PIERRE, South Dakota, Oct. 22 -- South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg issued the following news release: Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg today joined a bipartisan coalition of 46 state and territory Attorneys General, led by Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and Maine Attorney General Aaron M. Frey, in calling on Facebook, Craigslist, and eBay to take proactive measures against alcohol sales on their platforms which frequently violate state laws. "Any time a consumer seeks to bu  more

SIOUX FALLS, South Dakota, Oct. 21 -- Avera Health, an integrated health system, issued the following news: One of the nation's leaders in telemedicine, Avera eCARE(R), has received a $4.3 million grant from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust to develop and launch a national telehealth certificate program. This first of its kind program aims to standardize and elevate the quality of care provided through telehealth platforms. Physicians, advanced practice providers, medical   more

BRISTOL, Connecticut, Oct. 25 -- ESPN, a sports media company, issued the following news release: * * * - ESPN Front Row: College GameDay goes from Happy Valley, PA to Brookings, SD in a Few 'Easy' Steps * * * College GameDay Built by the Home Depot is heading to Brookings, S.D., for the first time ever this Saturday, as No. 3 South Dakota State hosts No. 1 North Dakota State (according to FCS rankings). The three-hour pregame show (9 a.m. - noon ET), will be live from College Green on South  more

VERMILLION, South Dakota, Oct. 23 -- The University of South Dakota issued the following news: University of South Dakota Beacom School of Business seniors Cortney Bickley and Abby Wollschlager took first place in the 2019 Innovation Expo student pitch competition in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on Oct. 10. The Innovation Expo is an entrepreneurship conference that focuses on connecting entrepreneurs, innovators and investors for an afternoon of speakers, breakout sessions and networking opportu  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, Oct. 26 -- The South Dakota Legislative Research Council issued the following news release: The Legislature's Government Operations and Audit Committee will hold the seventh meeting of the 2019interim on October30, 2019. The meeting will begin at 8:00 a.m. (CT) in Room 412of the State Capitol in Pierre, South. The Government Operations and Audit Committee, Chaired by Senator Ryan Maher(R-Isabel) and Vice Chair Representative Sue Peterson(R-Sioux Falls), wi  more

DAKOTA DUNES, South Dakota, Oct. 22 -- Gov. Pete Ricketts, R-Nebraska, issued the following news release: On Monday, Governor Pete Ricketts participated in the 16th Tri-State Governors' Conference, which was hosted in Dakota Dunes, South Dakota. The Tri-State Governors' Conference is a biennial event where the governors from Nebraska, Iowa, and South Dakota come together to discuss the important issues facing the Tri-State area. The conference began with a luncheon where all three governors d  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, Oct. 24 -- South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg issued the following news release: Attorney General Jason R. Ravnsborg announced today that South Dakota and other states have reached an agreement with Reckitt Benckiser Group ("Reckitt") to settle allegations that the company improperly marketed and otherwise promoted the drug Suboxone, resulting in improper expenditures of state Medicaid funds. Reckitt, an English public limited company headquartered in Slough, E  more

BISMARCK, North Dakota, Oct. 25 -- Sanford Health issued the following news: During a week that has included the attention and accompanying mayhem of an ESPN College GameDay visit, Dr. Bruce Piatt will look across the football field at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium on Saturday and see Sanford Health colleague and friend Dr. Chad Kurtenbach. Piatt is North Dakota State's longtime team doctor. Kurtenbach serves in the same capacity for South Dakota State. Together, they're Sanford Health doctors who   more

BISMARCK, North Dakota, Oct. 21 -- Sanford Health issued the following news: Dr. Jesse Dirksen's chosen career field probably surprised few people. With a nurse mom and ambulance paramedic dad, "I grew up at the kitchen table hearing medical stories," said the Sioux Falls, South Dakota, native. His chosen location? Not too surprising either. Sanford USD Medical Center was at the center of many of those childhood stories. His mom still works in labor and delivery there, his sister is an ICU nu  more

BISMARCK, North Dakota, Oct. 24 -- Sanford Health issued the following news: Dan Hames is the regional vice president of the Southwest Region for The Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Here, he charts his path to long-term care and into higher-level positions at the Society, shares two pinnacle moments in his career, and emphasizes the importance of his faith in all he does. The path to health services In his first year of college at the University of Sout  more

