Lawmakers In Oklahoma Grapple With Rising Costs Of Medicaid Expansion Set For July; California Stores Can Start Using Disposable Plastic Bags For Safety

Oklahoman: Coronavirus Pandemic Complicates Medicaid Expansion Efforts In Oklahoma
Oklahoma is on track to expand Medicaid on July 1, but legislators still don’t know how to pay for the state’s share of the expansion. And the COVID-19 pandemic has complicated the situation. Skyrocketing unemployment claims mean the expansion, and costs for the state’s current Medicaid program, could be about $100 million more than previously anticipated. (Forman, 4/27)

The New York Times: California Lifts Ban On Plastic Bags Amid Virus Concerns
Retailers in California can once again hand out free single-use plastic bags under an executive order announced on Thursday by Gov. Gavin Newsom, the latest turn away from reusable bags amid the coronavirus outbreak. The order permits stores to provide customers with disposable plastic bags for the next 60 days. “It is critical to protect the public health and safety and minimize the risk of Covid-19 exposure for workers engaged in essential activities, such as those handling reusable grocery bags,” it states. (Murphy, 4/24)

CNN: People Crowd Southern California Beaches Despite Coronavirus Concerns
Seeking relief from a heat wave, thousands of people crowded beaches in Southern California this weekend amid the coronavirus pandemic, despite a statewide stay-at-home order implemented by the governor last month. While beaches in Los Angeles and San Diego Counties remained closed, they were open in Ventura and Orange Counties. However, beachgoers still had to adhere to a patchwork of guidelines and restrictions, including keeping parking lots closed to discourage outside visitors and limit crowds. (Andone and Vercammen, 4/27)

KQED: California Community Clinics Struggle To Survive During Coronavirus Pandemic 
La Clínica de La Raza has cared for generations of Bay Area patients since its inception nearly 50 years ago. With dozens of clinics in Alameda, Contra Costa and Solano counties, the nonprofit sees roughly 90,000 mostly low-income patients per year. But many people are no longer seeking routine care since local stay-at-home orders began in mid-March, and La Clínica is losing $3 million in revenue per month, said its chief executive Jane Garcia. (Romero, 4/24)

KQED: Private Clinics At Risk Of Closing – Or Raising Patient Costs
At private practices and small clinics across the state, independent physicians are worried their businesses won’t survive the current crisis, forcing them to either close their doors or sell their practices, which could lead to higher patient costs. In either case, experts worry that will leave the health care system vastly diminished at a time when the state is facing skyrocketing costs and a shortage of doctors. (Hwang, 4/26)

WBUR: LA Reaches Legal Settlement With Company For 'False Advertising' Of COVID-19 Test 
In late March, the California company RootMD started advertising "at-home Covid-19 exposure and immunity tests" for consumers worried about the coronavirus. For $249, the company said it would mail out a test kit — including a "lancet" that buyers could use to prick their finger and collect a blood sample. Then, the company promised, consumers could mail that sample back to "certified MD immunologists" to test for antibodies to the coronavirus, and get results within 48 hours. (Dreisbach, 4/25)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: Could More Louisiana Deaths Be Attributed To Coronavirus? New Data May Shed Light, But It's Murky 
As the coronavirus pandemic has ripped through Louisiana, the ever-increasing tally of deaths has become a sad but familiar statistic. But new data raises questions about whether there could be secondary effects of the pandemic that have cost the lives of Louisianans beyond the 1,644 whose deaths have been directly attributed to the virus. (Adelson, 4/25)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: As Death Count Grows, Louisiana Prisons And Jails Grapple With Coronavirus Spread
Jail and prisons in Louisiana initially responded to the pandemic with extra soap and temperature checks, but the coronavirus has crept into nearly every major detention center in the state regardless. Hundreds of Louisiana inmates and correctional employees have now tested positive for coronavirus, and wardens across the state are entering a new phase of their response: hoping to limit the death toll. (Sledge and Skene, 4/25)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: Awaiting Trial, Federal Defendants In Parish Jails Mostly Stay Put Despite Pleas For Release 
Federal defendants awaiting trial in parish jails across the New Orleans area are having little luck convincing judges to send them home based on the threat of a coronavirus spread, even as U.S. Attorney General William Barr has expanded early release of some convicts from COVID-19-plagued federal pens. (Simerman, 4/25)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Georgia, Other States Could Go Through Reserve Funds Quickly
Georgia and many other states have spent the past decade building up savings since the Great Recession for just the kind of downturn they now likely face because of the coronavirus pandemic. Georgia has about $2.7 billion banked, and nationally, states have put away about $75 billion to pay for everything from teacher salaries to prisons, roads to universities, public heath programs to food safety inspections. (Salzer, 4/26)

WBUR: For Boston Homeless Shelter Workers On The Coronavirus Front Line, Importance Of Universal Testing Gets Personal
Marte is the community engagement and safety manager at St. Francis House. He's one of hundreds of homeless shelter workers who will now be eligible for coronavirus testing, under a plan announced by city officials. The city has secured 1,000 additional coronavirus test kits, and its goal is to test the rest of the homeless population and front-line homeless service workers. (Joliocoeur, 4/24)

Boston Globe: Mass. Reports 196 New Coronavirus Deaths, While Case Tally Surpasses 50,000; Baker Says State Won’t Reopen Until Numbers Improve 
Governor Charlie Baker said Friday that it was too soon to say whether he will extend the restrictions he imposed to combat the coronavirus pandemic that are set to expire on May 4, telling reporters that he’s continuing to monitor data on infection and hospitalization rates. (Andersen adn Finucane, 4/24)

WBUR: After Hundreds Of Patients In Somerville COVID-19 Clinic, A Turning Point Comes Clear
The Cambridge Health Alliance clinic opened just over a month ago and sees about 100 confirmed and suspected-COVID-19 patients a day, from a community that’s mostly working class, with many immigrants.The staffers help scared patients feel safer, they say, enabling many to stay home under supervision and getting those who need more care to the hospital. And as the clinic treats them, it is also quickly accumulating knowledge, including about what appears to be a pivotal point in how COVID-19 develops. (Goldberg, 4/24)

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Sunrise Hospital Celebrates Discharging Coronavirus Patients 
Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center celebrated a milestone Saturday — the discharge to date of more than 50 COVID-19 patients. Employees marked the occasion by clapping and cheering as patient David Reifer was pushed down a hallway and out of the Las Vegas hospital in a wheelchair. Reifer waved to the health care workers as he passed them. (Wootton-Greener, 4/25)

Indianapolis Star: Coronavirus In Indiana: 4 Pieces Of Data The State Doesn't Release
Every weekday, Gov. Eric Holcomb and Indiana State Health Commissioner Kristina Box update the public on the coronavirus situation in the state. The health department also updates an interactive website dedicated to coronavirus data every day. We know how many new cases are reported each day, how many new deaths, testing rates, race, gender and age demographics, ventilator counts, ICU capacity and some hospitalization data. But there are some things Indiana State Health Department doesn't release. Here's what's missing, and what kind of information other states provide. (DePompei, 4/24)