State Health Officer Dr. Joe Kanter is touting data from the dating website OkCupid shows users who identify as vaccinated are considered “more attractive”. Matt Doyle has more.
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A House bill to study domestic violence fatalities in Louisiana continues to make its way through the legislature
Cut 2 (30) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”
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A house-approved bill allowing St. Tammany residents the right to vote on whether they want a casino built outside of Slidell resulted in some chippy testimony in a Senate committee. Matt Doyle has more.
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Starting today most of the remaining COVID public health restrictions will be lifted.
Governor Edwards says his decision to drop most of the remaining limitations was due to the fact we’ve hit an all-time low in COVID-related hospitalizations, and…
Only 269 Louisianans are currently hospitalized with COVID, down from the all-time high of 2,069 on January 7th.
But Edwards says despite our recent success he isn’t canceling the public health emergency declaration. He says we have a lot of work to do and are still seeing new COVID deaths every day.
10,548 Louisianans have died of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic last year and 13 new deaths were reported Tuesday.
The mask mandate for educational settings will remain in place through the end of the current semester but will cease for the summer semester. Masks will still be required in health care facilities, prisons, and public transit.
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With the number of new weekly vaccinations dropping the state is pulling out all the stops to get more people off the fence. State Health Officer Dr. Joe Kanter had a unique pitch to the unvaccinated…
Dating apps like Tinder and Bumble are even offering special bonuses to users who get vaccinated…
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A House bill to study domestic violence fatalities in the state continues to make its way through the legislature. Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence Executive Director Mariah Wisneski says House Bill 452 creates a multidisciplinary team within the health department to review a victim’s records.
Cut 8 (12) “…future homicides.”
The review will pinpoint missed opportunities for intervention and potential areas for reform.
Wisneski says Louisiana has one of the highest rates of domestic violence fatalities in the nation and the formation of a review team is overdue.
Because the bill involves funding and would be part of the health department’s duties its been through several House committees. Wisneski says the framework of the bill is set up to similar mortality reviews already in place in the health department.
Wisneski says so far the bill has received bipartisan support and she’s hopeful it will eventually reach the governor’s desk.
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Senate Judiciary B advances House-approved legislation giving St. Tammany residents the right to vote on whether they want a casino to be built on the water outside of Slidell.
Slidell resident Camille Thompson spoke against the bill. She says it’s not fair that people in the Parish outside of Slidell get to vote on this.
The proposal would relocate a license currently held by DiamondJacks in Bossier City to St. Tammany Parish.
And another opponent, Lisa Clayton of Pearl River, questioned the integrity of Chairman Gary Smith, saying his wife’s connection to the gaming industry is suspect…
But Smith countered that his wife’s career is separate from his and they handle their business professionally.
The legislation heads to Senate Finance where an identical bill by Slidell Senator Sharon Hewitt has been stuck for weeks. Reportedly the bill is having trouble finding the votes needed to pass.
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Congresswoman Julia Letlow joins House Agriculture Republicans to introduce the Broadband for Rural America Act. It is one of several infrastructure proposals to help to bridge the digital divide for communities.
Letlow says a least 350-thousand households in Louisiana do not have high-speed internet as defined by the FCC. Letlow says that’s roughly the population of Shreveport, Bossier, Monroe, and Alexandria combined.
Letlow says the funding is part of the USDA’s $7 billion authorized for connectivity programs.
Cut 15 (10)“…the conversation.”
The majority of households lacking broadband in the state are located in the state’s Fifth Congressional District that Letlow represents.
Cut 16 (09) “…as soon as possible.”
Letlow campaigned on bringing broadband connectivity to rural Louisiana.
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The Ragin Cajuns baseball team is ready for the Sun Belt tournament. The tournament’s format is different, as the 12 conference teams are in four pools or divisions, with three teams each. The team with the best record in that pool after two games will advance to the semi-finals. Coach Matt Deggs on the round-robin format.
Cut 17 (20) “…might not matter.”
The Cajuns take on Texas State tonight and Appalachian State on Friday in Montgomery, Alabama. If each team in a pool is 1-1 after two games, the team with the highest seed advances. U-L Lafayette has the highest seed in its pool, which gives them the tie-breaker. Deggs says seeding is important in this format.
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The Conference USA Baseball Tournament starts today at J-C Love Field at Pat Patterson Park in Ruston. Louisiana Tech will face UTSA at 4 PM. Bulldogs Coach Lane Burroughs says winning today is a must
Burroughs says hosting the tournament will help them this week, it will also benefit the program down the road as players from around the league will get to see their new park