Governor Edwards holds a press conference at 2:30 today to announce whether or not Louisiana’s stay-at-home order will extend beyond this Friday. Republicans have been pressuring the governor to lift restrictions. On Sunday, the state reported 31,600 positive cases and 22-hundred have died.

LSU Health Shreveport is one of five sites chosen to conduct a clinical trial that will determine if nitric oxide can treat mild to moderate cases of COVID-19. Brooke Thorington has more.
Cut 1 (30) “I’m Brooke Thorington.”

In an effort to help re-open the economy, the state is ready to ramp up contact tracing. Department of Health Assistant Secretary Dr. Alex Billioux…
cut 14 (10) “….at home”
Billioux says contact tracers will call people that may have been in close contact with a person who just tested positive of COVID-19 and the tracers may ask that person to self-quarantine for 14 days.

State lawmakers will get a better idea of how the economic shutdown has impacted the state budget when the Revenue Estimating Conference meets at noon. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says federal dollars can possibly fill some of the budget holes, but the money comes with strings attached…
cut 12 (12) “…question marks”
Pinsonat says early estimates indicate the revenue shortfall could be as much as one-point-five billion dollars.

Louisiana’s current stay at home order is set to expire on Friday and Governor Edwards has said he’s hopeful that at 2:30 he’ll announce the state is able to open additional businesses on Saturday like barbershops and salons. Also, restaurants could allow dine-in services with a capacity of 25-percent. Republicans like Congressman Garret Graves are pushing for businesses to re-open…
cut 8 (08) “….adverse implications”

Governor Edwards has announced plans to hire up to 700 Louisianans to expand the state’s contact tracing program. The tracers will call people who tested positive for COVID-19 and ask them to detail anyone who may have been infected by them. Edwards says for those interested in the job…
Cut 13 (11) “…privacy”
Those interested in the job should email contact-tracing-at-la-dot-gov.

The Revenue Estimating Conference meets today to discuss how much money the state will have available to spend next fiscal year and the drop off is expected to be significant. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says every facet of state government will pay attention to this meeting that begins at noon.
Cut 10 (13) “…are so high.”
Speculation indicates the shortfall could be anywhere from 500-million to one-billion dollars.

LSU Health Shreveport is one of five sites in the world chosen to participate in a clinical trial that will see if nitric oxide can successfully treat mild to moderate cases of COVID-19. Principal Investigator Dr. Keith Scott says patients will inhale very high doses of nitric oxide twice a day.
Cut 4 (11)_ “…a ventilator.”
Scott says preliminary data suggest that inhaled nitric oxide could have a virus-killing effect on COVID-19 and they hope to have concrete results by December.

Governor John Bel Edwards is set to announce this afternoon whether the state will move to phase one of reopening the economy. That would mean barbershops and salons can open their doors again, while restaurants can offer dine-in services starting on Saturday. But there will be restrictions on the number of people inside those businesses.

Before the governor’s announcement at 2:30, the Revenue Estimating Conference will meet at noon to provide a projection on how much money the state will have available to spend next fiscal year. Kevin Barnhart has more…
voicer 2 (25) “….I’m Kevin Barnhart”

State health officials hope to have 250 workers in place by the end of the week that will track down new coronavirus patients and determine who they have been in close contact with. Assistant health secretary, Doctor Alex Billioux, says the program puts privacy at the forefront, and if you are called and asked to quarantine due to COVID exposure…
cut 15 (10) “…COVID-19”

LSU Health Shreveport is one of five sites in the world that’s been chosen to participate in a clinical trial that will use nitric oxide as a treatment for patients with mild to moderate cases of COVID-19. Principal Investigator, Doctor Keith Scott, says preliminary data suggests that inhaled nitric oxide could have a virus-killing effect on COVID-19, but it will be months before researchers truly know…
cut 5 (10) “…not worked”

Governor Edwards holds a press conference at 2:30 today to announce whether or not Louisiana’s stay-at-home order will extend beyond this Friday. Republicans have been pressuring the governor to lift restrictions. Congressman Garret Graves says continuing the economic shutdown will produce adverse health effects outside of COVID-19…
cut 9 (12) “….can be prevented”

In an effort to help re-open the economy, the state is ready to ramp up contact tracing. Department of Health Assistant Secretary Dr. Alex Billioux…
cut 14 (10) “….at home”
Billioux says contact tracers will call people that may have been in close contact with a person who just tested positive of COVID-19 and the tracers may ask that person to self-quarantine for 14 days.

State lawmakers will get a better idea of how the economic shutdown has impacted the state budget when the Revenue Estimating Conference meets at noon. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says federal dollars can possibly fill some of the budget holes, but the money comes with strings attached…
cut 12 (12) “…question marks”
Pinsonat says early estimates indicate the revenue shortfall could be as much as one-point-five billion dollars.

