Missouri’s governor and state officials say initial unemployment claims have dropped from about 100-thousand in late March to about 20-thousand in early June. Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations Director Anna Hui addressed the issue during a Statehouse news conference on Tuesday:

The state fully reopened for business on Tuesday, and Director Hui has also announced the return of unemployment requirements. Starting on July 5, Missourians who want to continue to receive unemployment benefits will be required to perform work-search activities that had been lifted for those who had filed a COVID-19-related unemployment claim.