The seventh week of the last half of the 111th Tennessee General Assembly is now history, and State Senator Shane Reeves gives an update as to what has happened. He reports that it was a very busy and productive week at the capitol as several committees have begun wrapping up.
Senator Reeves said, "I sponsored Senate Bill 1912 to amend the state's opioid reform legislation to include medical devices, like pain pumps and spinal cord stimulators, occupational therapy and non-opioid medicinal drugs as non-opioid based alternative therapies for chronic pain. This legislation is part of an ongoing effort in Tennessee to provide alternative pathways to treat pain in order to curb opioid addiction, which has claimed the lives of thousands of Tennesseans."
He noted that Commissioner Bob Rolfe of the Department of Economic & Community Development appeared before the Senate Commerce & Labor Committee. He talked about the state's Broadband Accessibility Grants which were distributed through his department in 2019. Since 2018, TNECD has awarded more than $25 million in broadband accessibility grants to support projects within 30 Tennessee counties. The department anticipates announcing nearly $20 million worth of additional broadband grants this spring. We are looking at increasing broadband accessibility through an additional $25 million investment as part of the 2020-2021 fiscal year budget. This would add to the significant investments phased in over the past four years.
The seven MTSU students joined more than 50 others from eight state universities for the annual Posters at the Capitol display. The event was coordinated by Tennessee STEM Education Center Director Greg Rushton and his staff, and the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs.
