OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — About 300 jobs will be eliminated in the Omaha area when a distribution warehouse that served Shopko stores closes.

The Omaha World-Herald reported the closure of the distribution center on Monday.

The distribution center, run by Spectrum America Supply Chain Solutions, closed as a result of Shopko’s bankruptcy.

Spectrum America says the exact timing of the closure hasn’t been determined yet. The company will also close a distribution center in Boise, Idaho.

Andrew Rainbolt with Sarpy County’s Economic Development Corporation says he’s hopeful the people who lose their jobs will be able to find new positions quickly.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Working in grain bins can be deadly, so insurers want to remind farmers of the dangers.

Nationwide insurance is helping sponsor a campaign to educate farmers about safety procedures they can use when working in grain bins.

Farmers should wear proper safety gear when they enter grain bins and test the atmosphere for toxic gases.

Brad Liggett with Nationwide says the insurer is also working with other groups to train first responders and provide grain bin rescue tubes to fire departments.

Since 2014, 77 fire departments in 24 states have received the rescue tubes that help protect someone stuck in the grain while responders work to rescue them.

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) — Grand Island’s mayor says two state agencies will work with the city on what to do with the former Grand Island Veterans Home buildings and land.

Mayor Roger Steele said Thursday during his State of the City Address that public input will be sought for the plan. He also said the state’s Department of Administrative Services has agreed the plan should include something for veterans, such as housing or social services.

About 640 acres (259 hectares) were transferred to the city in 2015 after the decision was made to build the new Central Nebraska Veterans Home in Kearney. The buildings and the remaining 40 acres (16.2 hectares) of land became surplus state property when veterans began moving into their new Kearney home on Jan. 16.

There was discussion before the move that Grand Island would take ownership of the empty buildings, with state dollars provided for redevelopment. But Steele said that when he asked whether there would be any money, the state answer was no.

“Quite frankly, the city can’t afford to own and maintain 280,000 square feet of buildings, especially when you consider most of these buildings are very old,” Steele said. It costs about $1 million a year to keep the buildings operational.

“That would have been a crushing financial burden for the city,” he said.

But Grand Island had some negotiating influence based on an agreement between the state and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs that provided money for the Kearney facility: The state’s Administrative Services Department and the city were to team up and devise a management or redevelopment plan for the property within 18 months of the state-VA agreement signing in July 2015.

That had not been done, and that gave the city leverage to insist the state come up with a development plan, Steele said. Administrative Services and the state Economic Development Department subsequently agreed to work with the city on a plan.

HASTINGS, Neb. (AP) — It’s big — and it’s back. The third annual Bigfoot Conference has drawn an estimated 700 people to the city of Hastings, Nebraska.

The conference kicked off Friday and runs through Sunday.

Some believe the creature is mythical; others, merely elusive. Whatever their beliefs, speakers from all over and outside the country convene at the conference to share their thoughts about and experiences with the creature.

Adams County Visitors Bureau Executive Director Anjanette Bonham says skeptics and believers alike attend to see what they can learn.

Bonham says attendees come from all over the United States and Canada.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A voter-approved law to expand Medicaid in Nebraska is quietly taking shape as the state prepares to extend health coverage to an estimated 90,000 recipients, but key challenges still must be resolved and officials haven’t set a firm date to start enrolling people.

Nebraska state officials say they face a huge undertaking with a lot of moving parts. Even though they must submit their plan to the federal government by April 1, administrators say that review could take time and require additional changes.

Administrators want to err on the side of doing it properly rather than rushing the process, said Nebraska Medicaid and Long-Term Care Director Matthew Van Patton.

Van Patton declined to give a specific date for when residents could start getting coverage, saying the agency is still working to upgrade its computers, hire additional workers and negotiate new contracts with groups that will provide services to the new Medicaid recipients.

“We want to ensure that when we do flip the switch, we’re going to have a good product in the marketplace,” he said in an interview.

But advocates for low-income Nebraskans say they’re concerned uninsured people will continue to go without health care while the state tinkers with its plan. Molly McCleery, a staff attorney for Nebraska Appleseed, a leading proponent of the measure, said her group would like to see enrollment start by fall 2019 so people can get covered by Jan. 1, 2020.

“We definitely understand the concerns of wanting to do it right,” McCleery said. “You want a system that’s effective and user-friendly. But when you look at the enrollment timelines of other states, we think further into 2020 is too late.”

The ballot measure approved in November requires the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services to submit a state Medicaid plan amendment to the federal government to cover newly eligible, low-income Nebraskans.

Once it’s in place, coverage will become available to adults ages 19 to 64 who earn up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level — about $16,753 per year. The federal government is required to pay 93 percent of the program’s overall costs in 2019 and then 90 percent beginning in 2020.

As they shape their plan, Nebraska state officials have been talking with their counterparts in Arkansas, Indiana and Virginia — all states that expanded Medicaid but imposed work requirements on recipients.

Nebraska officials don’t plan to pursue work requirements but are looking to add “wellness and life success” incentives to its Medicaid program, said Thomas “Rocky” Thompson, the deputy director of Medicaid and Long-Term Care. Critics say work requirements often don’t work as advertised because it’s difficult for people with major illnesses to keep a full-time job.

Van Patton said his agency is also working with the private “managed care organizations” that will provide health care services on the state’s behalf. Nebraska already uses their services for current Medicaid users, but state officials now have to amend all of their contracts to cover the newly eligible.

Managed care organizations receive a set amount of money from the state each month to care for Medicaid enrollees — giving them a financial incentive to keep costs low.

Based on the state’s research, Van Patton said he expects many new Medicaid recipients to be older, with health problems that haven’t been addressed because they previously lacked coverage. They’re also more likely to suffer from more than one problem, which could require them to see different specialists, he said.

“We’ve really paid a significant amount of attention to collecting information” to determine how Nebraska’s program should look, Van Patton said.

Some lawmakers also want to keep watch on the state’s progress. A bill set for a legislative hearing Friday would create a special task force of lawmakers, health care providers and others who will be directly affected by the expansion.

The task force would hold at least one public hearing in each of the state’s three congressional districts to get public feedback on the expansion and report its findings to the Legislature by July 1.

“The whole point is to look at ways we can be innovative and ensure that it’s implemented efficiently,” said state Sen. Adam Morfeld, of Lincoln, who sponsored the bill and co-chaired the ballot campaign to expand Medicaid. “Medicaid is a growing part of our budget, and we need to have a focus on it and educate (other members of the Legislature) on the issue.”

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Hunters in Nebraska will be asked this year to offer their observations on game populations and opinions on participation and other points.

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will conduct several hunter surveys in the coming weeks. The first survey is the annual Hunter Success Survey, which is sent to small game hunt permit buyers, who will be asked questions related to their 2018 upland and small game, and waterfowl hunting activity and experiences.

The second is the fall 2018 turkey hunter survey, which asks hunters about their turkey harvest, hunting experiences and efforts. The information will be used to estimate the statewide harvest.

Also, waterfowl hunters may receive a postcard inviting them to participate in a survey regarding their preferences and satisfaction from their 2018/19 waterfowl hunting season.