TOP THREE
J&J Boosters: The FDA's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee voted 19-to-0 to recommend a J&J booster for all adults over the age of 18 at least two months after a single dose. More via CNBC. Axios, and Stat (who also live blogged the meeting)
The Unvaccinated May Not Be Who You Think: Great piece by Zeynep Tufekci in the NYT
"Science’s ability to understand our cells and airways cannot save us if we don’t also understand our society and how we can be led astray."
"The assumption that some scientific breakthrough will swoop in to save the day is built too deeply into our national mythology — but as we’ve seen, again and again, it’s not true."
"The unvaccinated, overall, don’t have much trust in institutions and authorities, and even those they trust, they trust less: 71 percent of the vaccinated trust hospitals and doctors “a lot,” for example, while only 39 percent of the unvaccinated do."
"It’s easy to say that all these people should have been more informed or sought advice from a medical provider, except that many have no health care provider. As of 2015, one quarter of the population in the United States had no primary health care provider to turn to for trusted advice."
"Lazer said that the Covid States Project’s research showed that unvaccinated people who nonetheless wore masks were, indeed, more likely to be Black women. In contrast, those who were neither vaccinated nor masked were more likely to be Republicans, and more likely to be rural, less educated and white."
"Lazer also highlighted an overlooked group with higher levels of vaccine hesitancy: young mothers. They were hesitant, both for themselves and their children, an alarming development especially if it starts affecting other childhood vaccinations."
"It may well be that some of the unvaccinated are a bit like cats stuck in a tree. They’ve made bad decisions earlier and now may be frozen, part in fear, and unable to admit their initial hesitancy wasn’t a good idea, so they may come back with a version of how they are just doing “more research.”
Has COVID Disrupted the Postsecondary Pipeline?: Via Brookings
COVID-19 RESEARCH
Pediatricians Can Start Preparing to Vaccinate Children Against COVID-19: ViaAAP
CDC: Released some new and improved dashboards and charts.
STATE
California: Could new Covid testing and vaccine mandates make school staffing shortages in California worse?
DC: Parents frustrated with school-based COVID-19 testing program
Michigan: Schools that require students to wear masks report fewer COVID-19 cases, U-M study finds
"Districts that require masking for all grades have reported an average of less than 50 cases per 100,000 enrolled individuals in recent weeks, while districts with few to no mask rules have seen their average surpass 80 cases per capita."
Ohio: Districts with lower incomes struggled most to educate during coronavirus pandemic, state report cards show
ECONOMIC RECOVERY
The Real Reason Inflation is Becoming So Worrisome: It’s Getting in Our Heads: Via Heather Long
"Workers are demanding pay increases because they can see their wages aren’t buying as much with so many everyday necessities costing more, including rent. That leads companies to hike prices more, then workers turn around and demand another pay raise. Economists call this phenomenon a “wage-price spiral.” It often leads to sustained high inflation that forces the Fed to step in to stop it. Alternatively, consumers could pull back on spending as they worry about high prices, another scenario that is harmful to the economy and could lead to a recession."
"Rising food, gas and rent costs hit the budgets of low- and middle-income Americans hard. While wages have been rising at the fastest pace in decades, the gains have been eaten up entirely by rising costs, Labor Department data shows. This prompts workers to ask for more pay."
Community Colleges Are an Agile New Player in Job Training: Tamar Jacoby in WSJ
The Startup Surge: Business Formation in 2021 on Pace to Break Record:ViaEIG
RESOURCES
Some Students With Disabilities Are Going Without as Districts Scale Back Virtual Programs: Via Chalkbeat
COVID Shots Required for School Staff in 36% of Top Districts: ViaThe 74
Scary: But to his credit, this kid really sells it.