PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Maine Labor Commissioner Laura Fortman said Friday that the state is streamlining the processing of nearly 20,000 unemployment claims, and that means skipping fact-finding interviews for many of them.
About 5,000 unemployment claims that are likely to be approved will proceed without interviews, Fortman told reporters. The remainder will be expedited, she said.
“This is not an action that I would normally take, to waive that step. But we are not in normal times. Due to the surge of claims during this pandemic, these interviews would have stretched out for months. This is unacceptable,” she said.
The Maine Department of Labor has strained under the weight of more than 100,000 unemployment claims over the past five weeks. So far, only two-thirds of applicants have received their benefits, and more than $100 million has been paid, she said.
“The surge in unemployment claims is historic, and it is beyond anything that any state could have prepared for,” she said. “I want to assure you that we are working as quickly as possible to get benefits out, and to reassure you that the benefits will be retroactive.”
The department will be ready next week to discuss a timeline for benefits for the self-employed Mainers, Fortman said.
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THE NUMBERS
Three more people died and another 28 people tested positive for the new coronavirus in the state, said Dr. Nirav Shah, director of the Maine Center for Disease Control. That brings the total deaths to 47 and total positive tests to 965 in Maine, he said.
The state is monitoring outbreaks at nursing homes and assisted-living facilities in Augusta, Falmouth, Scarbrough, Belfast, Portland and Farmington, Shah said.
All told, 25 people people at those facilities have died, and 133 residents and 78 staff members have tested positive, he said.
For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, or death.
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HELP FOR STRANDED STUDENTS
The University of Maine System is offering in-state tuition to students at other colleges and universities who find themselves stranded or displaced because of travel limitations during the pandemic.
The Maine Welcome program offers an affordable way for students to continue their studies at a time when the coronavirus has forced widespread classroom closures. Some institutions also have raised concerns about whether they will be able to welcome students back in the fall.
The proposed average in-state tuition for full-time students in 2020-21 is $8,071 for undergraduates and $23,190 for law school students. Trustees will act on the proposed tuition rates next month.
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FOOD BANK GRANT
The Harold Alfond Foundation is awarding a $1 million grant to the the state’s largest food bank during the coronavirus pandemic.
Good Shepherd President Kristen Miale said the food bank has been forced to buy more food because food donations are down at a time of great need with tens of thousands of newly unemployed workers. Miale anticipates spending $6 million over the next six months.
The food bank already purchased more than $2 million of food in the first month of its coronavirus response, nearly double what Good Shepherd normally spends for food in an entire year.
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