Plus, Utah hospitals at breaking point as COVID surges again and Texas effectively nullifies Roe v Wade | | | The Utah Policy newsletter is your one-stop source for political and policy-minded news. Send news tips or feedback to editor@utahpolicy.com. | | |
Situational Analysis | September 1, 2021 Welcome to Wednesday and the beginning of the best month of the year. Be in the Know Utah hospitals are at the breaking point during this latest COVID-19 surge, with zero ICU beds in Utah's referral hospitals. COVID cases among Utah kids are 3.5 times higher now than they were at the start of the last school year. In addition, medical personnel are leaving the field due to the unrelenting stress of the past year-plus. Dr. Marc Harrison, president and CEO of Intermountain is begging Utah residents to "stop the divisiveness," get vaccinated and wear a mask. A Texas law banning abortions after a heartbeat can be detected (around 6 weeks) took effect at midnight when the US Supreme Court took no action on emergency requests to block the bill. What makes this law different is that rather than having officials responsible for enforcing the law, private citizens are authorized to sue abortion providers and anyone involved in facilitating abortions. That could even include the Uber driver who takes a woman to a clinic to get an abortion. Those bringing forward lawsuits also do not need to have any relationship to any of the involved parties. The Supreme Court can still weigh in at a later date as lawsuits continue. | | |
Utah Headlines General From Katrina to Ida: How Utah helps after hurricanes (Deseret News) Headed for disaster: Utah women volunteer to help Hurricane Ida victims (ABC4) Man allegedly sets fires at several LDS churches in St. George, crashes in Zion National Park after police pursuit (Salt Lake Tribune) Perspective: Welcome to âwokeâ university (Deseret News) The State Department just recommended Salt Lake City for recently evacuated Afghans. Hereâs what we know (Deseret News) Theresa Dear: There's no escaping the truth when it comes to sexual harassment allegations (Deseret News) Politics Masks in schools? Utah Gov. Cox pondering public health orders to allow requirements (Deseret News) Advocates want a needle exchange program in St. George to help the cityâs homeless, but not everyoneâs on board (Salt Lake Tribune) What would you do if you ran your city? This Utah voting outreach group wants to know (KSL) COVID Corner 1218 new cases, with 270 in school-aged children, 7 new deaths Some Utahns wait hours in line for COVID-19 testing or even drive to the next county (KUTV) In-Depth: Utah's breakthrough cases of COVID-19 (Fox13) Utah governor questions efficacy of masks amid virus surge (Standard-Examiner) Hereâs what Utah parents need to know if their kid or another student at their school gets COVID-19 (Salt Lake Tribune) Mormon vaccine push ratchets up, dividing faithâs members (AP) âIt couldâve been worseâ: Utah governor wrestles with Covid compromises (Politico) Moderna vaccine creates twice as many antibodies as Pfizer: research (The Hill) A hospital refused to give ivermectin to a covid patient. Then a judge ordered doctors to administer it. (Washington Post) Drought/Wildfires/Heat To save Lake Tahoe, they spared no expense. The fire came over the ridge anyway. (New York Times) Economy BLM resumes oil and gas leasing in Utah (Salt Lake Tribune) IN FOCUS Discussion: Black Business Month (ABC4) Health Utah Thrives podcast: Mental health in anxious times (Utah Foundation) National Headlines General Afghanistan's arc from 9/11 to today: Once hopeful, now sad (AP) Taliban cheer U.S. exit from Afghanistan, vow to enforce Islamic rule. Groupâs leaders inspect Kabul airport and stage mock funerals for U.S. and NATO (Wall Street Journal) American woman describes being left behind in Kabul: 'I don't believe in anybody anymore' (The Hill) Southeast Louisiana residents desperate for food, power, water and help in Idaâs aftermath (Washington Post) Social Security costs expected to exceed total income in 2021 as COVID-19 takes financial toll (Wall Street Journal) Politics Biden's top-down booster plan sparks anger at FDA (Politico) McCarthy says GOP 'will not forget' if firms hand records to Jan. 6 panel (The Hill) Texas school puts its first black principal on leave in furor over Critical Race Theory. He says the district is making him the boogeyman instead of supporting him. (The Hill) Paul Ryan says former President Donald Trump lost the 2020 election (WISN) Biden defends Afghan pullout and declares an end to nation-building, offering a new vision for US foreign policy (New York Times) Trump national security adviser briefs House GOP on Afghanistan (Axios) Oklahoma congressman threatened embassy staff as he tried to enter Afghanistan, U.S. officials say (Washington Post) Courts Supreme Court allows Texasâ 6-week abortion ban to take effect (Politico) Economy EXCLUSIVE Amazon CEO unveils 55,000 tech jobs in his first hiring push (Reuters) U.S. childcare in short supply as burned-out workers quit, new hires hard to find (Reuters) Elections The Texas GOP passed a major bill to cement the state as one of the most difficult in the country in which to vote (New York Times) Sen. Ron Johnson says ânothing obviously skewed about the resultsâ of Trumpâs election loss in Wisconsin (Washington Post) | | |
Policy News Media, public invited to participate in Fall 2021 Utah Unclaimed Property Webathon on Wed., Sept. 1 to help reunite lost money with rightful owners The Utah Unclaimed Property Division of the Office of State Treasurer is hosting a webathon on Wednesday, September 1 to raise awareness of unclaimed property and encourage Utahns to find and claim their lost money online. The six-hour event will take place online at treasurer.utah.gov/UPwebathon, as well as on Facebook and YouTube. During the event, the division will post live statistics and information about unclaimed property. Several guests, including claimants, nonprofit organizations and elected officials, will join the online conversation to share their unclaimed property experiences. (Read More) How clean is indoor air, really? University of Utah Health, Salt Lake County studying air quality inside familiesâ homes to minimize illness When the air outside is visibly thick with a brown and yellow haze of pollutants, Salt Lake County families retreat indoors, where it is arguably safer