Category: Covid-19

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Carmel, IN Coronavirus Information - Safety Updates, News ...

Biden announces COVID vaccine mandates for businesses, federal workers

The president unveiled a new "six-pronged strategy" to contain COVID-19 in the U.S with the growing threat of the Delta variant.

Staff Video, USA TODAY

Millions of workers are facing new federal vaccine rules in the wake of President Joe Biden's order on Thursday that large employers require their staffs to be vaccinated,or implement weekly COVID-19 testing forworkers who are not.

The new requirement applies to employers with at least 100 workers, potentially affecting more than 80 million people. Another 20 million who work with or for the federal government will have to be vaccinated.

Vaccine mandates are legal as long as employees can seek accommodations for legitimate medical or religious reasons, most experts say. And a survey released last month by business management platform Qualtrics found that six in 10 workers support vaccine requirements, though 23% of workers said they'd strongly think about quitting if their employer imposed such a rule.

The presidents order means employers can stop discussing whether to impose a vaccination requirement, and begin the next important step of communicating with their employees about how they will act on it,''Sydney Heimbrock, Qualtrics' chief industry advisor for government, said in a statement.

The mandates step by step: Who's covered by Biden's new vaccine mandates? When do they go into effect? Here's what we know.

Clean energy and diversity: As clean energy jobs grow, women and Black workers are at risk of being left behind

Here is how the new federal rules may play out in the workplace.

Some companies, such as United Airlines and Tyson Foods, have already mandated that their workers get the shot. But it may take a little timefor the new, broader federal rules to kick in, with the White House saying the formal guidelines should be issued "in the coming weeks.''

No. Under the rule, which will be spelled out by the Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), employers must provide paid time off to allow workers to get the shot and also recover if they suffer some side effects.

Employers are starting to imposeinsurance surcharges on workers who refuse to get vaccinated, similar to how many charge employees who smoke a higher premium to cover the higher medical costs they may incur.

"Employersare saying, just like with tobacco surcharges, 'If you take the risk of becoming seriously ill which is going to cost us hundreds of thousands of dollars...you're going toshare in some of that'' cost, saysJohnny C.Taylor Jr, president and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management.

Delta Air Lines announced such a step weeks before the new federal mandate.

The airline says that starting Nov. 1,it will charge employees who refuse to get vaccinated an additional $200 per month for their health insurance coverage.

Ed Bastian, the airline's CEO, said in an earlier memo to employees that the average Delta employee hospitalized for COVID-19 cost the company $50,000.

"This surcharge will be necessary to address the financial risk the decision to not vaccinate is creating for our company," Bastian wrote.

Some colleges and universities are saying they will charge unvaccinated students hundreds of dollars for the COVID-19 tests they are required to take if they'reenrolled. And some workplaces, faced with the prospect of constantly testing unvaccinated employees, are choosing todo the same, Taylor says.

Employers are saying ... we're going to require testing on your dime,'' he says, adding that some businesses are even making unvaccinated employees pay for the masks they'rerequired to wear in the workplace.

Making workers pay may push some to go ahead and get the shot, says Laura Boudreau, a professor of economics at Columbia Business School whofocuses on occupational health and safety as well as relations between workers and employers.

"If they require employees to bear that cost,'' she says, "That's yet another nudge for those employees to get vaccinated.''

Some already have and more could in the near future.

In a statement issued Friday, American Airlines CEO Doug Parker and PresidentRobert Isom reminded employees of incentives being offered to most U.S.-based staffers who haven't gotten vaccinated.

Those that decide to get the shot can receive an additional day of vacation pay this year, and $50 in Nonstop Thanks points.

They have until Oct. 1 to submit proof that they've been vaccinated to qualify for those perks.

"We put our incentive program in place because the science supports vaccination and has shown its the only way to fully end this pandemic,'' Parker and Isom wrote.

Other businesses may also continue to offer such bonuses.

I think many of us will continue todo some combination of the carrot and the stick,'' Taylor says.

But somecompanies may feel less pressureto entice employeesto do what they feel is necessary for the safety of the entire workplace.

"In the past month theres been a dramatic increase in the number of companies that are implementing more stringent COVID policies,'' says Boudreau, and in the wake of Biden's federal mandate "I think that companies are (feeling) more comfortable ...starting to use more sticks.''

It's possible.

Generally, companies have the right to dismiss employeesas long as the action isn't deemed in violation of a worker's civil rights, Taylor says. And some businesses have already fired employees who refused to be vaccinated, he and Boudreau say.

"I do think this policy will push more employers towards mandates,''Boudreausays, "And I think ultimately well see more employers who are firing employees who are unwilling to comply.

Employers must consider making reasonable accommodations for workers who have medical or religious reasons for refusing to be vaccinated, says Taylor.

But "it's not an exemption under the law,'' he says.

If such an accommodation can't be made, because for instance the employee needs to beonsite, or there isn't a way to isolate them in the office, the business may decide the employee can't continue to work for them.

When a collective bargaining agreement is in place, conditions of employment must be negotiated. But under the emergency provisions that OSHA will be putting in place, vaccine requirements likely can't be challenged,Taylor says.

"On the whole, there seems to be a general understanding that the employer's legal footing for mandating vaccines is strongand unions have acknowledged that,'' says Boudreau.

But she says, unions will likely "be very active around implementation of the policies themselves,'' such as establishing a reasonable timeline for getting the shots.

Contributing: Nathan Bomey

Follow Charisse Jones on Twitter @charissejones

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New COVID-19 rules may mean higher premiums and even pink slips for the unvaccinated - USA TODAY

Red SoxBoston Red Sox's Xander Bogaerts bats against the Tampa Bay Rays during the first inning of a baseball game. AP Photo/Chris O'Meara

The Red Sox began their Friday with the news that ace Chris Sale tested positive for COVID-19, but theyre getting a star player back from the COVID-19 related injured list.

Shortstop Xander Bogaerts will return to the Red Sox lineup for Fridays series- opener against the White Sox. Hes hitting fourth in the lineup.

Bogaerts received a positive COVID-19 test during a game against the Rays on Aug. 31, removing him from that game and the next eight games.

Since the Red Sox COVID-19 outbreak began on Aug. 27, Bogaerts is just the second player who tested positive to return to the lineup. Kik Hernndez, who was the first player to test positive, returned to the lineup on Tuesday. Following Sales positive COVID-19 test on Friday, 10 Red Sox players have tested positive for the virus over the last two weeks.

Bogaerts isnt the lone player the Red Sox are returning on Friday. Reliever Darwinzon Hernndez will be activated after sitting out since July due to an oblique injury. The Red Sox are also calling up reliever Kaleb Ort from Triple-A Worcester. Ort, 29, is 1-3 with a 3.12 ERA and has yet to play in an MLB game.

To make room for Fridays additions, the Red Sox will send infielder Jonathan Arazback to Triple-A and reliever Austin Davis will be placed on the paternity leave list.

Friday begins arguably the toughest stretch for the Red Sox for the rest of the regular season. They play three games against the AL Central-leading White Sox this weekend in Chicago before heading west to face the Mariners for three games. Seattles 7-3 in its last 10 games and trails Boston by just two games for the top AL wild-card spot.

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Xander Bogaerts will return from COVID-19 absence on Friday - Boston.com

While sports fans are happy to see the return of crowds at college football games this season, images of tens of thousands of fans shoulder to shoulder without masks on is troubling some medical experts in terms of spreading COVID-19.

Dr. Bruce Y. Lee discusses colleges reopening during the pandemic with WTOP's Ken Duffy.

While sports fans are happy to see the return of crowds at college football games this season, images of tens of thousands of fans shoulder to shoulder without masks on is troubling some medical experts in terms of spreading COVID-19.

Its not as if the wind can act as a giant vacuum, Dr. Bruce Y. Lee, executive director of Public Health Informatics, Computational, and Operation Research (PHICOR) and professor at CUNY Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy told WTOP.

