Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Michigan Reopens After 15 Months And The Worst Springtime Covid Surge
AP: 'Time To Play': Michigan Reopens 15 Months After Pandemic
Michigan is fully open again. After facing 15 months of capacity restrictions and being hit by the country’s worst surge of coronavirus infections this spring, restaurants, entertainment businesses and other venues can operate at 100% occupancy — instead of 50% — starting Tuesday. Limits on large indoor gatherings like wedding and funerals are gone. So is a broad requirement that the unvaccinated be masked indoors, a rule that remains in about a dozen states. Unvaccinated teen athletes will no longer have to undergo weekly COVID-19 testing. (Eggert and Householder, 6/22)
Bloomberg: Return-To-Office Sparks Labor Complaint From AFL-CIO’s Own Staff
The AFL-CIO, the largest U.S. union federation, is facing a labor complaint from its own employees over policies compelling them to return to the office. The Washington-Baltimore News Guild filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board accusing the federation of violating federal labor law. The June 16 filing alleges that the AFL-CIO “has failed and refused to bargain in good faith” with the union over safety and health issues that stem from bringing staff back to the office. (Eidelson, 6/21)
Bloomberg: Amazon’s Covid-19 Worker Safety Battle With New York Escalates
The legal battle between Amazon.com Inc. and New York Attorney General Letitia James over the company’s Covid-19 precautions for workers has escalated as both sides asked a judge to rule in their favor. Amazon sued James in February, seeking to block New York from pursuing claims that the company failed to protect employees from the virus in its New York City facilities. In a motion filed Friday, James asked U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan in Brooklyn to throw out the federal lawsuit and allow New York to pursue its claims in state court. (Van Voris, 6/21)
Dallas Morning News: Already Sanctioned By China, Rep. Dan Crenshaw Tries Again To Let Americans Sue For COVID-19 Damages
Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Houston, is reviving his 2020 bill that would let Americans sue China for coronavirus-related medical and economic damages. Crenshaw first introduced the measure with Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., a few months into the pandemic. It died after failing to get a committee hearing. Under U.S. law, individuals are barred from suing a foreign government without special permission from Congress. Crenshaw’s revived bill filed last week would carve an exception to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act to allow lawsuits against China for damages related to the pandemic that has so far claimed more than 600,000 American lives. (Caldwell, 6/21)
In updates on businesses that are requiring the covid vaccine —
Stateline: Hospitals Start Requiring Workers To Get COVID Shots
After a Texas federal court sided with a Houston hospital that required workers to get a COVID-19 vaccine or find another job, public health experts predict that most hospitals and medical practices will soon issue similar mandates. When vaccines first became available in December under an emergency use authorization, hospitals reported that they planned to wait until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted full approval of the vaccines before deciding whether to make the shots mandatory. But in recent weeks, dozens of hospitals and medical groups in Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere began issuing vaccination requirements. Public health law experts say the moves are a legal means of ensuring a safe, COVID-19-free environment for patients and workers. (Vestal, 6/21)
AP: U Of Illinois Requiring Vaccination For On-Campus Students
The University of Illinois is requiring students attending classes in person this fall to be vaccinated against COVID-19 before stepping onto its three campuses, officials said Monday. In a mass email, University President Tim Killeen said the requirement for its campuses in Urbana-Champaign, Springfield and Chicago is consistent with the school’s own modeling of the risks associated with the spread of the virus and its variants. (6/21)
The Oregonian: Portland Community College Will Not Require Students, Staff To Be Vaccinated Against COVID-19 For Fall Term
Oregon’s largest community college will not require students or employees to be inoculated against COVID-19 to come back to campus this fall, school authorities said Monday. Portland Community College officials said in a news release that they decided against requiring that students and staff receive the COVID-19 vaccine because of racial disparities that exist when it comes to access to vaccines and vaccine hesitancy. They said limiting in-person instruction to those who have had the vaccine would create a barrier for Black and Indigenous students and other students of color. (Ramakrishnan, 6/21)
