In the US, 49 states are seeing a surge in cases, and some experts say stricter vaccine mandates may be the best way to prevent a full downward spiral.
President Biden announced new measures to boost vaccinations, including requiring that all federal employees must attest to being vaccinated or face strict protocols.
Meanwhile, Israel announced a program to give a third dose of the coronavirus vaccine to people over the age of 60. In the US, the surgeon general has maintained that fully vaccinated people don’t need to a booster yet.
Our live coverage has ended for the day. Follow the latest on the pandemic here.
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Capitol Police chief says he anticipates no arrests over mask violations
From CNN's Josiah Ryan
A Capitol Police officer wears a mask beside a sign about the new facial mask mandate posted outside a hearing room in Rayburn House Office Building on Washington, DC. on July 29.
Alex Wong/Getty Images
Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger today said his officers are not intending to make arrests over violations of mask rules in the House.
“We do have the responsibility to enforce the rules here,” Manger told CNN’s Jake Tapper. “Whether a person wears the mask or doesn’t wear a mask, it is not a law it is a rule.”
Manger went on to suggest he’s directed officers to avoid arrests if possible.
“The last thing anybody wants is for somebody to be arrested in a situation like that,” he said. “…It hasn’t happened yet… I don’t imagine there being any, but it is up to officers to make sure that they are complying with that mandate.”
Earlier today, many House Republicans purposefully defied mask rules reinstated by Capitol Attending Physician Dr. Brian Monahan, appearing on the floor maskless.
This is the latest sign of the deep divide and tension between Republicans and Democrats in the House on how to handle the Covid-19 pandemic and various other issues, with it even festering at the top, between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
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Illinois announces mask requirement in all state facilities regardless of vaccination status
From CNN's Kelsie Smith
Commuters travel on Chicago's L train system on July 27.
Scott Olson/Getty Images
The state of Illinois announced on Thursday that face coverings are now required in all state facilities for both vaccinated and unvaccinated people.
State employees are now required to cover their nose and mouth while in a workplace or performing work duties in indoor settings unless they have a medical condition, said the release.
Employees must also maintain a physical distancing of at least six feet at all times, or as much as reasonably possible while performing work duties.
Any visitors above the age of 2 are also required to wear a face-covering while inside state offices unless they have a medical condition that prevents it, said the release. Additionally, state facilities will receive regular cleaning services and employees will be provided cleaning supplies to disinfect their workspaces.
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New Mexico restarts $100 incentive for Covid-19 vaccination
From CNN’s Andy Rose
A person receives their second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in Gallup, New Mexico, on March 23.
Cate Dingley/Bloomberg/Getty Images
Following a suggestion from President Biden at his Thursday news conference on Covid-19, the state of New Mexico is restarting its incentive program to pay people $100 to get a shot.
The revived program, paid for with federal stimulus money, will be available to any registered New Mexican who gets a vaccine dose starting Aug. 2 and continue for the rest of the month. Residents do not have to be fully vaccinated, although no individual can get more than a single $100 payment.
The original incentive program “led to a 333% increase in single-shot vaccines and a 26% overall boost in completed vaccinations,” the state’s health department said Thursday in a news release.
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Indiana governor renews Covid-19 executive orders
From CNN's Kendall Lanier
Gov. Eric Holcomb renewed the Covid-19 executive orders for Indiana that address the impact and spread of the virus on Thursday.
All businesses and individuals must adhere to the guidelines of the order, which take effect Aug. 1 and continue through Aug. 30, according to the orders.
Some context: Since the governor first issued the order on March 6, 2020, the virus has spread to every Indiana county within the state with over 768,000 confirmed cases and over 13,500 deaths.
According to the order, the state has demonstrated a seven-day average positivity rate which has risen to 6.3% from 2.1% in a month. There have been new confirmed cases daily and continued hospitalizations and deaths.
As a result of this, the executive order says everyone in the state should take responsibility for their health and safety, as well as the safety of those around them by taking preventative matters.
According to the order, over 2.9 million people have been vaccinated out of the 5.7 million eligible and 98% of new Covid-19 cases are from those who are unvaccinated. The order strongly encourages those ages 12 and above to get vaccinated.
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Biden administration not considering nationwide Covid-19 vaccine requirement, official says
From CNN's Lauren Mascarenhas
The Biden administration is not considering a nationwide Covid-19 vaccine requirement, White House Covid-19 Response Coordinator Jeff Zients said Thursday.
“That’s not an authority that we’re exploring at all,” Zients told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.
President Biden announced Thursday that all federal employees must attest to being vaccinated or agree to regular testing and other protocols.
Zients noted that Biden’s “Justice Department has said that it is legal for employers to require vaccinations.”
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CDC will release data supporting its mask guidance Friday
From CNN's John Bonifield and Maggie Fox
People walk through the Oculus Mall in Manhattan, New York on July 29. Numerous stores in the mall have required guests to start wearing masks again as the Delta variant spreads through New York City.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it will release a study Friday that supports this week’s decision to change mask guidance.
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said Tuesday the agency was changing guidelines for fully vaccinated people because of new science.
She said even fully vaccinated people should wear masks indoors in areas where transmission of the virus is substantial or high.
Walensky said new data indicated that people who get breakthrough infections involving the Delta variant of the virus can be as likely to infect someone else as unvaccinated people are. And she promised that data would be released soon.
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Los Angeles schools will require weekly Covid-19 testing for students and staff
From CNN's Alexandra Meeks
The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) will require weekly Covid-19 testing for all students and employees returning to in-person learning, regardless of vaccination status, school officials announced in a news release Thursday.
“All students and employees, both vaccinated and unvaccinated, returning for in-person instruction must participate in baseline and ongoing weekly COVID testing,” the district said. “This is in accordance with the most recent guidance from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.”
LAUSD is the second-largest school district in the country with more than 600,000 students. Testing for all students and employees begins on Aug. 2, officials said. Full return to in-person instruction across most LAUSD campuses begins on Aug. 16.
