Vaccine mandate news - Free rapid tests from Wednesday after Supreme Court blocks Biden Covid rule

A charity for sick children backed by McDonald’s has denied claims that it is evicting a four-year-old boy with leukaemia because his parents refuse to be vaccinated against Covid-19.

Families staying at Ronald McDonald House (RMH) in Vancouver, Canada, were told on Monday that they must get at least one dose of coronavirus vaccine before the end of the month in order to stay.

Io Dodds reports.

Representative Warren Davidson of Ohio has been condemned by Jewish groups for comparing a vaccine policy to the Nazi regime.

The congressman retweeted a post from District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser, who shared a video about the new Covid vaccine regulations.

Jade Bremner reports.

A Canadian mother has accused her ex-husband of absconding with their seven-year-old daughter in order to keep the girl from getting vaccinated against Covid-19.

Namita Singh reports.

Two years ago this week the first Covid-19 case outside of China was detected.

The death toll from Covid-19 during the presidency of Joe Biden will soon overtake the number of people who died from the illness while Donald Trump was in the White House.

The number of dead Americans from Covid-19 had surpassed 846,000 on Friday. During Mr Trump’s last 10 months in office, 425,000 people died from Covid-19. During Mr Biden’s leadership, 421,000 people have died.

Gulstaf Kilander reports.

A woman accused of endangering her 13-year-old son has had her case dismissed by a judge in Texas.

Sarah Beam, aged 41, was arrested last week for allegedly forcing her son into the trunk of her car on 3 January. She had attended a drive-thru Covid testing site at Pridgeon Stadium in Houston, Texas, when she allegedly told a health director that her teenage son was inside the trunk.

Gino Spocchia reports.

Americans will be able to order four free rapid Covid-19 per household on a US government website that will go live on 19 January, Biden administration officials said Friday.

Despite the Supreme Court decision regarding vaccine mandates for companies with more than 100 employees, those same firms can still implement their own rules, and many have done so.

On the day that the court handed down its decision, banking giant Citi announced that it had hit 99 per cent compliance to its own mandate.

Sarah Wechter, head of Human Resources at the bank, wrote on LinkedIn:

A few months back we announced that U.S. colleagues are required to be vaccinated for COVID-19 or receive an accommodation by January 14. One day before the deadline, we have reached 99% compliance. This level of compliance helps us create a safer workplace, protect your families and our communities, and ensure continuity of our business operations.

A huge thank you to everyone at Citi who took action to meet this requirement: those who were already vaccinated, those who made the decision to get vaccinated, and those who requested and received approved religious and medical accommodations or state-permitted exemptions. Going into the last day, we expect the number of employees who have not complied will decrease even further. Our goal has always been to keep everyone at Citi, and we sincerely hope all of our colleagues take action to comply.

Days after being called a “moron” by White House chief medical adviser Dr Anthony Fauci for making false claims about his financial disclosures, Kansas senator Roger Marshall plans to introduce legislation named for the federal government’s top infectious disease expert that would make such disclosures easier to find.

According to multiple reports, Sen Marshall plans to put forward a bill dubbed the Financial Accountability for Uniquely Compensated Individuals Act — or FAUCI Act for short — to make public Dr Fauci’s financial disclosure forms.

The veteran virologist said during a Senate hearing this week: “I don’t understand why you’re asking me that question. My financial disclosure is public knowledge and has been so for the last 37 years or so – 35 years that I’ve been director.”

Andrew Feinberg reports from Washington, DC.

Republican representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky is being mocked for his stand against take-out food from DC restaurants that require proof of vaccination to enter.

He tweeted: “The DC vaccine mandate kicks in this weekend. My office will not comply. We will not show papers. We will not order takeout from restaurants that require papers for dine in. We will get our food from Virginia or we will bring it to work. Shame has befallen our nation’s capital.”

California Democrat Eric Swalwell responded: “I never thought I’d serve with a braver colleague than John Lewis. Then Thomas Massie stood up and refused to order takeout from DC. Fight on, Thomas! We shall overcome!”

Journalist Aaron Rupar similarly said: “Previous generations of great Americans held the line at Gettysburg or stormed the beaches at Normandy. Rep. Massie gets Five Guys from Virginia instead of DC. What heroism.”