COVID-19
Republican AGs urge Biden administration to give up on vaccine requirements
WASHINGTON — More than 20 Republican state attorneys general are threatening to sue the Biden administration over its mandate that large employers require their employees to either be vaccinated against the coronavirus or undergo weekly testing. In a Thursday letter, the 24 AGs pushed the administration to remove the requirement that would affect nearly 80 […]
Arizona is the first state to sue over Biden vaccine mandate on private businesses
WASHINGTON — Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich on Tuesday filed the first lawsuit against the Biden administration’s upcoming COVID-19 vaccine mandate for private companies with at least 100 employees, arguing that the federal requirement violates the U.S. Constitution. In the legal complaint, Brnovich argues that the vaccine mandate President Joe Biden announced last week violates the […]
Ban on school mask mandates violates Constitution’s ‘single-subject’ rule, opponents argue
PHOENIX – A coalition of educators and parents is asking a judge to scrap the Legislature’s ban on school mask mandates before it takes effect on Sept. 29. Maricopa County Judge Katherine Cooper heard arguments from both sides in a hearing Monday afternoon to consider the constitutionality of the mask mandate ban. If the lawsuit […]
Anger is the only reasonable response to COVID obstructionists
We were willing to debate the efficacy of masks. We agreed there should be balance between lockdown measures and economic interests. We patiently accumulated evidence that COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. We kept our cool through every quack remedy and grifter treatment. We offered guidance to the confused and correctives to the misinformed. We […]
Arizona Republicans blast vaccine mandate, vow legal action, while Dems support Biden’s policy
Reactions to President Joe Biden’s new COVID-19 vaccine mandate fell sharply along partisan lines in Arizona, with outraged Republicans demanding legal action against what they deemed a tyrannical policy and Democrats, though largely quieter, supportive of the policy. Gov. Doug Ducey, who has blocked schools and local officials from imposing vaccine and mask mandates in […]
COVID-19 vaccines or weekly tests to be mandated for millions of U.S. workers
WASHINGTON — More than 80 million employees of private businesses in the U.S. will be required to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or undergo weekly testing as part of the Biden administration’s latest strategy for combating the still-surging coronavirus pandemic. The upcoming vaccine rule for companies with at least 100 employees is one plank of an […]
The behind-the-scenes story of Doug Ducey’s parachuting hot dog
The hot dog slowly falling from the sky, held aloft by a surgical mask parachute, that loomed behind Gov. Doug Ducey during a July 30, 2020, press conference almost wasn’t even a hot dog. It could have been a beer bottle, a guitar or a dumbbell, according to public records. But the governor chose the […]
Pandemic polarization is bringing out the worst in some parents
In the not-so-distant-past, adults were expected to set the example for children. Be role models. Demonstrate respectful behavior. Follow the Golden Rule. But today, we are unquestionably failing our kids in this regard, especially as it relates to adult behavior toward school officials. Recently, an Arizona father, armed with “law enforcement-grade” zip ties, threatened to […]
Most Arizona voters support masks in schools, but not Republicans
A strong majority of Arizona voters — but only a small fraction of Republicans — support face mask mandates and vaccine requirements in schools and government buildings to combat the spread of COVID-19, according to a new poll commissioned by organizations representing school boards and public health professionals. In the live-caller poll of 400 voters […]
Maricopa County health care workers ask for school mask mandate as COVID pediatric cases rise
PHOENIX – Physicians, health care workers and public health professionals in Maricopa County this week urged the county Board of Supervisors to enact a universal mask mandate for K-12 schools as the number of kids hospitalized for COVID-19 continues to rise at an “alarming” rate. More than 1,000 health care workers signed a letter asking […]
Unproven ivermectin gains popularity as alternative COVID treatment among vaccine skeptics
Some Arizonans are seeking ivermectin, the unproven alternative treatment for COVID-19 that has become popular among conservatives as both a way to prevent and treat infections, leading to an uptick in calls to poison control centers and at least one hospitalization. Ivermectin has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat COVID-19. […]
COVID-19 is surging in Arizona schools, but parents are left in the dark
As COVID-19 infections surge in Arizona schools, sickening thousands of students and staff and forcing thousands more into quarantine, parents — and the public at large — have been left without a comprehensive picture of where Arizona students and educators are contracting the virus. A patchwork of outbreak and quarantine notifications from school districts has […]