The district’s preparations for the start of the new school year also include mandatory masking indoors for all students, staff, and visitors, officials said.
Legal guardians of students will be required to schedule the ongoing Covid-19 testing appointments. All results will be emailed and shared with appropriate scientists, administrators, and health authorities, officials said.
CNN has reached out to United Teachers Los Angeles, the union which represents LAUSD teachers, for comment.
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Nevada health officials prepare for mask mandate to resume Friday
From CNN’s Andy Rose
Candice McDaniel, Division of Welfare and Supportive Services
(Nevada Health Response)
As most of Nevada prepares for an indoor mask mandate to resume Friday, state health officials say it’s their best option right now to slow the Delta variant.
Officials said the number of people getting their first Covid-19 vaccine has increased over the past two weeks, signaling that more people are taking the rise in cases seriously.
But McDaniel said it’s still a bigger challenge to convince people to get vaccinated than it was when shots were in short supply.
“Now we are working on a smaller scale in neighborhoods, connecting with people and answering questions,” she said.
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House majority leader says all members of Congress should be vaccinated or face regular testing
From CNN's Josiah Ryan
House Majority Leader Steny Hoye
(CNN)
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said every member of Congress should be vaccinated or submit to regular tests to ensure they are not carrying the virus.
Those who are not vaccinated “ought to have to be tested on a relatively regular basis to make sure they’re not bringing virus into the chamber,” added Hoyer.
Earlier today, many House Republicans purposefully defied mask rules reinstated by Capitol Attending Physician Dr. Brian Monahan, appearing on the floor maskless.
This is the latest sign of the deep divide and tension between Republicans and Democrats in the House on how to handle the Covid-19 pandemic and various other issues, with it even festering at the top, between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
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Texas governor says residents can decide whether to wear masks
From CNN’s Raja Razek
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has issued an executive order that would provide what he called “clarity and uniformity” in the state’s Covid-19 response, adding that the path forward relies on “personal responsibility rather than government mandates.”
Abbott said in news release issued by the governor’s office, that Texans “have the individual right and responsibility to decide for themselves and their children whether they will wear masks, open their businesses, and engage in leisure activities.”
State-supported living centers, government-owned hospitals and government-operated hospitals may continue to use “appropriate policies regarding the wearing of face coverings,” according to the order.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department and any county and municipal jails “may continue to use appropriate policies regarding the wearing of face coverings.”
Additionally, to “preserve livelihoods,” the order stated, ” there are no Covid-19-related operating limits for any business or other establishment.”
In areas where Covid-19 transmission is high, people are encouraged to follow safe practices. However, “no person may be required by any jurisdiction to wear or to mandate the wearing of a face covering.”
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Biden says federal government vaccine mandate for all Americans "still a question"
From CNN's DJ Judd
During a brief Q&A following his remarks from the White House East Room, President Biden told reporters Thursday that while he’d like to see private entities continue to mandate vaccines in employees, “It’s still a question whether the federal government can mandate the whole country” and require vaccines.
“I had asked the Justice Department to determine whether that is, they’re able to [pass vaccine mandates] legally,” Biden said, “and they can — local communities can do that, local businesses can do that. It’s still a question whether the federal government can mandate the whole country. I don’t know that yet.”
The President made clear that the administration was not considering lockdowns based on guidance at hand, telling reporters in the East Room, “If tomorrow I could wave a wand and every American was vaccinated, then, in fact, we’d be out in the woods. Now, can something else happen a year from now, can there be a different virus, can there be something? It’s possible. And I’m talking about Covid and the existing variants have come forward so far.”
Biden reiterated that at this time, “a booster shot is not needed,” but acknowledged, “Now it’s possible that it will be needed later — I don’t know, they don’t, science hasn’t dictated that yet.”
Pressed on if he’d like to see a vaccine mandate take effect in the Department of Defense before the vaccine gets final approval from the US Food and Drug Administration, Biden was less committal, telling reporters that final FDA approval “usually takes a lot of a lot of work to get there.”
“I made a commitment I would not tell anyone in the Justice Department who they should prosecute, and I would not tell the health industry that they should be — government health entities what they should say and do, but my expectation is, they’re going to reach that conclusion in the early fall.”
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Here's a recap of the new measures Biden announced today to incentivize Covid-19 vaccinations
From CNN's Maegan Vazquez and DJ Judd
(Susan Walsh/AP)
In nearly 30 minutes of remarks, President Biden outlined a series of new efforts from his administration aimed at increasing vaccination rates, touting them as incentives “to encourage unvaccinated Americans to get vaccinated.”
Here are some of the measures:
Expanding paid leave for employees who take time off to get themselves and their family members vaccinated. Biden said employers would be reimbursed.
The Treasury Department said Biden will also be calling on states, territories, and local governments to do more to incentivize vaccination, including offering $100 to Americans getting vaccinated, paid for with American Rescue Plan funding.
The President called on school districts nationwide to host at least one pop-up vaccination clinic over the coming weeks to get more kids 12 and older vaccinated.
Biden also announced he would “impose requirements on key groups, to make sure they’re vaccinated.”
Here’s a look at those steps:
Biden said every federal government employee and on-site contractor will be asked to attest to their vaccination status. Employees who have not been vaccinated “will be required to wear a mask on the job no matter their geographic location, physically distance from all other employees and visitors, comply with a weekly or twice weekly screening testing requirement, and be subject to restrictions on official travel,” Biden said. The federal employee vaccination requirement is not a mandate, officials have insisted, and most federal employees who do not get vaccinated will not lose their jobs as a result, CNN previously reported.
The President also announced that he is asking the Department of Defense “to look into how and when they will add Covid-19 to the list of vaccinations that our armed forces must get.”
How some groups are responding: Several groups representing federal workers across the government are already raising concerns about the requirement, including groups representing federal law enforcement officers, IRS managers and members of the US Border Patrol, among others. Others groups, like the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, have come out in support.