While being outdoors is generally safe, Lee said its a different story if youre next to a bunch of people.

If youre not checking and making sure that people are vaccinated and people arent wearing face masks, there is the concern that the virus is hovering around and you can get infected.

This week, President Joe Biden presented a new national plan to prevent the spread of COVID-19, which includes a requirement for all federal workers to get vaccinated and private companies with 100 employees or more to mandate the same for their workforce.

Asked about the plan and if something shouldve been done sooner, Lee said the U.S. shouldve created a national proof of vaccination system, also known as vaccine passports separate from the vaccine card one receives after getting a shot to ensure people know whos protected and who isnt.

Lee said it cant be done state by state.

What happens if you have someone from one state thats not having any type of verification system but they work in a state with a verification system? Lee said. It can get very complicated.

Lee also suggests that schools need to slow down in terms of going back to entirely pre-pandemic norms just yet.

Haste can make waste, says Dr. Lee. Sure, you can rush back to try to return to normal as quickly as possible but if you do it too quickly youre going to end up losing.

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Medical expert weighs in on spread of COVID-19 at college football games - WTOP

Good morning, Mission, and welcome to Virus Village, your (somewhat regular) Covid-19 data dump.

The numbers keep coming down even as frustration with the unvaccinated (not you kids) rises.

No more Mr. Nice Guy? A noticeably frustrated Joe Biden dished out a slew of vaccine mandates after pretty much blaming the unvaccinated for a virusy summer. Heres a good summary of the substantive steps, with some extra points Joe left out.

Biden is not alone in his frustration. The UCSF Grand Rounds docs could barely disguise their own annoyance and impatience with a variant who keeps hanging around.

Wed all love to move on (to wildfires and hurricanes).

You may have read that elsewhere, particularly in low vaccinated areas, more kids are coming down with the virus, and some seriously. Not here in San Francisco where feared school outbreaks have, so far, failed to materialize.

Speaking of schools, remember a couple weeks ago the SFUSD found the time and money to outfit unventilated classrooms with air purifiers? A good, and long overdue, move. But hold on. Does anyone know what kind of air purifiers they bought? It turns out not all purifiers actually purify. Especially problematic are the new electronic machines being widely hyped. Rather than test their machines, the companies hired celebrity salespeople, like former high priests of publich health, Deborah Birx and Robert Redfield.

Lost among the vaccine mandates were Bidens proposals to increase rapid testing. Fast accurate tests that dont require days of delay should be a no brainer (so why didnt the previous maladministration develop them?). Rapid testing, along with protections and support for isolating positives, is considered a pubic good in Germany. It also works.

And as frustrated as we are with Delta, consider the rest of the world, or just listen to the head of the WHO, who heard the prez promote boosters last night while failing to mention the shocking and dangerous lack of vaccination throughout Africa and South America.

Scroll down for todays covid numbers.

The CDC data used for the chart lags behind the data supplied from the San Francisco Department of Public Health. Here, the vaccination picuture has been relatively static for at least a month or more. As of Sept. 9, DPH reports about79 percent of all San Francisco residents have received one dose, and more than 73 percentare completely vaccinated. Despite the proven protection, the Citys unvaccinated have been less than enthusiastic about embracing The Vaccine . On Sept. 9, the seven-day rolling average of shots per day dropped again to 333. Latest SF data (see below) suggests unvaccinated residents are about 3 times more likely to get infected, and if infected 6 times more likely to wind up in the hospital. For information on where to get vaccinated in and around the Mission, visit ourVaccination Page.

Our hospital graph is slow to update. It should be up soon. On Sept. 6, DPH reports there were 87 hospitalizations, 61in acute care, 26 in the ICU. The latest update from DPH says 76 fully vaccinated San Franciscans have been hospitalized (a rate of 14.3 per 1,000 cases compared to 84.8 per 1,000 cases for those not fully vaccinated) . According to the CDC, there were 47 new admissions for the week ending Sept. 7 (-22.97 percent drop over the previous week). For the week ending Sept. 6, covid patients accounted for 4.97 percent of hospital beds (-.073 percent from previous week) and 10.70 percent of ICU beds (-2.33 percent from previous week). As of Aug. 30, the CDC says that of 173 million vaccinated U.S. residents, 12,908 patients with a COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough infection were hospitalized or died. Of that number 25 percent either had no covid symptoms or their hospitalization or death was not COVID-related

The latest report from the federal Department of Health and Human Services shows SFGH with23 covid patients and83 percentICU occupancy, while across the Mission, CPMC had16 covid patients and 84 percent ICU occupancy. Of 113 reported covid patients,59were at either SFGH or UCSF.

The neighborhood in the City with the highest case numbers and postivity rate is also the most vaccinated. As of Sept. 8, an estimated 88 percent of Bayview Hunters Point residents have had at least one vaccine dose. Of thirty-eight City neigborhoods, the one with lowest vaccination rate (43 percent residents receiving at least one dose), Lakeshore, had the ninth lowest case rate but the 11th highest positivity rate over the past two months. Between July 7 and Sept. 5, the Mission had 804 new cases (a rate of 137 new cases per 10,000 residents), and a 4.6 percent positivity rate.

DPH reports for the week ending Sept. 2, the seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in the city was 102 new cases, or approximately 11.4 new cases per day per 100,000 residents (based on an 896,000 population). This number has been dropping about 10 per day. According to the latest from DPH on Sept. 3, the 7-day average case rate among fully vaccinated residents was 6.8 per 100,000 residents and for unvaccinated the rate was 19.7 per 100,000.

As of Sept. 9, DPH estimates over 90 percent of Native American and Pacific Islander residents had received at least one dose of The Vaccine, Asians 80 percent, Latinxs, 80 percent, Blacks 68 percent and Whites 68 percent. DPH has no figures on Multi-racial vaccination rates.

For the month of August, Latinx residents had a positivity rate of 7.0 percent, Pacific Islanders 6.6 percent, Blacks 6.3 percent, Native Americans 4.3 percent, Whites 3.6 percent, Multi-racials 2.4 percent and Asians 2.3 percent. Only Native Americans and Multi-racials had higher positivity rates in August than September.

Covid-related deaths in San Francisco are always difficult to ascertain. In the last few days DPH reports an additional 11 deaths in August for a total (for now) 30 August deaths, bringing the cumulative covid-related death toll to 603. DPH provides no demographic data for monthly deaths, but reports that of the 342 covid-related deaths in SF since January 1, 8 (or 2.3 percent) had been fully vaccinated.

Despite Deltas high transmissibility, local R Number estimates remain below 1. Covid R Estimation has kep its estimate for the San Francisco R Number at .83 and lowered its estimate for the California R number to .92. All but one model in the ensemble estimate the San Francisco R Number below 1, with a surprising average of .79, while the average California R Number is .84. The ensemble average estimate for San Francisco has been below 1 since Aug. 3.

For the month of August, San Franciso residents 0-4 had 3.1 percent of the new cases, 5-10 5.1 percent, 11-13 2.3 percent, 14-17 2.4 percent, 18-20 2.7 percent, 21-24 8.4 percent, 25-29 15.6 percent, 30-39 24.5 percent, 40-49 13.8 percent, 50-59 10.7 percent, 60-69 6.4 percent, 70-79 3.4 percent, and those 80 and over had 1.7 percent of the new cases.

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Covid-19 Tracker: From fear to frustration - Mission Local

Below is thefull COVID-19 report for Thursday, Sept. 9

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) Nevada reports more than 1,600 new COVID-19 cases and 21 deaths in data released today.

The higher number of cases 1,652 statewide, including 802 in Clark County came as the states test positivity rate remained at 12.2%. Clark Countys test positivity dropped slightly, from 10.2% to 10.1%.

Nevadas 21 deaths included 14 from Clark County.

Most of the other COVID-19 measurements were close to where they were yesterday.

The Nevada Hospital Association reported this week that staffing is on alert status throughout the state, and the number of hospitalized patients is growing in Northern Nevada.

All but three counties were flagged for exceeding state COVID-19 standards in at least two out of three categories, and the entire state is back under a mask mandate.

Nevada continues to be labeled a place with high COVID-19 transmission and Clark County remains an area of concern,according to anupdated White House report. The county wasfirst labeled a sustained hot spot on July 5.

Almost all of Nevada is labeled as a high transmission area, and it is now one of 39 listed as high transmission states. The CDC is using cases per 100,000 over the past seven days to determine high transmission.

There are 158.7 new cases reported per 100,000 every seven days in Clark County,according to the Southern Nevada Health District.

Nevadas case count grew by 1,652 over the past day, 802 in Clark County about 48% of the state total. The states total cases are now at 401,901. Clark County has a total of 309,977.Its important to note thatthe state no longer updates the dashboard on the weekendor holidays, which may be why Monday and Tuesday reports show higher case and death totals.

Nevadas test positivity rate is at 12.2%, unchanged from the previous day. It fell below 5.0%, the World Health Organizations goal, on May 17 and climbed above it on June 28. Clark Countys rate has fallen to 10.1%, down from 10.2% reported the previous day.

Of the 21 additional COVID-19-related deaths, 14 were from Clark County. Southern Nevada now accounts for 5,339 of the states 6,702 deaths. The 14-day rolling average is 11 deaths per day.

As of Sept. 2, the health district reports there are 112 breakthrough deaths.

As of yesterday, a total of 4,141,324 COVID-19 tests have been conducted in Nevada, with an increase of 13,515 in the past day.

*NOTE: Daily lab data from DHHS and SNHD reports is updated every morning for theprevious day.

July 6 was the first time since March 3 that Clark County had been flagged for elevated disease transmission(A county is flagged for elevated disease transmission if it meets two or three of the above criteria). In todays report, Clark remains flagged, along with Carson City, Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Esmeralda, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Lyon, Mineral, Nye, Storey, and Washoe counties.

Clark Countys case rate (766 per 100,000 over the past 30 days) and test positivity rate (10.1%) are flagged in data reported today. Testing (305 tests per day per 100,000) is within the states acceptable range.

Thestates health department reports2,980,075 dosesof the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Nevada,as of Sept. 9.

As of today, more than 53% of Nevadans currently eligible for the vaccine are fully vaccinated, and 62% of the eligible population has initiated vaccinations. Clark County reports that 52% of its eligible residents are fully vaccinated.

NOTE: The state is not updating hospitalization dataonweekendsor holidays.

According to the statesDepartment of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the number of hospitalized patients in Nevada wasDOWN (-10) in the past day.

The current number of hospitalizations is1,105 confirmed/suspected cases. Hospitals reported 281 of those patients were in intensive care units, and 191 were on ventilators.To give some perspective, the state set a record high for hospitalized patients on Dec. 13 with 2,025 cases.

In the Nevada Hospitalizations most recent report, staffing alerts are in place for all Nevada medical facilities. Thats just one step below crisis level.

Staffing has been elevated to an alert and, as we are on the verge of flu season, hospitals have limited ability to deal with a surge of patients (all-cause). Augmentation staffing in the form of traveling nurses is essentially nonexistent at this time, according to the report.

NHA sets alert status when immediate mitigation methods are required to keep the hospital system operational.

COVID-19 hospitalizations are climbing in Northern Nevada and rural areas.

COVID-19 hospitalizations represent upwards of 20-25% of all patients hospitalized in the northern and rural areas with some variation by the facilities. The overwhelming majority of these patients are unvaccinated, driving some hospitals to publish pleas within their neighborhoods and communities to get vaccinated, according to NHA.

NHA says staffing shortages are resulting in ambulance delays at hospitals, difficulties discharging or placing patients in a skilled nursing facility, and delayed or canceled procedures.

The number of people who have recovered from the virus in Southern Nevada continues to increase. The latest county update estimates a total of 293,044 recovered cases; thats 94.5% of all reported cases in the county, according toSNHDs latest report.

