Lincoln Journal Star from Lincoln, Nebraska • A2

A2 Wednesday, July 22, 2020 LincoLn JournaL StarFROM PAGE A1 Published Monday through Sunday by Journal Star Printing co. 926 Street, P.o. Box 81609, Lincoln, nE 68508-1609 uSPS 0527-200 iSSn 1084-5283 contact us Publisher ava thomas (402) 473-7146 Editor Dave Bundy (402) 473-7334 Main phone (402) 475-4200; toll free (800) 742-7315 newsroom (402) 473-7301; fax (402) 473-7291; to place a classified ad (402) 473-7373; fax (402) 473-7466 For retail and other ads (402) 473-7450; fax (402) 473-7177 For online ad information (402) 473-2643 customer Service for circulation (877) 760-6006 Library (402) 473-7297 Journal Star recycling (402) 473-2695 customer Service phone lines for subscription billing and delivery are open from 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday; 7:00 to 10 a.m.

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Postmaster: Send address chang- es to: Lincoln Journal Star, Box 81609, Lincoln, nE 68501-1609 Periodical postage paid at Lin- coln, nE 68501. Member of the alliance for audited Media. CORRECTIONS Correct Medicaid website Information on the expansion of Medicaid coverage in Nebraska is available at accessnebraska.ne.gov. A story on Page A4 of Journal Star included an incor- rect web address. If you see an error in the Journal news coverage, we want to know.

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Box 81689, Lincoln, NE 68501. LOTTERIES Powerball (July 18) 13, 16, 32, 58, 59 Powerball: 9 Power Play: 2 Jackpot: $106 million Mega Millions (July 21) 14, 25, 26, 41, 43 Mega Ball: 15 Multiplier: 3 Jackpot: $113 million Lucky for Life (July 20) 11, 15, 37, 40, 46 lucky Ball: 6 Pick 5 (July 21) 2, 3, 12, 14, 28 Pick 3 (July 21) 7, 3, 1 MyDaY (July 21) 7, 25, 23 2 by 2 (July 21) Red: 6, 23 White: 1, 6 On the Web: Visit www. nelottery.com for current and past winning numbers. IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS In light of the impact from COVId-19 and to ensure the safety of our team, the call center staff now is working remotely. Response time to phone calls and the ability to speak to a live agent have been impacted.

We ask that during this time requests be made online or through our automated phone system: Visit journalstar.com/services where you can: Report a delivery issue Temporarily stop print delivery Make a payment Call 877-760-6006 for the automated phone system to: Report a delivery issue Temporarily stop print delivery activate your digital account at journalstar.com/activate to stay up to date on all of the news, including ongoing COVId-19 updates. RILEY JOHNSON Lincoln Journal Star The wider availability of Plexiglas has allowed cer- tain city offices to reopen their public counters for appointments and assure safety for city bus drivers when StarTran resumes normal operations Thurs- day, city officials said. These announcements of city operations inching closer to non-pandemic levels come as Lancaster County health officials confirmed 35 cases Tues- day, bringing the total to 2,517 since the pandemic began. No new deaths were recorded. Lincoln hospitals had 22 COVID-19 patients in their care Tuesday.

As the mandate on masks is in effect, Lincoln Transportation and Utili- ties Director Liz Elliott said masks will be encouraged and available to riders but not required. StarTran expects the 1,500 daily riders whom city buses have transported in recent weeks will increase with the return to the nor- mal schedule, Elliott said. Typical summer ridership is 4,000 riders a day. City buses will continue to operate fare free, allowing passengers to board in the front and back and reduc- ing contact with the driv- ers, who will be protected via Plexiglas shields and masks, she said. Buses are routinely disin- fected, Elliott said.

The city continues to offer its on-demand ride service, VanLNK, to the public, particularly for people who have compro- mised immune systems, Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird said. Appointments for ser- vices with the Planning Department, Building and Safety Department, City Finance Department and Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department can be made by calling the individ- ual departments. Lincoln Water Systems public billing counters are now open as well, the mayor said. MATT OLBERDING Lincoln Journal Star Area health care systems said they are starting to see hiccups in the supply chain for COVID-19 testing sup- plies. CHI Health said it has suspended pre-op COVID-19 testing because of a lack of testing supplies.

