Good morning, and welcome to Thursday, the first day of December.
About 15,000 members of the Minnesota Nurses Association in the Twin Cities and Duluth have authorized a strike.MPR's Michelle Wiley reports the vote announced late Wednesday night allows a strike to be called with 10 days notice. The union has not said when a work stoppage might happen. Union nurses walked out in a three-day strike in September that impacted more than a dozen hospitals. Pay and staffing levels are the primary concerns raised by nurses. The union is expected to say more later this morning.
Gov. Tim Walz is expressing openness to a big health care merger between Minneapolis-based Fairview Health Services and Sioux Falls-based Sanford Health.The Star Tribune reports: Asked whether the door was more open for a deal now than it was a decade ago, Walz said, "I think that's correct." But the governor also said: "There's a lot of work to be done left in it." Walz, who represented southern Minnesota in Congress for over a decade, said a "tough" environment for rural health care has strained health systems' ability to provide needed care and remain financially viable. He also said those economics have necessitated mergers.
Your neighbor may have a vastly different view of America than you do. That's the conclusion of this piece from the Associated Press centered in Hudson, Wisconsin: John Kraft loves this place. He loves the quiet and the space. He loves that you can drive for miles without passing another car. But out there? Out beyond the cornfields, to the little western Wisconsin towns turning into commuter suburbs, and to the cities growing ever larger? Out there, he says, is a country that many Americans wouldn't recognize. It's a dark place, dangerous, where freedom is under attack by a tyrannical government, few officials can be trusted and clans of neighbors might someday have to band together to protect one another. It's a country where the most basic beliefs — in faith, family, liberty — are threatened. And it's not just about politics anymore. "It's no longer left versus right, Democrat versus Republican," says Kraft, a software architect and data analyst. "It's straight up good versus evil."
Meanwhile, many people in rural Minnesota are concerned that heating assistance grants aren't keeping up with the cost of staying warm this winter.MPR's Dan Gunderson has the story: The MAHUBE OTWA Community Action Agency, which serves five north central Minnesota counties, is hearing from many people surprised by the much smaller energy assistance grants this year. "We're hearing concerns every day, staff here are fielding telephone calls, people have sent in letters asking for a redetermination. We're definitely seeing some frustration with the funding levels," said Dan Josephson, director of energy programs for MAHUBE OTWA. Josephson said so far this year, the average heating assistance grant is $580 dollars. Last year the average was $1,199. That discrepancy is similar statewide. "Funding is about half as much, it's actually less than half of what it was last year. So that's why folks are seeing a reduction in those benefits," said Michael Schmitz, Energy Assistance Program Director at the Minnesota Department of Commerce.
The list of conditions that qualify people for the state's medical marijuana program is expanding, reports MPR's Andrew Krueger. The Minnesota Department of Health said Wednesday that starting next August, people with irritable bowel syndrome and obsessive-compulsive disorder can receive medical cannabis — with certification from a health-care provider. "We are adding the new qualifying conditions to allow patients more therapy options for conditions that can be debilitating," Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm said. In its announcement Wednesday, the health department said "research has shown that people who suffer from these conditions can see benefits from using medical cannabis to treat their symptoms."
Gov. Walz said Wednesday it's time for the Legislature to step in and act on voting rights for thousands of people. MPR's Dana Ferguson reports Walz told MPR News he wants lawmakers to act quickly to restore voting rights to non-incarcerated felons in Minnesota. The Minnesota Supreme Court heard arguments in the case on Nov. 30 of last year, but justices have yet to issue an opinion on whether to extend voting rights to those who remain on parole. As many as 50,000 Minnesotans with felony records who are still serving out their sentences could be affected. "I've supported the ability for restoration of voting rights since I first ran for Congress. I think now is the time to do that," Walz said. "All voices need to be heard. And these are folks that are being excluded from the democratic process, in my opinion wrongfully."
The executive director of Minnesota's State Board of Investment said Wednesday that her staff would begin charting a path forward with climate change in mind. After a series of presentations and reports from an outside consulting firm, director Jill Schurtz said the board would review current and future investments with an eye toward their carbon impact. "We accept that this is an important and complex topic, our expectation is that we'll develop a roadmap for establishing an appropriate strategic framework for climate change risk and energy transition opportunities," Schurtz said. "And in the meantime, we want to assure you that we are clear regarding our duty as fiduciaries, we are charged with considering all material risks and opportunities. And we will continue to do so in our everyday work." Walz and other board members have urged the state to limit investments with long-term carbon risk exposure, and he said the board's move was a step in the right direction.
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