Jeremy Hsieh

In this newscast:

• State lawmakers raise concerns about the sustainability of Gov. Dunleavy’s budget plan
• A group of young Alaskans lose their climate change lawsuit  against the state
• The EPA is revisiting a decision that could permanently block development of the Pebble mine
• House lawmakers table an action to remove a state representative who is a member of the Oath Keepers from his committee assignments
• The Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska will hold its annual Tribal Assembly virtually for a third year
• Local COVID-19 cases are slowly trending down
• The National Weather Service issues a winter storm warning

An elderly Juneau man died of COVID-19 at Bartlett Regional Hospital over the weekend.

Juneau Emergency Manager Robert Barr said the man was in his 80s. So far, at least 20 Juneau residents have died during the pandemic.

According to state data, there were 163 new COVID-19 cases reported among Juneau residents and visitors from Friday through Sunday. That’s down about a third from this time last week. 

Local emergency officials say the case rate is still high enough to be concerning for Bartlett Regional Hospital’s operations. Therapeutic treatments are still being rationed for people at the highest risk of developing severe cases and 25 health care workers at the hospital are sick or quarantining.

Three people with active COVID-19 infections are being treated at the hospital. 

Within Juneau schools, at least 11 cases were reported among people who were infectious while in a school or during school activities on Monday. That includes six cases at Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé, three cases at Sít’ Eetí Shaanáx Glacier Valley School, one at Yakooske Daakahidi High School and one at Mendenhall River Community School. 

Statewide from Friday through Sunday, 4,447 new cases were reported among state residents and visitors. That’s down about 23% from this time last week. Hospital data shows 154 people who are positive for COVID-19 are hospitalized, including 8 people on ventilators. 

State data show two new deaths were preliminarily reported among Alaska residents for the week ending Jan. 30.

Monday also marks the last day of COVID testing at many airports in Alaska. Many other free options for lab tests or home tests remain available in the community. 

Juneau’s risk level remains at modified high. Masks are required in indoor public spaces and outdoors when it’s crowded.

A pair of organizations based in Juneau are getting $4 million in federal housing grants to make homes safer. 

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is giving $2 million each to the Tlingit and Haida Regional Housing Authority and to the nonprofit Alaska Heat Smart. 

They applied for their grants separately, but have complementary programs targeting a lot of the same households, so they’re working together. 

“We’re both looking at remediating lower income family homes and making them both healthier and safer to those folks who live in them,” said Andy Romanoff, executive director of Alaska Heat Smart. It’s the first time it’s received one of HUD’s Healthy Homes grants. 

Alaska Heat Smart serves households in Juneau and focuses on heating and energy efficiency improvements to make them greener and cheaper to keep warm. That also fits HUD’s goals with the grant. Warm, dry homes are safer and healthier than cold, humid ones, especially when it comes to respiratory illnesses. 

Jackie Kus.een Pata is the CEO of the housing authority, which has received Healthy Homes grants several times before. She said the housing authority’s Healthy Homes program covers lots of communities in Southeast Alaska, but is specifically for tribal citizens. It tends to cover more general repairs, like plumbing, addressing mold, fixing roofs and replacing floors. 

“We’ve heard from our participants time and time again that just the simple act of removing the carpet out of the home, what a difference it made to the number of colds that they’ve had, anybody who had asthma, their respiratory condition,” Pata said. “And they were surprised how much better they felt and they didn’t even realize how bad it was affecting them until that was taken out.” 

Pata and Romanoff are putting together a single application for their two programs. Eligible households must earn less than 80% of the area median income. They think they’ll be ready to start taking Healthy Homes applications in about two months.

In this newscast:

• Leaders in the Alaska Legislature outline their hopes for the session
• The trial  begins over Alaska’s newly redrawn political boundaries
• Nome is getting $250 million in federal funding for a deep water port
• Juneau’s hospital is straining from its caseload and sick health care workers
• A Juneau pediatrician died unexpectedly
• A Curious Juneau listener asks why so many streetlights have taken on a purple hue

In this newscast:

• Heavy rain this weekend may cause flooding and avalanches
• Juneau is giving away free home COVID-19 test kits again
• Riverbend Elementary School will be closed for weeks
• Juneau attorney Libby Bakalar won her lawsuit against Gov. Mike Dunleavy over free speech and wrongful termination
• The Army Corps of Engineers commits to cleaning up 800 tons of contaminated material on an Aleutian Island

Juneau is giving away free home COVID-19 tests again after receiving a shipment of 26,000 kits on Wednesday evening. There’s a limit of two kits per family.

The test kits can be picked up at City Hall, all Juneau Public Libraries, the Juneau Public Health Center and the Juneau Police Department.

Four free tests per address are also available by mail directly through the federal government. Health insurance plans are also covering the cost of these kits bought from retailers.

State data show 208 new COVID-19 cases were reported among residents and visitors to Juneau on Wednesday and Thursday. Eight people are at Bartlett Regional Hospital with COVID-19.

Hospital staffing remains strained, though the number of health care workers who are sick or quarantining is down to 16 today; it peaked at 26 on Monday.

The state reported the deaths of two Juneau residents from COVID-19 in recent months: a man in his 60s died in November and woman in her 80s died in December.

Statewide over that same time period, 6,532 new cases were reported among state residents and visitors. There are 127 people positive for COVID-19 who are hospitalized, including five people on ventilators.

For most people, vaccines continue to be a safe and effective way to prevent severe cases of COVID-19. Public health officials estimate there are about 5,000 people in Juneau who are eligible but unvaccinated. Another 1,700 young children remain ineligible.

For kids age 12 and up and adults, there is a free vaccine clinic from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Dzántik’i Heeni Middle School. Booster shots will also be available. People can register for appointments online or by calling 907-586-6000. Walk-ins are also welcome.

Juneau’s risk level remains at level 3, modified high. Masks are required in indoor public spaces and outdoors when it’s crowded.