This Fave Mainstream Media Source Is Funded by Anti-Vaxxers. The Daily Beast found that public documents, including U.S. Right to Know’s own disclosures, show even as the group does not advocate against vaccines, its roots run into a vitriolically anti-vaccine organization that has promoted conspiracy theories about the Sept. 11 attacks and “The Great Reset.” That theory posits that pandemic-safety protocols are a prelude to a new global regime of government and corporate control.. (The Daily Beast, 11/5/21)

Parents Still Have a Thanksgiving Problem. The timing of this semi-immune stretch might feel particularly frustrating, especially with the winter holidays approaching: At this point, essentially no young kids are slated to be fully vaccinated by Thanksgiving or Hanukkah, except the ones who were enrolled in clinical trials. One shot can offer a level of protection, but experts advise waiting to change behavior for a reason—the extra safeguards that set in about two weeks after the second shot really are that much better, and absolutely worth sitting tight for. (The Atlantic, 11/8/21)

See also: How does vaccination for kids change Thanksgiving? An expert weighs in (CNN, 11/10/21)

Anti-Vaxxers Are Mad At Big Bird For Getting The COVID-19 Vaccine. Leaving aside Big Bird's nightmare existence as a perpetual six-year-old, this historical participation in vaccination campaigns has not gone down well with anti-vaxxers and various right-wing politicians and pundits in the US. Texas senator Ted Cruz was one of the first to attempt to argue with the six-year-old puppet, calling the tweet "Government propaganda... for your 5-year-old!" (IFLScience, 11/6/21)

Surgeon general on Matthew McConaughey's opposition to vaccine mandates for kids: 'Covid is not harmless in our children.' "Many kids have died. Sadly, hundreds of children -- thousands -- have been hospitalized, and as a dad of a child who has been hospitalized several years ago for another illness, I would never wish upon any parent they have a child that ends up in the hospital," Murthy told CNN's Erin Burnett. (CNN, 11/9/21)

Which Messengers Are Most Effective for Most Vaccine-Hesitant? Deloitte research shows family and friends, as well as clinicians offering hyper-convenient access, will be critical to reaching the most vaccine-hesitant. (Patienti Engagement HIT, 11/10/21)

Hesitancy, inequity: is the US ‘making the same mistakes’ with kids’ vaccines? Jorge Caballero, a board-certified anesthesiologist and co-founder of Coders Against Covid, has found that white neighborhoods have twice as many vaccination sites as other neighborhoods. And within those neighborhoods, he told the Guardian, the sites tend to cluster in more affluent areas in what he calls “another round of prioritization for predominantly white neighborhoods." Interest in the vaccine is roughly equal across racial and ethnic groups, but access seems to be more limited, he said. (The Guardian, 11/10/21)

The ‘psychology of regret’ helps explains why vaccine mandates work. It’s widely understood that when humans make decisions, they engage in a cost-benefit analysis. But psychologists have shown that people also conduct a less-rational analysis involving the potential regret they might experience. When deciding which of two roads to go down, they not only consider the statistical probabilities but also implicitly imagine their reactions to worst-case scenarios; in these analyses, potential bad outcomes weigh heavier on the mind than equally likely positive possibilities. (Washington Post, 11/11/21)

Scientists Fight a New Source of Vaccine Misinformation: Aaron Rodgers. “When you’re a celebrity, you are given a platform,” said Dr. Paul A. Offit, the director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “When you choose to do what Aaron Rodgers is doing, which is to use the platform to put out misinformation that could cause people to make bad decisions for themselves or their children, then you have done harm.” (New York Times, 11/8/21)

Top Biden health officials push to make coronavirus booster shots available to all adults. Walensky’s skittishness reflects the attitude of some CDC officials and advisers who are not convinced young, healthy people need additional protection, especially since the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines have been linked to a rare cardiac side effect in male teenagers and young men. They also note that focusing on boosters may distract front-line personnel from the more critical effort to defeat the pandemic, which is to get unvaccinated people their first shots. (Washington Post, 11/11/21)

10 Priorities for Advancing Racial Equity Through the American Rescue Plan: A Guide for City and County Policymakers. Ten priorities and accompanying worksheet provide guidance and support to city and county policymakers who seek to deliver on their racial equity commitments and spur an equitable recovery. These equity priorities were developed in consultation with chief equity officers, policymakers, community leaders, economic development practitioners, research and policy organizations, and philanthropic partners that are part of learning and planning networks that span

dozens of cities. (PolicyLink, 11/21)