LSU Health Shreveport is now one of five sites in the world that’s participating in a clinical trial that’s trying to determine if nitric oxide can treat COVID-19 patients with mild and moderate symptoms. Principal investigator at LSU Health Shreveport, Doctor Keith Scott, is optimistic that inhaled nitric oxide can be used to reduce the number of severe cases and deaths, because…
cut 6 (06) “…also”
Scott says they will not have any concrete results until the end of the year.

Governor Edwards will announce at 2:30 whether Louisiana will begin phase one of reopening of the economy on Saturday. Louisiana’s Republican Congressional Delegation sent a letter to Edwards claiming certain regions meet the criteria for reopening. Congressman Garret Graves says a uniform standard across the state is a flawed approach.
Cut 7 (10) “…other regional jurisdictions.”
Edwards opposes a regional or parish-by-parish reopening.

Coming up at noon today, the Revenue Estimating Conference will attempt to project how much the state will have available to spend next fiscal year. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says the state is bracing for a 500-million to one-point-five billion dollar revenue shortfall…
cut 11 (12) “….the parish level”

Louisiana is ramping up its contact tracing workforce from 70 to 250, with the goal of eventually hiring up to 700 people to track down residents who may have been infected with the coronavirus. Matt Doyle has more…
Cut 3 (30) “…I’m Matt Doyle”

LSU-Shreveport is one of five sites in the world to conduct a nitric oxide clinical trial in the treatment of mild to moderate cases of COVID-19. Brooke Thorington has more.

Cut 1 (30) “I’m Brooke Thorington.”

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A significant drop off is expected in how much money the state will have available to spend next fiscal year. Kevin Barnhart has the story.

Cut 2 (28) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart” 

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Louisiana is ramping up its contact tracing workforce from 70 to 250, with the goal of eventually hiring up to 700 people to track down residents who may have been infected with coronavirus…

Cut 3 (30)  “…I’m Matt Doyle”  

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LSU-Shreveport is one of five sites in the world to conduct a nitric oxide clinical trial in the treatment of mild to moderate cases of COVID-19. Principal Investigator Dr. Keith Scott says patients will inhale very high doses of nitric oxide twice a day.

Cut 4 (11)_ “…a ventilator.”

LSU-Shreveport is already participating in a clinical trial using nitric oxide for severe COVID patients. While Dr. Scott is hopeful for positive results, he says it will be months before researchers know the best possible treatment.

Cut 5 (10)  “…not worked.”

Dr. Scott says the data still must be compiled and analyzed for treating the virus, but they do know that nitric oxide already provides benefits for the lungs.

Cut 6 (06) “…virus also.”

Dr. Scott says they are extremely pleased so far with the results but must do their due diligence with the study.
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Governor John Bel Edwards will announce later today whether Louisiana will begin phase one of reopening of the economy on Saturday. Republicans say it’s time to do so. Louisiana’s Republican Congressional Delegation sent a letter to Edwards claiming certain regions meet the crtieria for reopening.  Congressman Garret Graves says a uniform standard across the state is a flawed approach.

Cut 7 (12) “…other regional jurisdictions.”

Edwards opposes a regional or parish-by-parish reopening.  Graves believes the Governor is not fully taking into consideration the economic consequences of the current plans, adding that there is a way to minimize virus transmission and open businesses to some degree.

Cut 8 (08) “…the adverse implications.”

Edwards has stated he is hopeful Louisiana can enter the first phase of economic reopening this week.

Graves says the economic damage will translate into adverse health effects outside of COVID-19.

Cut 9 (12) “…can be prevented.”__

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The Revenue Estimating Conference meets today to discuss how much money the state will have available to spend next fiscal year and the drop off is expected to be significant. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says every facet of state government will be paying attention to this meeting that begins at noon.

Cut 10 (13) “…are so high.”

Pinsonat says officials have been tight-lipped about what is in the cards, but speculation indicates the shortfall could be anywhere from $500 million to $1.5 billion.

Cut 11 (12) “…the parish level.”

Pinsonat says the economic shutdown will impact the state’s budget for more than a year. He says federal dollars can possibly fill some of the budget holes, but the money from Washington D-C comes with strings attached,..

Cut 12 (12) “…quesiton marks”

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Governor Edwards announces plans to hire up to 700 Louisianans to expand the state’s contact tracing program.

The program will be calling people who tested positive for COVID-19 and asking them to detail anyone who may have been infected by them. Edwards says for those interested in the job…

Cut 13 (11) “…privacy” 

Those interested in the job should email ContactTracing@LA.gocv.

If you are identified as a close contact of a positive case, contact tracers may ask you to self-quarantine for 14 days. Department of Health Assistant Secretary Alex Billioux says that’s the key part of contact tracing.

Cut 14 (10) “…at home”

In the short term, the contact tracing team is being expanded from 70 to 250 members.

Billioux says the program puts privacy at the forefront, and if you are called and asked to quarantine due to COVID exposure…

Cut 15 (10)“…COVID-19.”