to breathe. But, what if itâs not? University of Utah Health and Salt Lake County kicked off a new scientific study of local indoor and outdoor air quality, which aims to better understand the status of air quality in at-risk familiesâ homes across the valley, from the summerâs smoke and heat to the winterâs inversions. âIt is critical to not only improve the air we breathe outside but understand and improve the air the most vulnerable among us breathe inside their homes as well if we are going to protect the safety of residents and ensure a healthier future,â Mayor Jenny Wilson said. (Read More) Owens sponsors bill to award Congressional Gold Medals to fallen service members Rep. Burgess Owens (UT-04), alongside 158 cosponsors, introduced legislation to posthumously award the Congressional Gold Medal to the 13 U.S. military service members who were killed in Afghanistan last week. The legislation will award the Congressional Gold Medal to Staff Sgt. Taylor Hoover, Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo, Sgt. Nicole Gee, Cpl. Hunter Lopez, Cpl. Daegan Page, Cpl. Humberto Sanchez, Cpl. David Lee Espinoza, Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz, Lance Cpl. Rylee McCollum, Lance Cpl. Dylan Merola, Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui, Navy Corpsman Maxton Soviak, and Staff Sgt. Ryan Knauss. (Read More) Salt Lake Chamber honored business and community leaders at 2021 annual meeting and awards luncheon Utahâs business and community leaders gathered for the Salt Lake Chamberâs 134th Annual Meeting. Attendees recognized Chamber volunteers and community leaders who have shown exemplary support over the past year by committing their time and abilities to advance the Chamberâs mission and bolster the business community. âOvercoming the challenges of the past year have taken the best of our talents and coming together to solve problems to ensure we fully emerge from the pandemic stronger than ever,â said Derek Miller, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber and Downtown Alliance. âThe leadership exemplified by our outgoing Chair Craig Wagstaff, to our mission-driven Chamber team, and allies across the community have inspired many to dig deeper and give more. The important work the Chamber performs to advocate for maintaining our friendly business climate, building capacity in our community and connecting people for the greater good has stood the test of time. I am honored we get to celebrate these leaders of change as they helped us all navigate uncharted territory with steady hands.â (Read More) | | |
How Utah County gets reliable and trusted COVID and vaccine information to residents By Aislynn Tolman-Hill The Delta variant has presented local officials with new challenges, which has resulted in rapidly evolving health protocols. Itâs imperative that local health departments and government officials have a line of communication to residents to share reliable information. County health departments throughout the state are using Facebook COVID Alerts to get reliable, trusted information to residents about the latest COVID news and ways to get vaccinated. Many local governments and agencies, including Utah County Public Health, are using Facebookâs local alerts to provide timely COVID updates, information about vaccines, resources for getting vaccinated and latest requirements around masks and social distancing. These real-time alerts are one critical tool to keep communities informed amid the increased uncertainty. Utah County Public Health recently used Facebook Alerts to provide updates on drive through vaccine clinics in Saratoga Springs, North Utah County, and Spanish Fork. âUtah County Health Department sees direct and substantial results when using Facebook alerts in conjunction with a Facebook post. Once the alert is approved, within minutes we have a sustained rush of people signing up for COVID vaccine appointments. We are using the alerts for each of our drive-thru vaccination events and see this rush for signups each time. This service is an incredible resource for public health at this critical time.â â Utah County Public Health âEmpowering state and local health departments with new ways to get timely information into the hands of Utah residents can have an enormous impact in decreasing the spread of COVID and help people make smart decisions about the health of themselves and their families. Facebook created COVID Alerts for this purpose and we have seen health departments like Utah County use these alerts to get updated information about vaccine availability and the Delta Variant to Utah residents. â Will Castleberry, Vice President of State Policy at Facebook As we learn more and the situation evolves, local governments will continue to utilize Facebook COVID Alerts to keep their communities up to date in a timely and efficient manner. Aislynn Tolman-Hill is the Public Information Officer for the Utah County Health Department | | |
Upcoming Naming ceremony for the Orrin G. Hatch United States Courthouse â Sept 2, @ 12 pm Email events@orrinhatchfoundation.org
for the Zoom link Utah Foundation Annual Luncheon with Shaylyn Romney Garrett â Sept 23 @ 12 pm. Register here | | |
On This Day In History From History.com 1807 - Aaron Burr is acquitted of treason on the grounds that, although he had conspired against the United States by plotting to annex parts of Louisiana and Spanish territory in Mexico, he was not guilty of treason because he had not engaged in an âovert act.â 1850 - P.T. Barnum brings European opera star Jenny Lind to New York 1914 - The worldâs last known carrier pigeon dies at the Cincinnati Zoo. 1932 - Forrest E. Mars introduces the Mars Bar. 1933 - Anne Richards is born. She became the second woman elected governor of Texas when she won her race in 1990. 1939 - Adolf Hitler orders the extermination of the mentally ill 1972 - Bobby Fischer becomes the first American to win the World Chess Championship 1983 - Korean Airlines flight 007 is shot down by the Soviet Union, killing all 269 passengers and crew. 1985 - The wreckage of the Titanic is found on the ocean floor Wise Words âIf you aren't at the table, you are on the menu.â -Governor Ann Richards Lighter Side A man tells his doctor, "Doc, help me! I'm addicted to Twitter." The doctor replies, "Sorry - I don't follow you...." (Readers Digest) | | |
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