Law Firm With Ties To Anti-Vaxxer Groups Aids Opposition To Covid Shots

The Washington Post: Resistance To Vaccine Mandates Is Building. A Powerful Network Is Helping
The Americans lodging complaints against coronavirus vaccine mandates are a diverse lot — a sheriff’s deputy in North Carolina, nursing home employees in Wisconsin and students at the largest university in New Jersey. But their resistance is woven together by a common thread: the involvement of a law firm closely tied to the anti-vaccine movement. Attorneys from Siri & Glimstad — a New York firm that has done millions of dollars of legal work for one of the nation’s foremost anti-vaccination groups — are co-counsel in a case against the Durham County Sheriff’s Office. They’ve sent warning letters to officials in Rock County, Wis., as well as to the president of Rutgers University and other schools. (Stanley-Becker, 5/26)

The Hill: North Dakota Republicans Ask Health Officials To Stop Contacting Residents About Vaccines
Two Republican North Dakota state senators have requested that health officials stop calling residents and offering COVID-19 vaccine information. The Bismarck Tribune reports that state Sens. Jessica Bell and Nicole Poolman sent a Tuesday letter to State Health Officer Nizar Wehbi over concerns about the role of the government in “personal health choices” "In order for the Department to initiate these calls, medical records must be accessed without the immediate consent from the citizens of North Dakota," they wrote in their letter. (Choi, 5/26)

AP: Indiana Attorney General Attacks IU's COVID-19 Vaccine Order
The state attorney general is attacking Indiana University’s decision to require proof of COVID-19 vaccinations from all students and employees as illegal under a new state law banning the state or local governments from issuing or requiring vaccine passports. That advisory opinion issued late Wednesday afternoon, however, contradicts a top Republican legislative leader who said he didn’t believe the law adopted last month applied to public universities or K-12 schools. The opinion from Republican Attorney General Todd Rokita’s office, which is not binding, maintains that Indiana’s public universities are created by state law and that court rulings have determined them to be “arms of the state.” The opinion said the new law applies to universities since the legislature didn’t exempt them. (Davies, 5/27)

Debunking misinformation —

The Oregonian: Have 1,000s Of Americans Died From COVID-19 Vaccines? The Claim Abounds Online; Evidence Doesn’t Back It Up 
A lot of Americans are afraid of the COVID-19 vaccines. They believe the vaccines are killing people. The statistics fueling this fear typically come from a 30-year-old database known as VAERS -- the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System -- which can be found on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. (Perry, 5/26)

USA Today: Fact Check: Video Of Vaccination Features A Retractable Needle
President Joe Biden's goal of having 70% of American residents partially vaccinated by the Fourth of July holiday has been achieved by nine states, but others, mostly in the South, are lagging behind. Part of the problem is vaccine hesitancy, fueled especially by online misinformation. One persistent claim on social media is that COVID-19 vaccines are fake because of videos showing needles failing to appear out of a vaccinated person's arm after a shot. (Fauzia, 5/26)

Chicago Sun-Times: Fears, Misinformation Still Fueling Vaccine Hesitancy In Illinois, New Data Shows
Fears of side effects from the shots remain the top reason Illinois residents reject the shots, new statewide polling data shows. That, as well as persistent worries the entire process to develop the vaccine was rushed ... could have contributed to the slowdown in vaccinations that has hit the state in recent weeks, the data shows. But the data released earlier this week shows there is some progress, as only 38 percent of residents now worry about side effects, down from 53% in December. The number of Illinoisans who say they will never get a shot has dropped to 9.3 percent — a slight uptick from last month but down from 13.7 percent in the fall. (Senese, 5/27)

On shot outreach efforts and incentives —

The Washington Post: Recent College Grad Wins A Million Dollars For Getting Vaccinated In Ohio
It was a million-dollar idea: Give every Ohio resident who gets a coronavirus vaccine a chance to win a seven-figure check. That audacious scheme to boost the state’s inoculation rate became reality Wednesday evening, when the first winners of the “Vax-a-Million” drawings were announced on live TV. Gov. Mike DeWine (R) has won national acclaim — and drawn local blowback — since unveiling the plan, which will award $1 million to five vaccinated adults and a full-ride scholarship to Ohio public colleges to five vaccinated teenagers. (Thebault, 5/27)

Axios: New York Will Raffle Off Scholarships To Kids Who Get Vaccinated 
New York will raffle off 50 four-year scholarships to any public college or university in the state for people between 12–17 years old who receive a coronavirus vaccine from tomorrow until July 7, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday. It's part of the state's initiative to vaccinate young people after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved the use of Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine in 12- to 15-year-olds. (Knutson, 5/26)

The Hill: DC Closing Walk-Up COVID-19 Vaccine Sites
Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) said the city will close walk-up vaccination sites by the end of June. Bowser issued a statement on Wednesday saying vaccinations at Arena Stage will halt on June 27, RISE Demonstration Center will close June 30, UDC will close June 24 and the Walter E. Washington Convention Center will close June 20. (Oshin, 5/26)