vaccinations

Dr. Laura Blaisdell, immediate past president of the Maine American Academy of Pediatrics, said concerns are prompted, in part, by health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Junior's announcement that the Covid vaccine would no longer be recommended for healthy children and pregnant women.

Misinformation about health care isn't new, but it has accelerated in recent years. In 2021, the U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory calling misinformation — spurred by social media and political polarization — a serious threat to public health.

One, LD 727, would remove vaccination requirements for children to attend school. Another, LD 174, would restore religious exemptions for school age children and health care workers.

The suit was filed against the Mills Administration in 2021 by seven health care workers who say they should have been granted religious exemptions from getting the COVID vaccine.

Lawmakers heard testimony on bills that target vaccine mandates, and those specifically for COVID-19 vaccines. Debunked claims that were spread during the pandemic became a central feature of the hearing.

The FDA has authorized a second coronavirus vaccine booster for people 50 and older and people who are immunocompromised.

President Clayton Rose announced on Wednesday that beginning Jan. 21, faculty, staff and students must get a booster shot within 30 days of becoming eligible.

Enforcement of the state's vaccine mandate began last Friday.

University of Maine System students have until the end of day on Friday to verify they've been vaccinated, or they'll be withdrawn from classes without a refund.

The problems cannot be divorced from a larger worker shortage during the pandemic and long-term issues facing an industry in which workers must provide intensive levels of care.