid-March 2020 and the pandemic was unfolding in quick succession. Less than a week after the first suspected COVID-19 case in Missouri was identified in St. Louis County, Gov. Mike Parson declared a state of emergency. Days later, the state’s Office of Administration (OA) took an unprecedented step: It granted emergency authorization allowing […]
AARP calls for vaccine mandates as COVID re-enters Missouri nursing homes
With cases on the rise among both residents and staff, the nation’s leading advocacy group for the retirees is calling on nursing homes to mandate COVID-19 vaccines. The number of COVID-19 cases reported each week in Kansas and Missouri nursing homes is rising again for the first time in months. Missouri, where weekly cases averaged […]
Less than half of Missouri nursing home staff vaccinated, reviving fear of lockdowns
Many of the staff and residents in Shunda Whitfield’s St. Louis County nursing home were sick before they even realized what was going on. It was April 2020, and masks weren’t yet standard practice. Little was known about COVID before it swept through nursing homes, and as a certified nursing assistant, Whitfield said she “didn’t […]
Springfield officials: Cancelled request for temporary hospital not sign COVID crisis abated
A request for a temporary hospital was canceled because the state was too slow to act and local providers made emergency accommodations, not because the Delta variant crisis has diminished, the Springfield-Greene County Health Department said Thursday afternoon. Gov. Mike Parson cited a decline in cases in Greene County and surrounding areas when his office […]
Missouri urges CDC to waive $25 limit for vaccine incentive plan
Missouri requested Friday that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reconsider its rejection of the state’s vaccine incentive plan. Robert Knodell, the acting director of Missouri’s Department of Health and Senior Services, urged CDC Director Rochelle Walensky to make an exception to CDC guidance that states incentives may not exceed $25 in value per […]
After relying on local officials to combat COVID, Parson signs limit on health orders
Gov. Mike Parson’s strategy to contain the spread of COVID-19 was simple: local officials know best. Statewide mandates emanating from Jefferson City didn’t make sense in a state as diverse as Missouri, Parson argued amid the pandemic’s peak while rebuffing calls for him to take statewide action. But on Tuesday Parson signed a bill curbing […]
Missouri lawmakers pass bill limiting local health orders, banning vaccine passports
As the state of Missouri battles its second year of the novel coronavirus’ spread, lawmakers on Wednesday sent to the governor’s desk a bill that aims to rein in local public health orders and ban vaccine passports. The provisions were included on House Bill 271, which deals with local government transparency. It grew from three […]
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson’s office refuses to release resignation letter of former COO
The same day as Randall Williams’ sudden resignation as Missouri’s top health official, another key member of the executive branch left his job without any explanation. Drew Erdmann, chief operating officer for the governor’s office, also stepped down last month. Unlike Williams, there was no press release acknowledging Erdmann’s departure. But just like Williams, Gov. […]
After voting down Senate COVID liability bill, House focus turns to pared down version
After voting down a sweeping bill to shield businesses from most COVID-19 related lawsuits Monday night, House lawmakers have pinned their hopes on a much more narrow version. Rep. Ben Baker, R-Neosho, added provisions onto Senate Bill 27 on Thursday in the House Committee on Downsizing State Government, which he chairs. The bill was passed […]