Biden: Vaccinated Americans don't need Covid-19 boosters right now, but government prepared if that changes
From CNN's DJ Judd
President Biden said Thursday that, despite rising cases and the prevalence of the Delta variant in the US, there remains no need for booster shots for vaccinated Americans.
Any decision on a booster dose of a Covid-19 vaccine in the US is still awaiting more data, a prominent member of the US Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory committee told CNN on Thursday.
“It depends on the data,” Dr. Paul Offit told CNN.
The President also tried to reassure Americans concerned about the threat of breakthrough cases, acknowledging that while, “Yes, some fully vaccinated people still test positive, and some will also show symptoms of Covid-19, that’s expected for almost every vaccine there is for other diseases– but breakthrough cases remain rare in almost all our mild cases.”
“In fact, virtually all hospitalizations and deaths are among the unvaccinated,” Biden said.
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Biden: "We can and we must open schools this fall, full-time" with proper safety measures
From CNN's Maureen Chowdhury
(Susan Walsh/AP)
President Biden said the country “must open” schools in the fall with proper safety measures and protocols, including masking indoors.
Biden noted that vaccination rates among teachers are high and promoted the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention mask guidelines for students.
“Almost 90% of educators and school staff are now vaccinated. Additionally, the CDC has provided clear guidance on how all schools can safely protect the kids and bring them back to the classroom. Every student wear a mask. It’s that simple. So we funded safety measures at schools. We’ve vaccinated teachers and staff, and we can mask up our kids for further protection. Once again, there’s one more thing we need to do. Get more adolescents, ages 12 and up, vaccinated now that they’ve been cleared,” the President said.
Some more background: The CDC recommended on Tuesday that localities encourage all teachers, staff, students, and visitors in schools to wear masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status.
CNN’s Jacqueline Howard contributed reporting to this post.
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Biden calls on Defense Department to make Covid-19 vaccine required for service members
President Biden has tasked the Defense Department with making the Covid-19 vaccine one of the required vaccinations for all active-duty service people.
“I think this is particularly important because our troops serve in places throughout the world, many where vaccination rates are low and disease is prevalent,” the President continued.
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Biden: "Every federal government employee will be asked to attest to their vaccination status"
President Biden announced new vaccine rules for federal workers as part of his administration’s efforts to get more Americans vaccinated and curb the spread of the pandemic.
Biden noted that similar steps will be applied to all federal contractors.
“If you want to do business with the federal government, get your workers vaccinated,” the President said.
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Biden: There's nothing political about vaccines
From CNN's Maureen Chowdhury
(Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)
President Biden urged people to get vaccinated saying they’re “highly effective” and that there’s “nothing political about them.”
Biden commended Republicans who have advocated for Covid-19 vaccines.
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Biden: "If you're out there unvaccinated, you don't have to die"
(Susan Walsh/AP)
President Biden shared a somber warning for the millions of Americans who have yet to get the Covid-19 vaccine, warning them that “you don’t have to die.”
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Biden calls the Covid-19 vaccine "highly effective"
(Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)
President Biden championed the Covid-19 today during remarks from the White House, adding that the US has “enough vaccine for everyone to get vaccinated.”
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Biden on misinformation and Covid-19 spread: "We need some straight talk right now"
(Susan Walsh/AP)
President Biden highlighted the dangers of misinformation as the Delta variant fuels the spread of Covid-19 among the unvaccinated population across the country.
“I want to talk about what’s really happening, what it means, what it doesn’t mean, and what we need to do this week and the months ahead. From the moment I was elected, I said I’d always give to you straight from the shoulder, and we need some straight talk right now,” the President during remarks at the White House.
Biden continued: “Our experts told me that cases will go up further before they start to go down. While cases are on the rise, what we’re not likely to see, according to experts, is a comparable rise in hospitalizations or deaths in most areas of the country. You have to ask yourself, why is that? Because 164 million Americans are fully vaccinated, including 80% of the most vulnerable, our seniors. So there’s a challenge, as you knew there could be.”
The President noted that despite the challenges, the good news is that the Covid-19 vaccines are “highly effective” and the US has “enough vaccine for everybody to get vaccinated.”
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NOW: Biden delivers remarks on Covid-19 response and announces new vaccine rules for federal workers
From CNN's Kevin Liptak
(Pool)
President Biden is delivering remarks from the White House on his administration’s next efforts to combat the Covid-19 pandemic and get more Americans vaccinated.
According to a White House fact sheet, Biden will announce that, in an attempt to protect workers, “every federal government employee and onsite contractor will be asked to attest to their vaccination status.”
Employees who have not been vaccinated “will be required to wear a mask on the job no matter their geographic location, physically distance from all other employees and visitors, comply with a weekly or twice weekly screening testing requirement, and be subject to restrictions on official travel.”
It’s not a mandate, officials insist, and most federal employees who do not get vaccinated will not lose their jobs as a result. Still, the shift toward placing the onus for the current situation on those who have refused to get vaccinated reflects Biden’s growing impatience that still-hesitant Americans are prolonging a crisis he said earlier this month was no longer paralyzing the nation.
During his speech Thursday, he also plans to directly address the millions who have procrastinated or outright refused to get vaccinated.
What the latest vaccination and case numbers show: As of Wednesday, cases rose in all but one state in the past seven days compared to the week before, and cases rose at least 50% in 36 states in that time, according to Johns Hopkins.
The rate of people getting their first Covid-19 vaccine shot has risen in recent days. The current pace of vaccinations (seven-day average) shows 389,963 people are initiating vaccination each day — a 31% increase over last week’s pace.
Still, only 49.4% of the total US population is fully vaccinated, according to data published Thursday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is far from the 70% to 85% that experts have estimated would be needed to slow or stop the spread of the virus. Meanwhile, nearly 80% of seniors (65+) are fully vaccinated and nearly 90% have at least one dose.
CNN’s Deidre McPhillips, Jason Hanna and Madeline Holcombe contributed reporting to this post.
