Once again, Mississippi has made national news. Listen to Dr. Dobbs — don’t take cow medicine.
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NextGen: Millennials and Gen-Z Mississippians respond to state issues
NextGen is a Mississippi Today project devoted to digging deep into the realities of why Mississippians stay or leave. Our survey asked Mississippi’s millennials and Gen Z about current issues facing the state and its capital, Jackson, including factors that have influenced their decision to relocate out of the state or not, what future changes they would like to see addressed and more.
View our Data Dive into some of the most popular and interesting answers of the 1,113 responses collected. Skip ahead to any of the questions using the buttons below.
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Do you believe that the city of Jackson must thrive for Mississippi to thrive? Please explain your answer either way.
— No. The city of Jackson is just another city in MS. They ALL need to thrive in order for the state to thrive.
— Absolutely. People are not attracted to move to cities that consist mainly of suburbs. As a native, I even get spooked visiting the empty downtown, and visiting places of business spread out in the neighboring counties is tiresome. Jackson needs walkable communities. It’s too spread out and segregated by class and race for any of its population to “thrive.”
— Yes. Without a thriving capital, we cannot hope to have a healthy state.
— No, I don’t. The same problem(s) exist all over Mississippi.
What do you desire or need more of in Jackson? In Mississippi?
— Safety
— Jobs
— There needs to be better schools and more opportunities for young people, more entertainment and cultural opportunities for young people as well. Boredom leads these young people down a path of drugs and hopelessness.
— Open minded, forward thinking, progressive leaders
— LGBT protections
— Better leadership that is more representative of the state’s people.
— More incentives to move back — whether it be new developments or housing payment plans or the myriad of options other states are pursuing to attract young people, we need it.
What problems do state of Mississippi leaders need to address for a better future?
— Infrastructure
— Education
— Crime
— Raising minimum wage
— Racism
— The nepotism of our political leaders – it’s not just passing from Father to son, but the same group of people always in leadership positions.
— Accessibility to technology, accessibility to clean and safe water, accessibility and increased presence (I do not mean increased police presence) of support of vulnerable communities.
What problems do city of Jackson leaders need to address for a better future?
— Infrastructure
— Education
— Crime
— Water issues
— City of Jackson is behind the eight ball until state leader realize that human rights and black rights are the same. Cities across the US have the same problem: apathy. Jackson could be a shining example of an opportunity won, not lost. Fix the pipes, bring educational leadership to the capital, and lead from the front on equal rights for all people–LGBTQ, black, brown, AAIP, everyone.
— Jackson has a quality of life problem. The majority of people live there because they have to, not because they want to. 50 years ago it was the exact opposite–Jackson needs to figure out WHY that was the case, and try to recreate it.
— More and better quality housing for lower income families
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UMMC to require students and employees receive COVID-19 vaccine by Nov. 1
The University of Mississippi Medical Center announced an amendment to its vaccination policy on Friday that will require, with limited exceptions, employees and students to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by November.
UMMC first announced a vaccine requirement on July 15, but it was not set to be triggered until the mRNA COVID vaccines received full approval from the Food and Drug Administration. Originally, staff and students were going to be allowed to wear an N95 mask until then, but that will no longer be a sufficient substitute for being vaccinated.
Dr. Alan Jones, UMMC’s associate vice chancellor for clinical affairs and COVID-19 clinical response leader, announced the policy change in an internal letter on Friday and said that the revised policy was motivated by the recent increase in cases and hospitalizations sparked by the Delta variant.
“COVID-19 in Mississippi is a raging wildfire, but not everyone is helping throw water on the flames in their own backyard,” Jones wrote. “We, as an institution and as the workforce for the state’s leading health system, need to be a leader in this fight.”
In the internal memo, Jones cited this graph created by Financial Times with data from John Hopkins University that shows Mississippi is leading the world in new COVID-19 cases per capita.
“Taking steps to protect our patients is priority one. And having a fully vaccinated health care workforce is the only way to meet that standard,” Jones wrote.
The vaccination policy will be implemented across three phases. Managers and supervisors will be required to show proof of vaccination by Sept. 15, all other employees by Oct. 1 and students by Nov. 1. There will be a limited exemption policy, and any employee or student who wants a special accommodation must submit a request by Sept. 10.
