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COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

News

DHSS: 210 new cases

Affected peninsula communities include Kenai with three cases and Soldotna with one case.

RN Rachel Verba (right) administers a dose of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine to Dr. Chris Michelson on Friday, Dec. 18, 2020 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo courtesy Bruce Richards/CPH)

News

Several hundred vaccination slots still open

Appointments are available at multiple central peninsula clinics.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

News

DHSS: 145 new cases

Affected peninsula communities include Soldotna with six cases and Kenai with one case.

Passengers at the Juneau International Airport make their way past signage notifying the public about the state’s travel restrictions on Monday, Nov. 15, 2020. Alaska Department of Health and Social Services released a request for information seeking to determine interest among potential contractors to provide a one-dose vaccine to interested travelers in a secure section of the airports in Anchorage, Juneau, Fairbanks and Ketchikan. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire File)

News

Alaska health department floats idea of airport vaccinations

Could vaccines be coming to Alaska’s busiest airports?

Point of view

Opinion

Voices of the Peninsula: Take it for Team Alaska

COVID-19 has a vaccination — yours for the taking.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

News

DHSS: 178 new COVID-19 cases

The state also reported 11 new hospitalizations and two new deaths among Alaska residents.

Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion
Todd Duwe hands a food box to Brad Nyquist as Mark Larson looks on Dec. 22, 2020, at Christ Lutheran Church in Soldotna. The church volunteers were distributing food from the United States’ Department of Agriculture’s Farmers to Families Food Box Program, delivered by the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank. The food bank saw a surge in demand last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

News

Looming benefit loss causes food security concerns

Two bills are being considered to keep increased food stamp benefits.

A vial of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine is seen at Central Emergency Services Station 1 on Friday, Dec. 18 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

News

1 in 5 eligible borough residents fully vaccinated

More than half of peninsula seniors are fully vaccinated.

The Kenai River Brown Bears celebrate the first-period goal of Logan Ritchie (far left) on Thursday, Nov. 21, 2019, at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)

Opinion

Voices of the Peninsula: Brown Bears are back and need your support

Our club will resume hockey operations at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex beginning April 16.

A vial of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine is seen at Central Emergency Services Station 1 on Friday, Dec. 18 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

News

1 in 4 eligible Alaskans are fully vaccinated

In the Kenai Peninsula Borough, just over one in five residents over the age of 16 — 21.2%…

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

News

DHSS: 52 new cases

The borough is considered to be at intermediate risk level.

In this June 9, 2016, file photo shows then-Alaska Marijuana Control Board member Brandon Emmett at the board’s meeting in Anchorage, Alaska. Regulators amid much fanfare in early 2020 approved the first cannabis lounges in Alaska. It was a milestone for the state’s legal marijuana industry. Then the pandemic hit. An owner of one of the shops hopes to open later this year. An owner of the other said his shop opened briefly last fall before having to hit pause amid a surge in COVID-19 cases across the state. Emmett, a former member of the Marijuana Control Board who strongly advocated for rules to allow onsite use, said he thinks the number of cannabis lounges or cafes in the state will be limited “for at least a couple years.” (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)

News

Pandemic puts pause on on-site use for pot shops

Records show a small number of other shop owners have filed paperwork signaling plans to seek approval for…

Adam Crum, commissioner of the Alaska state health department, testifies before a state Senate committee on Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2021, in Juneau, Alaska. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Opinion

Opinion: Looking back on 1 year of the pandemic

For me, this anniversary provides a reflective opportunity to think about not only what happened in the past…

Rep. Chris Kurka, R-Wasilla, leaves the chambers of the Alaska House of Representatives on Friday, March 19, 2021, after an hour of delays concerning the wording on his mask. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

News

Mask rules standoff derails House floor session

The session was rescheduled for Saturday.

RN Rachel Verba (right) administers a dose of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine to Dr. Chris Michelson on Friday, Dec. 18, 2020 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo courtesy Bruce Richards/CPH)

News

Vaccine hesitancy among local health care workers mirrors national trends

CPH will continue to follow up with employees to see if they are interested in being vaccinated.

A vial of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine is seen at Central Emergency Services Station 1 on Friday, Dec. 18 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

News

COVID update: Senior vacciation rate nears 70% statewide

Nearly one in four eligible Alaska residents — 24.8% — were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Friday.

Tim Dillon, executive director of the Kenai Peninsula Economic Development District, helps Doug Weaver, owner of Northern Superior Construction, apply for an AK CARES grant through Credit Union 1 at the KPEDD office in Kenai, Alaska on July 1, 2020. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

News

Trends: CARES Act a source of relief for borough, city residents

One element of the CARES Act was the Coronavirus Relief Fund, through which the State of Alaska received…

Kenai City Hall on Feb. 20, 2020, in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

News

Kenai shop local program extended 1 month

As of March 3, more than $55,000 in vouchers had already been distributed and more than 50 businesses…

The Kenai City Council meets on Wednesday, Feb. 18 in Kenai, Alaska. (Screenshot)

News

Kenai extends disaster declaration to end of May

The declaration was first issued on March 18, 2020 and has since been extended six times.

A vial of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine is seen at Central Emergency Services Station 1 on Friday, Dec. 18 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)

News

Vaccinations continue to climb

More than half of peninsula seniors — 52.30% — are fully vaccinated.