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Tens of Thousands of New York Healthcare Workers Could Lose Jobs as Soon as Today + More
Tens of Thousands of New York Healthcare Workers Could Lose Jobs as Soon as Today Over Vaccine: COVID Updates
Tens of thousands of healthcare workers across New York state could lose their jobs as soon as today, the state-imposed deadline for them to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
All healthcare workers at hospitals and nursing homes are required to have at least one dose under the mandate issued last month by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Home care, hospice and adult care workers must be vaccinated by Oct. 7 under the rules, which some workers are challenging in the courts.
NYC Reverts to Old Vaccine-or-Test School Policy for Now as Court Blocks Mandate Again
New York City is relying on its previous vaccination or weekly COVID testing policy for Department of Education employees, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday, as a stopgap while the latest temporary injunction against his mandate requiring at least one dose for all those staffers plays out in the court system.
It was the second 11th-hour temporary block of de Blasio’s vaccination mandate as legal battles over the constitutionality of such requirements continue. An attorney representing Department of Education employees says opponents of the mayor’s school mandate just want a weekly test option scribed into the rule for those who, for whatever reason, do not want to be inoculated against COVID.
Thousands of United Workers to Be Fired, Furloughed Over COVID Vaccine Mandates
Today marks the deadline for employees of United Airlines to prove they’ve received their first COVID-19 shot or lose their job.
In early August, the nation’s second-largest airline announced that its 67,000 employees had until October 25 to get fully vaccinated. As of last week, the company said that more than 97 percent of its U.S. employees had taken the shot. However, this figure leaves some 2,000 plus people as holdouts — and it appears these individuals will be putting up a fight.
Facebook Is Hitting the Brakes on Instagram for Kids
Instagram is pressing pause on plans to develop a version of its service for kids under 13 after facing pressure from lawmakers to back down on the effort and new questions about the impact the photo-sharing service has on teen girls.
The move comes just days before the US Senate was set to hold a hearing entitled “Protecting Kids Online: Facebook, Instagram, and Mental Health Harms” to discuss the pressure today’s youth face on social media. That hearing comes after a Wall Street Journal investigation around what Facebook knows about how Instagram affects teen users, including their mental health.
Dozens of Massachusetts State Police Troopers Resigning Over COVID Vaccine Mandate, Union Says
The State Police Association of Massachusetts (SPAM) said dozens of troopers have submitted their resignation papers as a result of the state’s COVID vaccine mandate.
The state is requiring all executive department employees to show proof of vaccination by October 17, or risk losing their jobs. About 20% of State Police employees are not vaccinated, the union’s attorney said.
Last week, a judge denied a request from the State Police union to put a hold on Baker’s vaccine mandate for troopers.
Mark Zuckerberg’s ‘Metaverse’ Is a Dystopian Nightmare
In July, Zuckerberg announced that Facebook is in the process of transitioning into a “Metaverse” company over the next half decade. The social media giant wants to morph into an all-consuming, all-encompassing platform with relationships, work, commerce, and entertainment commingling under one big tent.
If that’s vague, it’s because the Metaverse is an octopus with a nearly infinite number of arms and no single blueprint, which is why many are calling it the Web 3.0. “You can think about the Metaverse as an embodied internet, where instead of just viewing content — you are in it.”
‘We Thought It Would Be Normal by Now’: High School Seniors Face Third COVID School Year
While the new school year marks the first time that classrooms have been full and virtual learning all but eliminated, incoming 12th graders still have to wear masks, practice social distancing, and contend with protocols similar to those in place when the pandemic began.
“We thought it would be normal by now and then last year we still thought so,” said McKown. “And now we are getting into it with masks mandated, it is not too exciting. It is not normal, but we will make it as normal as possible.” Normal is a distant memory for the Class of 2022, who are now in their third high school year of COVID-19 dating back to the first outbreak.
Politicians Could Exploit Twitter’s New Safety Tools to Silence Critics, Legal Experts Warn
The Washington Post via MSN reported:
Twitter is testing a host of new features the social network says will boost user safety on the platform, but free speech advocates warn that the tools could be easily exploited by government officials to suppress dissent and limit access to their remarks online.
The rollouts include a “safety mode” tool that when enabled automatically detects and temporarily blocks accounts hurling insults or other “harmful language” at users to “reduce the burden on people dealing with unwelcome interactions.” The company said Friday it’s also testing a setting that lets users automatically “filter” or “limit” unwanted and harmful replies.