Many colleges and universities across the country have already announced vaccination mandates for the coming school year, as have many health care providers and other employers. In Mississippi, UMMC is the first public higher ed institution to require the COVID-19 vaccine for students.
The delta variant has considerably increased the already high risks posed by the virus to unvaccinated people. Between July 20 and Aug. 16, 98% of the nearly 58,000 COVID-19 infections in Mississippi were among the unvaccinated. During that period, the same group also accounted for 89% of hospitalizations and 86% of deaths.
Dr. LouAnn Woodward, UMMC’s chief executive, gave a blunt speech on Tuesday where she decried the decision of so many Mississippians to decline the vaccine, despite the great protection to offers for them and their families.
“We as a state, as a collective, have failed to respond in a unified way to a common threat,” Woodward said. We have failed to use the tools that we have to protect ourselves, to protect our families, to protect our children, and to protect our state. “
There has been a significant uptick in vaccinations in Mississippi in recent weeks due to the havoc the delta variant is wreaking across the state and its healthcare system. However, despite the wide availability of vaccines and the risks posed by variants, Mississippi continues to rank last in the nation in the number of vaccine doses given per capita. With over 2.4 million shots administered, only 36% of Mississippians have been fully vaccinated.
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Jason Isbell calls off Brandon concert because venue won’t require proof of COVID vaccine or negative test
Jason Isbell, a Grammy-winning Americana/Roots artist, has canceled his Oct. 8 concert at the city-owned Brandon Amphitheater in Rankin County.
Isbell was one of the first of what is now a growing number of national musical acts to require a COVID-19 vaccination or proof of a negative coronavirus test for concert attendees.
On Friday afternoon, Southeastern Records, the label founded by Isbell, said on social media that Isbell and his band, The 400 Unit, would no longer be performing in Brandon.
“Unfortunately, the powers that be were not willing to comply with the band’s updated health and safety standards,” the label said on social media.
State Rep. Fred Shanks, R-Brandon, who also is the general manager for the Brandon Amphitheater, said earlier this week that the Brandon board of aldermen was working “with his people” to try to reach an agreement. Shanks could not be reached for comment Friday.
As COVID-19 cases soar across the country, Isbell has stated that his requirement of a vaccine or negative COVID-19 test within the past 48 hours to attend his concerts was initiated in an attempt to ensure public safety, and to try to prevent the shutdown of live music that occurred earlier in the pandemic before vaccines were available.
“I don’t think it’s fair to the audience or to the crews at the venues or to my crew to put people in a situation where they’re possibly risking their lives or taking the virus home to their kids, or they go to school and give it to other kids,” Isbell said in a lengthy interview with Rolling Stone. “It just didn’t feel right. I pride myself, and I have always prided myself, on being successful at a job where nobody gets hurt.”
He added, “That little thing that I love the most about the job that I have is the fact that it spreads something positive. I want to protect that. I don’t want to spread positive tests. I want to spread positive vibes.”
Isbell already has scheduled a concert for Oct. 8 at the Graceland Soundstage in Memphis to replace the Brandon show.
It is not clear whether the COVID-19 surge will impact any other shows in Brandon. Mississippi, per capita, currently has the most COVID-19 cases in the world, and venues in the state are following Isbell’s lead.
Duling Hall, located in the Fondren area of Jackson, has announced people will need a vaccination or a proof of a negative COVID-19 test within the past 48 hours to attend any of the multiple concerts scheduled for the venue starting Aug. 30.
“Implementing this measure will allow musicians to earn a living, our staff to be employed and live music to have a place in society again,” a Duling Hall social media statement said.
The Lyric Theater in Oxford has instituted the same guidelines for its shows.
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Photo gallery: UMMC and the rise of COVID-19
View a gallery of photos taken by photographers from University of Mississippi Medical Center Communications showing a behind-the-scenes look at the recent rise of COVID-19 cases inside the state’s largest medical center.
