This is your daily news rundown for Tuesday, May 20. In this edition:
- Utah agricultural producers affected by drought can now access relief loans
- Students across the state can get free meals and snacks this summer
- A specialized treatment for blood cancers is now available in St. George
Utah farmers affected by drought can get $100,000 in relief loans
Utah farmers affected by drought now have access to emergency disaster relief loans from the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food.
Last month, Governor Spencer Cox issued a state of emergency due to ongoing drought in over half of Utah’s counties, noting the significant challenge drought presents to Utah's agricultural economy and rural communities.
Eligible agricultural producers in those counties can now apply for a low-interest loan through the Emergency Disaster Relief Loan program, up to $100,000 per entity.
Applications will be accepted until October 23. Guidelines and application materials can be found on the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food’s website.
Utah students in need can gets free meals and snacks this summer
Students across Utah will once again have access to free meals and snacks this summer.
The SUN Meals program is a federal program that aims to make sure kids and teens have access to nutritious food even when school is out.
Some locations are open to any child 18 or under, while some are for kids enrolled in a specific program, activity, or camp.
Availability dates range depending on the location, but most open starting at the end of May or beginning of June.
The SUN Meals program is in addition to Utah SUN Bucks, which helps eligible families buy food during the summer.
More information can be found on the Utah State Board of Education website.
Specialized treatment for blood cancers is now available in St. George
A specialized treatment for hematologic cancers is now available at St. George Regional Hospital.
Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, commonly called CAR T-cell therapy, uses a patient’s own immune system to fight their cancer.
Doctors re-engineer some of the patient’s T cells, a type of white blood cell that helps the immune system fight disease, to better target and destroy cancer cells.
This type of treatment is approved by the FDA for many blood cancers, and now it’s available at St. George Regional Hospital, bringing easier access to cancer patients in southern Utah as well as nearby states.