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These are the new actions Biden will announce on vaccinations, according to a White House fact sheet
From CNN's DJ Judd
The White House has shared a fact sheet detailing new actions the Biden administration is taking aim at getting more Americans vaccinated and slowing the spread of the Delta variant.
Per the fact sheet, President Biden will announce that, in an attempt to protect workers, “every federal government employee and the onsite contractor will be asked to attest to their vaccination status.”
Employees who have not been vaccinated “will be required to wear a mask on the job no matter their geographic location, physically distance from all other employees and visitors, comply with a weekly or twice-weekly screening testing requirement, and be subject to restrictions on official travel.”
In addition, the President is expected to announce a directive ordering the Department of Defense “to look into how and when they will add Covid-19 vaccination to the list of required vaccinations for members of the military.”
More on the actions: Also included in the administration’s efforts announced Thursday — expanded paid leave for employees who take time off to get themselves and their family members vaccinated.
The President will also call on states, territories, and local governments to do more to incentivize vaccination, including offering $100 to Americans getting vaccinated (Treasury released an announcement touting the incentive Thursday).
Finally, the President will call on school districts nationwide to host at least one pop-up vaccination clinic over the coming weeks “in an effort to get more kids 12 and older vaccinated.”
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New Mexico requires all state employees to be either fully vaccinated or take to regular Covid-19 tests
From CNN’s Andy Rose
Employees of the state of New Mexico are the latest to be told the Covid-19 vaccine is no longer optional, unless they want to be subject to regular coronavirus testing.
“Right now, it’s very simple: Get a vaccine, or else you will be tested,” Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, said in a news release. “There will be no quarter for this virus within state government offices. I will not tolerate any unnecessary risk within the workforce under my authority.”
The governor’s order takes effect Monday. Her announcement comes on the same day President Biden is expected to announce a similar order for federal workers. State employees who are not fully vaccinated are also required to wear a mask indoors while working under the new order. The governor’s office says employees who do not comply may be disciplined, including the possibility of losing their jobs.
“I have absolutely zero appetite for another unnecessary surge of infections, hospitalizations and death,” the governor said. “This isn’t a debate. The vaccines are safe, and they work.”
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Biden will call on states to provide $100 payments to newly vaccinated people
From CNN's Kevin Liptak
The Treasury Department says President Biden will call on state and local governments to provide $100 payments for every new vaccinated American.
Biden is set to deliver remarks at 4 p.m. ET and is expected to announce that all federal employees must attest to being vaccinated against Covid-19 or face strict protocols including regular testing, masking and other mitigation measures, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter.
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Biden is expected to issue vaccine rules for federal workers. Here's what the White House hopes it does.
From CNN's DJ Judd
Ahead of President Biden’s remarks on Covid-19, White House Principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre acknowledged that the Biden administration is hoping private companies will follow its example in requiring employees be vaccinated for Covid-19.
“We see ourselves as a model for other for other companies and other organization, and that’s something that we don’t take lightly.”
Earlier Thursday: Biden hopes steps announced Thursday requiring vaccinations for federal employees will lead to more federal workers getting shots, he views the broader goal of providing an example — and political and legal cover — to other employers as equally important.
“As a large employer — the largest in this country, who cares about the individuals who keep the government running, we have an obligation to be good stewards of the workforce and ensure their health and their safety. We’re taking action to protect the federal workforce so that they can continue to execute on the hard and important work of government,” Jean-Pierre told reporters Thursday.
Jean-Pierre would not share the percentage of federal employees already vaccinated, nor would she share any changes to the testing protocol for the President or those who work in close contact with him.
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Arkansas declares public health emergency due to climb in Covid-19 cases
From CNN’s Shawn Nottingham and Hannah Sarisohn
Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson announced today he was reinstating the public health emergency in the state because of the rise in Covid-19 cases.
Hutchinson acknowledged the state legislature must review the order but said, “as of today, I’ve signed the proclamation for the public health emergency declaration, which will extend for 60 days.”
“Yes, this has to be reviewed by the General Assembly, it is in effect today the emergency is in effect today, but they will be able to convene as a committee of the whole to review that. But I am declaring that emergency today,” the governor added.
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Hospitalizations are nearly 3 times higher in states with less than half of their residents vaccinated
From CNN’s Deidre McPhillips
Average Covid-19 hospitalization rates are nearly three times higher among states that have fully vaccinated less than half of their residents vs. the average among those that have vaccinated more than half of their residents, according to a CNN analysis of federal data.
And Covid-19 case and death rates over the past week are more than twice as high among states that have vaccinated less than half of their residents, on average.
Here’s a breakdown of the data:
Current hospitalizations, according data from the US Department of Health and Human Services:
Average among states that have vaccinated less than half of residents: 14.4 per 100,000 residents
Average among states that have vaccinated more than half of residents: 4.9 per 100,000 residents
Daily Covid-19 case rate over past week, according to data from Johns Hopkins University:
Average among states that have vaccinated less than half of residents: 23.7 per 100,000 residents
Average among states that have vaccinated more than half of residents: 9.3 per 100,000
Daily Covid-19 death rate over past week, according to data from Johns Hopkins University:
Average among states that have vaccinated less than half of residents: 129 per 1 million residents
Average among states that have vaccinated more than half of residents: 55 per 1 million residents
Vermont has the highest vaccination rate (more than 67% fully vaccinated) and the lowest current Covid-19 hospitalization rate (less than 1 per 100,000 residents). Meanwhile, Florida has the highest current Covid-19 hospitalization rate – about 38 people hospitalized per 100,000 residents, and less than 49% of the state’s population is fully vaccinated.
Note: Data on state vaccination rates is from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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"We let our children down" with slipping vaccination rates, expert says
From CNN’s Virginia Langmaid
Falling vaccination rates put children in a tough position as schools return to in-person learning, and necessitate decisions on masking and vaccine boosters, Dr. Paul Offit told CNN on Thursday. Offit is the director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
“I just feel like we let our children down by not keeping up the vaccination rates we had a couple months ago,” Offit told CNN’s Ana Cabrera.