READ MORE OF OUR COVERAGE: ‘We are in trouble’: Dr. LouAnn Woodward delivers desperate plea to Mississippians as COVID crisis worsens
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Infectious diseases nurse practitioner Spencer Brooks puts on personal protective equipment before checking on a COVID-19 patient in the intensive care unit at Children’s of Mississippi. -
From left, Samaritan’s Purse nurse Angela Schear, UMMC medical technologist Jennifer Casey, Samaritan’s Purse nurses Teresa Pritchett and Gina LaFountain, and UMMC medical technologist Leanna Walters prepare for the opening of a 32-bed field hospital August 18 in Parking Garage C. -
Taylor Sisson, business administrator for the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, distributes COVID vaccination stickers to the department’s faculty and residents August 11. The stickers signify the wearer is vaccinated. -
Pediatric critical care assistant professor Dr. Laura Wright-Sexton leads rounds inside the intensive care unit at Children’s of Mississippi. -
Registered nurses Haley Williams, left, and Abagael Mathis, center, sanitize their PPE shields after checking on a COVID-19 patient in the intensive care unit at Children’s of Mississippi. -
Dr. Andy Wilhelm, division chief of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, walks past a row of Samaritan’s Purse field hospital tents set up in UMMC’s Parking Garage C. -
Nancy Smith with the Samaritan’s Purse Disaster Assistance Response Team stocks supplies at the field hospital operated by Samaritan’s Purse in UMMC’s Parking Garage C. -
Hospital beds line the walls inside the Samaritan’s Purse field hospital in UMMC’s Parking Garage C. -
From left, J.T. Berrinson and Billy Lewis, members of Colonial Heights Baptist Church, assist Samaritan’s Purse team members in setting up a field hospital at UMMC. -
UMMC clinical informatics pharmacist J.P. Stokes preps for the opening of the pharmacy tent inside the Samaritan’s Purse field hospital in UMMC’s Parking Garage C. -
Registered nurse Emily Alpers gathers nursing scrubs for use in the Samaritan’s Purse field hospital in UMMC’s Parking Garage C. -
Dr. Elliot Tenpenny, director of Samaritan’s Purse’s international health unit, gives Dr. LouAnn Woodward, vice chancellor of health affairs and dean of the School of Medicine, a tour of the Samaritan’s Purse field hospital in UMMC’s Parking Garage C. -
Registered nurse Abagael Mathis checks on a COVID-19 patient in the pediatric intensive care at Children’s of Mississippi. -
Raelene Jarvis of Oregon, a health care provider with the National Disaster Medical System team, tries out the computer system in the field hospital devoted to COVID-19 patients that opened August 13 in Parking Garage B. -
A row of beds for low-acuity COVID-19 patients is part of a field hospital that opened August 12 in Parking Garage B. -
Ronald Turner puts sheets on a hospital bed before the opening of a COVID-19 field hospital August 12 in UMMC’s Parking Garage B. -
Registered nurse Maria Wilson prepares to go into a room in an area inside the UMMC Emergency Department devoted to COVID-19 patients. -
Phlebotomist Deanna Baber sanitizes her PPE while working in a UMMC Emergency Department space devoted to COVID-19 patients. -
UMMC Emergency Department technician Abby Oliver takes the temperatures of patients waiting to be treated and admitted. -
Medical assistant Banca Wallace administers a COVID-19 test to anesthesiology resident Dr. Kelsie Huffman. -
Registered nurse Helen Ann Campbell checks on Keelyn Green, a Jackson high-schooler recovering at Children’s of Mississippi from a serious bout with COVID-19. -
Reid Rankin, RN, cleans a visor outside a COVID-19 patient room on 2 North. -
COVID-19 patient rooms can be identified by the supply of PPE hanging from their door. -
Registered nurse Matt Harris cleans his protective visor after leaving a COVID-19 patient’s bedside in the medical ICU. -
Registered nurse Steve Donnell helps a care team move a COVID-19 patient into a new bed in the medical intensive care unit. -
Medical ICU registered nurses Matt Harris, center, and Steve Donnell, right, join a team preparing to move a COVID-positive patient into a new bed August 11. -
Matt Harris, RN, on the Medical ICU. -
Signs of the times are seen on the door to Employee and Student Health on the UMMC campus. -
Registered nurse Elizabeth Sullivan places her photo on a fifth-floor bulletin board in the Batson Tower at Children’s of Mississippi. The board shows the floor’s care team without their face masks to patients and families. -
Registered Nurse Taylor Curtis cares for patient Avery Mitchell in the PICU of the Kathy and Joe Sanderson Towers at Children’s of Mississippi.
