Additional restrictions could be coming as the state approaches three thousand COVID patients in the hospital. Jeff Palermo has the story…

Cut 2 (31)…I’m Jeff Palermo”  

A landmark international report on climate change shows that should the world not reach carbon neutrality by 2050 the region that Louisiana is in could see temperature increases of six degrees compared to the average temperature between 1995 and 2014.

Attorney General Jeff Landry wants to hear from you if you feel you’ve been censored by a social media company. Landry says this censorship deprives Americans of access to important information. He cited the censorship of posts about the Wuhan lab’s alleged involvement with the virus.

Cut 4 (12) “…citizens” 

Landry says you can fill out a form at the AG’s website if your posts have been impacted.

The U.S. Senate approved the 1.2 trillion-dollar infrastructure package today. Senator Bill Cassidy, who helped negotiate and craft the bipartisan bill says over six billion dollars in infrastructure assistance will be headed to Louisiana as a result…

Cut 14 (08) “…infrastructure.”

The state’s two US Senators are at odds over a bipartisan infrastructure bill that looks set to receive a vote tomorrow. Senator Bill Cassidy backs the plan he helped craft, saying it will drive six billion dollars in money for roads and bridges into the state, while Senator John Kennedy lambasted it for raising taxes on businesses and having a deficit price tag of 250 billion dollars…

Cut 3 (08) “…tax.” 

Kennedy says another reason he did not support the bill was the despite the cost the Senate refused to include Hurricane Laura relief funds for Southwest Louisiana.

Over 2,700 patients now sit in Louisiana hospitals with COVID. 50 hospitals are now requesting additional aid and Cassidy commented on the ongoing nursing shortage that is hampering our healthcare response.

Cut 14 (11) “…do so”

LSU’s live mascot Mike the Tiger has received his second dose of the COVID-19 vaccination. Jeff Palermo on how this came to be…

Cut 2 (30)…I’m Jeff Palermo”  

Jazz Fest has been canceled for this year. The plan to move ahead with an October festival staring the Rolling Stones, Foo Fighters, Lizzo, and other hitmakers will not proceed after the decision was made to nix this year’s already once delayed festival due to the Delta surge. Plans are, for now, to move ahead with the usual springtime festival next year. 

The Delta COVID surge does not appear to be slowing down as the Louisiana Department of Health reports 16,500 new cases. Senator Bill Cassidy says this surge is all the more tragic because it could have been prevented if more people had gotten vaccinated.

Cut 12 (11) “..dead” 

50 new deaths were also reported.

Senator John Kennedy slams the bipartisan infrastructure agreement that appears set for a vote tomorrow. The trillion dollar plan is partially funded by taxes, some of which Kennedy says target Louisiana’s vital industries…

Cut 5 (11) “…Louisiana”

Senator Cassidy celebrated the plan, saying it would provide us with six billion dollars in funding.

Mike the Tiger is now fully vaccinated. Spokesperson. Baricades keeping the public away from Mike are now scheduled to be taken down next week. LSU spokesperson Ginger Guttner says the barricades helped Mike practice social distancing.

Cut  11 (11) “…his visitors”  

Students will not be required to be vaccinated to attend on campus classes.

Cancel your October Jazz Fest plans, the festival will not be moving ahead this year due to the recent surge in cases. New Orleans and Company Spokesperson Kelly Schulz says Jazz Fest’s cancellation is not only financially devastating, but a big loss for locals…

Cut 8 (12) “…vaccinated”

Jazz Fest will return in spring. 

The Delta variant has apparently scared more unvaccinated individuals off the fence and over to a healthcare provider. Governor John Bel Edwards says the number of people seeking a vaccine has grown by 300-percent during this surge…

cut 8 (07) “….for some time”

Another COVID-19 variant has been detected in Louisiana. LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport has found the Lambda variant in seven cases in northwest Louisiana. But LSU Health Shreveport Professor of Microbiology and Immunology Jeremy Kamil says there’s no reason to believe that this new variant will bypass the vaccines that are available…

cut 11 (08) “….well”

There was a report suggesting Chinese vaccines were ineffective against Lambda in Peru, but Kamil says there’s no hard data to back that up.

LSU faculty addressed the administration on Friday over their pandemic concerns as the university plans to return to in-person instruction for most classes. Brooke Thorington has more

Cut 2 (32)…I’m Brooke Thorington”  

The weekly winners of the state’s Shot at A Million vaccine lottery today were announced today. Coty Hemperley of Shreveport won the $100,000 cash prize and Nevada Charity of New Orleans is the scholarship winner. The million-dollar grand prize and remaining scholarship winners will be announced on Friday, August 13^th.

