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Update from Rep. Tabke: Legislating in a Pandemic

Friday, March 20, 2020

Your Friday Update from the Office of Representative Brad Tabke:

 

The most recent numbers from the Minnesota Department of Health includes 3856 tests115 confirmed cases, and 21 counties with confirmed cases, including Scott County. 

As things continue to change rapidly, please be mindful of sources of information, especially if it’s an email, phone call, or letter offering something that seems too good to be true. The Minnesota Department of Commerce has resources available for identifying and reporting scams, which you can find here

I also wanted to share a very useful compilation of numbers and links to help answer various pandemic-related questions. 

If you have any questions related to our efforts in the Minnesota House, feel free to tune in to our COVID-19 Virtual Town Hall, which will be on Tuesday, March 24, at 10am on the State Representative Brad Tabke Facebook Page

MN House Proposals

The latest from Governor Walz includes granting Emergency Authority to the Department of Human Services (DHS), regulations preventing price gouging, and opening MNsure for enrollment. 

  • Preventing the spread of COVID-19 requires swift, decisive action, and granting Emergency Authority to DHS allows those decisions to be made. DHS will have the ability to waive or modify some state-level requirements, but will still need to report these to the Legislature. 
  • Price gouging, drastically raising the price of essential products, is prevented by law in many states already. Governor Walz’s emergency powers allow him to implement these needed regulations. 
  • A 30-day special enrollment period for MNsure will start Monday, the 23rd. You can take advantage of this at MNsure.org.    

Please continue to reach out with your questions or comments. These are unprecedented times, but your input on our work at the Legislature is essential. 

 

Be kind, stay healthy, and wash your hands.

 

Brad Tabke, State Representative|Rep.Brad.Tabke@house.mn

Eric Petersen, Legislative Assistant|Eric.Petersen@house.mn