Good morning, and happy Monday.
As the opioid epidemic continues, there’s a new problem: a shortage of workers at treatment centers.MPR’s Michelle Wiley reports that several of the state’s 16 opioid treatment clinics say they’ve struggled this year to hire and retain licensed drug counselors, but that staff burnout is high and experienced people are leaving for jobs with less pressure and paperwork. It’s left many clinics short-staffed and operating over capacity as they try to serve people who desperately want treatment. State health officials say they’re working on a broad project to reduce administrative burdens on clinics and counselors but caution that it’s premature to point to specific plans.
The House Jan. 6 committee holds what is likely to be its final public meeting later today.NPR reports the panel will vote on criminal referrals against former President Donald Trump on at least three charges: insurrection, obstruction of an official proceeding of Congress and conspiracy to defraud the United States, according to a source familiar with the committee's plans but not authorized to speak publicly. Insurrection is rarely prosecuted as a criminal charge. Referrals do not carry any legal weight or compel the Justice Department to act.
And some Trump supporters in Minnesota are now looking for other options,the Star Tribune reports.
Some of those charged in the Feeding Our Future fraud case are still collecting daycare subsidies from the state of Minnesota. The Star Tribune reports: Altogether, the Department of Human Services has shelled out at least $22 million in the past five years to 11 daycare centers that were owned or managed by 14 people who have been indicted on federal charges of defrauding the meals program, according to a Star Tribune review of secretary of state filings and DHS payment records. DHS officials said they are reviewing ties to everyone charged in the federal meals probe, but added they can't ban anyone from participating in the department's programs based on unrelated fraud allegations. The disclosures are raising new questions about the department's diligence at rooting out fraud, which first erupted in 2018 over reports of widespread wrongdoing by daycare owners. Though some legislators praise the department for addressing weaknesses later identified by the legislative auditor, others say DHS continues to struggle with attacking potential fraud.
This story from Jana Shortal at KARE raises an issue likely to come up during the legislative session: John is a lawyer in private practice, while Ashlie is a lawyer and works for the state of Minnesota's judicial branch. Last winter, baby No. 3 was on the way. But the worst possible thing happened and their daughter was stillborn. Two weeks after the birth, they held her funeral. And one week after her funeral, Ashlie heard from her employer — the state of Minnesota. They said it was time to come back to work, even though she already had approved parental leave. "And what came from that conversation was them expressly saying I met all the qualifications, but the intent of the policy is for bonding," Ashlie said. "And because my baby died, that I was no longer bonding with her and no longer qualified under the policy." Yes, she met all the qualifications, but the state said the policy also had an intent — and she didn't meet that intention. "It feels like gaslighting because it doesn't make legal sense or rational sense," John said. "And if you wanted the intent in the policy, you should have put it there."
When Democrats take control of the full Legislature next month they’re likely to take aggressive steps to stop the spread of chronic wasting disease in deer. MinnPost reports: Minnesota farms that raise elk and deer for meat or captive hunts could soon face sharp limits from DFL lawmakers concerned about a critical disease risk to wild herds. Chronic wasting disease, a fatal neurological illness, continues to spread in Minnesota. While Republicans in the past have protected the cervid farms, Democrats now have the upper hand in an emotional debate over the existence of the businesses — and their potential impact on Minnesota’s lucrative wild hunting industry. State Rep. Rick Hansen, a DFLer from South St. Paul, said he will try again to pass a moratorium on new deer farms, among other restrictions, since his party has total control of state government after flipping the Minnesota Senate in the November election. Sen. John Marty, a Roseville Democrat, also said a moratorium should be a starting point for lawmakers. “When you’re dealing with disease, stopping the bleeding — metaphorically — is what a moratorium does,” said Hansen, who chairs the House’s Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy Committee. “A moratorium is the minimum, not the answer.”
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