News to Know (12/22/20)
The news you need to know before you head out the door
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congress passed a $900-billion dollar coronavirus relief bill late last night. It includes money for vaccine distribution, small businesses, and unemployed workers, as well as $600-dollar direct payments to people making less than $75-thousand dollars a year. Congress also approved a resolution to keep the government funded for an additional seven days — which the President Trump signed early Tuesday.
JOPLIN, Mo. – Dry ice has taken on new importance as a necessity for the safe transportation and storage of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine. As a result, dry ice facilities like CeeKay Ice in Joplin are fielding more calls from area health departments and hospitals. To remain viable, the Pfizer vaccine must be stored at nearly a hundred degrees below zero, Farenheit.
JOPLIN, Mo. – A Joplin cancer patient receives a unique lifesaving surgery. Resident Jan Johnson was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia in 2007. After several rounds of intensive radiation therapy the cancer went back into remission and Johnson received a stem-cell transplant. Her transplant also helped the hospital reach a milestone for 2020 by performing just over 100 transplants this year.
BENTON COUNTY, Mo. – Benton County, Missouri authorities arrest two people yesterday morning for the murder of a four-year-old girl. Ethan Mast and Kourtney Aumen face second degree murder, felony assault and child abuse charges. According to the Sheriff the girl was beaten, submerged in a pond and then left to freeze on the bank before being taken back into the house. Police found the mother of the child and the younger brother severely beaten.