Omicron and COVID-19 Groundhog Day
Let's get it right this time.
Public Health
Don't Expect Joe Biden's Travel Ban To Save America From the Omicron Variant
The World Health Organization warns that such restrictions can cause more harm than they prevent.
FDA Plans Fast Approvals of Updated COVID-19 Variant Vaccines
Vaccine makers are already targeting the omicron variant.
The U.S. Imposes Travel Restrictions in Response to New COVID-19 Variant. Again.
Plus: Los Angeles will start fining businesses that don't enforce the city's vaccine passport system, Disney yanks a China-critical Simpsons episode, and more...
CDC Director Rochelle Walensky Lauded the Success of China's 'Really Strict' Lockdowns
Instead of pining for authoritarian control, maybe U.S. health officials could tell the FDA to stop standing in the way of progress.
The Biden Administration Is Asking an Appeals Court to Lift the Order Blocking OSHA's Vaccine Mandate
The government argues that the 5th Circuit erred in concluding that the rule "grossly exceeds OSHA's statutory authority."
FDA Finally Recommends COVID-19 Booster Shots for All Adults
After months of inconsistent messaging and a chaotic track record, will anybody trust it?
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser Will Finally Relax D.C.'s Stubborn Mask Mandate
Unlike in neighboring counties, D.C.'s mandate was never tied to specific metrics.
Divided Sixth Circuit Refuses to Stay FDA's Denial of Vaping Product Application
In rejecting Breeze Smoke's application for a stay of the FDA's rejection of their product applications, the Sixth Circuit disagrees with the Fifth Circuit.
Extending Its Stay, the 5th Circuit Says OSHA's Vaccine Mandate Is 'Fatally Flawed'
A unanimous three-judge panel concludes that the decree "grossly exceeds OSHA's statutory authority."
A Ruling Against Greg Abbott Suggests Federal Law May Require Schools To Mandate Masks
A federal judge concluded that the Texas governor's ban on mask mandates illegally discriminated against students with disabilities.
Dueling Dictionary Definitions Figure Prominently in the Legal Dispute Over OSHA's Vaccine Mandate
Is the COVID-19 virus an "agent"?
Nicholas Christakis: How To End the Covid Pandemic
Misinformation and bad policy can only be defeated by robust, open debate in the public square.
The CDC's Director Implies That Face Masks Are More Effective Than Vaccines at Preventing COVID-19 Infection
Rochelle Walensky seems to be relying on a laboratory study that did not measure infection risk.
The Infrastructure Bill Makes Building Back More Expensive
The U.S. government doesn't reflect on its spending history, and that shows.
Here Are the Arguments That Persuaded the 5th Circuit To Block OSHA's Vaccine Mandate for Private Employers
The appeals court said the rule, which was published on Friday, raises "grave statutory and constitutional issues."
They Just Keep Closing Schools and Mandating Masks
So much for politicians, educators, and public health officials learning a damn thing from Tuesday's election.
Democrats Hike Taxes on Vaping, but Not Tobacco, in Latest Version of 'Build Back Better' Bill
Plus: America's mayors want to be paid in bitcoin, Democrats want to subsidize local journalists, and more...
Voters Are Done With COVID-19 and Pandemic-Powered Officials
Panicked Americans surrendered a lot of authority during the pandemic. Now they want their country back.
The Details of OSHA's Vaccination Rule for Private Employees Suggest Several Ways It Could Be Vulnerable to Legal Challenges
Federal courts will have to decide whether the rule is "necessary" to protect workers from a "grave danger."
If Less Vaping Means More Smoking, That Won't Be a Public Health Victory
Cigarette sales rose last year for the first time in two decades, while a survey of high school seniors found they were vaping less but smoking more.
Fifth Circuit Rebukes FDA for Regulatory "Switcheroo" in Denying Vaping Product Applications
Yesterday's decision eviscerated the Food and Drug Administration for its arbitrary and capricious handling of vaping product applications
Dopesick Resurrects an Opioid Narrative That Is 'Neat, Plausible, and Wrong'
Prohibition forces doctors to cut patients off from essential pain-killing medication.
Lockdowns' High Costs and Murky Benefits
Cato economist Ryan Bourne's new book is a much-needed rejoinder to the obtuse economic reasoning of many pandemic-era policy makers.
