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Julian Mills

Stories by Julian

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State Health Leadership Urges Caution As 1.5 Million Vaccinated With One Dose

COVID-19 infections continue to decline across Mississippi, with hospitalizations and deaths dropping from August highs.

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Hinds County Supervisor David Archie Arrested, Charged With Misdemeanors

After a 3-2 vote ousted Hinds County Supervisor David Archie from his role as vice president on Wednesday, Archie found himself under arrest after a Thursday board meeting dispute between supervisors.

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COVID-19 Declines Back To Winter Surge Levels

COVID-19 has entered a relative decline compared to the worst of the winter surge, says leadership from the Mississippi State Department of Health.

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Pfizer Booster Shot Available For Those 65 and Older

COVID-19 booster shots are now approved for all Mississipians aged 65 and older, as well as for those immunocompromised or otherwise at-risk of severe infection.

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With Most Jacksonians Unvaccinated, Mayor Pushes Worker Shot Cut-off to Oct. 15

Jackson Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba extended the deadline for city workers to get vaccinated, or be required to undergo weekly COVID-19 tests. Once the deadline of Oct. 15, 2021, passes, the workers may pay to have the tests.

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Mississippi COVID-19 Death Rates Highest In U.S.; Booster Shots Available for Many

Even as Mississippi’s COVID-19 infection rates are beginning to slightly decrease from the midsummer high, the state now leads not only the country but almost the entire world in deaths per capita, as Ashton Pittman first reported in the Mississippi Free Press Tuesday.

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Doctors: Pregnant Mississippians Need COVID-19 Vaccine With Infections, Deaths Up

Mothers-to-be are at an inherently higher risk of complications due to COVID-19 infection, leadership from the Mississippi State Medical Association said at a Sept. 10 press briefing aimed at promoting vaccination in expectant moms.

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Gov. Reeves Vows to Stop Biden’s New Federal Vaccine Requirements

As part of a new federal COVID-19 action plan, President Joe Biden introduced broad new vaccine requirements for both public and private-sector workers, potentially affecting as many as 100 million Americans.

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JPS Hosting Vaccination Events Today, Tomorrow

The Jackson Public School District is hosting COVID-19 vaccination events at its middle schools today and tomorrow, where students over age 12 are eligible to receive their first dose of Pfizer’s vaccine.

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MEMA Offers Assistance To Storm Victims

As now Tropical Storm Ida travels northwest across the Appalachian Mountains, Mississippians are left taking stock of the damage the once-Category 4 Hurricane Ida incurred, and beginning repairs.

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Tax Relief, But For Whom?

Speaker Gunn Wants Reform That Benefits Wealthiest, Costs Others More

Just as the realities of a fourth wave of COVID-19 sunk into the state, and just miles from a field hospital set up in the garage of the Mississippi hospital most likely to serve low-income patients, Mississippi legislators held a hearing on eliminating the state income tax.

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Hurricane Ida Leaves 100,000 Without Power As Now-Tropical Storm Hits Mississippi

Almost 113,000 Mississippians were without power Monday morning as Hurricane Ida wound its way through the state, after causing at least one death in Baton Rouge, La., and sowing damage throughout that state.

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Mississippi Loses Sixth Child To COVID-19

A sixth child has died in Mississippi due to complications from COVID-19, the Mississippi State Department of Health said Wednesday.

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JPS Considering Virtual Learning, Invites Community Comments

Jackson Public Schools will hold a virtual meeting at 6 p.m. this evening, where the JPS Board of Trustees will discuss possible virtual learning options for students due to the fourth wave of increased COVID-19 numbers in Mississippi.

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COVID-19 Booster Shots Could Be Available to All Americans By Sept. 20

COVID-19 booster shots may soon be available to all Americans, thanks to new guidance from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

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MSDH Limits Surgeries Due To COVID-19 Crisis

The Mississippi State Department of Health instituted an extended policy this weekend aimed at managing the state’s overburdened health-care system.

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4,000 Mississippi Students Quarantined; Hospitalizations Break 2020 Summer Record

With less than one-third of Mississippi schools reporting COVID-19 data, a new report from the Mississippi State Department of Health shows that nearly 1,000 students were infected with COVID-19 for the week of Aug. 2-6.

