Good Morning NUNAverse,
In his most forceful pandemic actions and words, President Joe Biden ordered sweeping new federal vaccine requirements for as many as 100 million Americans – private-sector employees as well as health care workers and federal contractors – in an all-out effort to curb the surging COVID-19 delta variant. Republican leaders – and some union chiefs, too – said Biden is going too far in trying to muscle private companies and workers, a certain sign of legal challenges to come. On the other hand, there were strong words of praise for Biden’s efforts to get the nation vaccinated from the American Medical Association, the National Association of Manufacturers, and the Business Roundtable – though no direct mention of this mandate for private companies.
UnitedHealth Group, including the United Health Foundation and UnitedHealthcare, is donating a total of $4.5 million to increase access to health care, improve health outcomes, and support communities across Oklahoma. The United Health Foundation is providing a three-year, $1.8 million grant to the Health Alliance for the Uninsured to provide integrated services for people with diabetes and a three-year, $1.8 million grant to the Indian Health Care Resource Center of Tulsa to provide comprehensive geriatric care for Native peoples. An additional $750,000 from UnitedHealthcare will support five nonprofit organizations that are focused on meeting the needs of older adults and people experiencing trauma, food insecurity, and/or social isolation.
A Dakota scholar, author, and artist has been named Minnesota’s poet laureate, the first time the honor has been bestowed upon a Native person, the governor’s office announced yesterday. Minnesota State University, Mankato English professor Gwen Nell Westerman (Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate in the Dakotas and Flint District of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma) has written about Dakota history and language in both English and Dakota. Her poems and essays have been published in journals and anthologies across the country. As a fiber artist, she has works in the permanent collections of the Minnesota Historical Society, the Great Plains Art Museum, the University Art Galleries at the University of South Dakota, and the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota.
Keep reading for a full news update.
COVID-19:
Sweeping new vaccine mandates for 100 million Americans
AP News, September 10
In his most forceful pandemic actions and words, President Joe Biden on Thursday ordered sweeping new federal vaccine requirements for as many as 100 million Americans – private-sector employees as well as health care workers and federal contractors — in an all-out effort to curb the surging COVID-19 delta variant. Republican leaders – and some union chiefs, too – said Biden is going too far in trying to muscle private companies and workers, a certain sign of legal challenges to come. On the other hand, there were strong words of praise for Biden’s efforts to get the nation vaccinated from the American Medical Association, the National Association of Manufacturers and the Business Roundtable – though no direct mention of this mandate for private companies.
Other:
UnitedHealth Group Donates $4.5 Million To Advance Health Equity Among Underserved Communities Across Oklahoma
KURL8, September 9
UnitedHealth Group, including the United Health Foundation and UnitedHealthcare, is donating a total of $4.5 million to increase access to health care, improve health outcomes and support communities across Oklahoma. The United Health Foundation is providing a three-year, $1.8 million grant to the Health Alliance for the Uninsured to provide integrated services for people with diabetes and a three-year, $1.8 million grant to the Indian Health Care Resource Center of Tulsa to provide comprehensive geriatric care for Native peoples. An additional $750,000 from UnitedHealthcare will support five nonprofit organizations that are focused on meeting the needs of older adults and people experiencing trauma, food insecurity and/or social isolation.
Church For Tohono O’odham Rethinking Impact Of Tourism
AP News, September 9
A little black sign greets visitors and the Tohono O’odham people as they walk into the San Xavier del Bac Mission south of Tucson. This is what the San Xavier del Bac church was always meant to be: A place of prayer and worship. One of refuge. A place for people to come together. The church doesn’t always feel this way for the Tohono O’odham people of Wa:k Village, however. As the years have gone by, the church has filled up with more visitors than community members. San Xavier del Bac’s history goes back centuries and is one of the few mission churches in the Southwest that still serves the original population for which it was built.
Sports Betting Starts In Arizona In Time For NFL Season
AP News, Bob Christie, September 9
Arizona’s first sports betting operations officially opened for business Thursday in time for the start of the NFL season, with live wagers taken on college and professional sports online and at two retail locations in Phoenix. Taking in-person bets in the morning were the FanDuel Sportsbook at the downtown Phoenix arena where the Phoenix Suns play and temporary betting windows just down the street at the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Chase Field run by Caesars Entertainment. The governor’s office negotiated new agreements with the tribes to allow betting on live and fantasy sports. In exchange, the tribes were allowed to expand their table game and slot machine offerings and run their own sportsbooks at their casinos. Ten tribes also won licenses to take sports bets online. Online fantasy sports wagering became legal late last month. Before that, Arizona was one of the few states where it was still banned.
Mankato Professor Named Minnesota’s 1st Native Poet Laureate
AP News, September 8
A Dakota scholar, author and artist has been named Minnesota’s poet laureate, the first time the honor has been bestowed upon a Native American, the governor’s office announced yesterday. Minnesota State University, Mankato English professor Gwen Nell Westerman (Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate in the Dakotas and Flint District of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma) has written about Dakota history and language in both English and Dakota. Her poems and essays have been published in journals and anthologies across the country. As a fiber artist, she has works in the permanent collections of the Minnesota Historical Society, the Great Plains Art Museum, the University Art Galleries at the University of South Dakota, and the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota.