COVID-19
‘Blended learning’ bill passes committee
A new bill specifying “blended learning” for the 2021-2022 school year has been approved by an Ohio Senate committee. Senate Bill 229 is yet another bill meant to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on student success and education, and was favorably passed in Senate Primary & Secondary Education Committee on Tuesday. In the […]
National parks nominee pledges to ramp up workforce, improve staff morale
President Joe Biden’s choice to lead the National Park Service told a U.S. Senate panel Tuesday he would work to rebuild the agency’s workforce, which has shrunk even as park attendance hits new records. Charles F. Sams III, of Oregon, would be the first enrolled tribal member to lead the National Park Service. He is […]
Insurance focused on virtual visits? The pros and cons of a new twist in health plans
By Julie Appleby, Kaiser Health News At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, people often relied on telemedicine for doctor visits. Now, insurers are betting that some patients liked it enough to embrace new types of health coverage that encourages video visits — or outright insists on them. Priority Health in Michigan, for example, offers […]
Once again, Ohio House ices vaccine mandate bill: ‘We don’t have the votes’
For the second time in three months, House Speaker Bob Cupp halted legislation Wednesday aimed to limit the ability of employers, colleges, hospitals and others to impose vaccine mandates. Cupp’s announcement came amid a flurry of private caucus meetings, unseen proposed amendments, aggressive lobbying tactics and tense rhetoric from members on a heated issue focused […]
Ohio House restarts efforts to ban vaccine mandates; Dem calls it ‘pandering’
It’s déjà vu all over again, but with longer hearings this time. An Ohio House committee is meeting twice this week to take a scheduled 14 hours of testimony on legislation to ban vaccine mandates — the eighth and ninth such legislative hearings, now occurring under a second House committee. An initial, expansive version of […]
Man whose wife sued hospital to force it to administer ivermectin dies of COVID-19
An Ohio man whose wife sued a Cincinnati area hospital for refusing to provide him ivermectin as he was intubated due to COVID-19 has died, according to one of her attorneys. Jeffrey Smith, 51, died Sept. 25, according to the family’s attorney, Jonathan Davidson. While he was on a ventilator, Julie Smith filed a lawsuit […]
Taking heat from all sides, House GOP shelves anti-vaccination bill
Ohio House Republicans have pumped the brakes on what was once turbo-charged legislation aimed to restrict abilities of employers and colleges to require vaccination against COVID-19. The House Speaker and top lawmakers introduced the legislation Tuesday afternoon with the intent of the whole House passing it Wednesday. The House Health Committee passed it 11-3 on […]
House health committee passes vax mandate ban; full vote expected Wednesday
Republicans on the Ohio House Health Committee passed legislation Tuesday banning some COVID-19 vaccine mandates, teeing up fast-tracked passage from the full chamber on Wednesday. The legislation, unveiled minutes before the committee met, is a significantly narrowed approach when compared to some of the other six pieces of proposed legislation targeting vaccine mandates. Unlike earlier […]
Ohio House Speaker leans into ‘medical freedom’
The Republican Speaker of the Ohio House, under mounting pressure from the nascent anti-vaccination movement within the GOP, said his caucus is soon to unveil consensus legislation to ban vaccine mandates. Speaker Bob Cupp, R-Lima, said to reporters Wednesday that House leadership is in the “final stages” of putting together a bill to erect legal […]
Ohio House GOP bill would ban vaccine mandates and shield COVID-19 spreaders from lawsuits
An Ohio House Republican proposed legislation Monday that would shield COVID-19 spreaders from lawsuits and ban vaccine mandates for primary education and college students. Rep. Kyle Koehler, R-Springfield, introduced the bill as people infected with the hyper transmissible delta variant crowd area hospitals and Ohio’s vaccination rate sags far below the national average. House Bill […]
COVID-19 hospitalizations climb; vaccination rate trickles
An average of more than 6,400 Ohioans continue to contract COVID-19 per day, according to data from the state health department. The recent surge of cases is driven by children aged 18 and below, who comprise nearly 3 in 10 infections statewide. Nearly 3,700 Ohioans are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, according to data from the […]
Arizona attorney general first to sue over Biden vaccine requirement on private businesses
WASHINGTON — Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich on Tuesday filed the first lawsuit against the Biden administration’s upcoming COVID-19 vaccine rule for private companies with at least 100 employees, arguing that the federal requirement violates the U.S. Constitution. In the legal complaint, Brnovich argues that the business vaccine and testing rules President Joe Biden announced last week violate […]