Kansas pandemic response panel approves extra nurses’ pay

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) – Kansas hospitals will receive $50 million to provide extra pay for nurses, but a plan approved by a state task force will require them to report monthly on how many nurses they’ve lost and why.

The money comes from federal COVID-19 relief funds, and Kansas law required a bipartisan pandemic response task force to spell out how it would be spent.

The task force added the reporting requirement during a Friday meeting.

The meeting came a day after President Joe Biden imposed new vaccine requirements for as many as 100 million Americans.

Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt signaled that he’s likely to join other Republican officials in challenging Biden’s mandates.