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MEMA to deploy 1,100 contract healthcare workers over next two months
The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) and Mississippi Department of Health (MSDH) plan to have the first groups of contract medical workers in hospitals across the state early next week.
As of Friday, MEMA has received requests for additional healthcare workers from 60 hospitals across the state. MEMA plans to fulfill all of the requests it received and to deploy around 1,100 workers to these hospitals over the next eight weeks. MSDH is working to validate the licensing for around 10% of the workers it hopes to deploy, according to MEMA Executive Director Stephen McCraney.
McCraney also said that once all 57 requests have been fulfilled, it would open up 680 med-surge beds and 212 ICU beds that are currently unstaffed.
“That’s going to take some pressure off of the medical system in which it currently finds itself because of this pandemic,” McCraney said.
More than 2,000 medical professionals have left the field in Mississippi over the past year, and hospitals across the state are at a breaking point.
The contract workers will cost around $8 million per week, but the federal government will reimburse 100% of those costs. Gov. Tate Reeves said the state typically receives a 50% advance for Stafford Act requests like this, and the state has the cash flow to cover the other half until that is also reimbursed.
Clarification: This story has been updated to reflect how many hospitals requested additional workers and how many will be placed in Mississippi.
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Data: COVID-19 among Hispanic Mississippians
According to Michael Hohl, Jackson Free Clinic outreach officer, by traveling to immigrant communities across the state, the JFC is helping to reduce barriers of access, such as transportation to clinics or having to take off work to travel or be vaccinated. He also said collaborating with the Immigrant Alliance for Justice and Equity and the Mississippi Immigrants Rights Alliance, known and trusted organizations within Hispanic and immigrant communities in Mississippi, are vital to the success of the vaccination drives.
View our data on COVID-19 rates among Hispanic Mississippians below:
READ THE STORY: Mississippi groups host vaccine drives for immigrants
LEER: COVID-19 en Misisipi Guía de Vacunas
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Natchez-Adams School District poised to require employees to get COVID-19 vaccination
The board for Natchez-Adams schools on Tuesday took the next step to require district employees to receive the COVID-19 vaccination.
The board voted unanimously to approve a four-part proposal that includes all employees getting vaccinated within a 30-day period of being notified and an incentive program to encourage vaccinations. The plan also proposes the board and administration meet with individuals who refuse to be vaccinated to determine next steps.
If Natchez-Adams moves forward with such a policy, it would be the first known school district in the state to do so. A spokeswoman for the Mississippi Department of Education said the department is not aware of any other school districts that have adopted such a policy.
Phillip West, the vice chair of the school board and a former state legislator and mayor of Natchez, introduced the proposal.
“We’re hoping the requirement of all employees to do this coming from the board should hopefully show them the seriousness of our actions as it relates to making sure that the kids are safe and their coworkers are safe,” said West.
West said the superintendent reported about 60% of employees in the district are already fully vaccinated.
Officials approved the proposal unanimously but have differing understandings of what it means. West said there are plans to draft a letter to employees early next week, thus starting the 30-day countdown for them to be vaccinated. But Board President Amos James said all the board did was vote unanimously to “look” at a policy.
Board attorney Bruce Kuehnle said the vote “put things in motion” for developing a comprehensive policy for the board to consider in the future.
West said he and other board members are still considering how the district will handle unvaccinated employees. One option is requiring them to submit to routine screening testing, he said.
“It’s going to be on a case-by-case basis once we see what the numbers (of employees who decline to be vaccinated) are that will dictate what kind of actions we will consider as a consequence,” said West.
Mississippi is currently facing a fourth wave of COVID infections, and the number of cases in children is rapidly rising. As of Thursday, 34% of Adams County residents were fully vaccinated, according to the Mississippi Department of Health. Forty-three percent had received at least one dose.
