US proposes once-a-year COVID shots for most Americans
U.S. health officials want to make COVID-19 vaccinations more like the annual flu shot.
vaccine
-
2022 in review: Honorable mentions
While the “top stories” of each year are usually easy to define, there are always other stories that, while perhaps not as high-profile, are equally as important to our readers.
Read More -
Web Exclusive: COVID-19 vaccine mandate concerns nearly ‘moot’ for Indiana employers
After more than two years of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, Indianapolis employment attorney Melissa Macchia predicts that if the issue of vaccine mandates is not moot at this point for employers, it’s close.
Read More -
Inmates seeking COVID compassionate release face higher hurdle with 7th Circuit ruling
Since March 2020, attorney Kathryn DiNardo has taken up dozens of cases through the Indiana Federal Community Defenders from inmates hoping to be released early because of the pandemic. Those cases are but a drop in the bucket of inmates who have applied for compassionate release, and a July ruling from the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has seemingly further dwindled their chances of success.
Read More -
Vaccine mandates still contested issue inside law offices, courts as president prepares requirements
Whether by choice or force, COVID-19 vaccine mandates are changing operations in law offices and courtrooms across the country.
Read More
Articles
District court dismisses vaccine mandate complaint from already-vaccinated St. Vincent employee
A physician’s assistant at St. Vincent Medical Group who received the COVID-19 vaccine after her employer mandated it but sued alleging federal civil rights violations has failed to secure relief from a federal court, which dismissed her complaint.
Court upholds ban on contractor vaccine mandate in 3 states, including Indiana
A federal appeals court panel has upheld a decision blocking President Joe Biden’s administration from requiring COVID-19 vaccinations as part of federal contracts with three states, including Indiana.
Another court mulls Biden vaccine mandate for US contractors
A federal appeals court in New Orleans on Monday became the latest to hear arguments on whether President Joe Biden overstepped his authority with an order that federal contractors require that their employees be vaccinated against COVID-19.
CDC drops quarantine, distancing recommendations for COVID
The nation’s top public health agency relaxed its COVID-19 guidelines Thursday, dropping the recommendation that Americans quarantine themselves if they come into close contact with an infected person. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also said people no longer need to stay at least 6 feet away from others.
Biden tests positive for COVID-19, has ‘very mild symptoms’
President Joe Biden tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday and is experiencing “very mild symptoms,” underscoring the persistence of the highly contagious virus as new variants challenge the nation’s efforts to resume normalcy after two and a half years of pandemic disruptions.
Appeals court OKs Biden federal employee vaccine mandate
President Joe Biden’s requirement that all federal employees be vaccinated against COVID-19 was upheld Thursday by a federal appeals court.
Judge blocks Air Force discipline over vaccine objections
A federal judge has blocked the military from disciplining a dozen U.S. Air Force officers who are asking for religious exemptions to the mandatory COVID-19 vaccine.
State health department makes major changes to COVID dashboard
The Indiana Department of Health on Wednesday made major changes to its COVID-19 dashboard, which it has been using since early in the pandemic to provide the public with coronavirus-related data.
US opens second COVID boosters to 50 and up, others at risk
Americans 50 and older can get a second COVID-19 booster if it’s been at least four months since their last vaccination, a chance at extra protection for the most vulnerable in case the coronavirus rebounds.
Indiana COVID-19 hospitalizations hit lowest mark since first month of pandemic
Statewide hospitalizations due to COVID-19 have fallen to their lowest point since the first month of the pandemic, according to the latest figures from the Indiana State Department of Health.
St. Pierre: Employers grappling with religious exemptions to COVID vaccine
Previous versions of HEA 1001 provided that any worker could be granted a religious exemption to a vaccine mandate without employers inquiring into the validity of the employees’ claims. Had that version of the bill passed through the General Assembly and been signed by Holcomb, Indiana employers would have clear marching orders when it came to religious exemptions from vaccine mandates. But that provision was hotly contested and, ultimately, removed from the version of the bill that is now law in Indiana. So the question remains: What should Indiana employers do when they receive a request for religious exemption from a COVID-19 vaccine mandate?
Holcomb signs bill to end health emergency, limit vaccine mandates
Gov. Eric Holcomb on Thursday signed into law legislation to end Indiana’s public health emergency and limit employer vaccine mandates, shortly after state lawmakers sent the measure to his desk.
Bill to end health emergency, limit vaccine mandates heads to governor
The Indiana House voted Thursday to send watered-down legislation to limit employer vaccine mandates to the governor, who is expected to soon sign it into law.
DTCI: Vaccine or test: The latest in legal precedent for employers in the COVID-19 pandemic
COVID-19 regulations have found their way into the legal and political spheres. The most recent and highly anticipated legal battle made its way to the Supreme Court, leaving the court to decide how employers should be regulated when it comes to mitigating COVID-19 risks. With the current composition of the Supreme Court, including three new justices, the court ultimately left the regulation to the employers themselves, at least temporarily.
Watered-down vaccine mandate limits clear Senate, return to House for consideration
The Indiana Senate passed a watered-down version of the House Republicans’ bill to limit employer vaccine mandates, sending it back to the House where its future is cloudy.
Indiana hospitals less stressed as COVID-19 surge passes
Officials at Indiana’s largest hospital system said Tuesday that its hospitals have weathered the worst of the latest COVID-19 surge, although they are still treating hundreds of patients with the illness.
Senate Republicans strip down key Indiana House bills in second half of session
Republican leaders in the House and Senate said from the outset of the 2022 legislative session that they didn’t see eye to eye on some of the highest-profile issues — and the Senate proved that last week when it stripped key provisions from several House bills.
Indiana schools can stop masking, reporting COVID cases soon
Indiana schools and child care programs will no longer have to conduct contact tracing or report COVID-19 cases to the state Department of Health as of next Wednesday, state officials announced Thursday.
Indiana Senate panel waters down vaccine bill, prompting businesses to support it
Lawmakers in the Indiana Senate on Wednesday morning struck language from the House GOP’s vaccine mandates bill that would have forced employers to accept any religious exemptions without further question.