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226,184 Cumulative vaccinations (An increase of 10,292 from Thursday)

162,662 First doses administered (An increase of 6,790 from Thursday)

63,522 Second doses administered (An increase of 3,502 from Thursday)

42,259 Total cases (An increase of 201 from Thursday)

643 Deaths (An increase of 2 from Thursday)

201 New daily cases (An increase of 26 from Thursday)

102 Currently in hospital (An increase of 2 from Thursday)

The state gave schools in all 16 counties a green light to reopen full-time in person this week, marking the first time since September that all Maine schools have had that designation.

Two weeks ago, the state recommended that schools in four counties designated “yellow” not open for full-time, in-person instruction and instead offer a combination of in-person and remote learning.

But this Friday, Androscoggin, Cumberland, Oxford and York counties returned to a “green” designation as part of the Maine Department of Education’s color-coded school safety rating systems. READ MORE

Jenna Mehnert has resigned as CEO of NAMI Maine, the organization announced Friday, after coming under fire for her treatment of employees.

Her resignation comes more than two months after the state’s largest mental health organization hired a lawyer to conduct an investigation into allegations from former employees that she fostered a toxic work environment. She has led the organization since 2013.

The nonprofit’s board of directors ordered the investigation following an Oct. 30 Bangor Daily News story in which 15 former employees described how Mehnert’s “demoralizing” treatment of staff affected their own mental health and fueled high turnover at the agency for years. Several former staff had previously complained about Mehnert to the board. READ MORE

Another two Mainers have died as 201 coronavirus cases have been reported across the state, Maine health officials said Friday.

The number of coronavirus cases diagnosed in the past 14 days statewide is 3,446. This is an estimation of the current number of active cases in the state, as the Maine CDC is no longer tracking recoveries for all patients. That’s down from 3,604 on Thursday.

The state is grappling with the appearance of a more infectious variant of the virus in a Franklin County resident. The strain of the virus, known as the B.1.1.7 variant and first detected in the United Kingdom, seems to be between 40 and 70 percent more contagious than other variants. Here is what you need to know about the new strain.

Maine CDC Director Nirav Shah warned earlier this month that a resurgence in virus transmission is possible if new virus variants appear in Maine, which is still seeing new caseloads well above where they were prior to late October. READ MORE

Even before the coronavirus pandemic battered Maine, nurses at the state’s largest hospital, Maine Medical Center in Portland, had started working to form a union to give them more of a say in the high-level decisions affecting them and their patients. 

Their efforts only accelerated as virus cases surged last spring and this winter, sending hundreds of sick Mainers through Maine Med’s doors — and forcing the hospital to make many major decisions about staffing, resources and protocols. 

Now, the hospital’s more than 1,500 registered nurses are on track to hold a vote in late March on whether to officially form a bargaining unit. In mid-January, they formally petitioned the National Labor Relations Board to become a part of the Maine State Nurses Association. READ MORE

A Yarmouth School Committee meeting was interrupted Thursday night by hackers who wrote a racial epithet across the screen and began playing an obscene video before school officials were able to shut down the meeting. READ MORE