As I reported Jan. 7 and Jan. 12, the State Board of Health has asked a technical advisory group to make a recommendation about whether to addaCOVID-19 vaccine to the required vaccination schedule for schools. The advisory group is not expected to report for months.
Under state law, the State Board of Health (SBOH) can impose immunization requirements for school entry, and the SBOH may or may not approve the recommendationit isgiven. The state already requires several vaccinations for children to attend school, including polio, whooping cough, measles, mumps and tetanus. Personal and religious exemptions are available and used.
That an advisory group was asked to research COVID-19 vaccine inclusion should have us all watching its progress. Long-term studies on the effects of COVID vaccines dont yet exist, the risk of injury or death from COVID-19 to school-age children is extremely low, and the current vaccines have not proven able to prevent contraction or spread of the virus, although they help greatly in reducing the severity of the disease. Visit future SBOH meeting dates and agendas here. At the last SBOH meeting, more than 7,500 concerned people signed up to give public comment. Written comments can also be sent to wsboh@sboh.wa.gov.
The SBOHhas an online form for parents and caregivers here. A list of six questions includes, Would adding COVID-19 vaccine as a requirement for school entry make you more or less likely to get your child vaccinated? and Do you believe adding COVID-19 vaccine as an immunization requirement for school entry is reasonable? Why or why not?
Parents are childrens primary caregivers and should be heard. The State Board of Health is right to seek their input. Ill continue to track this, as state officials continue their consideration of a COVID-19 vaccine requirement for children.
Experts fact-check claims and questions by the vaccine-hesitant.
WASHINGTON D.C., DC Thousands of people gathered on the National Mall Sunday for the Anti-Vaccine Mandate rally. WUSA9 was there and heard several claims about the vaccines. So, we wanted to set the record straight on one question we kept hearing:
How can the COVID-19 vaccine be safe if it was developed so quickly?
According to Johns Hopkins, typical vaccine developmenttakes between 5 to 10 years. The COVID-19 vaccine was developed and received emergency FDA approval in one year. But the NIH emphasizes scientists were not starting from scratch.
According to this NIH document on coronaviruses, SARS COV has been around since November 2002. COVID-19 or SAR COV2 emerged in December 2019. Based on prior research, the NIH states, scientists and grantees are well-positioned to rapidly develop COVID-19 diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines.
Millions and millions of people worldwide have received the vaccine it is safe, explained Dr. Monto. The reason for speed is twofold: We've got a pandemic, we've got a lot of people sick and dying and we want to control it. Therefore, the only corners that were cut was in the original approvals. We didn't wait for the usual six months of follow-up. We approved with two months of follow up in that time frame as long past.
Dr. Monto said the COVID-19 vaccine underwent the same approval process as previous vaccines, just faster. He points to the polio vaccine which was developed on a similar fast track during the epidemic in the 1950s.
Youd say the same thing about the polio vaccine, said the doctor. Weve only given it to a few thousand people how can we trust it, but people took it and there were no long-term side effects.
Speaking of side effects, Dr. Monto said time is on our side since its been more than a year since the first shots went into peoples arms.
We've given it to millions of people, if there were real concerns, they would have showed up by now because vaccines typically, if you're going to have side effects that typically in the first six weeks, he said.
Despite low absolute risk, Pfizer/BioNTech BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine associated with increased risk of carditis.
Markedly increased risk in adolescents after 2nddose may warrant refined vaccination strategies
A case-control study found that despite low absolute risk, there is an increased relative risk of carditis associated with BNT162b2 (commonly-known as Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine) vaccination. Considering the markedly increased risk in adolescents after the second dose, vaccination strategies may need to continuously consider the risk and benefits for different sub-populations, rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach. The findings will be published today (January 24, 2022) in Annals of Internal Medicine.
Carditis is a rare inflammation of the heart often caused by bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections. Common subtypes of carditis include myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle, and pericarditis, an inflammation of the outer lining of the heart. Case reports of carditis after BNT162b2 vaccination have accrued globally. Several studies have also reported similar findings, but analytic research on the speculative association is limited.