Initial call center locations will be based in Lafayette and New Orleans and workers will be trained by LSU’s Stephenson Disaster Management Institute.

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Today state lawmakers will get a better idea of just how much money Louisiana stands to lose in the next budget year as a result of the worldwide pandemic and the collapse in oil prices. The Revenue Estimating Conference will meet to discuss the impact with speculation indicating it could be anywhere from 500 to 1.5 billion dollars in lost revenue. Political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says legislators are agonizing over what these numbers will show…

Cut 10 (13) “…are so high.”

Pinsonat says federal dollars can possibly fill some of the budget holes, but the money comes with strings attached…

Cut 12 (12) “…quesiton marks”

In response to the anticipated revenue drop Baton Rouge Representative Rick Edmonds has presented legislation requiring the government only spend 98 percent of it’s estimated revenue to prevent midyear budget cuts if things are worse than expected.

A proposal to end lawsuits filed by local governments seeking damages for coastal damage done by oil and gas companies is heading to the Senate floor…

Cut 2 (31) “…I’m Jeff Palermo” 

Governor Edwards is expected to announce at his Monday afternoon press conference at the Capitol whether or not the statewide stay at home order will be lifted May 15^th. A resolution is headed to the House floor that would strip the Governor of his authority to enforce the order if he further extends the order.

A bill is heading to the Senate floor that would prevent local governments from pursuing coastal land loss lawsuits against oil and gas companies. There are dozens of lawsuits in the court system from local governments seeking money for coastal damages done by oil and gas companies. Several local leaders testified against the legislation. Jefferson Parish council member Scott Walker…

Cut 7 (07) “.gas responsible”

Proponents of the bill say the lawsuits are frivolous and only the Governor and Attorney General should have the authority to sue companies for coastal damage.

The Louisiana Restaurant Association expects a busy Mother’s Day for members despite coronavirus restrictions. LRA President Stan Harris says his is one of, if not the biggest day for the industry, and recommends if you are ordering take out for Mother’s Day, place your order now.

Cut 4 (10)_ “…afternoon”

The Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana establishes a web tool that tracks COVID-19 data among the state’s different regions.  PAR Louisiana President Robert Travis Scott says having the data presented in plain language helps citizens set expectations of what the Governor may do in the next phase.

Cut 12 (07) “…he might make.”

The web portal for tracking the data can be found at PARLouisiana.org.

Congressman Garret Graves calls a 15 million dollar federal relief payment for Louisiana fisheries insulting. Graves says they’re requesting an investigation into what he calls the “bogus” payments to states that didn’t need them that drained the 300 million dollar fund dry before Louisiana could be properly paid, and hopefully, we can be compensated through other ways.

Cut 15 (09)“Louisiana.”

A controversial bill that could block local governments from suing oil and gas companies for damages to their coastline advances to the full Senate.  Out of all of the lawsuits that have been filed, only one has been tentatively settled. Freeport McMoRan has agreed to pay 100-million dollars to repair coastal damages. St. Bernard Parish President Guy McInnis can’t believe that the state now wants to take that money away

Cut 8 (11) “…my mind”

The legislation passed four to three.

Slidell Senator Sharon Hewitt has pushed for local control when it comes to reopening the economy, but in this case, she says it’s appropriate for the state to manage the coast…

Cut 9 (10) “…not right”

The Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana establishes a web tool that tracks COVID-19 data among the state’s different regions.  PAR Louisiana President Robert Travis Scott says looking at the past two weeks of data, the state as a whole appears to have plateaued metrics, but one region continues to see growth.

Cut 11 (11) “…seen an increase.”

Congressman Garret Graves calls a 15 million dollar federal relief payment for Louisiana fisheries insulting. Graves says the value of our fisheries dwarfs that of other states who received substantially bigger payouts under the CARES Act.

Cut 14 (13) “…insult”

Washington received 50 million, California 18 million, and Florida 23 million. 

A bill is heading to the Senate floor that would prevent local governments from pursuing coastal land loss lawsuits against oil and gas companies. Abbeville Senator Bob Hensgens says his legislation clarifies who has the authority to pursue such litigation and that’s the governor and attorney general.

Cut 6 (09) “…coastal lawsuit.”

There are dozens of lawsuits in the court system from local governments seeking money for coastal damages done by oil and gas companies.

Congressman Garret Graves calls a 15 million dollar federal relief payment for Louisiana fisheries insulting. The money came from a 300 million dollar pot established to help offset the economic impact of the pandemic on fisheries funding. Graves says it’s a lowball payment for the Sportsman’s Paradise…

Cut 13 (09) “…numbers” 

The state is looking to hire up to 700 people to do contact tracing as part of Louisiana’s plan to further restrict the spread of coronavirus. Contact tracers will be tasked with interviewing people who have tested positive to identify any potential people they may have infected, and then contacting those potential infected individuals to ask them to quarantine. Contact tracers will be trained by LSU.