Problems stemming from low vaccination rates are now converging with schools returning in the fall, he said.
“We have a school population that is now, a young population between 6 and 12 years of age who are unlikely to get a vaccination when they go back to school,” he said, “And it’ll be fall and winter when it spreads more easily and there’s a very contagious variant out there.”
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Kentucky governor recommends school districts require masks for K-12 students and staff
From CNN's Melissa Alonso
(Kentucky Governor's office)
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear recommended that all school districts in the state require K-12 students and staff to wear face masks this fall.
Beshear urged every superintendent and school board “to do the right thing, just make the right decision” to require face masks indoors at schools.
“We have to continue to fight this battle until it’s done,” said Beshear.
Some more context: Beshear said the state is seeing an “exploding number of cases in summer camps “where, unlike schools, “you’re not putting…unvaccinated kids, without masks, in a poorly ventilated room, for hours at a time.”
Beshear also emphasized the dangerous spread of the Covid-19 Delta variant.
“It’s going to spread through unvaccinated workplaces and classrooms, resulting in a loss of productivity, where parents and caregivers cannot go to work due to long quarantines,” the governor said. “I’m not currently considering reinstating the mask mandate, we will watch what’s happening and again, it’s on the table, if it’s needed.”
The governor stressed that all state employees are still required to wear face masks at work.
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Oregon will require masks in K-12 schools
From CNN’s Chris Boyette
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said Thursday that K-12 schools will require masks to be worn indoors.
Consistent with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest guidance, Brown directed the Oregon Health Authority and the Oregon Department of Education to create a rule to require masks indoors for K-12 schools statewide for the 2021-22 school year, according to a news release from the governor’s office.
Brown added that the state is recommending Oregonians statewide wear masks in public indoor spaces and stressed the importance of getting more people vaccinated.
“Vaccines remain the most effective and best way to protect ourselves and our families,” the governor said.
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Covid-19 booster shot still a question of data, FDA vaccine advisory committee member says
From CNN’s Virginia Langmaid
Dr. Paul Offit
(CNN)
Any decision on a booster dose of a Covid-19 vaccine in the US is still awaiting more data, a prominent member of the US Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory committee told CNN on Thursday.
“It depends on the data,” Dr. Paul Offit told CNN’s Ana Cabrera.
“I think as long as we’re there, I don’t see any pressing need for a booster dose.”
“Right now what we’re pressed to do,” Offit said, “is vaccinate the unvaccinated.”
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Israel will offer 3rd Covid-19 vaccine dose to people over 60
From CNN's Andrew Carey
Israel’s Prime Minister has announced a program rolling out a third dose of the coronavirus vaccine to people over the age of 60, one of the first countries in the world to make such a move.
People will need to show they received their second dose of the vaccine at least five months ago.
The announcement follows a strong recommendation overnight from the government-appointed team of experts on the pandemic to offer older adults a third dose. The experts’ advice was based on data suggesting significant waning immunity from infection over time.
The number of new cases in Israel has topped 2,000 for each of the last three days, reaching levels not seen in the country for four and half months. Some days in May and June, the number of new daily cases was down to single figures.
The number of severe cases currently stands at 151. The infection co-efficient, or the average number of people infected by someone with the virus, has been fairly steady for weeks between 1.3 and 1.4.
Some background: Israel began vaccinating its population in December. Then-Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was the first to receive a dose which he did on live television.
The vaccination program progressed apace and won plaudits for the fast rate at which Israel made the vaccine available to the entire adult population, and more recently children ages 12 and over.
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New York attorney general urges Facebook to fight Spanish-language vaccine misinformation
From CNN’s Brian Fung
New York Attorney General Letitia James speaks at a news conference on Friday, May 21, in New York.
New York Attorney General Letitia James called for Facebook to crack down on Covid-19 misinformation on Thursday, particularly for Spanish-speaking users of the social media platform.
In a letter to Facebook’s VP of state policy, Will Castleberry, James said Latino vaccination rates are among the lowest in the country, making it imperative that Spanish-speaking Americans receive accurate information about the coronavirus vaccine.
It is not enough for social media platforms to supply reliable information, James continued, adding that platforms such as WhatsApp could be doing more such as notifying users when a claim on the app has been previously fact-checked and identified as misinformation, or preventing the sharing of the claim altogether.
“We request that Facebook share with our office its policies and procedures regarding misinformation targeted towards the Latino community as well as any initiatives that Facebook has underway to amplify evidence-based and scientifically accurate material to Latino users,” James added.
James’ comments come as the Biden administration continues to battle misinformation surrounding vaccinations. Earlier this month, US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy warned health misinformation is “a serious threat to public health,” and the administration has put pressure on social media giants like Facebook to do more to stop the spread of false information.
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Israel releases data supporting recommendation to give 3rd Covid-19 vaccine dose to older adults
From CNN's Jacqueline Howard and Amir Tal
A man receives his third dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine on July 14, in Ramat Gan, Israel.
Amir Levy/Getty Images
Israel’s Ministry of Health on Thursday published the data that was presented to its Vaccine Advisory Committee last night in support of its recommendation to administer a third dose of coronavirus vaccine to older adults.
The Ministry of Health “recommended the provision of a third vaccine in the older adult population,” noted an announcement from the Ministry on Thursday.
Some of the data considered by the Ministry come from research on the “justification, safety and efficacy” of a third dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for hemodialysis patients that was posted as a pre-print paper earlier this month to the server medrxiv.org. The research found that about two-thirds of hemodialysis patients who had a suboptimal immune response after a second dose of vaccine developed “optimal” antibody titers and T cells after a third dose.
Israel’s health care system has been instructed to make arrangements to begin vaccinating people over the age 60 with a third dose of the Covid-19 vaccine beginning on Sunday, according to a source with knowledge of Israeli health care planning, pending a final government decision to proceed.