Researchers from the University of Hong Kong studied 160 case patients (with carditis) and 1,533 control patients (without carditis) to examine the potential risk of carditis associated with vaccination with BNT162b2 or CoronaVac. Ten control patients were matched with case patients based on age, sex, and date of hospital admission.
After conducting analyses, the authors found 20 cases of carditis associated with BNT162b2 and 7 associated with CoronaVac vaccination. Patients who received BNT162b2 were 3 times more likely to experience carditis than unvaccinated patients. On the other hand, patients who received CoronaVac had a similar chance as unvaccinated patients to experience carditis.
The authors also observed that risk increase associated with BNT162b2 was predominant in males and was more likely to be seen after the second dose.
Cumulative incidence of carditis after vaccination was 0.57 per 100,000 doses of BNT162b2 and 0.31 per 100,000 doses of CoronaVac, demonstrating a very low absolute risk of carditis after vaccination.
According to the authors, none of the 20 case patients with carditis after BNT162b2 vaccination were admitted to the ICU or died within the observation period, compared with 14 of 133 unvaccinated patients admitted to the ICU and 12 deaths.
Reference: 24 January 2022, Annals of Internal Medicine.DOI: 10.7326/M21-3700
AUGUSTA The final two days of the COVID-19 vaccination clinic at the Augusta Armory are set for this week, after two months in which more than 10,600 shots were administered.
The vaccine clinic is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday and noon to 7 p.m. Thursday. No appointment is necessary.
Robert Long, spokesman for the Maine Center for Disease Control & Prevention, said the clinic at 179 Western Ave. is ending due to decreasing demand in recent weeks.
The clinic is part of the state CDCs Boosterpalooza and one of the few pop-up sites in Maine where people can walk in without an appointment to receive the first, second, youth or booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The clinic, which opened in December, also began offering PCR testing this month, and is to continue the testing into February, according to officials.
PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests are considered highly accurate and reliable, involving a technique that can amplify small amounts of virus DNA to help diagnose COVID-19 infection.
An appointment is needed for PCR testing, which is offered from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday.
When at its peak in December, the clinic at the armory administered about 3,000 shots per day, according to officials. Through last week, the clinic had administered 10,621 vaccinations.
Asked on Monday if similar vaccination clinics are planned, Long said, The Maine CDC will continue to look for ways to make vaccinations as easy and accessible as possible for all Maine people.
The last week of the Augusta clinic comes as hospitalizations remain at near-record levels in Maine.
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.
Previous
Next
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, speaking at a Monday press conference, reported that 94% of the citys workforce has received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. The steady uptick of workers getting inoculated and productive talks with unions, Wu said, prompted extending the deadline for enforcing the citys vaccine mandate by another week.
No unvaccinated employees will be placed on leave or disciplined until after Jan. 30.
The latest extension comes more than a month after Wu announced that Boston municipal workers would lose an option to take weekly COVID-19 tests instead of taking a vaccine. The original deadline for enforcement was set for mid-January, but the mayor pushed it back twice most recently Sunday. Sources say that different unions are trying to negotiate provisions for non-compliant members to keep their jobs.
The mayor said 18,270 employees are complying with the mandate, which requires proof of at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine this month and full vaccination next month.
Im incredibly encouraged by this progress, and we continue to have very productive conversations with our union partners about the collective bargaining impacts and we are giving this one more week to make sure that we realize that progress, Wu said.
Neither the mayor nor the press office would say how many workers are out of compliance, but Mondays numbers suggest about 1,100 workers may be at risk of being placed on unpaid leave.
Sources familiar with the details of bargaining with the Boston Teachers Union said that group is attempting maintain a provision from a prior agreement that allows members to continue testing instead of being vaccinated through June, motivated by a fear of disrupting an already chaotic school year.
Wu said Monday that is not where we are at this moment when asked about the BTUs bargaining goals.
