READ: State Health Department announces all of its vaccine appointments are booked
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Mississippi health officer: January will likely be state’s worst month for COVID-19 deaths
State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs made a grim prediction on Thursday: January will likely be Mississippi’s worst month for COVID-19 morbidity of the pandemic.
“Total all-cause mortality rising quickly,” Dobbs tweeted on Thursday. “January will likely be the worst month for COVID deaths by far. Until we get good vaccination penetration and better control over the pandemic please continue to wear a mask in public and avoid social gatherings.”
On Thursday, Mississippi reported 41 new deaths, bringing January’s total COVID-related deaths to 505. January’s deaths through the first 14 days of the month make up 10% of the state’s total COVID deaths of the pandemic. Since March, when the state’s first case was confirmed, 5,356 deaths have been accounted to the virus.
Across the nation, 387,103 have died from COVID-related illnesses, according to the The COVID Tracking Project.
READ MORE: See all of Mississippi’s COVID-19 data here.
The Mississippi State Department of Health also reported a single-day record for deaths, 98, on Tuesday. Mississippians 65 and over, who this week became eligible to receive a vaccine before the state’s available vaccine appointments filled up, continue to represent the vast majority of COVID-19 deaths, accounting for 77% of them since the start of the pandemic.
READ MORE: State Health Department announces all of its vaccine appointments are booked.
As the country expands its vaccination rollout, Mississippi’s COVID-19 numbers have begun to steady after recently setting new records.
The seven-day rolling average for cases reached a new high on Jan. 10 of 2,431, but has since dropped back to around 2,000, where it’s remained since mid-December.
Nationally, Mississippi now ranks 13th in recent cases per capita, according to the Harvard Global Health Institute. As of Sunday, every state was in the “red zone” (recording over 25 daily new cases per 100,000 people).
Total hospitalizations, a lagging indicator, reached a new high on the rolling average on Jan. 8 at 1,474, and has remained around 1,400 since the new year. Hospitalizations have steadily increased for about three months now since mid-October. The number of COVID patients in the ICU also reached a new high, 360, on Jan. 12.
The health department reports that 198,888 people are presumed recovered as of Jan. 10.
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State Health Department announces all of its vaccine appointments are booked
The state Department of Health announced Wednesday that all of its appointments to administer vaccines are booked and no additional doses are available at this time.
“The Mississippi State Department of Health had a vaccine distribution plan in place that has been significantly altered in the last few days – especially in the last 24 hours,” MSDH said in the notice. “Neither the county health department drive-through sites, nor the UMMC vaccine scheduling website was designed to accommodate the monumental surge we are currently experiencing. At this time, we have no additional vaccine, and every appointment is tied to an actual vaccination.”
The notice went on to say that MSDH hopes to receive a large shipment of vaccine in mid-February. A MSDH spokesperson clarified that the announcement only refers to department’s availability, and that private clinics and hospitals schedule their own vaccinations.
READ MORE: Frequently asked questions about COVID-19 vaccines in Mississippi
On its Facebook page, the University of Mississippi Medical Center, which is handling the state’s vaccine scheduling system, said its “site and server were not prepared for the surge of page visits brought on by the announcement yesterday of vaccine availability for all Mississippians 65 and older and those in younger age ranges with underlying conditions.”
After initially making doses available for healthcare workers and long-term care center residents and staff, Gov. Tate Reeves announced last week the roll-out was moving ahead of schedule by opening of appointments for those 75 and older. On Tuesday, the state then expanded eligibility to those 65 and older, as well as those with pre-existing conditions, groups which were initially slated to become eligible in February.
As of Wednesday, the state had administered 73,931 vaccines out of the 264,650 doses it had distributed; about 90,000 of those doses, or 34%, went through the federal pharmacy partnership with CVS and Walgreens.
During a press conference Tuesday, Reeves lamented the slow rollout in hospitals, where less than half of their distributed doses had been administered, as well as at LTCs, where pharmacies attribute the issue to a “lack of personnel.”
