Stateline Editors Picks; What We're Reading: Top State Stories 10/26
Map of the United States, depicted in the colors of the Crayola State Colors Collection, 2015. The twelve colors in the right margin were included in the collection, but not assigned to any state or territory; work by P Aculeius, Wikimedia
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UT: Utah hospitals prepare to ration intensive care
Under the criteria proposed by the Utah Hospital Association, which would require Republican Gov. Gary Herbert’s approval, patients who are getting worse despite receiving intensive care would be moved out first. In the event that two patients' conditions are equal, the young get priority over the old, since older patients are more likely to die.
GA: Georgia at high risk of militia threat around elections, new report says
A new report by a group that typically monitors political violence abroad named Georgia as one of five high-risk states for far-right militia activity around the November election.
WI: Wisconsin contact tracers are overwhelmed
With an average of 3,400 new cases pouring in each day just in the past week — the third highest per-person rate in the United States — Wisconsin contact tracers are now so overrun that some have begun to wonder whether the job is futile.
NY: Lines stretch for blocks as New Yorkers turn out for inaugural early voting
Voters in New York City waited hours to cast ballots during the first time early voting has been allowed in the state in a presidential election. Recent mishaps involving mail-in ballots seemed to drive many voters to the polls.
MA: Source of infections unknown in half of Massachusetts COVID-19 cases, state says
Massachusetts acknowledged it has not been able to determine the source of infection in about half of COVID-19 cases, an information gap that epidemiologists say could limit the ability to respond to outbreaks and control transmission of the disease.
FL: Florida Democrats struggle to control state Senate
Florida’s government could undergo a seismic shift it hasn’t seen in more than a quarter century. Democrats are three state Senate seats away from sharing power with Republicans, but doing so is harder than it looks.
TX: Massive early voting numbers in Texas continue
Experts are predicting that as many as 12 million people could vote in Texas this year. The state could reach turnout levels unseen so far this century.
LA: Louisiana GOP lawmakers call for end to coronavirus restrictions
Louisiana Republican lawmakers sent the governor a petition to cancel all virus restrictions, from the mask mandate to rules requiring social distancing at bars and restaurants. But Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards showed no indication he would play along.
CO: Colorado health order limits personal gatherings to 10 people
Personal gatherings are now limited to 10 people from no more than two households in all Colorado counties at all three "Safer at Home" levels. Some counties, like Denver, Adams and Boulder, have already instituted stricter orders on gathering sizes.
AZ: Arizona COVID-19 cases rising at fastest rate since June
Arizona reported nearly 1,400 new COVID-19 cases, the most in about a month. The past several weeks have seen relatively higher daily case reports as the virus spreads at its fastest rate in Arizona since June.
More Articles
- Stateline Nevada State Senator Pat Spearman and Birth Control Prescriptions: Women Gain Record Power in State Legislatures
- Medicare Covers FDA-approved COVID-19 Vaccines; You Pay Nothing For the COVID-19 Vaccine
- Envision Color: Activity Patterns in the Brain are Specific to the Color You See; NIH Research Findings Reveal New Aspects of Visual Processing
- National Institutes of Health (NIH) Scientists Use Gene Therapy and A Novel Light-sensing Protein to Restore Vision in Mice; NIH-funded therapy will now be tested in humans
- Jill Norgren Reviews a New Inspector Gamache Mystery: All the Devils Are Here
- A GAO* Report: Workplace Sexual Harassment; Experts Suggest Expanding Data Collection to Improve Understanding of Prevalence and Costs
- A New Study: Sex Differences in Pharmacokinetics Predict Adverse Drug Reactions in Women
- Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the UC Berkeley Law School: Supreme Court Affirms That President is Not Above the Law
- Stateline: Politicians Shunt Aside Public Health Officials
- Stateline: Many Faithful Say It’s Time to Gather. Some Governors Disagree