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BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Authorities say the bodies found this week at a rural property in Idaho are those of two children missing since September. The Rexburg Police Department said Saturday that the remains found on Tuesday have been positively identified by the medical examiner’s office as belonging to 7-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow and his 17-year-old sister Tylee Ryan. Police had issued a warrant at the home of Chad Daybell, who recently married the children’s mother, Lori Vallow Daybell. The complex case spanned three states and transfixed the public with its ties to the mysterious deaths of the Daybells’ former spouses and the couple’s doomsday beliefs.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — About 80,000 Idaho residents through early June have signed up for Medicaid under the state’s voter-approved expanded coverage. Idaho Department of Health and Welfare officials said Friday that signups are averaging about 5% a month and will likely reach the estimated 91,000 who meet requirements. Officials also say that the overall number of people signing up for Medicaid has picked up as the economy has struggled with the coronavirus pandemic and is now at about 345,000. Enrollment for Medicaid expansion started Nov. 1, with coverage beginning Jan. 1. Voters authorized Medicaid expansion in 2018 with an initiative that passed with 61% of the vote.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Gov. Brad Little says Idaho can move to the fourth and final stage of his plan to return to regular activity during the coronavirus pandemic. The announcement comes despite a bump in infections, including among healthcare workers. The Republican governor said Thursday that restrictions will be lifted Saturday that will allow gatherings of more than 50 people as long as precautions are taken. Employers can resume unrestricted staffing, but should protect workers with physical distancing and other measures. Visits to senior living facilities can resume as well. The wearing of face coverings should continue when people go out in public.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — U.S. officials are delaying repairs of an impassable northern Idaho road in important grizzly bear habitat near the Canadian border following a lawsuit. Court documents filed Wednesday say work to reopen about 5 miles of the dirt road because of threats to border security will wait until 2021 instead of starting this summer. The Center for Biological Diversity in March sued the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, claiming that reopening the road will harm grizzly bears and other wildlife in the Selkirk Mountains. U.S. officials want to patrol the road because they fear people illegally cross the border in that area.
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