National News - Page 83

As Georgia school district bucks CDC mask guidance, parents are taking their kids out of school

By Eliott C. McLaughlin It’s the third week of school in Cobb County, Georgia, and many parents are livid with what they perceive to be the district’s lax Covid-19 protocols and dangerous misinformation being disseminated by a school board member via his official email account. Some parents, including those with children suffering from asthma and one whose 13-year-old has a flagging immune system after fending off a rare leukemia as a younger child, are taking their kids out of school, they told CNN. “Every day, there’s a chaotic event — entire grades sent home,” said Jessica Zeigler, who has taken her

Biden says US will require nursing homes get staff vaccinated or lose federal funds

By Jeremy Diamond and Tami Luhby President Joe Biden announced on Wednesday that he is directing all nursing homes to require their staff be vaccinated against Covid-19 in order to continue receiving Medicare and Medicaid funding. Biden said he is directing the Department of Health and Human Services to draw up new regulations making employee vaccination a condition for nursing homes to participate in Medicare and Medicaid. The decision on nursing home staff represents a significant escalation in Biden’s campaign to get Americans vaccinated and the tools he is willing to use, marking the first time he has threatened to withhold federal funds in order to

Rates of Covid-19 hospitalizations for children and adults under 50 reach their highest levels yet, CDC data shows

By Madeline Holcombe The pace of Covid-19 hospitalizations is surging across the US, with the rates for children and adults under 50 hitting their highest levels yet, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Every age group under 50 has surpassed its previous record of hospitalizations, which was in the first half of January. The biggest increase was in adults ages 30 to 39 and children under 18, both of which were more than 30% more than their previous peak, according to the CDC data. The rate for all ages is still below the January high. But

Stimulus Plan Lends College Students And Loan Borrowers A Helping Hand

  By Simon Osuji   College students scored some big wins in President Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package. The legislation expanded the pool of dependents, including children in college, who are eligible for $1,400 stimulus checks. It also expanded child care credits, which will benefit students who are also parents. “Putting more money in the hands of struggling students — and their families — could help many stay on track” toward earning a degree, said Anna Helhoski, a student loan expert with NerdWallet. The stimulus package also features a less widely publicized but potentially more significant provision that makes student

Church made famous by Paul Revere reckons with its ties to slavery

By Artemis Moshtaghian The main reason people come to visit the Old North Church in Boston’s historic North End is to see the famous steeple where two lanterns signaled to Americans Paul Revere’s famous cries that “the British are coming!” “We fit right into a paradox because of this steeple that everyone is looking to as a symbol of freedom and independence,” Old North Church & Historic Site Executive Director Nikki Stewart told CNN. “That same steeple was made possible by the labor of slave trade and Africa.” On Tuesday, the National Endowment for the Humanities announced that the Old North

Arizona governor to exclude school districts with mask mandates from new education grants

By Paul LeBlanc and Andy Rose Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey said Tuesday that the state would use federal Covid relief money to increase the funding available to public school districts only if they’re open for in-person learning and don’t require children to wear masks. To be eligible for the grant funding — $163 million in total — Arizona school districts must be open for in-person learning as of August 27 and must be “following all state laws,” including the ban on school mask mandates that Ducey signed into law in June. “Parents are in the driver’s seat, and it’s their right

Afghans watch nervously as Taliban regime takes shape, and US and its allies continue frantic exit

By Rob Picheta, Celine Alkhaldi, Nada Bashir and Nina Avramova Thousands of desperate Afghans remain stranded under Taliban rule in Kabul on Tuesday, as the US and its allies — still frantically evacuating their personnel from the city’s airport — reckon with the sudden breakdown of their two-decade effort in Afghanistan. The situation at Hamid Karzai International Airport is “stabilizing,” the UK’s foreign secretary said on Tuesday, a day after crowds of locals poured onto the tarmac and clung onto military planes, searching for a way out of the city. Western nations continued the rush to get their citizens away from the site, with

As the government talks about vaccine boosters, it’s time to cover the endemic reality of Covid

By Brian Stelter As US government officials prepare to brief the public about Covid-19 vaccine booster shots, there is an emerging consensus coming from influential corners of the national news media: people should anticipate that Covid-19 is here to stay. It’s time to adjust expectations accordingly. While some countries are still pursuing a “Covid zero” strategy, the United States clearly is not. The goal should be — indeed, has to be — risk minimization, not risk elimination. The Atlantic’s homepage led with a headline that made this point on Tuesday: “The Coronavirus Is Here Forever. This Is How We Live With It.” The word

Historic increase in food stamp benefits is on the way

By Tami Luhby Food stamp benefits will jump 27% above pre-pandemic levels, on average, starting in October — the largest increase in the program’s history, the Biden administration announced Monday. The boost, which advocates say is long overdue, stems from an update to the Thrifty Food Plan, which determines the benefit amounts of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, the formal name for food stamps. The plan estimates the cost of groceries needed to provide a budget-conscious diet for a family of four. Republican lawmakers, however, are already questioning the revision and its increased cost. The update comes as

Biden administration expected to advise Covid booster shots for most Americans

By Kaitlan Collins Top health officials in the Biden administration are coalescing around an agreement that most Americans should get Covid booster shotseight months after becoming fully vaccinated, two sources familiar with the discussions tell CNN. The plan, which is still being developed, would involve administering third shots beginning in mid- to late September, one source added, pending authorization from the US Food and Drug Administration. Pfizer and BioNTech said Monday that the companies have submitted initial data to the FDA to support the use of booster doses for their Covid-19 vaccines. The plan could be announced as soon as

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