Budget Update
Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB) officials released their February 2021 Budget and Economic Forecast yesterday, and it showed good news. They are projecting a positive budget balance of $1.6 billion for the next biennium. Minnesota’s budget outlook is significantly better for this biennium and the next due to an improved U.S. economic outlook that is bolstered by federal actions that have emerged since November and were not incorporated in earlier projections.
Now that we know what the financial climate of the state will look like for the next two years, it is now up to the Legislature to craft a balanced and responsible budget. The forecast shows a cautiously hopeful picture for our state, but we also know this recovery has not been felt equally for Minnesotans. We must create a budget that ensures a fair recovery that helps those who have been most affected by the pandemic and one that strengthens our communities.
More information is available here: https://mn.gov/mmb/mmbhome/?id=1059-469530.
Vaccine Update
Governor Walz announced that the vaccine priority groups will remain the same until at least 70% of Minnesotans aged 65+ are vaccinated, with the goal to reach this benchmark by the end of March. At that point, eligibility will expand to people with specific high-risk health conditions and targeted essential workers.
High-risk health conditions include: Sickle cell disease, Down Syndrome, active cancer treatment, immunocompromised form organ transplant, oxygen-dependent chronic lung and heart conditions (COPD and CHF).
Targeted essential workers include food processing plant workers.
Later this spring, eligibility will continue to expand to groups such as those 16-64 with one or more other high-risk medical conditions, essential front-line workers, people aged 50 years and over living in multi-generational housing, and so on. More details on these groups and the vaccination timeline can be found on the Who’s Getting Vaccinated page of the State’s Covid-19 response website.
Moving on to new eligibility groups does not mean that people in early priority groups won’t have access to vaccine anymore. For the past several weeks our federal allocations have steadily increased. With new vaccines on the horizon, health officials are confident that this supply will continue to grow, allowing new groups to be added to prioritization through the spring, and the general public being eligible this summer.
If you have not yet been vaccinated, I highly encourage you to use this new tool to let you know when you’ll be available to get the vaccine: https://vaccineconnector.mn.gov/. If you have questions about the form or need language assistance, please call our Minnesota COVID-19 Vaccine Connector hotline at 833-431-2053.
If you have any questions or wish to unsubscribe from this Newsletter please feel free to contact my office at 651-296-2556 or by email at sen.jerry.newton@senate.mn.
Thank you and have a great weekend,
Jerry Newton
State Senator
District 37