The health district providesa daily map with the number of positive tests in each ZIPcodein Clark County.

Nevadareopened to 100% capacity on June 1and social distancing guidelines lifted, helping the state return to mostly pre-pandemic times, with some exceptions.

The CDC reversed course on July 27, saying fully vaccinated Americans in areas with substantial and high transmission should wear masks indoors when in public as COVID-19 cases rise. Most of Nevada falls into those two risk categories.

Nevada said it would adopt the CDCs guidance with the new mask guidelinethat went into effect at 12:01 a.m. on July 30. Thisoverrides Clark Countys employee mask mandate, which went into effect in mid-July.

On Aug. 16, Gov. Sisolak signed a new directivethat allows fully vaccinated attendees at large gatherings to remove their masks, but only if the venue chooses to require everyone in attendance to provide proof of vaccination. Those who have just one shot and are not fully vaccinated would still be allowed to attend, as would children under 12, but both would need to wear masks.

Masks still must be worn when required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules and regulations, including local businesses and workplace guidance.

SEE ALSO:Previous days report

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NEW: Nevadas COVID-19 cases over 1,600 with 21 deaths heading into the weekend - KLAS - 8 News Now

Boise, Idaho Governor Brad Little issued the following expanded statement today regarding President Joe Bidens plan to fine private employers with 100 or more employees that do not mandate the COVID-19 vaccine or routine testing.

The State of Idaho is exploring legal action to stop President Bidens unprecedented government overreach into the private sector with his new COVID-19 plan. I am working closely with my legal counsel and Attorney General Lawrence Wasden on legal options to protect the rights of business owners and their employees.

I have been consistent that government should stay out of decisions involving employers and their employees as much as possible. Ive advocated for and championed fewer government regulations and mandates on business.

I am also deeply concerned with the presidents tone in his message to the American people with his new plan. It is wrong for President Biden to dismiss the concerns of millions of Americans and tell governors who represent Americans that he will use his powers as president to get them out of the way. This is not leadership. When President Biden took office, he promised to do his best to unify our country, and he has only driven us further apart. President Biden is out of touch, and his mandates only add to the divisiveness within our country.

I still urge Idahoans to choose to receive the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine and other ways to protect themselves and others from COVID-19 so our kids can stay in school and for the continued health and prosperity of the people of Idaho.

# # #

ver: 3.4.0 | last updated: September 10, 2021 at 11:01 am

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Idaho exploring legal action against Biden's COVID-19 plan - Office of the Governor - Governor Brad Little

BISMARCK, N.D. Gov. Doug Burgum released the following statement in response to President Joe Bidens plan released Thursday to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

President Biden's misguided plan steers our country down a dangerous path away from states' rights and the freedom of private businesses to make their own decisions on vaccinations. We stand opposed to this blatant federal overreach, Burgum said. Safe, effective vaccines remain our best tool for preserving hospital capacity and ensuring access to care, but forcing a vaccine mandate on private employers is not the role of the state or federal government.

We have reached out to the North Dakota Attorney Generals Office to discuss options for mounting a legal challenge to this mandate, which goes against everything I believe as a governor, a business owner and an American, Burgum continued. The White House needs to be reminded that the states created the federal government, not the other way around, and we will always vigorously defend states rights.

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Burgum issues statement on President Biden's executive action to address COVID-19 - North Dakota Office of the Governor

A decade ago, I looked back at Sept. 11, 2001, on its 10th anniversary, recalled its crashing planes, burning buildings, tumbling bodies and noted, it hardly needs to be recounted now.

Of course not. Because the wounds of the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and the hijacked flight that went down in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, were too fresh to require much description but too raw to overlook

Remembering was a duty. The lives lost that day almost 3.000 demanded attention. Demanded to be put into context, to understand how enormous a loss it really was.

More Americans died on 9/11 than in the War of 1812, I wrote. It was the bloodiest morning on American soil since the Civil War.

