Missouri Gov. Mike Parson is calling lawmakers back to Jefferson City for a second special legislative session to deal with a supplemental budget.
鈥淚t鈥檚 more of a technical session,鈥� Parson said at his press briefing on Wednesday. 鈥淚t should be very short. They should be in and out quickly.鈥�
The session will begin on Thursday, Nov. 5, just two days after the election. The main priority is ensuring the state has access to additional federal funding for coronavirus response and recovery.
Parson said the budget bill will include funding for the School Nutrition Services Program, the Emergency Solutions Grant Program for homelessness prevention, job training grants and child support payments. The governor said he would be on board with also discussing COVID-19 liability issues.
鈥淚f the Legislature was willing, I think the legal liability issue should be front and center in this state,鈥� Parson said. 鈥淚f it鈥檚 not done in special session, it definitely should be a priority in the session. Hopefully that鈥檚 something that can be done in the first 30 or 60 days.鈥�
Parson said that he has spoken to both chambers regarding the special session and that he thinks 鈥渢hey鈥檙e fully on board.鈥�
He鈥檚 leaving it up to leadership in the House and Senate to create the schedule and did not say how long the session would last.
Coronavirus vaccine details
After last week, Dr. Randall Williams, the state鈥檚 public health director, provided a little more insight into the plan on Wednesday.
The emphasizes allowing every Missourian to get a vaccine for free, but further into the document it says that providers can charge an administration fee. The document suggests keeping that fee small but does not specify a maximum amount. Williams said it will be in the ballpark of $20.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 anticipate cost being a barrier to getting vaccinated,鈥� Williams said.
There are more than 3 million Missourians categorized as 鈥渉igh-priority鈥� in the document. Williams reiterated that nursing home patients, staffs and other health care workers are at the top of that list. It鈥檚 still undetermined when the state will move into the phase to begin vaccinating the next group, which includes first responders, teachers and others.
鈥淚n the plan, it sequentially starts with our people who are at highest risk, our elderly with comorbid conditions. They start first,鈥� Williams said. 鈥淭hen after that, we鈥檙e just going to have to reassess. At this point, we have not ranked those other groups until we see how much vaccine we get.鈥�
Williams said there are ongoing conversations about additional federal funding for providers administering and storing the vaccine. He called it a 鈥渃ontentious鈥� issue that鈥檚 not yet decided.
Williams said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expects the first doses of the vaccine to be available at the end of the year. He also said Missouri鈥檚 plan was sent to other states by the White House as 鈥渁 model鈥� for the country.