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Marshall Ramsey: Mount Impeachmore
Donald Trump is impeached a second time.
READ: Trump impeached for second time; Mississippi House Republicans stick with president
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Senate moves on Mississippi teacher pay raise, licensing issue
The state Senate Education Committee on Wednesday unanimously moved forward a $1,000 pay raise for teachers and assistants and approved a bill providing reciprocity for teachers in other states to more easily get a license to teach here.
“Hopefully this will help address our teacher shortage here in Mississippi,” said Senate Education Chairman Dennis DeBar Jr., R-Leakesville. “… Obviously (a teacher raise) is well deserved, and I would like to see a bigger raise, absolutely, but this is a start.”
Under Senate Bill 2001, which now heads to the full Senate, starting teachers — those with zero to three years experience with a bachelor’s degree, would see a $1,110 increase, bringing their annual pay to $37,000. This is still below the Southeastern regional average of $38,420 and national average of $40,154. A study by the National Education Association of starting teacher salaries for 2018-2019 ranked Mississippi’s pay 46th among states.
Last school year (2019-20) the average salary for a teacher was $46,843, according to the Mississippi Department of Education.
Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann is pushing the pay raise and promising more in subsequent years — a major campaign promise in his successful campaign in 2019.
“It’s bill No. 1, after the (new state) flag,” Hosemann said, and he’s still committed to ongoing raises. “My hope is to get us up to, and then in excess of the Southern average for teachers, particularly for surrounding states that we compete with for teachers.”
Last year, a similar proposed raise passed the Senate but died in the House amid budget uncertainties from the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, Mississippi teachers received a $1,500 raise.
House Speaker Philip Gunn has recently said he wants to provide a teacher pay raise, but state budget numbers will have to be crunched to see if the state can afford one. Gov. Tate Reeves, who also campaigned promising teacher raises, did not include one in his budget recommendation to the Legislature.
The raise would cost about $51 million a year, DeBar said. He noted that a recent report shows the state’s roughly $6 billion budget is running about $325 million above revenue estimates. He and Hosemann said state finances appear sound and the state can afford the teacher raise.
Sen. Chad McMahan, R-Guntown, a member of the Education Committee, said, “I wish it could be more, but it’s important to me as a Republican to get a raise out there this year, but also to make sure it is a raise that taxpayers can afford.”
The committee also approved Senate Bill 2267, a measure to provide license reciprocity for teachers in other states who want to move to the Magnolia State. Several lawmakers reported hearing of problems with teachers moving here getting licensed in a timely manner by the Mississippi Department of Education.
“That’s a No. 1 complaint I hear,” said Sen. Angela Burks Hill, R-Picayune, “is delays in getting licensed, and not getting paid during that time.”
Teachers licensed in other states can now receive a temporary license, but often face problems, delays and red tape in receiving a standard five-year license, lawmakers said.
“The problem here is all the requirements, all the boxes you’ve got to check, and all the other stuff you’ve got to do — it’s a real disincentive to come here from another state,” said Sen. David Blount, D-Jackson, vice chairman of the committee. “Even if they don’t check every box, we would like to trust that local district and that local school board in hiring that teacher.”
DeBar recounted to his colleagues that a teacher from the Juilliard School in New York wanted to move to Mississippi and teach at the School of the Arts, “but for some reason her master’s degree wouldn’t work here and they wanted her to take more credits.”
Mississippi has for years suffered teacher shortages, particularly in poor and rural areas, and that is expected to worsen with increased costs of college tuition and a steep decline in college students completing education preparation programs.
According to a recent report released by Mississippi First, there has been a 32% decline in graduates of educator preparation programs from 2013-2014 to 2017-2018, and the out-of-state pipeline of teachers has diminished almost entirely with a 96% drop in four years.
