Articles written by Annie Berman
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High school students statewide protest inadequate state funding
Hundreds of high schoolers across Alaska participated in an organized walkout April 4 in protest of the Legislature’s recent failure to override Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s veto of an education funding bill. The bill would have included a historic inc...
Research says Alaska teacher salaries below Lower 48 average
Teacher salaries in Alaska are not competitive when compared to much of the Lower 48, according to new research from the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Institute of Social and Economic Research. Alaska teachers are paid below the national a...
Research says Alaska teacher salaries below Lower 48 average
Teacher salaries in Alaska are not competitive when compared to much of the Lower 48, according to new research from the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Institute of Social and Economic Research. Alaska teachers are paid below the national a...
Alaska opts out of expanded summer food stamps program
Alaska was one of 15 states to reject federal funding that would have provided direct grocery assistance this summer to thousands of families with children in the state who are facing increased food insecurity and rising food costs. The new federal...
Backlog returns for approving food stamp benefits
More than a year after the state Department of Public Assistance first fell behind with processing food stamps benefits for thousands of Alaskans, the agency is again reporting lengthy delays for new and returning applicants. As of late last month, a...
State pauses cancellation of Medicaid due to missing paperwork
The Alaska Division of Public Assistance has temporarily stopped dropping people from Medicaid for paperwork-related reasons after thousands of low-income Alaskans — including families with children — lost health coverage that they may still be eli...
Alaska leads nation in error rate for determining food stamp benefits
Recently published federal data shows that Alaska’s payment error rate for administering food stamp benefits was the highest of any state during the past fiscal year. Between October 2021 and September 2022, the Alaska Division of Public A...
Alaska's food stamp backlog cut tens of thousands out of program last year
Alaska saw a drop in the number of food stamp recipients over the past year far larger than any other state as processing delays caused low-income households to miss out on their benefits. While more than half of states actually had an increase in...
State food stamp applications backlog down to 7,000 cases
Alaska’s monthslong delay in disbursing federally funded food stamps to thousands of families still isn’t over — compelling many Alaskans to continue depending on food banks and pantries for emergency food assistance while they wait. While the state...
State trying to fix food stamp delays, acknowledges people get frustrated when they're hungry
A month after a major backlog in Alaska’s food stamp application processing surfaced publicly, state officials are scrambling to hire emergency workers to address delays reaching crisis levels for Alaskans who depend on the federal program to feed t...
Children's vaccination rate in Alaska dropped sharply from 2018 to 2022
The percentage of Alaska children who are up to date on their routine vaccinations has fallen considerably since the beginning of the pandemic, prompting concern among health experts about the return of certain serious illnesses that had been all but...
CDC report points to higher COVID death rate among Natives
A new report from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides the most comprehensive look so far at the disproportionate toll COVID-19 is taking on Alaska Native and American Indian people living in Alaska. Overall, Alaska Native...
End of federal COVID emergency could end Medicaid for thousands of Alaskans
Thousands of Alaskans could lose Medicaid benefits as soon as July, when the federal government’s COVID-19 health emergency is expected to end. Alaska’s state health officials face the daunting task of combing through pandemic-swollen Medicaid rolls...
