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At least 239 meatpacking workers have died and 45,000 have contracted the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic, according to tracking by the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting. But companies reported less than half that number of deaths to OSHA, a joint investigation by USA TODAY and the Midwest Center found. Experts say that's in large part because the agency weakened reporting requirements during the pandemic. Even fewer deaths triggered the kind of robust investigation OSHA typically conducted before the pandemic. Worker advocates say that's also a consequence of a hands-off approach from OSHA. (Bagenstose, Chadde and Axon, 1/11)

Two Dallas-area Texas House members are calling the Legislature’s planned Opening Day ceremony on Tuesday a “superspreader” event and say they do not plan to participate. Reps. Ana-Maria Ramos and Michelle Beckley, both Democrats, said Monday they will be sworn in by Ramos’ husband, Johnny, who is a public notary, at an alternative location. The Texas House is requiring that attendees wear masks at the abbreviated ceremony and is encouraging them to get tested. Guests and media are required to be tested. (Goldenstein, 1/11)

KHN: California Budget Reflects ‘Pandemic-Induced Reality,’ Governor Says 

The coronavirus pandemic doomed Gov. Gavin Newsom’s ambitious plans last year to combat homelessness, expand behavioral health services and create a state agency to control soaring health care costs. But even as the pandemic continues to rage, California’s Democratic governor said Friday he plans to push forward with those goals in the coming year, due to a rosier budget forecast buoyed by higher tax revenue from wealthy Californians who have fared relatively well during the crisis. (Hart, 1/12)

With the Mississippi legislative session just beginning, officials are starting to reveal their public policy wish lists, including proposals to increase teacher pay and improve the availability of health care services. The Senate Democratic Caucus chairman, Derrick Simmons of Greenville, repeated last week what he and many other Democrats have said for years — that Mississippi should expand Medicaid to cover tens of thousands of people who earn modest salaries and don’t receive health insurance through their jobs. Expansion is optional under the 2010 health care overhaul signed by then-President Barack Obama, and Mississippi is one of 12 states that have not chosen the option. (Wagster Pettus, 1/10)