“Kids are not going into teaching,” Hosemann said. “Part of that is economic, and we want to address that. But we are also looking at reciprocity, and looking at numerous other issues and policies to try to address that.”
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Trump impeached for second time; Mississippi House Republicans stick with president
In the second impeachment vote of President Donald Trump in less than a year, all three of Mississippi’s Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives voted with the minority Wednesday not to impeach President Donald Trump for “incitement of insurrection.”
The U.S. House of Representatives voted 232-197 on Wednesday to impeach Trump after his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 in efforts to overturn the presidential victory of Democrat Joe Biden.
Trump is one of three U.S. presidents to be impeached, and he is the first U.S. president to be impeached on two occasions. Wednesday’s precise impeachment charge, incitement of insurrection, is unprecedented in American history. The U.S. Senate will likely hear the impeachment trial later this month, after Biden is inaugurated, and decide whether to convict Trump and bar him from seeking office in the future.
Though 10 House Republicans voted on Wednesday to impeach Trump, Republican Reps. Trent Kelly of the 1st congressional district in north Mississippi; Rep. Michael Guest of the 3rd district in central Mississippi; and Steven Palazzo of the 4th district in south Mississippi all voted not to impeach the president.
Mississippi’s lone Democratic U.S. representative, Bennie Thompson, whose 2nd district includes much of the Delta and the Jackson area, voted with the majority to impeach the president for his role in inciting rioters who attacked the Capitol in an attempt to force lawmakers to reject the vote count overwhelmingly awarding the November election to Joe Biden.
All three of Mississippi’s House Republicans said impeachment would further divide an already divided country.
But on social media, the Democrat Thompson, who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee, said, “Moving forward with impeachment is divisive, but leading a charge in domestic terrorism isn’t? I think the other side needs help with their messaging.”
Kelly, who along with Guest met with a group of Mississippians who traveled to Washington, D.C., in hopes of overthrowing the election, said, “Today’s actions in the U.S. House of Representatives are not helpful to our nation. This is a time for healing, not division.”
Palazzo echoed similar comments, saying, “I earnestly believe this (impeachment) is the most inappropriate course of action at this time … It is abundantly clear that America is experiencing a time of uncertainty and turmoil, and we do not need to add more fuel to an already burning fire. President-elect Biden will be sworn into office … and, as President Trump promised, there will be a peaceful transition of power on Jan. 20.”
Earlier Guest announced his intentions to vote against the impeachment.
It is not clear when the Senate will take up the impeachment vote, but it is almost certain that by the time the Senate does, Trump will no longer be president.
When the Senate does take up the issue, Sen. Roger Wicker of Tupelo has said he will vote no. While Hyde-Smith has not sent out a statement, in an interview she recently said, “He’s got 10 days and he will leave office and let’s get on with things.”
Hyde-Smith, a staunch Trump ally, is expected to vote against the impeachment.
Hyde-Smith and the other Republicans in the congressional delegation, with the exception of Wicker, also all voted not to certify Biden’s win in Arizona and Pennsylvania on Wednesday – the same that the Capitol was attacked, resulting in five deaths, multiple injuries and widespread destruction. Wicker voted with the majority of Congress to certify the presidential election results of all 50 states.
READ MORE: Mississippi’s GOP congressmen voted to overturn Biden win in Arizona, Pennsylvania.
Late in 2019, Trump was impeached for allegations of trying to force a foreign country to conduct a criminal investigation of the Biden family in exchange for receiving financial support.
All members condemned the Capitol violence.
Many of Mississippi’s elected Republican political leaders have been staunch supporters of the outgoing president. During a news conference on Monday, Republican Gov. Tate Reeves was asked if he thought Trump should resign or be removed from office. Reeves did not answer the question directly.
“I am not dodging the question,” Reeves replied, saying he did not have a vote in the United States House or Senate. He went on to say Trump’s tenure was near the end, and “we need to move on.”