The state’s health care system is getting stretched to the limit due to the Delta variant-fueled surge in cases. We’re seeing record COVID hostpializations and as a result 50 hospitals across the state have formally requested state help in getting additional health care workers to deal with the huge influx of patients. Governor Edwards says part of the uptick is coming from increased numbers of kids getting sick, which is why children five and up should wear a mask in schools

Cut 7 (12) “…young people” 

Many LSU faculty say it is not safe to return to in person learning for the fall given the school’s refusal to adopt a vaccine mandate. This morning Kevin Yua (rhymes with wow) told school leaders that previous mitigation rules weren’t always followed and now only 34 percent of students are vaccinated.

Cut 12 (12) “..enforced” 

The request was not considered by the board.

Seven incidents of the Lambda variant were discovered in northwest Louisiana, likely crossing the border from Texas where the new strain is more common. LSU Health Shreveport Professor of Microbiology and Immunology Jeremy Kamil says health officials are keeping an eye on it…

Cut 10 (05) “…wave.”

Kamil says vaccines are almost certainly effective against the new variant.

Interfor Corporation will invest eight million dollars to revive the idled Georgia Pacific sawmill near DeQuincy. Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance CEO George Swift says the Canadian-based company is one of North America’s largest lumber producers…

Cut 4 (09) “…viable.” 

Over 2,400 people now lay in Louisiana hospital beds with COVID, by far the highest level of any point during the pandemic. Governor John Bel Edwards says Louisiana is the epicenter of the nation’s latest COVID surge.

Cut 6 (12) “..even close.”

Because of this record surge in cases, LSU faculty want the school to either mandate vaccines or allow teachers to go all online for the semester. History Professor Meredith Veldman the pandemic is at worse levels now than it ever was in spring 2020 when the school went entirely remote.

Cut 14 (09) “…conditions”

There was no official response from the board to faculty members on that specific request but LSU President William Tate told faculty at the meeting that once the vaccine receives full FDA approval he intends to issue a vaccine mandate.

Delta may be the primary variant in the state right now but up in northwest Louisiana, the first cases of the Lambda variant have been discovered. LSU Health Shreveport Professor of Microbiology and Immunology Jeremy Kamil says there’s no reason to believe that this new variant will bypass vaccines.

Cut  11 (08) “…well”  

Lambda likely crossed the border from Texas where the variant is more prevalent and is thought to be responsible for a surge of cases in Peru.

Interfor Corporation announces it will invest eight million dollars to revive the idled Georgia Pacific sawmill near DeQuincy. The governor’s office says the project will create 170 new jobs. Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance CEO George Swift says the mill was shut down last May due to the pandemic

Cut 3 (11) “…in particular.” 

This morning LSU faculty and staff members demanded the right to teach remotely or limit classroom sizes due to the Delta variant. Kevin Yua (rhymes with wow) told school leaders that previous mitigation rules weren’t always followed and now only 34 percent of students are vaccinated.

Cut 12 (12) “..enforced” 

The state reported another huge day of COVID cases, over 6,000, and now over 2,400 Louisianans are in the hospital with COVID, largely due to Delta.

Seven Lamba COVID variants have been sequenced in Louisiana so far, all clustered in Northwest Louisiana. LSU Health Shreveport Professor of Microbiology and Immunology Jeremy Kamil says health officials are keeping a close eye on it…

Cut 10 (05) “…wave.”

Kamil says there’s no reason to believe vaccines are not effective against Lambda.

There’s a lot of folks still on the fence about getting the vaccine and up in Shreveport officials are hoping a 100 bribe might sway them. Brooke Thorington has more

Cut 2 (30) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.” 

LSU students won’t have to vaccinate to attend in person classes. LSU Board Chairman Robert Dampf says they determined that because the vaccines are under emergency use authorization they cannot, as a public university under current law, mandate it. Even if they could, there’s still a loophole…

Cut 7 (09) “…reasons” 

Students who are not vaccinated will have to submit to monthly COVID tests.

Moderna joins Pfizer in asking permission to give third “booster” shots to already vaccinated individuals, a move the World Health Organization calls selfish in the face of vaccine shortages in developing nations. Tulane School of Public Health Epidemiologist Dr. Susan Hassig says there’s really not enough data to support boosters yet anyway, so if you’re vaccinated and want more protection…

Cut 14 (08) “…mask”

LSU QB Myles Brennan’s dad Owen confirms that a tragic fishing trip mishap is what resulted in his son’s broken arm. That mishap has potentially robbed Brennan of his final year at LSU, leaving Max Johnson to take over the lead role. Owen says Max’s dad Brad was one of the first calls he received about Myles.

Cut  11 (11) “…dad to dad.”  

Even with the statewide mask mandate back in effect, Ochsner Health CEO Warner Thomas says he doesn’t see hospitalizations letting up anytime soon. Thomas says it’s still too early to tell but, in the past, their symptom tracking system, which communicates with COVID patients recovering at home, has shown mask usage curbs case numbers.

Cut 4 (11) “…that yet.”