Recipients of a third dose will need to show that more than five months have passed since they received their second dose, the source said.
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Covid-19 vaccines estimated to have prevented 60,000 deaths in England
From CNN's Niamh Kennedy
People wait on socially distanced chairs to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine at a temporary vaccination center at the Tate Modern in central London on Friday, July 16.
Tolga Akmen/AGP/Getty Images
Covid-19 vaccines are estimated to have prevented 60,000 Covid-19 related deaths in England up to July 23, according to the latest report from Public Health England (PHE).
The report also estimated that Covid-19 vaccines have now prevented more than 22 million cases of infection – more than double the estimated number published previously, a PHE press release said Thursday. The data is based on modeling analysis from PHE and Cambridge University’s MRC Biostatistics Unit.
Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England Jonathan Van Tam told BBC Newsbeat on Thursday that scientists “do not know whether there will be a fourth wave” of infections in the UK.
Van Tam added that although he hoped “the worst is behind us” it is “quite possible that we’re going to have one or two bumpy periods through autumn and winter, not through COVID, but also through flu and other respiratory viruses as well.”
Once the UK has a “highly vaccinated adult population” including young people ages 18 to 25, “the chances of us needing another lockdown are much lower,” he added.
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More than 71% of the US population lives in a county where people should be wearing masks indoors
From CNN's Michael Nedelman and Deidre McPhillips
A sign on a storefront advises shoppers to wear masks inside on Monday, July 19, 2021, in the Fairfax district of Los Angeles. Los Angeles County has reinstated an indoor mask mandate due to rising COVID-19 cases.
Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP
More than 71% of the US population — or nearly 237 million people — live in counties considered to have “high” or “substantial” Covid-19 transmission, according to a CNN analysis of data published Wednesday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Only 1% of the population — just 3.2 million people — live in areas with “low” transmission.
That means the latest mask CDC guidance, which advises even fully vaccinated people to mask up indoors in areas with “substantial” or “high transmission,” would apply to more than seven in 10 Americans.
About 48% are in “high” transmission counties, and 23% are in counties with “substantial” transmission.
This is up from a week ago, when just over half — 50.5% — of Americans lived in counties that fell into either category. Two weeks ago, that number was even lower: 38.5%.
In early June, 2.4% of the population lived in a county with “high” Covid-19 transmission, and another 13% in areas with “substantial” transmission.
Meanwhile, Covid-19 cases in the US continue to rise. The country is now averaging 63,698 new each day, according to Johns Hopkins University — that’s a 59% increase over last week’s seven-day average.
According to the CDC, the US is experiencing an uptick in vaccinations. An average of 382,106 peopleare initiating vaccination each day, the agency’s data published Wednesday shows. This is the highest it’s been in three weeks and a 35% increase over last week. At least 49.2% of the total US population is fully vaccinated.
Some more context on the data: The CDC considers a county to have “high” transmission if there have been 100 or more cases of Covid-19 per 100,000 residents in the past week, or a test positivity rate of 10% or higher during the same time frame. For “low” transmission, those numbers must be fewer than 10 new cases per 100,000 or a test positivity rate under 5%.
Here’s a look at the latest community spread trends:
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Texas teachers association calls on governor to reverse ban on mask mandates
From CNN's Elizabeth Stuart
Texas Governor Greg Abbott is pictured speaking at a news conference in Austin, Texas on June 8.
Eric Gay/AP
A Texas teachers group is calling on Gov. Greg Abbott to reverse his stance on banning mask mandates in schools, as the new school year approaches and Covid-19 cases are on the rise.
The Texas State Teachers Association, the Texas affiliate of the National Education Association, said that individual school districts should be allowed to require masks in school based on the local health conditions in their communities, according to a statement released Tuesday.
The statement came on the same day the CDC adjusted its school guidelines, recommending all K-12 students wear masks in school. Abbott is standing by the executive order he signed in May, before the Delta variant was spreading at high rates.
“The time for government mask mandates is over—now is the time for personal responsibility,” he tweeted Tuesday. “Every Texan has the right to choose whether they will wear a mask or have their children wear masks.”
The TSTA noted that the American Academy of Pediatrics has also recommended everyone older than 2 wear a mask in school, and that children under 12 are not yet eligible for Covid-19 vaccines.
“Educators are eager to return to the classroom, but the pandemic is still dangerous,” Molina said.
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AstraZeneca says it will apply for full approval of its Covid-19 vaccine in the US by end of the year
From CNN’s Jen Christensen
A nurse displays a vial of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine during a press event in Warsaw, Poland on March 25.
Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
AstraZeneca said in investor documents published Thursday that it will ask the US Food and Drug Administration for full approval of its Covid-19 vaccine in the second half of 2021.
Rather than apply for an Emergency Use Authorization like the other Covid-19 vaccines currently authorized in the United States, the company said it will file a Biologics License Application.
The vaccine is being used to protect patients from Covid-19 in more than 100 countries around the world. By the end of this year, the company said it will deliver up to three billion doses of the vaccine globally.
Some more background: AstraZeneca’s vaccine was one of the first Covid-19 vaccines developed. The US government pledged to invest $1.2 billion in the vaccine, but it was plagued with problems from the beginning. There were questions about its trial data after the company initially said that a half dose worked better than a full dose in the trial.
Days later, the company admitted the half dose was administered by mistake and dropped that approach. There were additional questions about its effectiveness in the elderly, and reports of rare blood clots.
In April, Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN that even if the FDA granted an emergency use authorization, there was no need for a fourth vaccine in the US. The company did not respond to Fauci’s comments at the time.
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Israel’s health care system prepares for third Covid-19 vaccine dose pending final government decision
From CNN's Amir Tal
A medical worker prepares a dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at a healthcare center in Modiin, Israel, on July 5.
Gil Cohen Magen/Xinhua/Getty Images
Israel’s healthcare system has been told to make arrangements to begin vaccinating people over 60 with a third dose of the Covid-19 vaccine from Sunday, according to a source with knowledge of Israeli health care planning, pending a final government decision to go ahead with the move.