The governor called the riots on the Capitol “disastrous” and said it caused him to “self reflect” on his and others’ political rhetoric. He said people need to accept that differences in America are settled through political debate and legislative bodies, and people “must recognize that is the way our system works.”
Reeves never specifically criticized Trump by name for his actions and rhetoric that have been condemned by both Republicans and Democrats and instead said, “I personally believe the rhetoric of Speaker Pelosi and many of her allies in the House was even more divisive and unnecessary.”
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Mississippians saddled with $507 million in criminal justice debts, preventing future opportunity
In 2019, people who had touched the criminal justice system in Mississippi held $507 million in debt as a result — more than double the $243 million they owed in 2009, according to a new report by the Hope Policy Institute.
While court-ordered financial burdens grow, the minimum wage hasn’t budged and overall inflation-adjusted wages in Mississippi actually dropped in that same timeframe, according to a Mississippi Today analysis.
Even many who finish their sentences — often coined their “debt to society” — are saddled with very literal debts that prevent them from the opportunities they need to thrive outside of prison. The consequences are highly concentrated in the Deep South, the report found, where people are both incarcerated and living in poverty at higher rates. On top of this burden, people exiting jails and prisons are often shut out of financial institutions — in some cases simply as a result of a lack of identification — making it virtually impossible to build wealth for the future.
The researchers found that these people face a domino effect: Because of a lack of identification, they struggle to access traditional banking and loans, leading them to utilize high-cost loans that prevent them from building good credit, which makes it more difficult for them to get a job.
Then, in some cases, their struggle to afford payments towards their court-ordered debts results in further punishment, even re-incarceration.
“In fact, in Mississippi, there are four restitution centers across the state serving as debtor’s prisons as formerly incarcerated individuals work to earn money to pay off court-ordered debts,” the report reads, referencing a Mississippi Today and The Marshall Project investigation.
The setbacks caused by the criminal justice system also overlap with other areas of government and social services, such as the child support system, Mississippi Today also investigated. One man Hope Policy Institute researchers interviewed worked to pay off all of his criminal fines so he could get his driver’s license back, only for it to be suspended three months later because he had gotten behind on child support.
“Basically, I was behind on child support for being in prison for 2 years,” he said.
When he was on parole, he said, “They put pressure on you and try to scare you and say they’ll hold you in violation. But the thing is, I’m on good behavior and I pay my supervision fee of $55 a month for parole… I just found out that I can’t get life insurance because I’m on parole.”
The institute recommends governments and private partners address consequences of this mounting debt by waiving fines and fees within the justice system, creating a small business loan program for the formerly incarcerated and adopting programs that assist people in securing proper identification.
“It is imperative that policy makers prioritize the easing of debt collection practices and prevent the accumulation of debt during incarceration – the costs of which are disproportionately borne by people with low-incomes,” Calandra Davis, policy analyst and author of the report. “Upon re-entry, access to financial services is critical for placing people on a path towards economic security and opportunity.”
Hope Credit Union is working to remove financial barriers for folks exiting the criminal justice system by allowing family members to open accounts on behalf of inmates before their release, accepting alternative identification and non-traditional credit to open accounts and issue loans and offering financial education classes.
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COVID-19 vaccines extended to Mississippians 65+ and those with pre-existing conditions
Mississippians aged 65 and over and those with certain pre-existing conditions are now eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, top health officials announced Tuesday.
Those pre-existing conditions, outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are: cancer, chronic kidney disease, COPD, Down syndrome, heart conditions, immunocompromised conditions, obesity, pregnancy, sickle cell disease, smoking and diabetes. State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs advised that those with other serious medical conditions should still consult their physician to check eligibility.
As of Tuesday, the state has administered 62,744 shots of the vaccine over the last four weeks; that total includes about 5,000 Mississippians who have received their first and second doses.
While the pace of vaccinations has skyrocketed — last week the state health department reported about 23,000 doses administered — only four states have lower rates of administered vaccines per capita than Mississippi, according to the CDC.
