IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Friday's Mini-Report, 8.13.21

Today's edition of quick hits.

By

Today's edition of quick hits:

* It's been challenging keeping up with these developments: "The Taliban captured two major Afghan cities Friday, according to the militant group and local officials, as vital hubs across the country collapsed and the United States rushed to evacuate its citizens."

* FDA: "The Food and Drug Administration amended the emergency use authorizations for the Moderna and the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccines Thursday to allow some people with compromised immune systems to get a third dose."

* All is not well in Tennessee: "It was Thursday night, and like so many Tennessee medical professionals, Dr. Geoff Lifferth was tired, desperate and overwhelmed. He turned to Facebook with something to say. 'There are no beds,' he warned."

* All is not well in Mississippi: "An entire Mississippi school district is going virtual after Pearl River Central High School ordered 40% of its student body to quarantine after just one week of school. Classes began at the Carriere, Miss., school on Aug. 5 with no mask mandates. Since then, the high school has quarantined 394 members of its roughly 1,000-member student body."

* All is not well in Florida: "Palm Beach County, Fla., has asked 440 students to quarantine just two days into the school year, after 51 students and faculty had confirmed cases on COVID-19."

* All is not well in Louisiana: "The peak of Louisiana’s fourth and latest coronavirus surge could be weeks away, the state’s chief health officer said Tuesday, calling that a 'catastrophic' scenario for hospitals already overrun with COVID-19 patients that are increasingly having to turn away people with other life-threatening emergencies such as heart attacks or strokes."

* Evictions moratorium: "A federal judge in Washington, D.C., declined Friday to block the moratorium on evictions imposed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a victory for the Biden administration's effort to keep renters in their homes during the Covid-19 pandemic."

* Speaking of the judiciary: "The Supreme Court refused Thursday to block Indiana University's requirement that students be vaccinated against Covid-19 to attend classes in the fall semester."

* The best news Cuomo has received in a while: "New York state Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie announced Friday that lawmakers were suspending their impeachment investigation into Andrew Cuomo, citing the governor's resignation."

* No wonder the Justice Department is investigating the department: "Phoenix Police Chief Jeri Williams was given a one-day suspension after lawyers hired by the city issued a report that heavily criticized her agency's role in a now-discredited gang case against demonstrators last fall at a protest against police brutality."

* An idea to watch: "Union members could benefit from a tax break that Democrats are considering as part of their new $3.5 trillion budget plan. Labor groups are pushing lawmakers to include a provision that would allow workers to deduct the cost of union dues from their taxable income. Such a tax break could defray the cost of union membership and, the thinking goes, encourage more workers to join unions. Senators are considering the idea, according to a Democratic aide."

Have a safe weekend.