Proposal in South Carolina would make it a misdemeanor for businesses and other entities to ask about the COVID-19 vaccination status of those seeking entry



Several South Carolina state representatives are backing a bill that would make it a misdemeanor for businesses and other entities to ask for the COVID-19 vaccination status of people seeking to enter a facility.

The bill, sponsored by several Republican state lawmakers, indicates that violators would be fined thousands of dollars, or jailed, or both.

"Notwithstanding another provision of law to the contrary, any employee, officer, agent, or other representative of a public, nonprofit, or private entity who inquires about the COVID-19 vaccination status of any student, employee, member, or anyone else seeking admission on the entity's premises is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than fourteen thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than one year, or both," the text of the bill reads.

Some people in the U.S. who have declined to get vaccinated during the COVID-19 pandemic have lost their jobs due to vaccine mandates.

"We have people in South Carolina that are losing their jobs because they have to report to their employer that they're unvaccinated," GOP state Rep. Mike Burns told Fox News. "We also have people who are having their insurance rates put in a different category. They're charging up to an extra $100 a week more than the vaccinated people. It is absolutely insane to do this kind of thing."

"I'm your employer, and I asked you if you're pregnant, I can't do that," Burns noted, according to the outlet. "I can't ask you if you're thinking about getting pregnant. I can't ask you if you got STDs or HIV. I can't ask any of those private medical questions, but somehow it's alright to terminate people's employment because I didn't take this emergency-use-only vaccine. This is ridiculous."

Unvaccinated parents and their 4-year-old leukemia patient son to be evicted from Ronald McDonald House over vaccine status



The family of a 4-year-old leukemia patient is furious after finding out they will be evicted from a Ronald McDonald House in Canada due to their unvaccinated status, according to a report from the Daily Caller.

What are the details?

Canadian parent Austin Furgason went viral after video showed him confronting a Ronald McDonald House administrator over the organization's policy on vaccinations.

According to local reports, the Ronald McDonald House of British Columbia and Yukon state that all guests and visitors to the house "must show proof of full vaccination against COVID-19."

"These measures in addition to an abundance of sanitizer and kindness will help us ensure the safety of everyone at the house," the organization's website added.

According to a report from the Daily Mail, the organization is enacting the mandate beginning on Jan. 17, followed by a two-week grace period in which guests and visitors can begin their vaccination series. All people ages five years and older will be required to get the vaccine in order to visit or stay with the organization.

Furgason added that the organization is evicting him and his family unless they comply with the COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

In a widely viewed video shared on Twitter, Furgason was heard saying that the organization is set to evict the family in just a few short weeks if they do not comply with the vaccination mandate.

“Because we don’t have the vaccine, you’re going to throw us out in the snow with a few weeks' notice,” Furgason said. “Like this is some kind of crazy evil like I have never seen in my life.”

“Your conscience is seared,” Furgason told the manager in the video. “This is absolutely evil. ... Don’t think you guys are just going to get away with this, because we’re going to fight this and expose this to people.”

The Daily Mail reported that those who fail to comply with the new mandate will be required to leave the facility by Jan. 31, but will be offered "alternative accommodations" such as hotel rooms.

A letter detailing the new guideline added, "RMHBC recognizes and acts upon its responsibility to maintain a safe and healthy environment including taking every precaution reasonable in the circumstances to protect the health and safety of individuals attending at an RMHBC Facility, particularly given the vulnerable populations serviced by RMHBC and the significant risk of transmission of communicable disease in our congregate living settings."

Ronald McDonald House Charities did not respond to the Daily Caller's request for comment in time for publication.

The Ronald McDonald House in Canada will evict all tenants, adults and children over the age of five, who are not vaccinated by the end of January.\n\nThe father of a young boy with leukemia responds.\n\n"This is some kind of crazy evil like I've never seen in my life."pic.twitter.com/MQaoegqSKo
— The Vigilant Fox (@The Vigilant Fox) 1641954393

MSNBC anchor rages over NYC restaurant's policy of not letting in family over unvaccinated 4-year-old daughter



MSNBC anchor Ayman Mohyeldin took a New York City restaurant to task after it reportedly refused to allow his family entry due to his 4-year-old daughter's unvaccinated status.

At the time of this reporting, vaccines are not available for children under the age of 5.

What are the details?

In a lengthy Twitter thread, Mohyeldin wrote, "Today my family was denied eating indoors at a restaurant because, wait for it, my 4 yr old daughter was with me and they dont serve ‘unvaccinated’ people. I tried to explain theres no CDC guideline requiring children under 5 get vaccinated. But the restaurant didn’t care."

THREAD: today my family was denied eating indoors at a restaurant because, wait for it, my 4 yr old daughter was with me and they dont serve \u201cunvaccinated\u201d people. I tried to explain theres no CDC guideline requiring children under 5 get vaccinated. But the restaurant didn\u2019t carepic.twitter.com/qFt48KZLWq
— Ayman (@Ayman) 1641331323

Mohyeldin, pointing to NYC restaurant Buvette, said that he even has a letter from the family's doctor testifying that the child recently had COVID-19 — but it made no difference to the restaurant's management.

