Coronavirus

Miami’s NBC News affiliate reports: The Broward Teachers Union confirmed Thursday that three teachers and a teacher’s assistant have died from COVID-19 within the two days. Union president Anna Fusco said those teachers were on summer break when they got the virus. Their colleagues learned of the sad news on Wednesday when teachers returned to the classroom to prepare for …

USA Today reports: The less than 3% of Americans who are severely immuno-compromised should be able to get an extra dose of the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, the federal government decided Thursday night. People who are on medications or have diseases that suppress their immune system may not have gotten adequate protection from their earlier doses of COVID-19 vaccine …

A reminder from last week: Eight college students challenging Indiana University’s COVID-19 vaccine requirement filed an appeal with the Supreme Court on Friday, asking the justices to consider immunization mandates for the first time since the pandemic began. The students filed an emergency appeal at the Supreme Court, asking the justices to block enforcement of the university’s requirement, which they …

Fort Myers’ NBC News affiliate reports: It started off as a basic cold but within 72 hours, Shannon Ruvelas’s fever had spiked to 102.8 degrees and her blood oxygen level was down to 84 percent. “My lungs just took a dive,” Ruvelas said from her room in Cape Coral Hospital. “I was against the vaccine, I didn’t want it, but …

San Francisco’s ABC News affiliate reports: San Francisco will become the first major U.S. city to require full vaccination for patrons and employees at certain indoor establishments. Proof of vaccination will be required at indoor bars, restaurants, clubs, theaters, and entertainment venues, as well as indoor gyms and other fitness establishments. This does not include individuals ordering or picking up …

The Los Angeles Times reports: Ivermectin, the latest supposed treatment for COVID-19 being touted by anti-vaccination groups, had “no effect whatsoever” on the disease, according to a large patient study. That’s the conclusion of the Together Trial, which has subjected several purported nonvaccine treatments for COVID-19 to carefully designed clinical testing. The trial is supervised by McMaster University in Hamilton, …

The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports: For the 11th straight day, Florida hospitals set records for the number of COVID patients they are treating, and on Wednesday the state set a new high for daily cases. On Wednesday, Florida hospitals had 15,449 patients a significant jump from just two days earlier when admissions surpassed 14,000 to set a record. The …

CBS News reports: Hard-hit Mississippi has requested the federal government send a military hospital ship such as the USNS Comfort, state health official Jim Craig said Wednesday. The University of Mississippi Medical Center has 127 COVID-19 patients, including 26 children, Dean LouAnn Woodward said Wednesday. About 90% of them are unvaccinated, she said. The dean warned, “The Mississippi hospital system …

Axios reports: NIAID director Anthony Fauci told “CBS This Morning” on Thursday that it is “likely” everyone will need a vaccine booster shot in the future, but apart from the immune compromised, “we don’t feel a need to give boosters right now.” Driving the news: The Food and Drug Administration is expected to update its emergency use authorization for the …

The Daily Beast reports: It’s been more than six months since Donald Trump left office and, despite pleas from multiple friends and advisers, the former president has kept refusing to mount anything resembling a real effort to get his supporters vaccinated. According to four people who’ve independently spoken to Trump about a potential pro-vaccine campaign, the former president has shown …

Radio Insight reports: Cumulus Media has become the first large radio group operator to mandate COVID-19 vaccinations for all employees. In a memo to all employees sent out this afternoon, the company states that all staffers must have had their shots by September 27 in order to return to the offices two weeks later on October 11. In explaining why …

The Washington Post reports: Sen. Rand Paul revealed Wednesday that his wife bought stock in Gilead Sciences — which makes an antiviral drug used to treat covid-19 — on Feb. 26, 2020, before the threat from the coronavirus was fully understood by the public and before it was classified as a pandemic by the World Health Organization. The disclosure, in …

“They’d do this even if everyone was vaccinated. They’d do it in states where they control every aspect of government. They’d do it, and they’d do much more, if there were no Republicans at all. “Why? Because their agenda is based on fear. Sure, fear of COVID, but fear of climate change, fear of capitalism, fear of standards, fear of …

Reuters reports: Extra Australian military personnel may be called in to ensure compliance with lockdown rules in Sydney, the New South Wales state government said on Thursday, as the highly infectious delta coronavirus variant spreads into regional areas. The move comes as Australia’s capital, Canberra, 260 km (160 miles) southwest of Sydney, announced a snap one-week lockdown from Thursday evening …

Bloomberg News reports: Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott escalated the fight over his ban on local face mask rules, vowing along with his attorney general Wednesday to drag into court “any school district, public university or local government official that decides to defy” the governor. But even as the two said they would immediately ask a state appeals court to …

The BBC reports: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has said that that the country’s borders will remain closed until at least the end of the year. She said an elimination strategy was the best way to keep Covid-19 out and the economy open. The prime minister also said New Zealand would move to a new individual risk-based model for …

Deadline reports: The Los Angeles City Council voted 13-0 today to have the city attorney prepare an ordinance requiring people to show proof of at least partial vaccination against COVID-19 to enter most public indoor spaces in the city, including restaurants, bars, gyms, concert venues, movie theaters and even “retail establishments.” Council President Nury Martinez — who is currently in …

NBC News reports: The Food and Drug Administration is poised to amend the emergency use authorizations for the Pfizer and the Moderna Covid-19 vaccines Thursday to allow people with compromised immune systems to get a third dose, according to two sources familiar with the plans. The move would come after a panel of advisers to the Centers for Disease Control …

The Hill reports: Arnold Schwarzenegger has a message for Americans who argue that face masks encroach on their rights: “Screw your freedom.” “Because with freedom comes obligations and responsibilities,” the Republican former California governor said in a YouTube video released Wednesday. “We cannot just say, ‘I have the right to do X, Y and Z.’ When you affect other people, …

The New York Times reports: Schoolteachers and school staff in California must have proof of vaccination against Covid-19 or else face weekly testing, Gov. Gavin Newsom said on Wednesday, making the state the first in the nation to make the move. The move comes as such mandates gain momentum both among public and private employers as cases across the United …