Nevada Watch

An intensive care unit nurse at University Medical Center was the first person in Nevada to be inoculated against COVID-19 after the state received its initial shipment of the Pfizer vaccine Monday morning, a hospital administrator said.

While most of the country prepares to conclude their open enrollment periods s this week on Dec. 15, Nevadans have an additional 30 days to enroll in health insurance coverage for 2021.

Congressional negotiators on the long-delayed $900 billion COVID-19 economic relief package worked through a handful of remaining holdups Thursday as they labored to seal a final agreement for more help to businesses and the unemployed and new stimulus payments to most Americans.

Gov. Steve Sisolak said Wednesday that initial supplies of COVID-19 vaccines may begin arriving in Nevada in the next couple of weeks.

Nevada health officials reported 1,642 new coronavirus cases and eight additional deaths on Monday, warning that the statewide surge shows few signs of slowing as the worst month of the pandemic comes to a close.

Gov. Steve Sisolak has issued Nevadans a clear ultimatum: Shape up in two weeks, or expect steps toward another shutdown meant to halt a recent surge in coronavirus cases.

The federal government is halting shipments of rapid COVID-19 tests to Nevada and seven other states until they use supplies already received.

The health care system could be “thrown into chaos” with “huge economic impacts” if the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down Obamacare, the program administrator in Nevada said.

Who gets counted as a COVID-19 death has been questioned for months, with no formal definition in place nationwide as officials adapt to a new disease’s destructive impact.

Beginning this week, uninsured Nevadans can enroll for health coverage on the state-operated exchange, which this year features more carriers and plans. The enrollment period began Sunday and extends through Jan. 15.