"Don’t get me wrong, restaurants have the right to apply their own health standards but at least ground them in public health policies and science," he continued. "Restaurants have suffered so much in this pandemic so its sad that when you try and help by dining out that you get turned away. And just to be clear, everyone else with me was vaccinated, boosted and/or had covid (me). My 4 yr old daughter has a letter from her doctor stating she recently had covid. But they didn’t care and only offered us to sit outside even though they were seating customers indoors."

Don\u2019t get me wrong, restaurants have the right to apply their own health standards but at least ground them in public health policies and science. Restaurants have suffered so much in this pandemic so its sad that when you try and help by dining out that you get turned away.
— Ayman (@Ayman) 1641331323

During a later exchange with a Twitter user, Mohyeldin argued, "If public health officials want to shut down restaurants to avoid the spread & hospitalizations, thats their call. But why is a restaurant banning unvaxxed kids when I literally cant get her vaxxed. Where is the science and data that backs up that decision? Or is that irrelevant?"

If public health officials want to shut down restaurants to avoid the spread & hospitalizations, thats their call. But why is a restaurant banning unvaxxed kids when I literally cant get her vaxxed. Where is the science and data that backs up that decision? Or is that irrelevant?
— Ayman (@Ayman) 1641335314

Twitter user Ryan Glasspiegel responded, "Is the vaccine even allowed for children under 5 yet?"

Mohyeldin responded, "It's not. that's exactly the point I was trying to make. What science, data, or public healthy policy or guideline is this grounded in? I couldn't even get my 4 year old vaccinated if I wanted. Everyone else with me was vaxxed and boosted."

It\u2019s not. that\u2019s exactly the point I was trying to make. What science, data, or public healthy policy or guideline is this grounded in? I couldn\u2019t even get my 4 year old vaccinated if I wanted. Everyone else with me was vaxxed and boosted.
— Ayman (@Ayman) 1641333281

The restaurant did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.

Fauci now says you should be masked around all people unless you are certain they have been vaccinated — and adults should get 'boosted' ahead of Thanksgiving celebrations



Dr. Anthony Fauci, infectious diseases expert and head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, now says that people should remain masked in all indoor settings unless they are confident that the people around them have been fully vaccinated.

Fauci also advised people eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot to get one before holiday celebrations.

What are the details?

During Thursday's MSNBC broadcast of "All In with Chris Hayes," Fauci said that Americans should remain masked unless they know for sure that people they are around have been fully vaccinated.

Host Chris Hayes asked Fauci what his advice might be ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.

“In terms of people gathering and the sort of colder weather, which is coming, and we're seeing cases go up," Hayes said. "I keep telling everyone I know this, like, prepare yourself. There will be cases going up this winter. If people are going to get together for gatherings like Thanksgiving, how should they be thinking about it? My instinct is, you know, everyone should be vaccinated, and you should get boosted if you can. Maybe test the day of. How do you think about it?"

In response, Fauci said that as long as all people in the family are vaccinated, Thanksgiving ought to be a safe and enjoyable time.

Fauci warned, however, that if there are any questions about a person's vaccination status, people ought to remain masked out of an abundance of caution.

"The situation is — and let's just take a scenario, you have a family setting. You're vaccinated. Your family members are vaccinated, and even if the children who are yet too young to get vaccinated, go have an enjoyable Thanksgiving in your home," he explained. "You don't need to wear a mask. The situation is that when you are outside in indoor congregant settings where you do not know the vaccine status of people, then you should be wearing a mask. If you're in a situation where everybody is vaccinated, then you really don't need to wear a mask. If you're at home, that's the situation. That's the reason why the CDC says when you're in congregant settings, and you have no idea who's around you, there's no requirement for vaccination. That's when you need to wear a mask. If you know people are vaccinated, you don't need to wear a mask."

He added that despite reports and studies intimating that masks do not prevent the spread of COVID-19, "masks work."

“Anybody who starts saying you shouldn't be wearing a mask because we don't know if masks work, that's been put to bed," the infectious diseases expert insisted. "Masks work, period. There are many studies that now show that. Just like the recent study that has come out from the British study, just literally today it came out."

'Go Get Boosted': Fauci Says Every Adult Should Get Covid Booster www.youtube.com

Boxing superstar Floyd Mayweather offers support for Kyrie Irving’s decision to remain unvaccinated: 'Stand for something or fall for anything'



Boxing legend Floyd Mayweather has spoken out in support of NBA star Kyrie Irving's decision to remain unvaccinated against COVID-19 despite the league's push for all players to get the shots.

What are the details?

In a video he shared on Twitter, Mayweather defended the Brooklyn Nets guard after who announced earlier this month that he was unvaccinated.

In an Instagram Live video, 29-year-old Irving announced his status as well as his opposition to mandates.

