Health & Environment

The chief of the state Health Department’s Emergency Preparedness and Response section says the last year has been a busy one.

Tim Wiedrich says there have been a dozen situations where the Health Department’s Emergency Operations Center has been activated.

"We've responded to a wide variety of incidents," said Wiedrich. "Things like train derailments, water emergencies, tornadoes and a wide variety of other types of emergencies -- including communicable disease."

And Wiedrich says the state, in partnership with local emergency personnel, has handled things well.

Sanford’s nursing school in Bismarck will soon be a part of NDSU.

The state Board of Higher Education has approved the plan. NDSU president Dean Breschani says the university earlier announced it would double its nursing enrollment – to help meet a growing need for nurses in North Dakota.

"We have a forming crisis in our state," Breschani told the Board. "NDSU wants to be a part of solving that, as does Sanford Health. This will help meet the need for nurses, especially in western North Dakota. It's a no-brainer that this is in the state's best interest."

Monday (3/31) marks the deadline for uninsured individuals to sign-up for healthcare coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Leading up to the deadline, State Insurance Commissioner Adam Hamm says North Dakotans have not been strong to respond to the enrollment.

“…The numbers (from the federal government) as of the end of February are about 5,200 folks covered in plans in the North Dakota marketplace. When you actually go to the three companies selling plans and see who’s actually bought a plan and paid their first month’s premiums, the number drops to about 4,500.”

Bismarck’s Saint Alexius (uh-lex’-ee-us) Medical Center and Catholic Health Initiatives have signed a “letter of intent” to form a new affiliation.

CHI is based in Englewood, Colorado. It has 87 hospitals in 18 states.

CHI and St. A’s officials say the letter is a “non-binding agreement.

"Our organization and CHI have come to the point where we recognize health care is changing," said St. A's CEO and president Gary Miller. "And we have to change with it."

Miller says St. A’s has had a close working relationship with CHI hospitals in Williston and Dickinson.

So far, just under 4000 North Dakotans have signed up for health care coverage under the expanded Medicaid program.

It’s part of the federal affordable care act. The Legislature approved Governor Dalrymple’s recommendation that Medicaid be expanded for low income people who can’t afford health insurance on their own.

State human services director Maggie Anderson told the Legislature’s interim Government Finance Committee – the department had estimated up to 20,500 North Dakotans could enroll through expanded Medicaid.

Low income North Dakotans have another option to apply for health care coverage through the expanded Medicaid program.

Until now, they could apply on-line or in-person. The new option: by phone.

"We actually have contracted with a vendor (Automated Health Systems), who will take applications over the phone, if they would prefer to make an application that way, rather than in person or on-line," said North Dakota Human Services Director Maggie Anderson. She says people have already been applying via computer or paper.

One of the North Dakota Legislature’s most vocal supporters of the federal Affordable Healthcare Act – dubbed “Obamacare” – says the legislative majority leadership set up the law for failure.

Sen. Tim Mathern (D-Fargo) says all one needs to do is look at the signups in North Dakota – compared to the sign ups in Minnesota.

"In Minnesota, thousands of people are signing up," said Mathern. "In North Dakota, they aren't. Had we worked together in a partnership with the federal government, this would be a different situation."