Meanwhile, Wu said the city is working through an agreement with the Boston Police Patrolmens Association, which would provide compliant officers two mental health and wellness days and spell out rehire terms for those who resign over the mandate, but then get vaccinated later.
The BPPAs bargaining terms have historically been adopted by others, but two police unions have broken from the association's lead, joining forces with the Boston firefighters union to try to go through the courts.
As Wu spoke, a group of anti-vaccine mandate firefighters stood outside City Hall in protest. The group is one of three unions that have vowed to continue a court fight over the policy. Earlier this month, a state court upheld Boston's vaccine mandate.
Wu did not comment specifically on the firefighters union beyond saying the department has a 91% vaccination rate. The public school system, she said, has a 94% vaccination rate; the police department and public library system are at 95%; and the parks and inspectional services departments are at 96% and 97%, respectively.
Wu also did not rule out additional extensions if progress on compliance continues.
Asked whether the extensions are an indication of wavering now that she is faced with the prospect of putting city employees out of work, Wu reaffirmed that she is committed to seeing it through.
We are very clear that this policy is necessary and important for public safety and health of city workers as well as the public at-large, Wu responded. Were working through the collective bargaining process to implement this in a way that will bring our municipal partners along with us, so were feeling good about the progress were seeing and this one more week that we are giving our workforce to get vaccinated.
Credit: SBNation.com
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the way people look at the world has changed. Most have been divided into two major groups. With one being who are getting the vaccines and following the protocols, while others are simply refusing to believe that the vaccine is actually a good thing.
Similar has been the case in terms of athletes who are playing for NBA teams. We saw the turmoil created by Kyrie Irving and his stance on staying unvaccinated. At the end of the day, he has been allowed to play basketball games wherever the rules allow him to do so.
On that note, even the players that have retired from the league are making headlines for their comments on the coronavirus vaccine. Utah Jazz legend John Stockton is among them.
When Stockton was in the league, he mesmerized fans with his amazing passes, but off the court, his comments were definitely not being welcomed by fans. Recently, the 59-year-old made some shocking claims about the COVID-19 vaccines.
Via Spokesman:
"I think its highly recorded now, theres 150 I believe now, its over 100 professional athletes dead professional athletes the prime of their life, dropping dead that are vaccinated, right on the pitch, right on the field, right on the court."
This was a wild claim by the former Utah Jazz point guard. As a result, his theory about athletes losing their life due to the COVID-19 vaccines was debunked by a research report published by PolitiFact.
Following these absurd comments by the NBA legend, Gonzaga University suspended Stockton's season tickets. The official statement by the university read:
"Gonzaga University continues to work hard to implement and enforce the health and safety protocols mandated by the State and by University policy, including reinforcing the indoor masking requirement. Attendees at basketball games are required to wear face masks at all times."
The decision was taken in light of the fact that Stockton has refused to accept the University's mandatory rule of wearing masks at all times for people attending basketball games. Stockton gave a statement after getting his tickets suspended as well.
"Basically, it came down to, they were asking me to wear a mask to the games and being a public figure, someone a little bit more visible, I stuck out in the crowd a little bit. And therefore they received complaints and felt like from whatever the higher-ups those werent discussed, but from whatever it was higher up they were going to have to either ask me to wear a mask or they were going to suspend my tickets.
This decision taken by Gonzaga has become a primary example of how to take actions against personnel disagreeing to accept the COVID-19 protocols.
If the rules were out of proportion, it would have been understandable to be disappointed by this decision. However, the university has certainly taken a step in the right direction after this announcement while keeping the health and safety of other attendees at basketball games.
The clinic was available to all Utica School students and their immediate families
UTICA, NY - The Utica City School District held a Covid 19 vaccination clinic at the Proctor High School cafeteria Monday for all students in the district and their immediate families. The clinic was put on with assistance from the Upstate Family Health Center.
There was no appointment necessary and those wanting them could get either their first or second Covid shot, or the Covid booster if that's what was needed.
Steven Falchi, the K-12 Administrative Director of Curriculum and Instruction, says its very important for the school to do their part to stop the spread of Covid 19.