But any tool that filters harmful or violent speech can also capture constitutionally protected dissent. The company says it’s aware the features could be used by government leaders to stifle opposing viewpoints, and so it’s excluding politicians initially from tests.
The Nonsensical Loophole in Biden’s Vaccine Mandate
President Joe Biden’s new vaccine mandate for large businesses is a strange one, in that it does not actually make vaccines mandatory for the roughly 80 million Americans it’s aimed at. Tucked plainly into the rule is a singular and obvious opt-out: Unlike federal employees and contractors, those in the private sector can test for the coronavirus on an at-least-weekly basis.
The United States isn’t set up to handle a sharp rise in diagnostic demand, should a big fraction of affected workers go the testing route. What’s more, including the testing clause at all “does undermine, to some degree, the scientific and public-health purpose of the mandate,” Tom Bollyky, the director of the global-health program at the Council on Foreign Relations, told me.
NY Hospitals Fear Staff Shortage as Vaccine Deadline Looms + More
NY Hospitals Fear Staff Shortage as Vaccine Deadline Looms
Hospitals and nursing homes in New York are bracing for the possibility that a statewide COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers could lead to staff shortages when it takes effect Monday.
Doctors and nurses — and also support staff, like food service workers and cleaners — have been given until Sept. 27 to get at least their first vaccine shot in one of the nation’s most aggressive plans to protect patients.
With just days left to go before the deadline, many still hadn’t. That left the prospect of potentially thousands of healthcare workers being forced off the job next week.
Judge Denies Mass. State Police Bid for Injunction on Vaccine Mandate
A Superior Court judge late Thursday denied the request of the union representing 1,800 members of the State Police to block the implementation of Gov. Charlie Baker’s vaccine mandate until the details can be collectively bargained.
The decision leaves unvaccinated troopers with just days to get their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine or face potential disciplinary action, including the loss of their job, when they are not fully vaccinated by mid-October.
Judge Jackie Cowin ruled that the State Police Association of Massachusetts had failed to show that the implementation of the mandate on Oct. 17 would either cause irreparable harm to its members or that a delay would serve the public interest.
Voters Want to Curb the Influence of Big Tech Companies, New Poll Shows
An overwhelming majority of American voters support strong online privacy protections while eight out of ten strongly support holding social media companies more accountable for “illegal and harmful content” posted on their sites, according to a recent survey conducted by the Benenson Strategy Group and Public Opinion Strategies for The Future of Tech Commission.
Americans demonstrated grave concerns that tech companies can reach too far into their lives, and expressed strong bipartisan support for government action. The survey finds that nine in ten voters across party lines support ‘privacy by default’ and that eighty percent of American voters overall — 83% of Democrats and 78% of Republicans — believe the federal government “needs to do everything it can to curb the influence of big tech companies that have grown too powerful and now use our data to reach too far into our lives.”
Black Lives Matter of Greater New York Leader Blasts Vaccine Mandates as Racist and Disrespectful
Black Lives Matter activists have turned on New York City’s leadership over what they claim are racist COVID-19 vaccine requirements.
Mayor Bill De Blasio has aggressively pushed a “vaccine passport” system that bars entry to restaurants, gyms, and other public places without proof of COVID-19 inoculation. But with black residents lagging the overall population in vaccinations, the rules are disproportionately affecting a minority group usually in step with Democratic policies. The schism came to a head on Monday, when Black Lives Matter of Greater New York launched a protest outside a restaurant where enforcement of the policy sparked a melee.
Hawk Newsome is a black activist and co-founder of Black Lives Matter of Greater New York. Newsome spoke with the Washington Examiner about the difficulties vaccine-hesitant blacks are facing in the era of medical passports.
CNN Health Experts Cling to COVID Restrictions, Call for Extending Masks in Schools, Separating Kids in ‘Pods’
Despite a decreasing national case average and a wide-reaching vaccine mandate in place, CNN medical contributors and guests are not ready to bid farewell to the overreaching COVID-19 regulations that continue to upend daily life in the U.S.
Asked whether it would still be necessary for children to wear facemasks in their classrooms now that they can get the vaccine, the “Uncontrolled Spread” author, former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, suggested asymptomatic students be tested twice a week to “cut down the risk of transmission in schools dramatically.” Gottlieb also encouraged schools to keep students in “defined social pods” to prevent them from intermingling with those outside their immediate classrooms.
