The AP reports that in a memo on Wednesday, Defense Secretary Austin set out a requirement for military troops to “immediately begin to get the COVID-19 vaccine…ordering service leaders to ‘impose ambitious timelines for implementation.’” The AP continues that according to Pentagon data, “more than 800,000 service members have yet to get their shots. … And now that the Pfizer vaccine has received full approval from the Food and Drug Administration, the Defense Department is adding it to the list of required shots troops must get as part of their military service.” The memo “does not dictate a specific timeline for completing the vaccinations. But it says the military services will have to report regularly on their progress.”
Reuters adds “the U.S. military has said that around half the U.S. armed forces are already fully vaccinated, a number that climbs significantly when counting only active-duty troops and excluding National Guard and Reserve members.”
Axios (8/25, Saric, 1.26M) quotes Austin as saying, “After careful consultation with medical experts and military leadership, and with the support of the President, I have determined that mandatory vaccination against coronavirus disease…is necessary to protect the Force and defend the American people.”
Vaccine mandates become new norm across US. Bloomberg reports that vaccine mandates “are beginning a march across the U.S., constricting the places that people who have shunned the shots can work, shop and play.” Bloomberg explains that one day “after the federal Food and Drug Administration approved the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, institutions central to their regions announced tougher – perhaps bellwether – rules.” By way of example, Bloomberg says “Goldman Sachs Group Inc. required bankers to prove they’d been vaccinated” and in “football-crazed Baton Rouge, Louisiana State University will demand vaccines or negative Covid tests to see a game at Tiger Stadium, capacity 102,000.”
Texas governor bans government entities from requiring COVID-19 vaccinations. The AP reports that on Wednesday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) issued an executive order “banning any state or local mandates requiring people to be vaccinated against COVID-19.”
The Hill explains that Abbott’s decision “marks a change from the governor’s previous executive order, which banned mandates for vaccines administered under an emergency use authorization.” The order, however, does “not mention employer mandates and preserves exceptions for places such as nursing homes, long-term care facilities and state-supported living centers.”
Politico reports, “Abbott added another agenda item to the legislative special session on Wednesday, asking the Legislature to consider taking action to address whether state or local entities can mandate the shots and, if so, what exemptions should be included in the mandate.”
Many unvaccinated Americans still not persuaded to get COVID-19 shot after full FDA approval. The Washington Post reports that federal officials have sought for months to persuade “some 85 million still-unvaccinated eligible Americans – a largely entrenched population despite a range of incentives, political appeals and now mandates to get the shots.” However, “hopes that many of those skeptics would be swayed by” full FDA approval for the vaccine “appear to have been unrealistic, according to interviews with 16 unvaccinated Americans – including six who said earlier this year that they would be more likely to get vaccinated if the FDA approved the shots.”
Delta airlines to add health insurance charge for unvaccinated staff. Reuters reports that Delta Air Lines “told unvaccinated employees on Wednesday they will have to pay an additional $200 per month for their company-sponsored healthcare plan.” CEO Ed Bastian “said the monthly surcharge would take effect on Nov. 1.” He “said the surcharge is necessary to address the financial risk the Atlanta-based airline faces from the decision to not vaccinate.” He added that “the average hospital stay for COVID-19 has cost the company $50,000 per person.”
Bloomberg reports Bastian “said 75% of the carrier’s workers already are vaccinated” and “increasing cases of coronavirus linked to a ‘very aggressive’ variant are driving the push for all employees to get the shots.” Delta “also will require weekly testing for employees who aren’t vaccinated by mid-September.” Employees who are not “vaccinated must wear masks in all indoor settings, effective immediately.” Also reporting are Axios and the Wall Street Journal.
From the news release of the American Association for Justice.