BISMARCK, North Dakota, Oct. 25 -- Sanford Health issued the following news: Before May 3, Claude Vershure thought his health was fine, despite a hereditary high blood pressure condition. But on May 3, the 72-year-old felt lucky to even be alive when he had a heart screening that revealed a concerning EKG, along with a cardiac calcium score more than 14 times the number that typically would trigger treatment. Vershure, who lives in Custer, South Dakota, had no notion that Friday morning of ge  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, Oct. 23 -- The South Dakota Republican Party issued the following news release: South Dakota Republican Party Chairman Dan Lederman issued the following statement today after the announcement of Democrat party Chairwoman Paula Hawks' and Executive Director Stacey Burnette's resignations this afternoon. "South Dakota Democrats announced this afternoon that Democrat Party Chairwoman Paula Hawks and Party Executive Director Stacey Burnette resigned, with the remaining party   more

PIERRE, South Dakota, Oct. 22 -- Gov. Kristi Noem, R-South Dakota, issued the following news release: Governor Kristi Noem today announced that she has appointed James "JD" Wangsness to represent District 23 in the South Dakota House of Representatives. The vacancy was created after Rep. John Lake was appointed to the District 23 Senate seat. Wangsness will serve during the 2020 legislative session. "JD is a qualified, proven public servant," said Governor Kristi Noem. "His background and expe  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, Oct. 24 -- Gov. Kristi Noem, R-South Dakota, issued the following statement after the parties involved in Dakota Rural Action vs. Noem filed for a settlement: "Today, my team reached an agreement that will resolve the Dakota Rural Action v. Noem litigation. "If the court approves our agreement, the state can begin work to update crimes that have been on the books since South Dakota became a state. "We remain focused on preserving law and order while protecting the right   more

PIERRE, South Dakota, Oct. 21 -- Gov. Kristi Noem, R-South Dakota, issued the following news release: Governor Kristi Noem and First Gentleman Bryon Noem today launched South Dakota's first-ever First Gentleman's Initiative on social media. "As First Gentleman, my mission is simple: I want to celebrate South Dakota and all the things that make it special. I want to remind people of the hidden gems of our small towns - the places off the beaten path," said First Gentleman Bryon Noem. "Our homet  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, Oct. 21 -- The South Dakota Legislative Research Council issued the following news release: The Redefine Nursing Home Criteria and Build Capacity Legislative Task Force chaired by Rep. Jean Hunhoff (R-Yankton), will hold its first meeting on Wednesday, October 30, 2019, beginning at 8:30 a.m. (CT) in Room 464 of the State Capitol in Pierre, South Dakota. Senate Concurrent Resolution 2, passed during the 2019 Legislative Session, provides for legislative task forces to stu  more

PIERRE, South Dakota, Oct. 25 -- South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg issued the following news release: Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg announced today that the South Dakota Supreme Court has denied Charles Russell Rhines' motion to stay his execution and also has affirmed the dismissal of his challenge to the written policy of the South Dakota Department of Corrections. Rhines was convicted in 1993 for brutally murdering 22 year-old Donnivan Schaeffer during a burglary of a Rapid C  more

VERMILLION, South Dakota, Oct. 25 [TNSgrants-DOD] -- The University of South Dakota issued the following news: University of South Dakota Department of Basic Biomedical Sciences assistant professor Jose Pietri, Ph.D., has been awarded a three-year grant from the United States Department of Defense to explore a new and promising approach to controlling bedbugs. Bedbugs have developed resistance to many pesticides, and current methods of controlling infestations are often not useful. Though it i  more

VERMILLION, South Dakota, Oct. 24 -- The University of South Dakota issued the following news: Mejai Bola Mike Avoseh, Ph.D., a professor in the University of South Dakota School of Education, was recently presented with the American Association for Adult and Continuing Education (AAACE) Outstanding Service Medallion. The award honors a person who has served adult and continuing education program participants; adult and continuing education institutions, organizations, and agencies; or the pr  more