State Roundup: Citing problems, Maryland seeks to improve reporting, rollout of Covid-19 vaccinations
On Dec. 23 at the Franklin Woods Center in Baltimore County, Samuel Cushing became the first nursing home resident to get the coronavirus vaccine. He was accompanied by nursing director Donna Jones, who was among the first staff members to be vaccinated. Gov. Hogan attended the event. Governor’s Office photo
STATE TRIES TO IMPROVE VACCINE ROLLOUT: The state is taking action to improve the reporting and rollout of Maryland’s allotment of coronavirus vaccines, Gov. Larry Hogan said Tuesday evening, reports Bryan Renbaum for Maryland Reporter. “Today I am issuing an executive order which requires all providers in the state of Maryland to report data onto our system Immunet within 24 hours after vaccines are administered,” he said.
State Roundup: Maryland could get $6 Billion in federal funds, if Trump signs Covid relief bill
Government House, the governor s mansion, decorated for Christmas. File photo
STATE COULD GET $6B IN FED FUNDS, IF TRUMP SIGNS BILL: The long-awaited federal coronavirus relief bill paired with an expansive government spending package contains millions of dollars specifically for initiatives in Maryland, but President Donald Trump threw its fate into question Tuesday night when he blasted the bipartisan package and suggested he may not sign it, Christine Condon reports in the Sun.
The economic rescue package contains a number of provisions to aid small businesses in Maryland, including an expansion of the Paycheck Protection Program. Also included are a number of tax breaks and other funding sources, some of which are targeted to particularly hard-hit sectors of the economy, the Daily Record reports.
First the good news: The Frederick Keys will continue to play ball during the summer at Nymeo Field at Harry Grove Stadium. Now the less good news, the team will no longer be affiliated with the Baltimore Orioles organization, and the quality of play will probably be a bit lower.
The very existence of the team has been in doubt since it was revealed in 2019 that Major League Baseball wanted to eliminate 42 minor league teams in a major restructuring of the sport. The Keys were one of the teams on the chopping block.
Major League Baseball said at the time it wanted to reduce the number of minor league teams to make the development of players more efficient and also improve the pay and working conditions for players.
State Roundup: State officials targeted in unemployment claim fraud; Covid-19 hospitalizations hit a new high
Johns Hopkins, founder of the university and hospital that bear his name, was long believed to be an abolitionist, but in 1850 he owned slaved, the university disclosed. From the JHU website
STATE OFFICIALS TARGET IN JOBLESS SCAM: Not even Maryland’s highest ranking officials are immune from scams, writes Bryan Renbaum for MarylandReporter. That includes Gov. Larry Hogan, Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford, Labor Secretary Tiffany Robinson and several other cabinet members, all of whom were targeted in an unemployment insurance fraud scheme, the state of Maryland announced on Wednesday.