As the Senate takes up the $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill passed by the house, Senator Bill Cassidy says this relief bill is not a bipartisan effort. Brooke Thorington has more.
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Governor John Bel Edwards asks Louisiana Catholics to take the Johnson and Johnson vaccine if offered despite a request from the New Orleans Archdiocese not to do so. Matt Doyle has the story.
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Starting today bands can begin playing indoor venues again statewide, but only under strict guidelines. Matt Doyle has the story.
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Senator Bill Cassidy says he will not support the $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill as it passed the House Saturday because it’s packed with a “wish list from the left.”
Cassidy pointed out in the bill that there’s over a hundred million allocated for the subway system in San Francisco. That along with funds earmarked for the Seaway International Bridge in upstate New York has also been struck from the bill.
Cassidy said there are things he could support, including direct payments to taxpayers. Instead of $1,400 payments that are currently allocated, Republicans pushed for $1,000 payments.
Cassidy feels this COVID Relief bill feels could force the country into a state of inflation and do more harm than good.
Cassidy and other Republicans also oppose the $130 billion allocated to help reopen schools and colleges. Cassidy says the CDC says it’s safe to reopen schools now and the funds wouldn’t arrive in time anyway.
Congressional leaders want to send President Biden the legislation combating the pandemic and bolstering the economy by March 14, the date emergency jobless benefits that lawmakers approved in December expire
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The New Orleans Archdiocese has asked Louisiana Catholics not to take the Johnson and Johnson vaccine if they can help it due to its use of abortion-derived cells in the manufacturing process.
Governor John Bel Edwards, a practicing Catholic, disagrees saying Louisianans should take whatever vaccine they are first offered.
Edwards says he looked at documents from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and Vatican sources before coming to the conclusion that Catholics should take the J&J vaccine.
Edwards says Archbishop Gregory Aymond’s guidelines suggest the decision should be made on a personal level in consultation with your healthcare provider.
The Governor also notes there is some disagreement on the issue from the neighboring Baton Rouge Archdiocese.
Edwards says for the foreseeable future healthcare providers will not be able to offer patients a choice between different vaccines.
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Business advocates are hopeful as the state transitions to Phase Three health restrictions today. Louisiana Association of Business and Industry President Stephen Waguespack says he feels this is the light at the end of a very dark tunnel after so many businesses have struggled the last year.
Waguespack says so many of the businesses have taken the brunt of the pandemic and he’s extremely proud of the adjustments they’ve made to stay afloat, but the closures have been hard on so many.
He’s also optimistic that neighboring states will also begin to ease restrictions so the tourism industry in Louisiana can rebound.
As case numbers decrease and more people become eligible to be vaccinated Waguespack believes it will give those who have been vaccinated the confidence to go back out into the community safely and revitalize the economy.
Waguespack is optimistic the state will transition out of Phase Three in the near future and be able to fully reopen.
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Indoor live music is allowed again in Louisiana bars and music venues under the Phase Three guidelines that went into effect today.
State Fire Marshal Butch Browning says to do so venues will have to meet criteria like a 20-foot separation between stage and audience, strong HVAC, and one of four additional requirements…
The fourth option is that band members remain masked and blown instruments remain covered at all times. If Plexiglas is utilized the band may be ten feet from the crowd instead of twenty. All of these requirements can be seen at opensafely.la.gov.
Browning says it is likely the HVAC requirement will disqualify some smaller bars. He says all venues must have six air exchanges per hour to qualify.
Restaurants are now allowed to operate at 75 percent capacity while bars can run at 25 percent capacity.
Browning says to be clear the experience still won’t be what it was pre-pandemic.
Patrons will still be required to mask up.