Media Try To Cancel In-N-Out Burger Over Refusal To Enforce San Francisco's Vaccine Passports
Plus: The CDC greenlights "mix and match" booster shots, the U.S. is accepting zero Uyghur refugees, and more...
When Will Positive COVID-19 Trends Be Reflected in the CDC's Advice?
Because the agency ties mask recommendations to virus transmission rather than serious cases, its guidance is unlikely to change anytime soon.
CDC Wants Your Vaccinated 5-Year-Old Masked Indefinitely
Director Rochelle Walensky characterizes the potential unmasking of even vaccinated children as being "complacent."
Abbott's Vaccine Order Is Just as Oppressive as Biden's
Neither politician is willing to tolerate deviation from the one business policy he thinks is best.
Immigration Activists Sever Conversations With White House Over Return of Trump-Era Border Policy
Plus: Maine cracks down on vulgar license plates, Nashville cracks down on mobile hot tubs, and more...
The FDA Wants To Take Your Salt Away
Most Americans are not consuming excessive amounts of sodium.
FDA Approves an E-Cigarette for the First Time but Still Seems Bent on Banning the Flavors Former Smokers Overwhelmingly Prefer
If teenagers like an e-liquid flavor, the agency seems to think, adults should not be allowed to buy it.
Even If Requiring People Who Have Recovered From COVID-19 To Be Vaccinated Is Legal, That Doesn't Mean It Makes Sense
The failure of legal challenges obscures an ongoing scientific debate.
It Took More Than 15 Years for a South Carolina Hospital To Get Permission To Be Built
In much the same way that zoning laws are wielded by NIMBYs to block new development, Certificate-of-Need laws can be used to impose costly delays on building new medical facilities.
COVID-19 Cases, Hospitalizations, and Deaths Fell Significantly in September
Plus: Why partisans want civil war, Biden's comptroller pick yearns for the USSR, and more...
Public Health Officials Blew Up Their Credibility, and We're Paying the Price
Vaccine hesitancy can, in part, be laid at the feet of experts who betrayed the public’s trust.
Anthony Fauci Says It's 'Too Soon To Tell' Whether Christmas Parties Will Be Allowed
Overcautious health officials are living on another planet.
The FDA Is Determined To Ignore the Decline in Underage Vaping Because It Weakens the Case for New Restrictions
The agency seems inclined to ban the vaping products that former smokers overwhelmingly prefer because teenagers also like them.
This Anti-Vaping Congressman Insists 'There's Simply No Evidence' That E-Cigarettes Help Smokers Quit
Although Raja Krishnamoorthi says "adults can do what they want," he is determined not to let them.
The Houston Chronicle Cites Iffy Data To Make the Case for Mask Mandates in Schools
When you are already convinced a policy makes sense, any evidence will do.
Has the Pandemic Finally Peaked in the U.S.?
Recent modeling scenarios cautiously suggest yes.
The CDC Made America's Pandemic Worse
The agency didn't just botch the initial test. It resisted mass testing.
No, Tennessee Isn't Hoarding Monoclonal Antibody Treatment for the Unvaccinated
Plus: Internet freedom at 11-year low, charter school enrollment up 7 percent, lawyer behind abortion lawsuit speaks up, and more...
Quarantined L.A. Schoolkids Have Lower COVID Rates Than Vaccinated Teachers
Media persists in pediatric scare stories even while the country's largest dataset shows tiny yet still-declining rates, including among the needlessly quarantined.
Court Says COVID-19 Can No Longer Justify Immediate Expulsion of Migrant Families
Plus: Pro-Palestine protests allowed outside synagogue, Biden's bank surveillance plan, and more...
'COVID-19 Hospitalizations' Are an Increasingly Misleading Measure of Severe Disease
New research shows incidental and mild infections account for a large and rising share of that widely cited number.
Can Biden's Vaccination Rule for Private Employers Survive Judicial Scrutiny?
A broad standard with no exceptions better serves his goals, but it will be harder to defend in court.
Since the FDA Has Not Approved Any Vaping Products, All of Them Are Now 'Subject to Enforcement Action'
The agency's decisions so far reflect a bias against the flavored e-liquids that former smokers overwhelmingly prefer.
The Biden Administration's 'Emergency' Vaccine Mandate May Be Vulnerable to Legal Challenges
OSHA has rarely used this option, which avoids the usual rule-making process, and most challenges to such edicts have been successful.