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JPS Set To Open, Mandate Masks as COVID-19, Variant Cases Skyrocket

The Jackson Public School system is set to begin the fall semester on Aug. 9, where almost 21,000 students will be required to attend full-time, traditional in-school curriculum.

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Dobbs: Delta Variant Spike Endangering Medical Capacity in Mississippi

Mississippi’s health-care system is under increased strain as the fourth wave of COVID-19 continues to add increased hospitalizations and intensive-care unit patients every week.

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CDC Mask Guidance ‘Foolish,’ Gov. Reeves Says at Neshoba Fair, Defying Science

At this year’s Neshoba County Fair, Gov. Tate Reeves took the opportunity to call the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s newly revised mask guidelines, “foolish” and “harmful.”

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‘Hitting Hard’: Delta Cases, Hospitalizations Spike as School Precautions Still Optional

Mississippi saw a continuation of this summer’s fourth wave surge over the weekend and continuing into this week, with the Mississippi State Department of Health reporting a staggering 3,608 new COVID-19 cases for those three weekend days alone.

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Fourth Wave of COVID-19 Arrives; Dobbs Says Herd Immunity Currently Impossible in State

The state is now experiencing a full COVID-19 resurgence as the fourth wave of the deadly virus spreads across Mississippi towns and communities.

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UMMC Institutes Covid Safety Policy, Requires Vaccine or N95 Mask for Staff

The University of Mississippi Medical Center instituted a new safety policy today, requiring all students and staff to either get vaccinated or wear an N95-type mask.

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Delta Variant Spikes, Leaves Unvaccinated Children Vulnerable

State Health Officer Thomas Dobbs and other health officials have warned for weeks that the spreading Delta variant can mean a large spike in cases and deaths. It is now happening.

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COVID-19 Cases, Hospitalizations Jump As Delta Variant Spreads

COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are both on the rise, thanks to the continuing spread of the more contagious Delta variant throughout the state.

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Mississippi Teacher Pay Raise Finally Arrives After Long Delay

Mississippi teachers can expect an average $1,000 increase to their base salary starting from July 1 of this year, depending on their teaching license and experience.

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Delta Variant Now Dominant Strain In Mississippi, Focused in Hinds, Madison, Rankin

The more contagious Delta variant of COVID-19 is now the dominant strain in Mississippi, leaving unvaccinated Mississippians at higher risk of contracting the virus.

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COVID-19 Delta Variant Spreading Through Central Mississippi

The more infectious Delta variant of COVID-19 may have been spreading throughout the state for weeks now, with Mississippi health officials seeing central Mississippi as a potential hotspot.

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New Tool Helping Identify Vaccine Deserts Across Mississippi As Variants Loom

The Mississippi State Department of Health plans to open up more relevant pop-up COVID-19 vaccination sites in coming weeks with the aid of a newly launched tool called the “Vaccine Equity Planner.”

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First Lady Jill Biden To Visit Jackson, Promote Vaccine Outreach

First Lady Jill Biden is on a tour across the south, along with other members of President Joe Biden’s administration, to promote vaccine awareness and outreach.

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Reeves Supports Special Session To Reimplement Medical Marijuana

The question surrounding the reinstatement of Mississippi’s medical marijuana program may be drawing closer to an answer this week, after Gov. Tate Reeves announced his support for a legislative special session in a Tuesday press briefing.

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Vaccine Hesitancy ‘Pitiful,’ Dobbs Says As Hospitalizations Up for Under-40 Residents

COVID-19 hospitalizations among younger Mississippians have increased in recent weeks, due to low vaccination rates compared with the state’s older population.

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Dobbs Say ‘We Need To Do Better’ on Vaccine, Reaching Latinx Communities

State Health Officer Thomas Dobbs has decried vaccine hesitancy and urged vaccination for those who qualify. He joined an online panel on June 7, 2021, to speak about progress the state still needs to make.

