Top Three
ACIP Adds COVID Vaccine to Pediatric Immunization Schedule: CIDRAP and here's the ACIP webcast
"The vaccine advisory group for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today approved changes to the child and adolescent immunization schedule, which adds COVID-19 vaccine to the recommended immunizations. The recommendation by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) passed on a unanimous 15-to-0 vote."
"Ahead of the vaccine schedule vote today, some media outlets falsely claimed that the ACIP's vote would mandate the COVID vaccine for school children, according to the Washington Post. However, states decide what vaccines are required for school attendance."
"States often use the CDC's immunization schedule as a guide, but not all states require all vaccines that are on the CDC's vaccine schedule. Currently, only California and the District of Columbia have COVID vaccine requirements for school attendance, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Few states require flu shots."
Gov. DeSantis statement. and Arizona Gubernatorial Candidate Kari Lake.
AAP thread, "Not every vaccine on this schedule is required for school entry. That’s a decision left up to states."
Fact Check: COVID-19 vaccines not linked to 8,200% increase in child deaths in past year, as claimed in online video
Washington Post: "False claim that CDC would require covid vaccines for kids goes viral."
“The CDC is about to add the Covid vaccine to the childhood immunization schedule, which would make the vax mandatory for kids to attend school,” host Tucker Carlson tweeted, sharing a segment from his show that has been viewed more than 1.5 million times online."
"But the claim was wrong: The CDC cannot mandate that schoolchildren receive vaccines, a decision left up to states and jurisdictions, the agency and multiple public health officials said."
“This is an all new level of dangerous misinformation,” Jerome M. Adams, who served as U.S. surgeon general during the Trump administration and as Indiana’s top health official, wrote in a text message to The Washington Post. “It could both harm kids (by derailing the VFC program, which helps disadvantaged children access vaccines) and endanger health officials (due to angry misinformed parents). We need to be able to have honest conversations about pros and cons of vaccinating children, without resorting to blatant misinformation.”
CBS: "Why CDC advisers voted to add COVID vaccines to routine immunizations."
Should You Get the Bivalent Booster?: Emily Oster breaks down the decisions in this great post.
"Today I want to try to help by talking through three somewhat specific questions that I think reflect where many of the readers of this newsletter are.
"First: bivalent boosters. Assuming you’re fully vaccinated already, what is the value of getting the bivalent booster?"
"Second: vaccines in pregnancy. Is there a best time to get boosted?"
"Third: vaccines for the under-5 set. We’re now a few months out. Have we learned anything more?"
Myocarditis After BNT162b2 Vaccination in Israeli Adolescents: NEJM:
"Of 182,605 adolescents who had been vaccinated during this period, 20 potential cases of myocarditis were identified. A total of 9 cases were adjudicated as probable or definite myocarditis, according to the case definition of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This finding translated to an incidence of 4.8 cases per 100,000 persons; 8 cases occurred after the second vaccine dose."
"All cases of myocarditis were classified as mild."
"Our study indicates that BNT162b2 vaccine–induced myocarditis in adolescents appears to be a rare adverse event that occurs predominantly in males after the second vaccine dose. The clinical course appears to be mild and benign over a follow-up period of 6 months, and cardiac imaging findings suggest a favorable long-term prognosis."
Federal
EPA: Request for Information which includes schools: "Better Indoor Air Quality Management To Help Reduce COVID-19 and Other Disease Transmission in Buildings."
State
Georgia: Former education journalist: How I missed the phonics story.
Kentucky: Test scores reveal struggles caused by pandemic.
"Fewer than half of students tested statewide were reading at grade level, with even lower across-the-board scores posted in math, science and social studies."
Maryland: Maryland Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wes Moore says he wants to implement a “baby bonds” program for every child born in low-income families. It could be the nation’s largest program yet.
"Baby bonds are designed as a race-neutral way to shrink that gap, giving a promise of a lump sum of cash to anyone born near the poverty line."
"Developed by economists studying inequality a dozen years ago, the baby bonds concept has gained awareness since the 2020 racial justice protests. It infuses capital into the lives of young people encountering pivotal life choices about college or work, starting a business, saving for retirement or buying a home — times when wealthier counterparts may be able to count on a boost from parents."
International
China: US Navy chief warns China could invade Taiwan before 2024.
UK: Succession battle begins after Liz Truss quits as UK prime minister
Lettuce 1, Liz Truss 0: The British prime minister's decision to resign provided an unlikely victory for the leafy vegetable, which had been pitted against her by a tabloid paper.
Economic Recovery
Three Theories for Super-Low Jobless Claims: Via Axios.
"One theory: Perhaps employers have been grappling with labor shortages to such a degree that, even if business slows, they'd rather keep employees on than lay them off."
"Or, companies might be starting to lay people off, but there are so many job openings around that workers go straight into another job without ever filing for unemployment benefits."
"A final theory is the simplest: Maybe the demand for goods and services just hasn't fallen, and that's why claims are still so low."
Will a Labor Crunch Derail Plans to Upgrade US Infrastructure?: Great report from McKinsey.
"The United States has a construction labor shortage that will likely get worse. In April, the US construction industry had roughly 440,000 job openings, and the US manufacturing industry had more than one million—the highest levels recorded since industry-level jobs data were first collected."
Resources
Leveraging the Power of Place: Via Blue Meridian Partners.
Broadband: Analysis in 38 US cities: AT&T, Verizon, and others offer lower-income and least-white areas slow internet for the same price as faster service in other regions.
Small Gains Since Last Fall, But No Reading Rebound: At least a third of K-3 need students still need ‘intensive’ extra help, and almost 50% of 3rd graders are off-track this fall, Amplify found.
College Enrollment Falls for Third Straight Year: Axios on new numbers from the National Student Clearinghouse.
"Total undergraduate and graduate enrollment combined declined 1.1% between fall of 2021 and 2022, leading to a total two-year decline of 3.2% since 2020."
"Freshmen enrollment declined by 1.5% overall, with numbers dropping in all four-year sectors."
"Historically Black Colleges and Universities and primary online institutions were among the few category of schools to see an enrollment increase. HBCU's enrollment grew 2.5% this fall and at primarily online institutions, undergraduate enrollment grew by 3.2% from last fall."
Intense Conversation: Between this father and baby.