Dobbs also expressed concern over the racial disparity in people who’ve received doses; so far 16% of vaccinations have gone to Black Mississippians — 64% of recipients are white, and 19% are listed as “Other.”
“We need to do a better job about making sure we address the concerns about the African American community about getting the vaccine and also about making sure there’s access,” Dobbs said at Tuesday’s press conference.
Gov. Tate Reeves, who joined Dobbs at a Tuesday press conference to announce the expansion of vaccine eligibility, expressed concern over the slow rollout of shots in long-term care facilities as well as at hospitals.
Regarding LTCs, Reeves said the federal program’s partners CVS and Walgreens have attributed the issue to a “lack of personnel,” and said that many states are experiencing similar problems with the federal pharmacy partnership.
“We’re clearly disappointed in the progress in the long-term care project,” Dobbs said. He explained the rollout is taking much longer than anticipated, as some facilities aren’t scheduled to receive visits until February. Dobbs added that if CVS and Walgreens can’t reach LTCs “quickly enough,” individual facilities could be removed from the program and the state could directly provide vaccines instead.
Hospitals have received 104,000 doses, Reeves said, but have administered less than half of those so far.
“They’ve been given an allocation, and in some cases not using them, and that has to stop,” Reeves said, adding that further allocations from the federal government will depend on administration rates, and that slow rollouts at hospitals could cost the state doses. “It’s why we’ve largely supplanted them with state-run drive-thru clinics.”
Reeves added that he expects his next announcement around vaccines will be to expand eligibility to emergency first responders, firefighters, police officers and teachers.
On Tuesday, MSDH reported 98 additional COVID-19 related deaths, the most so far in a single day. Mississippi’s seven-day average for new cases reached a new high on Sunday of 2,431.
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COVID-19 forces charter school to further delay opening
The opening of a new charter school in Jackson has been delayed for the second time because of the coronavirus pandemic, while the fate of the state’s first charter high school is unknown.
Revive Prep, a kindergarten through eighth grade school operated by RePublic Schools, planned to open in August of 2020 but received board approval in 2018 to delay the opening another year to 2021.
On Monday the Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board, the board that oversees charter schools in the state, again approved a request to delay opening an additional year. The school is now scheduled to open in 2022.
The authorizer board in 2018 also allowed RePublic Schools, the Tennessee-based charter school operator, to delay opening RePublic High School. RePublic High School would be the state’s first charter high school.
State law says a charter school may delay its opening for one year, but any extension beyond that requires board approval. RePublic Schools has not submitted an extension request for its planned high school, said Lisa Karmacharya, executive director of the Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board.
“We don’t have all those answers yet,” Karmacharya said when asked whether RePublic will have to re-apply to open the high school. “We’re still working through those logistics because it’s a first for them and for us.”
RePublic Schools currently operates three schools in Jackson.
The group usually needs a window of 12 to 18 months to properly plan for the opening of a school, and the onset of COVID-19 threatened that timeline, said Jon Rybka, CEO of RePublic Schools.
“We were asking ourselves, ‘Do we have the bandwidth to both plan appropriately for Revive as well as figure out what we need to do for our current students?’” he said, referring to the transition to distance learning prompted by the pandemic. “We decided that doing both would be a disservice to existing families, students and staff members.”
Rybka said RePublic made the decision over the summer to delay opening Revive Prep until August of 2022. They are currently interviewing candidates for principal and plan to open the first year with kindergarteners and 5th graders. Additional grades will be added each subsequent year.
“We were thinking specifically about our students in Jackson,” said Rybka, whose organization also operates three charter schools in Nashville, Tenn. “We’ve seen the data nationwide regarding the negative effects of COVID, specifically disproportionately on African American citizens and individuals from low-income backgrounds.”
Rybka said the organization and its teachers have put maximum effort into figuring out how best to educate existing students in the face of the pandemic.
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