Recipients of a third dose will need to show that more than five months have passed since they received their second dose, the source said.
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FDA says Emergent BioSolutions plant can resume manufacturing J&J’s Covid-19 vaccine
From CNN’s Jen Christensen and Nadia Kounang
The biopharmaceutical company Emergent BioSolutions is pictured in Baltimore, Maryland, on April 1.
Jim Lo Scalzo//EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Emergent BioSolutions announced Thursday that the US Food and Drug Administration will allow it to resume the manufacturing of the drug substance that goes into Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine.
According to an administration official, the Baltimore plant has not been fully authorized yet, and while production can resume, the FDA will still need to inspect the individual lots of vaccine before they go out for shipment and can be administered.
The plant had been contracted by Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca, but production was stopped after a mix-up earlier this year that involved ingredients for Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine and AstraZeneca’s vaccine resulted in 15 million vaccine doses being spoiled by contamination.The government then asked J&J to take over production at the plant. The plant also stopped making the AstraZeneca vaccine substance.
After the plant’s production was stopped, the FDA returned to conduct several additional inspections at the facility, Emergent said. The company said it also has worked closely with the FDA and J&J to address quality concerns, and has developed an action plan going forward.
In an email to CNN, J&J confirmed the restart of production.
“We will continue to work toward securing Emergency Use Authorization in the United States for drug substance manufactured at Emergent Bayview as quickly as possible,” a spokesperson from Johnson & Johnson said in the email.
The FDA has been giving extra scrutiny to batches produced at the facility, which are shipped to other facilities to be put into vials and finished.
On July 13, the FDA authorized the fifth batch of J&J vaccine to be shipped but did not note how many doses that equaled.
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A growing number of US companies are requiring vaccines. These are some of them.
Analysis from CNN's Christine Romans
An exterior view of the marquee at MGM Grand Hotel & Casino on August 28, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Get the shot or take a hike.
After months of reluctance, Corporate America is taking a stand on keeping its returning workers safe. A growing number of companies are requiring vaccines for employees and in some cases, for clients and customers.
Most companies are allowing for very rare religious and health exemptions, of course. But the “I read something scary on Facebook” excuse doesn’t apply anymore.
Silicon Valley is leading the way. Facebook and Google announced all employees returning to the office must be vaccinated.
Netflix is the first studio to mandate the vaccine. All actors who star in the streaming giant’s programming and the employees who come in contact with them must have the shot.
Wall Street offices are filling up fast. And vaccines are required. The financial sector says get vaxxed or find a new job. BlackRock and Morgan Stanley announced all employees must be vaccinated to return to the office.
It’s a diverse list. Saks Fifth Avenue, the Washington Post, Ascension Health, and Lyft are also requiring the shot to work.
It’s good business. Johnny Taylor, Jr, of the Society of Human Resource Management, says most employees want vaccine mandates. They want to know their workplace is safe when people return. His polling shows nearly 70% of employees want their colleagues to be vaccinated. And patience has worn thin with the vaccine-hesitant.
That’s the case for MGM Grand. Unvaccinated workers must regularly test for the virus, and if found positive, they will quarantine — without pay.
MGM Grand’s CEO Bill Hornbuckle hasn’t mandated the vaccine but has implored workers to get the shot, acknowledging the unvaccinated will hurt business.
“In addition to the heart-wrenching thought of more illness and death, I fear that progressively more restrictive measures, including a return to social distancing and capacity restrictions, could be around the corner if we continue on this path,” Hornbuckle wrote in a letter to employees.
That’s the view from Union Square Hospitality CEO Danny Meyer. He told CNBC Thursday you can’t have full restaurants again without mandates for employees and customers to be vaccinated.
He’s giving workers 45 days to get the shot.
Even the Federal Reserve chief, Jerome Powell, says vaccinations are key to protect the economy from coronavirus variants.
“These strains — there is no reason they can’t keep coming, and one more powerful than the next. We don’t know that, but that’s certainly a plausible outcome. As vaccinations rise we can nonetheless get back to our economic activity,” Powell said Wednesday.
The Delta variant of the virus has many companies tweaking their return to the office plans. Many had hoped to have employees back after Labor Day, now some are pushing back later into the fall. But they are signaling that vaccines will be required.
Plan accordingly.
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Ahead of today's speech, Biden feels like US has hit a "brick wall" on vaccinations
From CNN's Kaitlan Collins and Kevin Liptak
President Joe Biden walks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC on Wednesday, July 28.
Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg/Getty Images
As vaccination rates have fallen across the US, President Biden has become increasingly frustrated and feels as if the nation has hit “a brick wall” when it comes to getting shots in arms, according to people familiar with his thinking.
Biden will give a speech Thursday announcing a new vaccine requirement for civilian federal employees, but one official says he also plans to directly address the millions who have procrastinated or outright refused to get vaccinated.
In private meetings with top aides, Biden has raised one question repeatedly: “What’s the problem?”
The President gets daily updates on vaccination rates, hospitalizations and deaths. Lately his briefings have focused on the formidable Delta variant, but advisers have also warned that if the vaccination issue doesn’t change soon, another — and potentially worse — variant could surface, further derailing progress the US has made.
One of the principal motivators behind Biden’s vaccine requirement for federal workers is providing a model for private companies and local governments considering similar rules for their own employees, according to administration officials.
While Biden hopes the steps he announces Thursday will lead to more federal workers getting shots, he views the broader goal of providing an example — and political and legal cover — to other employers as equally important.
The White House was still finalizing the parameters of the requirement on Wednesday, but specific implementation is expected to be left to individual agencies and departments. Biden’s announcement itself is likely to be quite broad, with the details left to those agencies to sort out. It’s possible different agencies have different requirements.
Officials wanted to announce the requirement before agencies and private businesses return their workforces to offices in the fall to give them time to implement the changes and to allow workers time to get fully vaccinated.