CNN medical contributor Dr. Leana Wen said the country was “nowhere near” ready to start lifting mask regulations in schools.
Flying the Vaccinated Skies: Where Major Airlines Stand With Employee Mandates
The Washington Post via MSN reported:
There is no requirement for air travelers within the United States to be vaccinated against COVID-19. But depending on which airline you fly, there might be a mandate for employees.
While all major U.S. carriers are trying to get their workforces vaccinated, some are going further than others, with United being the first to mandate vaccinations, in August. Other airlines instead have been offering their employees incentives, mandating testing for the unvaccinated or tacking on an extra insurance charge.
But President Biden’s order this month — which said companies with 100 or more employees must mandate vaccination or weekly testing — will probably change the game.
Shadowdragon: Inside the Social Media Surveillance Software That Can Watch Your Every Move
A Michigan state police contract, obtained by The Intercept, sheds new light on the growing use of little-known surveillance software that helps law enforcement agencies and corporations watch people’s social media and other website activity.
The software, put out by a Wyoming company called ShadowDragon, allows police to suck in data from social media and other internet sources, including Amazon, dating apps, and the dark web, so they can identify persons of interest and map out their networks during investigations. By providing powerful searches of more than 120 different online platforms and a decade’s worth of archives, the company claims to speed up profiling work from months to minutes.
This new revelation about the Michigan contract raises questions about what digital surveillance capabilities other police departments and law enforcement agencies in the U.S. might be quietly acquiring. And it comes at a time when previously known government social media surveillance is under fire from civil rights and liberties advocates like MediaJustice and the American Civil Liberties Union.
3 East Bay School Districts Go All-In on Student Vaccine Mandates
CBS News San Francisco reported:
State leaders are now discussing whether a COVID vaccine should be required for all students age 12 and older to attend in-person classes.
State Health Director, Dr. Mark Ghaly, made the comments during a teleconference Thursday afternoon and Gov. Gavin Newsom echoed the idea later that same day saying, “Our health director said this is on the table. It’s being debated and, over the next few days, we’ll come out with some recommendations.”
Three districts in the Bay Area have already said they’ll be implementing vaccine mandates for students 12 and older: Oakland Unified, Hayward and Piedmont.
Campaign Pushes Back, Threatens to Sue City of Raleigh Over Vaccine Mandate for Employees
It has been roughly a week since the City of Raleigh’s new vaccine requirement for its employees kicked in. Employees must be fully vaccinated to be eligible for promotions.
However, the people behind a GoFundMe campaign representing city employees say the city is wrong.
The fundraiser said there are plans to sue and file a complaint against this “overreach of power and medical discrimination.”
NYC Teachers Must Be Vaccinated by Monday After Judge Lifts Temporary Pause on Mandate + More
Judge Lifts Temporary Pause on Vaccine Mandate for NYC Teachers, Who Now Must Be Vaccinated by Monday
A judge has lifted a temporary pause on New York City’s vaccine mandate. That means all teachers must be vaccinated by Monday, or lose their jobs.
More than a month ago, Mayor Bill de Blasio said all teachers must get the shot by Sept. 27 or lose their jobs. The state said the same for healthcare workers.
Seventeen healthcare workers filed lawsuits and several municipal unions sued the city, saying the mandate violates constitutional rights and that it shouldn’t be a condition of employment.
Survey Finds More Than Half of U.S. Companies to Impose Vaccine Mandates
A survey conducted by risk management and advisory company Willis Towers Watson has found that more than half of U.S. companies expect to impose COVID vaccine mandates on their employees by the end of the year.
The survey of 1000 companies, employing close to 10 million people, found that 52 percent of employers are planning some form of vaccine mandate for workers.
The figure would be a massive increase on the 21 percent of employers who currently have mandates in place.
The Smart Toilet Era Is Here! Are You Ready to Share Your Analprint With Big Tech?
Smart toilet innovators believe the loo could become the ultimate health monitoring tool. Grego believes her product – which analyses and tracks stool samples and sends the data to an app – will provide “information related to cancer and many chronic diseases”.
For general consumers, it will provide peace of mind, she says, by establishing “a healthy baseline”: “Having technology that tracks what is normal for an individual could provide an early warning that a checkup is needed.”
For people with specific conditions, such as inflammatory bowel disease, the device could provide helpful monitoring for doctors. “It’s very difficult to know when to escalate or de-escalate treatment,” she says. “Stool-based biomarkers can provide that information.”