The health system said Tuesday that Abbott Labs, the manufacturer that sup- plies the reagents essential for testing, cannot meet the current demand and has informed it the supply moving forward will be lim- ited for the next four to five weeks. Because of that, CHI Health said it has sus- pended its pre-procedural COVID-19 testing require- ment to preserve its limited testing supplies. CHI Health said it was one of very few health care systems in the area requir- ing a COVID-19 test be- fore surgery. Fewer than of its pre-surgical pa- tients tested positive for the disease. Bryan Health also on Tuesday said it was aware of a supply chain issue for pre-op tests.

are some different systems in this region of the country that are no longer accepting orders for pre-op testing at said Bob Ra- venscroft, vice president of advancement for Bryan Health. Ravenscroft said Bryan, which does not require pre-op COVID-19 testing, has enough of its various tests and is still receiving inventory. But he said unclear what the effect will be going forward if the supply chain remains restricted. going to limit the ability, as current supplies stand, of doing something large scale (or) sweeping for a school system or Ravenscroft said, not- ing that Bryan has already turned down some area small colleges that wanted to do mass testing of their athletes. MARINA VILLENEUVE Associated Press ALBANY, N.Y.

Resi- dents from 31 states must now quarantine for 14 days when arriving in New York, New Jersey and Connecti- cut, as dozens of states experience rising positive COVID-19 rates. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo acknowledged Tuesday that the quaran- tine is but said the quarantine could help protect the states against the risk of increased spread. The list of states no longer includes Minnesota, but now includes Alaska, Del- aware, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, Virginia and Washington. infection rate across the country is getting worse, not Cuomo said in a conference call with report- ers.

New York, New Jersey and Connecticut last month is- sued a joint travel advisory that requires a 14-day quar- antine period for travelers from a list that now includes 31 states, including Texas and Florida, where COVID-19 cases have spiked recently. The advisory includes states if their seven-day rolling average of positive tests ex- ceeds or if the number of positive cases exceeds 10 per 100,000 residents. Cuomo has tried to get more travelers to comply with the order by institut- ing a $2,000 fine for affected individuals who leave the airport without filling out a form that state officials plan to use to randomly track travelers and ensure following quarantine re- strictions. Airport travelers who fail to fill out the form face a hearing and an order requiring mandatory quar- antine. The governor initially said hotel clerks or business partners could alert officials about violations, and that police officers who pull over out-of-state individuals for traffic infractions could enforce quarantine rules.

The Cuomo administration immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday about how en- forcing the quarantine, in- cluding how many travelers have faced fines. The office said 724 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized Monday a figure plunged since peaking in mid-April but has declined at a much slower rate since late June. The percentage of posi- tive results has plateaued around since mid-June, with 1.2% of 66,000 tests conducted Monday coming back positive. administration reports 25,058 patients who tested positive for COVID-19 have died in New York hos- pitals and nursing homes, a figure that include 4,624 presumed deaths in New York City and an un- known number statewide. New York has reported an average of 10 people with COVID-19 dying each day over the past week.

City operations inch closer to normalcy StarTran resuming regular schedule; more offices reopen Hospitals seeing some testing shortages Nebraska among quarantine lists by the State Fair, in goods or services, for the $149,415.60 paid, through the two checks at issue, to The audit also found other irregularities related to pay- ments and compensation to Kopke. For example, he received a performance bonus of of his salary for 2019. No other employee received a bonus of more than The audit also noted that both Kopke and former fair Executive Director Lori Cox made questionable cred- it-card purchases related to meals, travel, fuel and other items. The letter recommended that the State Fair im- mediate action to recover any funds that are found to have been disbursed It said that because the findings point to the possible violation of state laws, they are being forwarded to the Nebraska Attorney General, the Ne- braska State Patrol and the Hall County Attorney. The audit also recom- mended that the fair insti- tute a number of changes, including better segregation of duties among staff, bet- ter adherence to its own ad- ministrative procedures and making sure all approved expenditures are supported by documentation.

In a statement, the fair board said it is working with its new executive di- rector, Bill Ogg, to quickly and thoroughly assess and implement the recommendations, as well as those from a recent fo- rensic investigation. Nebraska State Fair Board is a proud community member and takes seriously any alleged financial con- cerns within the organiza- tion. In recent months, the board has initiated several steps to ensure accurate financial records and ac- countability, including initiating a financial audit, cooperating with the state auditor and local authori- ties, and instituting finan- cially sound policies and Smith said in a news release. The board will continue to take steps to en- sure our resources are spent wisely and for the benefit of the Nebraska State The finances became an issue last fall after a di- sastrous 2019 fair that was plagued by heavy rain and left the organization more than $1.5 million in the hole. The board eventually laid off nearly half its staff and took out a $1.1 million line of credit with a local bank, moves that have put its fi- nances back on much more solid ground.

In March, Smith said an internal review of the finances found suspicious activity, and the board at the time alerted the Ne- braska State Patrol and the Attorney Office. Neither of those agencies has commented about any potential investigations. Cox stepped down later that month and the board hired Ogg, who started last month. Reach the writer at 402- 473-2647 or journalstar.com. On Twitter State Fair From A1 We can help you feel better, FAST! Advanced Radiology physicians are now offering a revolutionary new technique that removes damaged tissue associated with tennis elbow, plantar fasciitis, knee, Achilles tendonitis and more.

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