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VIRUS OUTBREAK-STIMULUS-TRIBES

Tribes say persistent efforts pay off in massive stimulus

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — Tribes say their persistent efforts to be included in a massive stimulus bill to respond to the new coronavirus have paid off. Tribes have been lobbying Congress to help address shortfalls in an already underfunded health care system that serves Native Americans. They secured $10 billion in the bill that President Donald Trump signed Friday. Most of it is set aside as a relief fund that will be distributed based on need. More than $1 billion will go to the federal agency that provides primary health care for more than 2 million Native Americans. The Navajo Nation in the U.S. Southwest has been hardest hit by the virus with more than 90 confirmed cases.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-FIELD HOSPITAL

Seattle Seahawks field to host military hospital amid virus

SEATTLE (AP) — A military field hospital for people with medical issues that are not related to the coronavirus outbreak is being deployed at Seattle's CenturyLink Field Event Center, which is home to the Seahawks football team. Officials say 300 soldiers from the 627th Army Hospital at Fort Carson, Colorado, have deployed to Seattle to staff the hospital, which is expected to create at least 150 hospital beds for non-COVID-19 cases. Officials are planning to use the field hospital for maladies such as broken bones and other needs. The Washington state Department of Health says there have been 4,300 confirmed coronavirus cases statewide, including 189 deaths.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-SNAKE RIVER DAMS

Environmental groups complain about dam hearings format

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Some environmental groups are complaining about the teleconference format for gathering public comments on a federal government proposal to save salmon runs on the Columbia River system. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the government decided to hold teleconferences, rather than in-person public hearings, on its new proposal to remove four dams on the Snake River to save the fish. Critics say the teleconferences allow for far fewer comments than traditional public hearings. Environmentalists want the Army Corps of Engineers to double the comment period to 90 days and hold more hearings. But a spokeswoman for the Army Corps Northwestern Division in Portland, Oregon says people at this point should plan on the comment period ending on April 13 as planned.

FARM WORKERS

Feds fast track foreign farm workers' return

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Farmers and orchard owners nationwide are breathing a little easier because as of this week more H-2A workers will be able to cross the Mexican border. The Capital Press reports the U.S. State Department on Thursday expanded the number of foreign agricultural workers whose visa applications can be processed without an in-person interview. After suspending "non-essential" visa processing in Mexico due to the coronavirus outbreak, the agency said it would prioritize processing for returning H2A workers whose visas expired within the last year by giving them an interview waiver. It also broadened those waivers to include new workers and returning workers whose visas had expired in the past 24 months.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-IDAHO HOT SPOT

Ski vacation hot spot becomes virus ground zero in Idaho

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A scenic Idaho county known as a ski-vacation haven for celebrities and the wealthy has a new, more dubious distinction: It has the highest per-capita rate of confirmed coronavirus infections in America outside of New York City and its surrounding counties. Numbers from Johns Hopkins University showed Friday that Blaine County had more than 80 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, among roughly 22,000 residents. At least 14 of those cases were among health care workers, partly hobbling the region's small medical facility. The county includes tony Sun Valley Resort and draws skiers and outdoor enthusiasts from around the world.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-IDAHO

Idaho governor orders 1% budget cut due to coronavirus

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho Gov. Brad Little has ordered a 1% cut in state agency spending because of the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus. The Republican governor said the 1% cutback doesn't apply to health care workers. He also on Friday directed the Idaho Department of Labor to make it easier for people who have lost their jobs to file unemployment claims. He also ordered a $40 million transfer into emergency funds to fight the virus. More than 13,300 people filed unemployment claims last week, a 1,200% increase over the previous week, and the largest the state agency said it has ever recorded.

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