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CDC Investigating Possible Link Between Vaccines, ‘Exceedingly Rare’ Myocarditis

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are investigating whether an uptick in heart inflammation across the United States might be related to COVID-19 vaccinations, after reviewing data from the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System, or VAERS.

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Initiative Process Rests in Governor’s Hands

The deadline for Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson to petition the state Supreme Court for a rehearing regarding a popular voter-mandated medical marijuana program has come and gone.

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Additional COVID-19 Variant Cases Reported In Mississippi

Mississippi saw 10 new cases of COVID-19 variant B.1.351, commonly known as the South African variant, in outbreaks among long-term care facilities this week.

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Jackson State Providing Free Vaccines For Students, Community Members

A Jackson State University program is currently offering Pfizer and Moderna vaccinations to eligible students and Jackson residents.

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Low Water Pressure, Boil-Water Notice Remain for Thousands in South Jackson

Thousands of south Jackson and Byram residents remain without safe drinking water today, six days after two well systems in the area suffered failures.

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Medicaid Initiative Suspended As Ballot Initiative Decision Effects Cascade

Healthcare for Mississippi, the nonprofit behind Ballot Initiative 76, has suspended its campaign, Yes on 76, to bring the vote for Medicaid expansion to a vote next year in light of the Mississippi Supreme Court decision to strike down Ballot Initiative 76.

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Dobbs Warns Of ‘Increasing ICU Numbers’ As Vaccine Now Available To Children

COVID-19 transmission has trended downward over the past several months as vaccination rates steadily increase, but officials from the Mississippi Department of Health say continuing this trend is not a certainty.

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Southwest Airlines To Resume Flights in Mississippi on June 6, Masks Required

Construction is underway at the Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport in preparation for Southwest Airlines’ return to Mississippi on Sunday, June 6.

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‘We Do Not Have A Fuel Shortage,’ State Leaders Say as Feds Provide Help

Pipeline Hack Prompts Long Lines, Panic Buying At Jackson Pumps

Some Jackson fuel stations remain on empty this morning, after news of Friday’s cyber attack on the Colonial Fuel Pipeline prompted drivers from Texas to the Eastern Seaboard to fill up not only their vehicle tanks, but extra fuel containers as well.

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Mayor Lifts Business Restrictions As COVID-19 Trends Down, Shots Up

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba lifted restrictions on businesses in the capital city today, via an executive order that removed all restrictions on capacity and operating hours.

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8,000 in Hinds County Still Without Power Since Tuesday Tornado, Storms

Hinds County still had 8,000 power outages as of noon, with more than 1,800 in Madison County and 118 in Rankin County as a result of Tuesday’s tornado and storms.

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Boil-Water Notice Lifted Across Jackson After Electrical Fire Shut Down Plant

The City of Jackson declared municipal water once again safe to drink this morning after an electrical fire erupted at the O.B. Curtis Water Treatment Plant early Friday morning, prompting a plant shutdown for fire mitigation and repairs.

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CDC-Backed Jackson State Town Hall Counters Vaccine Apathy, Distrust with Facts

Jackson State University hosted a virtual town hall to clarify COVID-19 vaccine concerns of the capital city’s younger citizens on Tuesday, featuring a panel of experts to dispel rumors and speak to safety concerns students and local residents may have.

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CDC Lifts Pause On Johnson & Johnson Vaccine, But Mississippi Yet To Resume

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lifted a pause on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on April 23, paving the way for states to resume the one-shot vaccinations.

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Parole Reform Law Brings New Chance For Thousands, But Not Habitual Offenders

Thousands of incarcerated Mississippians will soon become eligible for a parole hearing after Gov. Tate Reeves signed the “Mississippi Earned Parole Eligibility Act” into law this Thursday.

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Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Benefit Still Positive Despite ‘Rare Side Effects,’ EU Reports

After investigating reports of a rare but serious side effect in Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine, the European Medicines Agency concluded yesterday that the vaccine’s label should include information about possible blood clotting, listed as a “very rare side effect.”

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Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Paused, No Serious Reactions Reported In Mississippi

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention placed a pause on Johnson & Johnson vaccinations this week across the country due to reported rare incidences of specific blood clots.