Category: Rural Headlines

EXCERPT: “Minnesota will be opening a number of saliva testing sites around the state in the coming days and weeks, said MDH Assistant Commissioner Dan Huff. A site at Duluth Entertainment Convention Center is currently open and runs Wednesday through Sunday; a facility at Winona Mall will open Wednesday and run Wednesday through Sunday; a facility at ...

EXCERPT: “The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is partnering with local public health officials and other community partners to offer access to free, no-barrier COVID-19 testing the week of Oct. 12 in Anoka, Faribault, Luverne, Alexandria, Aitkin, and St. Cloud. As always with no-barrier testing opportunities, this testing will be free, available to anyone who wants ...

EXCERPT: “Today, the LeadingAge Minnesota Foundation (LAMF) is releasing a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a rural grant project called Connected Communities for Healthy Aging. This grant program will fund two Connected Communities pilots to design and implement a local coordinated system of care that supports the physical, emotional, and social needs of seniors in the ...

EXCERPT: “Minnesota communities, schools and their partners are invited to apply for funding on local projects that enhance transportation goals, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation. More than $6.2 million is available in federal funding through the Transportation Alternatives program in Greater Minnesota (each region has a sub-targeted fund). This program offers a competitive grant ...

EXCERPT: “Now that more Minnesota school districts are opting for either full-time remote instruction or a hybrid model that requires students to log on from home for part of the week, many advocates, families and school officials are increasingly worried about the lack of equity in the virtual classroom this fall. About three weeks into the ...

EXCERPT: “David Usher is sitting on $1.7 million he’s scared to spend. The money lent from the federal government is meant to help hospitals and other health care providers weather the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet some hospital administrators have called it a payday loan program that is now, brutally, due for repayment at a time when they ...

EXCERPT: “As the push for electric cars continues, with policymakers counting on their increasing use to curb greenhouse gas emissions, one question continues to bedevil would-be electric-vehicle drivers: ‘How far can I drive before I need a charge?’ Late last month, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency took a step toward alleviating that concern by announcing that it ...

EXCERPT: “The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services today released a notice of funding opportunity for rural communities across the country. Under the Community Health Access and Rural Transformation Model Community Transformation Track, CMS will award grants to up to 15 rural communities to work with healthcare providers and payers. The goal of this initiative is to ...

EXCERPT: “State health and safety officials are stepping up efforts to ensure all bars and restaurants are safe for customers and employees. Compliance teams from the Minnesota Departments of Public Safety (DPS), Health (MDH), Labor and Industry (DLI) and Agriculture (MDA) visited more than 150 bars and restaurants in several communities over the past two ...