"Anything that we can do as a school district to support the local community, and give parents the opportunity to provide vaccinations for their children should they choose to have it, is critically important. Especially in terms of doing what we can do to stop the spread and keep schools open which is critically important".
The school district had originally scheduled the clinic for January 10th, but had to reschedule due to bad weather.
Falchi says the district is working on holding more vaccination clinics at Proctor, but no dates have been set up yet.
Experts recommend that unvaccinated family members keep their distance from children too young to be vaccinated against COVID-19. (Getty Images)
Having a newborn or young child who isn't old enough for most major vaccinations has always been a stressful time for parents. But dealing with this during a global pandemic when children under the age of 5 still aren't eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19 is a complication of a higher order.
There were more than 769,000 new COVID-19 cases in the U.S. on Friday and cases in children have dramatically spiked. If you have family members who want to see the baby but aren't fully vaccinated against COVID-19, what are you supposed to do? This is a hot-button topic, and I get asked about it a lot, Dr. Thomas Russo, professor and chief of infectious disease at the University at Buffalo in New York, tells Yahoo Life.
Doctors agree that it's generally best to ask unvaccinated family members to keep their distance. "Children who are not vaccinated because they are not eligible need to be around adults who are vaccinated, period," Dr. Sunanda Gaur, professor of pediatrics at the Rutgers Wood Johnson Medical School, tells Yahoo Life. We need to protect the children.
This is even more important with newborns, according to Gaur. Newborns are particularly susceptible to infections, she explains. Theres a concept that we call cocooning, which is where all of the adults around the baby are vaccinated to try to protect the baby. It doesn't work if someone is unvaccinated.
Russo says that unvaccinated family members pose a problem to maintaining low levels of COVID-19 risk around a newborn. I usually recommend that you play the long game and protect your child until they can get vaccinated, Russo says. Everyone is going to be exposed to this virus eventually thats inevitable. But you want your baby to have optimal immune protection when they are exposed so that theyre protected.
If family members refuse to get vaccinated but offer to wear a mask around the baby, Gaur still recommends telling them no. I would advise that unvaccinated people not be around your baby, mask or not, she says. Unvaccinated people are more likely to get infected. A mask is not a 100 percent guarantee that they would not transmit the virus to our child. I dont see a reason to put your baby at risk.
Story continues
Of course, all of this can be tricky to navigate from a social perspective and every family has to make their own decisions around COVID exposure risk and their baby. Its more than a medical judgment, Russo says. How much bridge burning are you going to do with family members if you do the best thing from a medical perspective and say you cant visit the baby?
To handle this with as minimal stress as possible, clinical psychologist Thea Gallagher, a professor at NYU and co-host of the Mind in View podcast, suggests having a blanket family rule when it comes to unvaccinated people being around your baby. "You first have to start with your own family and decide what your boundaries are," she tells Yahoo Life. "Don't make it person-to-person dependent have a blanket rule. That takes the emotion out of it and doesn't make it feel like you're picking and choosing."
Then, if someone is unvaccinated and wants to visit your baby, you simply tell them that this is the policy your family has decided on. If you blame the policy vs. making it an individual thing, its sometimes easier for people to understand and be less emotional about, Gallagher says. Its about coming up with a plan and trying to be consistent. When you're sharing it with your loved ones, make it clear that its not a personal thing, but this is your familys policy.
Dr. John Schreiber, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Connecticut Children's Medical Center, tells Yahoo Life that he recommends suggesting that unvaccinated family members get immunized so that they can visit your child. If they choose not to, then thats their decision, he says. But you gave them an option.
You may feel that your family member wont get the vaccine for that reason, but Russo says it happens more than most people realize. There have been many instances where people decided to get vaccinated when those barriers were put in place, particularly around seeing grandchildren, he says.
Depending on your personal feelings and what you decide as a family, Schreiber says you could potentially decide to allow unvaccinated family members to see your baby outside while wearing an N95 mask and practicing good hand hygiene. Its not 100 percent safe, but it would probably be fine, he says. It's just very cold in many areas of the country right now.
