Friday News Brief

One of the questions coming out of Albany these days — what’s driving New Yorkers out of the Empire State? This is why some lawmakers are asking to research what the latest data shows: a steady decline in population since the pandemic began. Legislators plan to create a commission on out-migration. The commission would be made up of 13 lawmakers, three of whom to be appointed by Governor Hochul, and would take a year to research the specifics as to why people are leaving.

 

Rochester Regional health has brought back the mandatory use of masks. All patients, visitors and staff members will be required to wear a mask inside Rochester General and Unity Hospitals. That’s regardless of vaccination status. Rochester General alone has seen a 33% increase in in-patients with COVID-19 from the last week of December. This is a temporary mandate that’s in place until January 16th and then Rochester Regional will reassess whether to keep the policy in place. And, in fact, the United States overall is seeing another large wave of COVID infections sweep the nation. The Centers for Disease Control announced the current viral activity level of COVID-19 is the highest it’s been since the surge of the omicron variant in 2022. A new strain of COVID called JN.1 has become the most dominant variant in the US, and was responsible for nearly 50-percent of infections in mid-December. The CDC reported over 29,000 COVID hospitalizations in the week before Christmas. Less than 20% of adults have received the latest COVID booster.

 

A bill is working its way through committee and will eventually end up in the State Senate; if it were to pass, grocery stores would be allowed to sell wine. Right now a law that dates back to prohibition stops grocers in the state from carrying wine or liquor. As you might already guess…liquor storeowners have been lobbying to keep the law the same for nearly a century saying that changing it would drive many of them out of business; they estimate a loss of up to 40% of their sales. This new bill would only allow sales of wine in regional chains like Tops or Wegmans and would not allow national chains like Wal-Mart to sell wine.

 

 

Governor Hochul is announcing a six-point plan to tackle New York’s maternal and infant mortality crisis. It’s the governor’s third proposal of her 2024 State of the State. It calls for 40 hours of paid leave for pre-natal care, making the state the first in the nation to establish such coverage. The plan also includes new legislation to allow access to doulas without a referral and accountability measures to crack down on unnecessary C-sections. It also calls for eliminating certain co-pays for pregnancy-related benefits, mental health support for postpartum depression and anxiety and making sure every New York family can obtain a crib at no cost to reduce the risk of infant deaths.

 

The Buffalo Sabres have avoided a second straight loss after picking up a dominant win on the road. Tage Thompson scored twice for Buffalo as his team beat the Montreal Canadiens six to one at the Bell Centre last night. Sabres goaltender Devon Levi was fantastic in net, stopping 32 of the 33 shots that he faced in the contest. Buffalo’s next game is tomorrow night against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

 

The Buffalo Bills will be in the Sunshine State this weekend as they look to punch their ticket to the NFL playoffs. The Bills are visiting the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium, and the winner is going to be crowned champion of the AFC East. Buffalo has been red-hot as of late and is currently on a four-game winning streak that includes a victory last Sunday over the New England Patriots. Kickoff for this Sunday’s showdown is scheduled for 8:20pm.

ELSEWHERE…

 

Fans of ABC’s hit show The Golden Bachelor got to watch New Jersey native Theresa Nist tie the knot live with Indiana’s own Gerry Turner last night. Turner, the show’s 72-year old namesake, spent nine episodes in a journey to find a second chance at love. He proposed to 70-year-old Nist on the show’s November finale. The pair opted to marry within weeks with Turner saying they don’t have time to waste at their age. Thursday’s ceremony was filled with family, friends and even other Golden Bachelor contestants. The two-hour Golden Wedding is slated to stream on Hulu, Disney plus, and other platforms today.

 

 

An exploding toilet is the subject of a lawsuit filed in Orlando. A Dunkin’ customer sued the company Wednesday for injuries he suffered when a toilet exploded at a Winter Park location on Aloma Avenue two years ago. Flagler County’s Paul Kerouac claims the explosion left him covered in urine and feces. He’s seeking over a $100,000 in damages for what he calls severe and long-term injuries that left him in need of counseling.

 

 

 

Consumer Reports has found what it calls “widespread” presence of plastics in food. The nonprofit consumer group called on regulators to reassess the safety of plastics that come into contact with food during production. Consumer Reports said on Thursday that 84 of 85 supermarket foods and fast foods it tested recently contained a chemical that’s used to make plastic more durable.

 

Today is Friday, Jan. 5, the fifth day of 2024 with 361 to follow.

The moon is waning. Morning stars are Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Uranus and Venus. Evening stars are Jupiter, Neptune, Saturn and Uranus.

January 5 in history…

 

…In 1914, the Ford Motor Co. increased its pay from $2.34 for a 9-hour day to $5 for 8 hours of work.

 

 

 

 

… In 1946, Diane Keaton was born; happy 78th birthday!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

…In 1973, Bruce Springsteen released his first album, “Greetings From Asbury Park.”

 

 

 

 

…In 1980, John Mellencamp made his first appearance on “American Bandstand.” He performed the song “I Need A Lover.”

 

 

 

 

 

…In 2006, The Cowsills’ Richard Cowsill confirmed that his brother and band mate Barry was dead. Barry’s believed to have been killed in Hurricane Katrina. His remains were discovered in late December 2005 — four months after the storm — at the Charles Street Wharf in New Orleans, and he was identified through dental records.