We’re losing ground against diseases we’ve already defeated. Anti-coronavirus vaccine sentiments may be bleeding into an erosion of support for all routine childhood vaccinations. Last year, a YouGov poll showed a 13 percentage point decline among Republicans regarding support for childhood vaccines (from 59 percent to 46 percent). Some states, such as Montana and Nebraska, have either passed new legislation or are working to pass bills to make it easier to get exemptions from childhood vaccine requirements. (Washington Post, 11/9/21)

How Vermont Is Winning the COVID Vaccination War. State health officials have a centralized data source, keeping track of vaccinations and providing one-stop, consistent guidance for residents. They use trusted messengers – whether they are local first responders, immigrant aid groups or respected local pharmacists. (U.S. News & World Report, 11/11/21)

Republican lawmaker's pro-vaccine messages are part of an effort to "get the politics out of the vaccination process." Rep. Gary Tauchen is one of a relatively small number of elected Republican leaders in Wisconsin who've been willing to be a part of campaigns to publicly encourage vaccinations. GOP leaders like U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson have spent months promoting false or misleading information about the vaccine. In August, state Senate Majority Leader Chris Kapenga, R-Delafield, encouraged hospital workers to defy their employers' vaccine mandates. (WPR, 11/11/21)

With child vaccines, we enter a new phase of COVID-19 pandemic. In the early days of COVID-19 vaccination, vaccines were mostly administered at clinics in hospitals, pharmacies, mass vaccinations sites and community centers. This is an incredibly efficient way to vaccinate large swaths of the population, but it is not conducive to a one-on-one discussion with patients who may have legitimate questions on the vaccines that deserve an answer. (The Hill, 11/5/21)

See also: Over 900,000 kids 5-11 will have 1st shot by end of day, White House says (ABC, 11/10/21)

Blinken says the U.S. has a deal to send Johnson & Johnson vaccine doses to conflict zones. Speaking at a meeting with his overseas counterparts, Mr. Blinken stressed the need to extend vaccine access to people living in areas unreachable by government-run programs. The latest initiative is being carried out via Covax, the global vaccine-sharing program; Mr. Blinken did not specify a number of doses. (New York Times, 11/10/21)

Government employees union presses Biden to extend U.S. vaccine deadline. A union representing over 700,000 government employees asked the White House on Tuesday to extend a Nov. 22 deadline for government employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19 to bring it into line with a date set for contractors. The White House last week extended a deadline for federal contractors to get vaccinated from Dec. 8 to Jan. 4, part of a broader move to make it easier for companies to comply, some of whom face labor shortages over the U.S. holiday season. (Reuters, 11/10/21)

See also: U.S. Urges Court Not to Block Vaccine Mandate on Employers (New York Times, 11/8/21)

How Law Enforcement Tried to Capitalize on Vaccine Mandates and Failed. Throughout the pandemic, sheriffs have been vocal anti-vax and anti-mask resisters, channeling the growing rightward tilt of law enforcement officers generally across the country, even in quite Democratic urban areas. They are seizing on this moment to raise their profile and cash in on the perceived negative public attitude about law enforcement, a largely invented concern that has been rampant on pro-cop media. (Slate, 11/5/21)

How Trump’s deal with Moderna hampers the global vaccine effort. Armed with the generous language in its contract, the company has refused to grant access to its technology to vaccine manufacturers serving the developing world and at multiple points resisted pleas to increase aid to the neediest countries, angering critics who say the Trump administration should have driven a tougher bargain with Moderna when it had the chance. (POLITICO, 11/5/21)

Jill Biden's child vaccine tour will include push for more children vaccination sites. "Over the following weeks the First Lady will visit pediatric Covid-19 vaccination clinics across the country, including at schools, children's hospitals, and other community sites, and will encourage more sites to offer vaccines for children in their community and protect them from Covid-19," a White House official said. (CNN, 11/8/21)

Global jurists call for waiver of global intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics. Member States of the WTO who block or otherwise impede the adoption of a waiver of intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines and other therapeutics are breaching their legal obligations to realize the rights to health, equality, life and science, the ICJ said today in an expert legal opinion published with the endorsement of over 85 jurists from across the world. (International Commission of Jurists, 11/8/21)