[image_credit]MinnPost photo by Peter Callaghan[/image_credit]In the Star Tribune, Christopher Snowbeck writes: “HealthPartners is furloughing 2,600 workers in the latest sign that financial shocks from COVID-19 are hitting hospitals and clinics along with the rest of the economy. Chief Executive Andrea Walsh is taking a 40% pay cut, according to a Thursday announcement from HealthPartners, while other executive leaders will see compensation cut by 30%. The Bloomington-based nonprofit group operates seven hospitals, dozens of clinics and a large health insurance business. It’s the latest in a series of prominent health care groups in Minnesota to announce furloughs and pay cuts as a statewide halt to nonemergency surgeries saps revenue.”
In the Pioneer Press, Nick Woltman writes: “Organizers on Thursday canceled what would’ve been the 40th annual Hmong International Freedom Festival in St. Paul over concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic. The two-day event, which brings together food, dancing and athletic competition, was scheduled for the Fourth of July weekend at McMurray Fields in Como Park.”
KSTP-TV reports: “More and more cases are being linked to a Ham Lake man who was arrested last week after a years-long investigation. Jory Wiebrand, 34, is charged in connection with a 2019 sexual assault in Minneapolis, and sources told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS he’s being investigated in at least four other attempted assaults dating back to 2013.”
The Star Tribune’s Jim Spencer writes: “The union that represents the majority of America’s meatpackers and food processors called Thursday for national guidelines to protect those workers from COVID-19 outbreaks that have led to 13 deaths, hundreds of cases of COVID-19 and thousands of exposures. The explosion of the new coronavirus in an industry where employees often work shoulder to shoulder has caused temporary closures of 13 plants across the country, including in Minnesota.”
Also in the Pioneer Press, Andy Greder says, “Gophers football coach P.J. Fleck is among the approximately 200 senior leaders at the University of Minnesota volunteering to take an unpaid week to help stem expected revenue losses from the coronavirus pandemic. ‘We were glad to,’ said Fleck, who was slated to receive $4.5 million this year. Wife ‘Heather and I immediately jumped on it. Anything we can do to continue to help.’”
The Star Tribune’s Pam Louwagie writes from Sioux Falls, “Inside Jokerz Casino, one of many small gambling storefronts dotting this South Dakota city, Yvonne Jones sat before an electronic machine betting a dollar at a time. It was a rare respite from thoughts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Jones, who lives alone, was grateful. … But the casino attendant serving beers to the patrons around her was dubious. ‘I did not sign up for making minimum wage and doing this,’ said the attendant, who wouldn’t give her name for fear of her losing job. … South Dakota’s approach to handling the COVID-19 pandemic is drawing national attention after an explosion of cases in a local meatpacking facility. With no statewide stay-at-home order in place, some critics are questioning whether fewer restrictions on businesses is gambling with residents’ health.”
Says a WCCO-TV story, “Mayor Jacob Frey signed an emergency regulation to provide guidance on what those working and living in senior and assisted living centers should do to protect the most vulnerable. About 90% of the Minneapolis’ COVID-19 deaths have happened in congregate facilities. Frey saw the need to enact more prevention measures in the city. … He reports 32 of the first 35 deaths in Minneapolis have been at these facilities That led to an emergency regulation to make sure the 230 facilities in the city are on the same page.”
At Fox Business Brittany De Lea reports, “As more U.S. small businesses gear up for their chance to get a loan from the federal government, with plans to replenish funding for the Paycheck Protection Program in the works, experts are cautioning that loan forgiveness may be a little more complicated than business owners expect. ‘What’s becoming evident is on the forgiveness side, it is going to be a little more difficult than they realize,’ Robert Spence, a certified financial planner at Raymond James, told FOX Business. ‘The devil’s in the details … When u look at some of the specifics, the forgivable portion will be lower than people were thinking.’”
The Pioneer Press’ Chris Tomasson writes: “The Vikings on Thursday night made Cris Carter and Tommy Kramer happy. Minutes before the Vikings’ No. 22 pick in the first round of the NFL draft, the former stars of the team had called on Twitter for them to take LSU wide receiver Justin Jefferson. Minnesota then complied. The Vikings then traded down with San Francisco in the first round from No. 25 to No. 31, and took TCU cornerback Jeff Gladney. The Vikings also got the No. 117 pick in the fourth round and the No. 176 selection in the fifth from the 49ers.”