Businesses Must Bone Up on Biometrics — It’s the Law
Amazon uses your palm print for payment at Whole Foods. Disney requires your fingerprints when entering a park.
Biometrics. This is the next wave of personal information that businesses will soon require consumers to share. Biometric data is physiological or biological characteristics used to identify an individual, such as facial recognition, fingerprints, and retina/iris scans.
Personal information collected through biometric data will have to be secured by businesses that collect them. New York has taken the first steps to ensure security for the collection of biometric data.
White House Opposes NDAA Provision Banning Dishonorable Discharge for COVID Vaccine Refusal
The White House said it “strongly opposes” a provision in the 2022 defense spending bill that would block the Pentagon from dishonorably discharging a service member who refuses to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
A section in the House version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) would limit military commanders’ options for disciplining those who fail to comply with the vaccination mandate, the White House Office of Management and Budget said in a statement of administration policy Wednesday.
Section 716 of the NDAA would prohibit service members who are discharged over vaccine refusal from receiving anything other than an honorable discharge, noting that “many Americans have reservations about taking a vaccine that has only been available for less than a year.”
NY Governor Refusing to Budge on Vaccine Mandate for Nurses: You’re Replaceable
Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul remained adamant that healthcare workers get vaccinated by Sept. 27 in the state or be replaced.
“To all the healthcare providers, doctors and nurses in particular who are vaccinated, I say thank you. Because you are keeping true to your oath,” Hochul said during a visit to Rochester Wednesday. “To those who won’t, we will be replacing people.”
Team USA to Mandate COVID Vaccine for Winter Olympic Hopefuls
American athletes looking to compete in the Winter Olympics in Beijing must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19, according to updated guidelines posted on the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) website.
Employees, athletes and contractors must be vaccinated by Nov. 1 to use USOPC facilities or attend events hosted by the committee. On Dec. 1, the mandate extends “to all Team USA delegation members or hopefuls for future Games.”
Tech Groups Representing Facebook and Twitter Sue Texas Over Social Media Censorship Law
Two trade groups representing big tech companies like Facebook, Twitter and Google filed a lawsuit against the state of Texas on Wednesday, arguing a new state law that prohibits social media platforms from banning users over their political views violates the companies’ First Amendment rights.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court for west Texas, says the Republican-styled anti-censorship law infringes on the editorial discretion of social media companies by forcing them to allow content they otherwise wouldn’t.
Texas House Bill 20, which Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law September 9, requires social media companies with more than 50 million monthly users in the U.S. to issue public reports on suspensions and content removal to prove political bias isn’t playing a role in those decisions.
Vaccine Mandate Must Prove COVID a ‘Grave Danger’ in the Workplace
While some employers are eager to comply with the guidance and boost workplace vaccination, others are preparing to challenge the mandate in court. That has raised the stakes for the Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which is responsible for drafting the rule.
OSHA has been working quietly behind the scenes on an emergency temporary standard that can stand up to legal challenges. Their strongest position will be establishing the need for a mandate to protect employees against the “grave danger” of COVID-19.
“It’s one thing if a private company of any size wants to require employees to be vaccinated. It’s a whole different ball game when the federal government is compelling these businesses to police their employees,” said Elaine Parker, president of the Job Creators Network Foundation. The group is filing suit with some of its small business members and their employees.
Florida’s New Surgeon General Opposes Mandates, Calls COVID Vaccines ‘Nothing Special’
On Tuesday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced that Dr. Joseph Ladapo will be the state’s new surgeon general and secretary of the state’s health department.
But Ladapo quickly came under fire from critics for downplaying COVID-19 vaccines.
At a press conference announcing his new role, Ladapo said he is going to advocate for a “public health” approach to handling the pandemic and other concerns, and said he will “completely reject fear as a way of making policies.”
United Airlines Employees Sue Over COVID Vaccine Mandate + More
United Airlines Employees Sue Company Over Its ‘Draconian’ COVID Vaccine Mandate
United Airlines employees have filed a lawsuit against the airline over its coronavirus vaccine mandate.
United in August said that more than half of its 67,000 U.S.-based employees who weren’t vaccinated in August would be required to get the vaccine by Sept. 27, but made an exception for those with medical and religious reasons, which employees argue has not been the case.
The six employee plaintiffs say United Airlines has failed to approve accommodation requests regarding the vaccine and instead offered six years of unpaid leave for those wishing not to get the vaccine.
