Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
70% Of American Adults Now Vaccinated Against Covid
The United States has administered 432,111,860 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Monday morning, with over 70% of adults fully vaccinated, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. The agency said the country has distributed 534,086,695 doses. The figures were up from the 430,927,624 vaccine doses, the CDC said it had administered by Nov. 7 out of 534,081,335 doses delivered. (11/8)
Meanwhile, around the country —
Hoping to avoid another surge of COVID-19 cases this winter, California public health officials on Monday urged residents to get booster shots and vaccinate their newly eligible younger children. With the combination of people gathering indoors due to colder weather and waning vaccine immunity, the health department said it sees a concerning rise of new cases, hospitalizations and deaths across the state. (Vaziri, 11/8)
Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Monday signed a controversial measure aimed at preventing people from using a decades-old law to avoid COVID-19 vaccination mandates by citing moral or religious objections. The change to the state’s Health Care Right of Conscience Act comes as lawsuits have challenged vaccination requirements from the government and private employers by referencing a law that was intended to protect doctors and other health care workers from having to provide abortions or other reproductive services that go against their beliefs. (Gorner, 11/8)
A majority of Texas voters support requiring masks at schools and indoor public places and allowing businesses to require their employees to be vaccinated, according to a new University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll. This comes as Gov. Greg Abbott has banned vaccine requirements by all Texas entities, including private businesses and health care facilities, and mask mandates by local government and state agencies. (Irvine, 11/9)
