Maine leaders in the Blaine House and Congress say they’re ready to work with the Biden administration on an expanded federal response to COVID-19.
The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention on Saturday reported 328 cases of the novel coronavirus and four new deaths, as Maine’s senators this weekend are expected to join negotiations for additional COVID-19 relief. Sens. Angus King and Susan Collins are members of the “Gang of 16,” a centrist coalition of senators hoping to influence a $1.9 billion relief package proposed by newly inaugurated President Joe Biden. The sweeping legislation includes $1,400 checks to Americans; funding for states, localities, COVID-19 testing and vaccine distribution; extended unemployment benefits; rent relief; paid family leave; nutrition programs and a $15 hourly national minimum wage. Collins, a leader of the bipartisan group, says she wants the relief package to focus on fighting COVID-19, and asked that any unrelated provisions — such as the minimum wage, perhaps — be considered separately. The state’s cumulative cases rose to 36,598. Of those,29,780 have been confirmed by testing and 6,818 are considered probable cases of COVID-19. The seven-day average of daily new cases has dipped in the last week, from an all-time peak of 625.4 on Jan.14 to only 485.1 on Saturday. Five hundred forty-four people have died with COVID-19 since the pandemic began in Maine. Information about the four people reported Saturday to have died wasn’t yet available from the Maine CDC. As of Friday, Maine had given 98,371 people at least the first dose of a vaccine against COVID-19, with 19,876 having received a second dose.
