A state task force addressing the backlog of untested rape kits was renewed by Gov. Kevin Stitt Wednesday after it briefly dissolved due to inaction.
The Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Task Force was formed by former Gov. Mary Fallin in 2017 to help handle a backlog of untested rape kits. It had been renewed by Stitt in 2019, but lapsed in January of this year after he didn’t sign a followup executive order to renew it.
The new order gives the task force a number of objectives related to improving rape kit testing efficiency. The state task force has made a number of policy recommendations following a 2018 audit that found more that 7,200 untested rape kits in Oklahoma.
Some of the advancements made in the wake of the task force’s creation include a statewide electronic system that allows survivors to track their kits, and directions to law enforcement that completed kits be delivered to a testing lab within 20 days.
Oklahoma has extended Medicaid coverage for new moms. Maternal health advocates are hopeful this policy will reduce maternal mortality and serious post-delivery complications.
Under SoonerCare, Oklahomans who wouldn’t otherwise qualify for Medicaid can get coverage while they are pregnant, and the coverage runs until 60 days after birth. That changed in January, when the program’s governing board voted to expand benefits to 12 months.
For years, maternal health advocates and the medical community have called to extend that coverage to one year postpartum. According to the Commonwealth Fund, 52% of pregnancy-related deaths take place after birth.
New moms can have non-lethal but still very serious issues with infections, clotting, blood pressure and mental health. Oklahomans who make up to 205% of the federal poverty level qualify. That’s $38,460 annually for a single person.
The Norman Fire Department is facing allegations of fraud for falsifying records, which may have affected their annual Insurance Services Office, or ISO rating. The rating determines how well a fire department serves the community, and it has an impact on insurance rates. The city of Norman confirmed to KOCO that the fraud allegations have been sent to the Oklahoma Attorney General's Office, but the office declined to comment on whether an investigation is active.
The question of when OU will actually join the SEC has vexed us all for more than a year. Now we have clarity. A new agreement will send the Sooners to their new conference next year.
The 2023 athletic season will be OU’s last in the Big XII Conference. The same is true for Texas. Both schools are moving to the SEC, and the agreement announced Thursday means that will happen one year early. And it’s going to cost them.
ESPN reports the two schools will pay the Big XII $100 million to join the SEC early. That’s subject to approval by the Board of Regents, and there are offsets to ease the financial burden.
OU President Joe Harroz says the deal gives OU “command of its own future” and that he’s “eager to contribute OU’s iconic traditions and competitiveness to the SEC.”
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