Things have changed. In 2021, we dont need to reach into the 19th century in search of perspective. We can look back to a week ago Thursday 9/2 a date which will live in obscurity, when 2,937 Americans were killed by the current foe attacking our country, COVID-19.

Or Feb. 10, when 3,254 died. Or Jan. 21: 4,135. Or hundreds of other days. About 650,000 Americans slain, out of sight, the nation hardly noticing, never mind honoring its loss. Yet killed all the same by a far more lethal foreign assailant.

Its impossible to weigh 9/11 without looking around at today.

Okay, it is possible. Lots of Americans do it. Post the black velvet painting of an eagle shedding a tear, crank up Wind Beneath My Wings.

Too many Americans wallow in that kind of thing, indulging their infinite capacity to portray themselves as victims, continually attacked, suborned, betrayed, their recent election victory snatched away by forces they cant identify, in a fashion they cant explain, never mind prove.

To them, 9/11 is a gift, the gift of being wronged, which gives them carte blanche to unleash their inner demons. A convenient moment to take out the syringe of self-pity and shoot up. A godsend, a chance to hate the people they already hated, to lash out at immigrants, the dark-skinned, people of a different religion.

Could there be a greater disrespect? To turn 9/11 into an excuse.

Sept. 11 hurt our nation, and caused unfathomable suffering to the innocent. But those precious lives lost were only the start, the initial hurt, the center of an expanding shock wave of damage that followed.

The wars in countries that had scant connection to the attack: Iraq, Afghanistan. Installing a ridiculous security theater that has billions shuffling shoeless through airport checkpoints, losing lifetimes in a different way.

Creating a sadistic mockery of our legal system at Guantanamo Bay. Failing to care for those first responders who rushed to help, who worked the pile and came down with diseases from the airborne debris. Easy to venerate a photo of three firefighters raising a flag on the rubble. Much harder to treat them for leukemia.

Sept. 11 made many Americans afraid, and a frightened population will follow a supposed strong man peddling the addictive drug of perceived safety, a fraud who promises to keep all the enemies at bay, then tries to wish away the ones he cant, like a rapidly spreading disease.

Sept. 11 led to 20 years of American policy failure. Yet how can the response to 9/11 be criticized when COVID-19 represents failure on a grander scale?

From the botched early reaction, when the disease was ignored and minimized, to now, when the intellectual heirs of that initial shameful surrender are seen across the country, unashamed, vigorously causing new deaths through vaccine refusal and an almost insane bias against masks and social distancing.

How can we even pretend to solemnly mark a disaster of 20 years ago in the midst of such a widespread, ongoing calamity? Its like holding a little candle ceremony in the chapel of the airport, joining hands and singing Amazing Grace, while an army of terrorists slip box cutters into their carry-ons and set out on todays attack through unguarded gates.

How can you pretend to honor first responders of 20 years ago while mocking the nurses and doctors battling on the front lines right now? You cant. Or at least, you shouldnt. We suffer a Sept. 11 of loss every day. Sept. 11 was an outside attack, committed by enemies. COVID-19 is an outside attack magnified by our own ignorance, malice, fear, disunion and distrust.

Remember that on Saturday.

Originally posted here:

On 20th anniversary of attacks, remember this: COVID-19, brings a new 9/11 every day - Chicago Sun-Times

The Biden administration is releasing more than $25 billion in relief funds to health organizations from money Congress granted last year to cover financial losses from the Covid-19 pandemicafter pressure from congressional lawmakers and medical groups who say hospitals are being financially pummeled by the surge in Covid-19 cases.

This funding includes $8.5 billion from the American Rescue Plan for providers who serve patients in rural areas and are covered by federal programs such as Medicaid and Medicare, according to federal officials. An additional $17 billion is for a range of providers who can document revenue loss and expenses associated with the pandemic. About $7 billion remains in the fund to cover claims for the uninsured patients with Covid-19.

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Biden Administration Releasing Billions in Covid-19 Relief for Hospitals, Health Groups - The Wall Street Journal