Vaccine Mandates for NYC Teachers, State Healthcare Workers Head to Court
A court hearing Wednesday could affect thousands of teachers and healthcare workers.
A decision should come soon on whether they must get vaccinated to keep their jobs, CBS2’s Natalie Duddridge reported.
In separate court rulings, judges temporarily halted the mandatory vaccines. But that could change Wednesday.
Apple Wallet Is Getting Verifiable COVID Vaccination Cards
There’s a real chance you’ll need proof of a COVID-19 vaccination to enter certain venues, and Apple is hoping it can save you the hassle of digging up an email or carrying a physical card in your pocket.
The company is bringing verifiable COVID-19 vaccination cards to Wallet as part of a future iPhone software update. The feature will take advantage of the international SMART Health Cards standard (already in use in several states) to produce proof of vaccination, sign it with a private key and create a public key to verify your info.
The just-released iOS 15 already lets you store verifiable vaccination and test results in the Health app using the same standard. You’ll receive your records through QR codes, downloadable files or healthcare providers who use Health Records on iPhone.
Report: 700-Plus Bills Fans Utilized Refund After COVID Vaccine Mandate
Prior to the season, rules stated people only had to wear masks in the concourse and indoors at Highmark Stadium. At seats, no masks were required.
After video surfaced with most attendees not doing so, rules changed. Now fans must be vaccinated, at least partially, for a few weeks and then have to be considered fully vaccinated with both shots by Oct. 31 in order to attend games.
If fans chose not to do so, they had a limited window to get a full refund on their season tickets. According to the team’s radio partner WGR-550, 762 total fans have decided to do so.
A North Carolina-Based Healthcare System Has Suspended Hundreds of Employees for Not Getting a COVID-19 Vaccine
A North Carolina-based healthcare provider announced Tuesday it has suspended hundreds of employees for not meeting the company’s COVID-19 vaccine requirements.
Novant Health says employees, by now, must have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine or applied for — and received — a medical or religious exemption.
Those that hadn’t — about 375 workers across 15 hospitals and hundreds of clinics and outpatient facilities — are now suspended.
The Oversight Board Wants Facebook to Explain Its Controversial Rules for VIPs
The Oversight Board is pushing Facebook to provide more information on its controversial “cross-check” system, following a report that the company has allowed celebrities, politicians and other public figures to break its rules.
“In light of recent developments, we are looking into the degree to which Facebook has been fully forthcoming in its responses in relation to cross-check, including the practice of whitelisting,” the board said in a statement.
“We expect to receive a briefing from Facebook in the coming days and will be reporting what we hear from this as part of our first release of quarterly transparency reports which we will publish in October.”
Do We Need Vaccine Exemption Boards?
When I was a senior in college, the U.S. government tried to draft me — and thousands of other young men like me — into the armed forces. The war in Vietnam was being fought with an army of conscripts.
The situation I faced is similar to the one facing many people today who are being told that their government wants them to get vaccinated to defeat the COVID-19 pandemic. And the responses to vaccine mandates parallel those I and 171,000 conscientious objectors faced 50 years ago.
Gov. Whitmer Agrees: No Mask Mandates in Schools and No Vaccine Passports in Michigan
Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the state legislature have agreed on a budget proposal that includes language banning health officials from enforcing mask mandates in schools and preventing state public agencies from enforcing vaccines on employees or customers.
“The director or local health officer shall not issue or enforce any orders or other directives that require an individual in this state who is under the age of 18 to wear a face mask or face covering,” the 1,000-page budget states in one section.
Tired of Woke Politics, COVID Vaccine Mandates? There’s a New Job Site for You
A police officer who doesn’t want to get the COVID-19 vaccine. A school teacher who doesn’t want to teach critical race theory. A corporate executive who doesn’t agree with pushing woke culture.
Those are descriptions of workers who have reached out to Red Balloon, a new job board offering postings from companies promising their employees will be “free to work” without the fear of losing their jobs due to medical dictates or political drama.
Universities Force Choices on COVID Vaccine Mixing
On Monday, the Biden administration said it would lift travel restrictions starting in November, for travelers from 33 countries who are fully vaccinated. That means that the U.S. will let in people who have received vaccines that aren’t yet authorized here in the U.S. by the FDA, like the AstraZeneca vaccine.
But for international students who are coming here to study, that may not be the case.