Health
Child advocates warned of a surge in abuse cases, but there’s no evidence that’s happened
The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) has seen a nearly 50 percent decline in the number of hotline reports of suspected child abuse and neglect since March. While some have warned that school closures related to the novel coronavirus would cause a spike in the number of children being abused, experts say […]
White House leans on Louisiana to reopen schools
BATON ROUGE — Vice President Mike Pence visited the Louisiana State University campus Tuesday to meet with the state’s top leaders to discuss reopening schools next month. Pence’s message was clear: the White House wants Louisiana to fully open all its schools despite the state’s high rate of COVID-19 cases. Pence arrived on Air Force […]
Health equity task force to create dashboard to provide COVID-19 data
The Louisiana Covid-19 Health Equity Task Force is creating a dashboard that will allow Louisiana residents to access information related to racial inequities in the state’s health care system. That dashboard, which was discussed at a Friday afternoon meeting of the task force, is meant for residents, policymakers and community leaders and will, its members […]
Forty-two percent of Louisiana inmates tested have been positive for COVID-19
Since the beginning of April, Louisiana has tested about 10 percent of the state inmates that reside in the state prison system for COVID-19, and over 40 percent of the prisoners tested have been positive for the virus, according to data provided by the state Department of Corrections Thursday. Since the beginning of the pandemic, […]
Gov. John Bel Edwards: Louisiana Bars must close and face masks must be worn
Baton Rouge — On one of the worst days in Louisiana’s fight with the coronavirus, Gov. John Bel Edwards held a press conference Saturday to announce an order shutting down all bars and mandating citizens to wear face coverings. The new restrictions will take effect at 12:01 Monday morning. Edwards, a Democrat, had previously declined to […]
Vice President Mike Pence to visit Baton Rouge Tuesday to discuss Louisiana’s COVID-19 response
Louisiana, especially the Baton Rouge area, has seen a disturbing spike in COVID-19 cases, which has caused the federal government to make the capital city one of three cities nationwide where it’s adding 5,000 COVID-19 tests a day. Vice President Mike Pence, who leads the federal government’s coronavirus task force, will travel to Baton Rouge […]
Two huge COVID-19 surges make Louisiana an outlier in the U.S.
In April, the United States COVID-19 outbreak greatly affected a handful of states including New York, New Jersey, Michigan, Massachusetts and Louisiana. Now in July, the United States COVID-19 outbreak is affecting a different group of states including Arizona, Florida, South Carolina and Texas. But it’s also affecting Louisiana – again. Most states with COVID-19 surges […]
Shreveport City Councilman flips positions on smoking ban
After the Shreveport City Council passed a comprehensive smoking ban scheduled to take effect in August, a councilman who previously supported the law now wants to exempt casinos for a year. A health advocate called his reversal a “slap in the face” to casino workers. The City Council first proposed a smoking ban around Memorial […]
Louisiana’s largest healthcare provider scales back community COVID-19 testing
Ochsner Health, Louisiana’s largest healthcare provider, will put new limitations on its community testing program for COVID-19 even as state health officials warn about a surge in new infections. The hospital system needs to preserve its testing capacity for hospital patients, said Dr. Sandra Kemmerly, the system medical director of hospital quality, in an interview […]
Louisiana sees largest daily spike in coronavirus cases since April
Louisiana reported its largest daily increase in COVID-19 cases in three months Wednesday (July 1), with more than 2,000 tests for coronavirus coming back positive. “This disease is coming back, and it’s coming back with a vengeance, and we better start getting serious,” said Jimmy Guidry, the state health officer. Not all of the cases […]
Will Louisiana require you to wear a face mask?
Following a steady rise in coronavirus cases, a new mandate requiring residents to wear face masks in public takes effect Wednesday in Jefferson Parish. Although positive tests for COVID-19 have been found in all 64 parishes, a statewide face mask mandate does not appear to be immediately forthcoming. Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng issued […]
Louisiana officials criticize Supreme Court’s rejection of state’s abortion restriction
WASHINGTON — Louisiana officials decried a U.S. Supreme Court ruling Monday that struck down a state abortion law and vowed to keep fighting to restrict access to the procedure. At the same time, advocates for reproductive rights breathed a sigh of relief that abortion access won’t be further restricted in a state where only three […]