|
(Continued from page 26)
• The corps also plans to use explosives to blast away treacherous rock formations at the bottom of the river near two southern Illinois towns, Thebes and Grand Tower. If the river level gets too low, those formations could bring barge traffic to a standstill.
• The project has passed environmental approval, but contracts must still be awarded. Work is expected to begin in early February.
• But Petersen conceded the river could be closed if the drought persists. He said closure at St. Louis would become more likely if the river gauge gets to around minus-5 feet. It was at minus-1.2 feet Tuesday morning.
• "The middle Mississippi is a tricky spot because we're depending on the upper Mississippi and the Missouri and what they give us," Petersen said. "For us, the reduced flow from the Missouri is a fact of life in how we operate the river."
• Farmer said the corps must tend to eight congressionally authorized purposes on the Missouri River: hydropower, water supply, water quality control, fish and wildlife, recreation, irrigation, navigation and flood control.
• Because of the drought, the Mississippi has received as much as 78 percent of its water from the Missouri this year, compared with 60 percent in a normal year, according to Nixon's office.
•
SD health care providers urge Medicaid expansion
CHET BROKAW,Associated Press
• PIERRE, S.D. (AP) -- Now that President Barack Obama's re-election has cleared the way for the full implementation of his health care law, doctors and hospitals in South Dakota are urging the state to expand its Medicaid program so thousands of additional low-income residents can receive coverage.
• But Gov. Dennis Daugaard says any expansion of coverage is unlikely for at least several years while the potential costs are examined.
• The South Dakota Association of Health Care Organizations said about 48,000 uninsured residents will be left behind if South Dakota doesn't ease its eligibility requirements for Medicaid, the government health care program for the poor.
• "If we're left out of the benefits that can come from the Affordable Care Act, how do we take care of the people of South Dakota who are below the federal poverty level?" said Dr. Rob Allison, of Pierre, president of the South Dakota State Medical Association.
• The federal law seeks to reduce the number of uninsured by requiring those who can afford coverage to obtain it. But the Supreme Court ruled that states cannot be required to expand Medicaid to cover more of those who can't afford policies.
(Continued on page 28)
|
|