Administration officials were quietly pleased by how little pushback there was to the announcement by the Department of Veterans Affairs that they would require all healthcare workers to get vaccinated within the next eight weeks.
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The FDA says it's working as fast as possible to fully approve vaccines. Here's where the process stands.
From CNN's Kristen Holmes, Jen Christensen, Jeff Zeleny and Tara Subramaniam
A Pfizer Covid-19 vial is pictured at a Covid-19 vaccine clinic in Los Angeles on July 9.
Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images
The US Food and Drug Administration insists it is working as quickly as possible to review applications for full approval of the Covid-19 vaccines as the number of cases continues to rise and vaccination rates decline across the country.
Though the FDA has yet to disclose a time line for when its work will be done, medical experts and sources familiar with the process tell CNN that full approval could come within the next couple of months. While that would amount to a record fast pace, the urgency is rising for a fully approved vaccine given the troubling surge in Covid cases sweeping the country.
An FDA official told CNN on Wednesday that the agency continues to work as fast as possible to review the applications. The official noted that as part of the emergency use authorization granted last year, the vaccines have already undergone a “thorough scientific evaluation” in order to “meet FDA’s rigorous standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality.”
Still, federal medical officials and business leaders agree that full FDA approval would be helpful in the fight against vaccine hesitancy and would support companies eager to issue vaccine mandates to employees returning to the office.
Where the process stands: The FDA should have all the paperwork and data from the vaccine trials from Pfizer and be in the reviewing process, medical experts said.
In July, Pfizer announced that the FDA had granted its vaccine a priority review, accelerating the process from 10 months to six, meaning that technically approval should be granted by January.
But the acting commissioner of the FDA, Dr. Janet Woodcock, has said the FDA intends to complete the review far in advance of its January deadline. Multiple officials told CNN the FDA is working nonstop to get through the review process and grant approval.
Former FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb said on Wednesday that he believed the approval could come as early as next month.
“I long felt that the FDA would approve the vaccine probably within a three- to four-month time frame from when the application was submitted. Those applications were submitted about two and a half, three months ago. … So I think that puts you on (an) end of August, September time frame in terms of when these are going to be approved.”
Medical experts stressed that the vaccination approval process takes time, even for something as vital as Covid-19 vaccines.
Beijing reports first Covid-19 case in nearly 6 months
From CNN's Jessie Yeung
Medical workers swab residents during COVID-19 testing in Nanjing, China, on July 25.
Ji Chunpeng/Xinhua/Getty Images
Beijing recorded its first Covid-19 case in nearly six months on Wednesday, as Chinese authorities scramble to prevent the spread of the Delta variant amid an outbreak linked to an airport in the populous eastern city of Nanjing.
The latest outbreak first emerged last week after more than a dozen cases were detected among cleaning staff at Nanjing Lukou International Airport. It prompted officials to launch mass testing for more than 9 million residents starting July 21; a second round of mass testing was completed over the weekend, and a third round began on Wednesday.
So far, at least 175 cases are connected to the airport cluster, which officials have linked to the more infectious Delta variant.
“The recent spike in infections in the city can be attributed to the special location of the outbreak and the highly contagious nature of the (Delta) strain,” said Ding Jie, vice director of Nanjing’s center for disease control and prevention, at a news conference, state media reported Tuesday.
Despite the rapid and aggressive testing campaign, the virus appears to have already spread beyond Jiangsu province.
China recorded 49 new cases on Wednesday, including 24 local infections from three additional provinces, according to the National Health Commission (NHC), taking the total number of cases associated with the new cluster to at least 175.
A second new case was reported in Beijing on Thursday afternoon, with health authorities describing the two local cases as a husband and wife who had recently traveled outside of the capital. Close contacts of the couple have been placed under quarantine.
Though the latest nationwide count marks a slight drop from the 86 cases recorded Tuesday – the highest single day increase since January – the virus’ spread across provincial borders is sparking alarm among the country’s leaders, after more than a year of low case numbers and resumed daily life.
Some background: The coronavirus was first detected in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019, rapidly spreading across China and the world. Yet despite being the first country to succumb to the virus, China has since managed to successfully contain its spread. Since March 2020, the official case figures have remained low, and occasional flare-ups have been quickly contained with mass testing and severe restrictions, including mass lockdowns of hundreds of millions of people across the country.
The current outbreak, however, poses a new threat, with the more transmissible Delta variant identified in the eastern city of Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu province and a major industrial and transport hub home to more than 9.3 million people.
It will also be a test of the efficacy of China’s massive vaccination program, which has administered more than 1.5 billion doses so far – a scale and speed unrivaled by any other country in the world.
Other countries in the region, including Thailand and Australia, have also been hit by the Delta variant and are currently battling outbreaks. But these countries have also struggled with a slow vaccination rollout beset by delays and shortages. This is in sharp contrast to China, which is on track to reach its goal of achieving so-called “herd immunity” – the point at which enough people have either been infected or vaccinated to end community transmission – by December this year.
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Biden expected to announce vaccination requirement across federal government today
From CNN's Phil Mattingly and Jason Hoffman
President Joe Biden speaks in Macungie, Pennsylvania, on July 28.
The announcement will come in remarks today at 4:00 p.m. ET. Biden is also expected to lay out a series of new steps, including incentives, in an attempt to spur new vaccinations as the Delta variant spreads rapidly throughout the country. It will also follow the decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs to require its frontline health care workers to be vaccinated over the course of the next two months.
Biden alluded to the looming announcement on Tuesday.
More on the announcement: While the specifics are still being finalized, the source said, federal workers would be required to attest to their vaccination status or submit to regular testing. The source said the proposal will be roughly similar to what is being implemented in New York City. Additional requirements for the unvaccinated could be added as agencies push to vaccinate their employees.
Biden will not impose the requirement on the US military, despite his authority to do so, for the time being. He is, however, likely to outline how the Department of Defense may seek to approach the issue going forward, the source said.