The county currently has test positivity rate of 23% in the week ending Aug. 14, the most recent for which data is available.
The city of Jackson recently announced it would require employees to be vaccinated or submit to weekly testing. Last month the University of Mississippi Medical Center announced a new vaccination policy that will eventually require employees and students to get fully vaccinated after the vaccines receive full authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
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IHL board chooses not to focus on the pandemic as COVID cases surge
The coronavirus pandemic was mentioned just a handful of times during the Institutions of Higher Learning’s nearly two-hour-long meeting Thursday, even though classes at Mississippi’s public universities started this week amid the worst wave yet of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The sole discussion of the pandemic from the 12-member board was limited to a request on the finance agenda to suspend the IHL’s regular approval process for contracts and other agreements relating to the universities’ “ability to promptly and effectively provide for the safety and health of … students, employees and guests in dealing with the Covid19 pandemic.”
The IHL meeting happened the same day that the State Board of Education, which oversees Mississippi’s K-12 schools, unanimously voted to allow school districts to implement hybrid learning through Oct. 31 due to the increase in COVID-19 cases among school-aged children.
According to data from the Mississippi Department of Health, last week 20,334 students were in quarantine across 803 schools. More than 7,400 students, teachers and staff had tested positive for the virus.
Because the universities are not required to report COVID cases to MSDH the same way K-12 schools are, it will be difficult to track the spread of the virus on campus or in the surrounding communities. Last year, the fall semester saw two outbreaks at Mississippi University for Women and UM. All eight universities had implemented comprehensive plans to keep faculty, staff and students safe that included moving courses online, reducing in-person class sizes, and shortening the fall semester to prevent the spread of coronavirus during Thanksgiving break.
Many of those measures won’t be taken this semester, despite all-time high case numbers and a delta variant that is more prominent in college-aged people. All universities are requiring students to wear masks in indoor facilities due to a directive from MSDH.
None of the universities are requiring students or faculty to get vaccinated, the best prevention strategy against COVID-19, despite hundreds of faculty across the state requesting they do so. At University of Southern Mississippi, nearly 200 faculty have requested that classes move online due to the surge in COVID cases.
Classes started this week at MUW, Alcorn State University, Delta State University, Mississippi State University, and Mississippi Valley State University.
At the end of the meeting, the eight university presidents presented updates to the board. Mention of the COVID-19 pandemic was limited. ASU president Felicia Nave and MUW president Nora Miller briefly touched on the vaccine clinics that are being hosted on campus.
“It feels close to normal,” Miller told the trustees.
Jackson State University is rewarding students who show proof they’ve been vaccinated with a $1,000 housing credit, President Thomas Hudson said. MVSU President Jerryl Briggs and MSU President Mark Keenum presented the results of campus surveys. At MVSU, Briggs said 70% of students living on campus have reported being vaccinated. Keenum said that of the 17,000 students who completed MSU’s survey, 52% reported being vaccinated.
“We don’t know if that’s fully vaccinated,” Keenum said, “but we do know they’ve had at least one shot.”
DSU President William LaForge was the only one to present COVID case numbers to the board.
“The climate so far with respect to COVID cases is good and healthy,” he told the board. “We only have one or two students and employees who have tested positive in the last couple of weeks.”
Rodney Bennett, USM’s president, told the trustees he could not think of a time when students were more excited to return to campus.
“I am proud of them for embracing health protocols,” he said. “They want to be in-person all year … and I want that for them too.”
University of Mississippi Chancellor Glenn Boyce referenced the COVID-19 pandemic just one time during his 11-minute-long update. He told the trustees that he is working on getting the marching band fully vaccinated so they don’t miss any games this upcoming football season.
Afterwards, Boyce sought to turn the mic over to his colleague, University of Mississippi Medical Center Vice Chancellor Dr. LouAnn Woodward.
“I don’t know if Dr. Woodward is on, but if she is, I’d love her to make some comments about UMMC,” he said over Zoom.
“I’m sorry, she is off handling our COVID response elsewhere on campus,” a representative from UMMC responded.
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