Regardless of what you decide, Gallagher says its important to not feel guilty about your decisions. Have some self-compassion for your boundaries, she says. Own and acknowledge your choices, and know that you are valid in making them.
Want lifestyle and wellness news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here for Yahoo Lifes newsletter.
Free COVID-19 vaccinations and testing available at dozens of Houston Health Department-affiliated sites week of January 24, 2022
January 24, 2022
HOUSTON- The Houston Health Department is announcing the schedule for sites offering freeCOVID-19 vaccinations and testingduring the week of January 24, 2022.
More than 20sites offering vaccinations and more than 30 testing sites are on the schedule for the week.Vaccination and testing at health department-affiliated sites does not requireproof of residency, citizenship, or insurance.
Site locations, schedules, and appointment information isavailable atHoustonHealth.orgor by calling 832-393-4220.
Fixed Vaccination SitesAny dose of Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are available at the departments fixed sites, located at:
Pop-up Vaccination SitesThe department and its partner agencies will offer Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson vaccinations at a pop-up sitelocatedat:
Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are authorized for ages 18 and up and Pfizer is authorized for ages 5and up.
In-Home VaccinationFree in-home COVID-19 vaccination is available to qualifying older adults, people with disabilities, and veterans.
Testing SitesThe department and its partner agencies offer free COVID-19 testing sites across the city.
A list of testing sites and schedules isavailable at HoustonHealth.orgor by calling 832-393-4220.
The CDC recommends people who have symptoms and most people who hadclose contact(within 6 feet for a total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period) with someone with confirmed COVID-19 be tested for COVID-19 infection.
Vaccination and testing site schedules may shift during the week to meet community need. Find the latest information at HoustonHealth.orgor by calling 832-393-4220.
The University of Rochester is requiring all faculty and staff to receive a booster vaccination against the COVID-19 virus by February 21, 2022, or within 30 days of becoming eligible, if that is a later date. The CDC recommends booster shots for all eligible adults. Vaccination, especially followed by a booster, has shown to be highly effective in preventing serious illness against the Omicron variant. Additionally, New York State recently passed a booster mandate for health care workers, which covers many of our Universitys employees. Our epidemiologists, public health experts, and scientists continue to stress the effectiveness and safety of COVID vaccines and we believe requiring a booster vaccination is in the best interest of the health and safety of our University community and the individual employee.
Individuals are eligible for a booster vaccination five months after completing the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna series, and two months after the initial J&J/Janssen vaccine.
Employees who received their booster dose at an Employee Health vaccine clinic in LeChase Assembly Hall are already recorded and no further action is required. Employees who have received their booster at any other location, including UR Medicine locations, will need to submit proof of the booster vaccination through the University portal. (Please note: You must be on the Universitys network or VPN to access the portal.)
The University will notify eligible employees who do not have a booster on record as well as those who are not yet eligible by email in the coming days. Those with current approved exemptions will be honored and must continue to follow the protocols set by the University. Any new exemption requests must complete the steps to apply on the University portal by selecting update status.
As a reminder, consistent with the requirements of the state mandate and applicable laws for healthcare workers, the University maintains a process to consider reasonable accommodation requests from covered personnel based on sincerely held religious beliefs that would prevent individuals from receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. However, compliance with the state mandate may significantly limit the availability of such accommodations.
The Finger Lakes COVID-19 Vaccine Hub has information on where vaccines are available across the region. The University provides four hours of paid time off for booster vaccine appointments, and one day of paid time off after receiving the booster vaccines for employees who may experience side effects.
To learn more about the Universitys booster vaccine requirement, visit these FAQs.
For questions not covered in the FAQs or for other concerns, please contact your manager or your Human Resources Business Partner.
Sincerely,
Sarah C. MangelsdorfPresidentand G. Robert Witmer, Jr. University Professor
Mark B. TaubmanCEO, University of Rochester Medical Center and Dean, School of Medicine and Dentistry
Sarah E. PeyreInterim Provost
Kathleen GallucciVice President and Chief Human Resources Office
