News
University of Minnesota: We can do tests; give us money to do it
The University of Minnesota Medical School unveiled a plan to conduct widespread testing for COVID-19 and is asking state government for $20 million to do it. The goal, according to the proposal, is to identify people who can safely return to work and other normal activities. “We will use methods developed at the University of […]
Pandemic puts domestic violence victims, survivors ‘in dire straits’
WASHINGTON — For victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, staying at home may be more dangerous than leaving it — even during a pandemic. Indeed, reports of abuse are on the rise in many cities as COVID-19 continues to spread and people are confined to their homes, according to an NBC News investigation. And […]
In first, Walz holds virtual bill signing ceremony; Legislature get comfortable with Zoom
Minnesota government settled into an uneasy new normal Wednesday, with Gov. Tim Walz holding his administration’s first Zoom bill signing from the governor’s residence, while the Legislature ramped up virtual committee hearings. Despite a sheen of bipartisan comity upon the signing of a bill to provide diabetics with emergency insulin, Walz faces increasing pressure from […]
California, which stayed home 8 days earlier, offers glimpse at how a state economy might reopen
In the weeks and months ahead, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will be deciding how and when to re-open the state’s economy during the COVID-19 pandemic. He has dozens of other governors’ pandemic-response homework he can peek at. One of them is California Gov. Gavin Newsom who ordered nearly 40 million residents to stay-at-on March 19, […]
MSP airport set to receive $125 million in federal coronavirus aid package
Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport will receive more than $125 million in federal funding under the recent COVID-19 aid package, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act includes $10 billion in funding for airports affected by pandemic. Across the United States, 3,235 airports are set to receive money […]
‘I can only do so much’: Families of kids with disabilities struggle with distance learning
By the seventh day of distance learning, Simone Lott could have used a day of rest. When Minnesota schools closed in mid-March, Lott found herself teaching her four children, including 7-year-old son Samael, who has cerebral palsy. That was on top of her usual responsibilities running a household as a single parent and her full-time […]
Land O’Lakes quietly gets rid of iconic Indian maiden mascot
For nearly a century, the Land O’Lakes Indian maiden has kneeled by the side of a blue lake holding out an offering of a 4-stick box of butter. No more. The Minnesota-based farmer cooperative has redesigned its packaging to focus on celebrating farmers ahead of its 100th anniversary next year. “We need packaging that reflects […]
Legislature back, passes emergency insulin bill, COVID-19 tweaks
Minnesota lawmakers ended a year of intense policy debate and political positioning Tuesday, giving final approval to a long-awaited bill that will provide affordable insulin to those who need it. They also approved a number of tweaks intended to ease the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic on things like marriage and drivers licenses. Gov. Tim […]
Upper Mississippi River named most endangered river of 2020
The portion of the Mississippi River running through Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa has been named the most endangered river in the country by the environmental advocacy group American Rivers. “Climate change is driving more intense rainstorms, leading to more frequent and prolonged flooding in the Upper Midwest,” the group said in announcing the ranking. […]
2022 election watch: Sen. Scott Jensen met with a pollster
Republicans are already making early moves to position themselves for a potential challenge to first term DFL Gov. Tim Walz. State Sen. Scott Jensen has met with pollster Chris Perkins of Ragnar Research, he confirmed to the Reformer Tuesday. The Texas-based quantitative and qualitative consultant has polled for nearly 100 winning GOP candidates for governor […]
Minnesota COVID-19 deaths total 79
Seventy-nine Minnesotans have died of COVID-19 as of 4 p.m. April 13, according to the Minnesota Department of Health — twice the total number of deaths reported one week earlier. Since the state confirmed its first case of COVID-19 on March 6, 1,695 people have tested positive for the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. […]
COVID-19 infection cluster in Sioux Falls, S.D. draws contrast with Minnesota
The massive COVID-19 infection cluster at Smithfield Foods — the 3,700-employee pork processing plant in Sioux Falls, S.D. — is drawing a stark contrast between South Dakota’s and Minnesota’s approach to the widening pandemic. The Washington Post wrote on how South Dakota is reacting to what it calls the largest COVID-19 cluster in the country, examining […]