"[N]obody should be forced to do anything with their bodies," he said at the time.

In a video posted Monday, Mayweather said, “America is the land of the free: freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and supposedly freedom to choose. Never be controlled by money. I respect you for having some integrity and being your own man. A free mind makes his own choices and a slave mind follows the crowd. Stand for something or fall for anything. One man can lead a revolution to stand up and fight for what's right. One choice, one word, one action, can change the world. It's crazy how people hate you for being a leader. I hope your actions encourage many others to stand up and say 'Enough is enough.'"

He captioned the video, "Choice is defined as an act of selecting or making a decision when faced with two or more possibilities. America gave us the choice to take the vaccine or not take the vaccine. As time moves on, that choice is gradually being stripped from us."

Choice is defined as an act of selecting or making a decision when faced with two or more possibilities. America ga… https://t.co/DXDiBMyzTB

— Floyd Mayweather (@FloydMayweather) 1635191866.0

What did the NBA commissioner say?

During the NBA's opening night, Commissioner Adam Silver said that Irving should get vaccinated "first and foremost for himself and his family."

“Next, for his teammates and his community and also for the league that I know he cares so much about," he added, saying that the vaccine was a scientific "miracle."

“Science is firmly on the side of getting vaccinated," he insisted. "And this is in essence, a miracle vaccine. ... It's already saved tens of millions of lives. I think, at some point, for Kyrie to be an engaged member of society — putting aside this league — he needs to get vaccinated. That's the law in New York: If you want to play in an arena, if you want to visit an arena, if you want to participate in an activity in an arena, you need to be vaccinated, and that's where he finds himself."

The Nets announced earlier in October that Irving will not play or practice until he's been vaccinated.

"Kyrie has made a personal choice, and we respect his individual right to choose," Nets General Manager Sean Marks in a statement. "Currently the choice restricts his ability to be a full-time member of the team, and we will not permit any member of our team to participate with part-time availability."

Fox News demands every staffer — working both remotely and in office — disclose their vaccination status



Fox News is demanding all employees disclose their COVID-19 vaccination status, according to a memo from the company's chief executive, Suzanne Scott.

The company, according to Newsweek, does not require its employees to be vaccinated against coronavirus at the time of this reporting.

What are the details?

A Tuesday memo obtained by Adweek reveals that the company has "asked all employees — whether on site as part of our essential workforce or working remotely — to upload their vaccination status" into an internal company database maintained by human resources.

A portion of the company-wide memo reads, "All employees must enter their status no later than today, August 17th, by close of business."

The network, according to the outlet, is requiring the disclosure in order to adhere to "space planning and contact tracing purposes in conjunction with CDC/state city health and safety guidelines."

According to CNN Business, which also obtained a copy of the memo, Scott added that though masks continue to remain optional for vaccinated employees, the company is "requiring employees to wear a mask in small, confined spaces with limited opportunities for social distancing and where there are multiple employees, including [in] control rooms."

"Last week," the memo added, "we reinstated our on-site COVID testing program every Monday and Thursday for select essential employees due to their work environment within our New York offices. These employees have been contacted and will be required to test at least once weekly due to their role at FOX News Media regardless of vaccination status."

The vaccination statuses, according to a report from the Wrap, were initially requested in June.

Fox News did not respond to CNN Business's request for comment.

BREAKING - Fox News is requiring all employees to enter their vaccination status into a central database — and requ… https://t.co/HGj6cOb5kV

— Tristan Snell (@TristanSnell) 1629306075.0

What else?

Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson in June blasted a reporter for asking about his vaccination status and appeared to compare it to asking about a person's private sex life.

"When was the last time you had sex with your wife and in what position?" he reportedly fired back. "We can trade intimate details."

National nurses union calls for CDC to 'reinstate universal masking' regardless of individual's vaccination status



National Nurses United wants the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to tighten its mask recommendations and call for mask-wearing regardless of whether an individual has been vaccinated against COVID-19.

"NNU strongly urges the CDC to reinstate universal masking, irrespective of vaccination status, to help reduce the spread of the virus, especially from infected individuals who do not have any symptoms. SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19 disease, spreads easily from person to person via aerosol transmission when an infected person breathes, speaks, coughs, or sneezes. Asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic infected individuals can spread infectious SARS-CoV-2 aerosols during breathing and speaking, without coughing or other respiratory symptoms," NNU Executive Director Bonnie Castillo, RN, wrote in a letter to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky.

On its website, NNU bills itself as "the largest union and professional association of registered nurses in U.S. history," with more than 170,000 members nationwide.

The letter, among other things, calls upon the government agency to "Reinstate the recommendation for everyone to wear masks when in public or in physical proximity to others outside their own household."

The CDC's current guidance states that fully vaccinated individuals do not have to wear masks.

"You can resume activities without wearing a mask or staying 6 feet apart, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules, and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance," the CDC says, regarding those who have been fully vaccinated.

According to the CDC, 48.1% of the total U.S. population has been fully vaccinated against the disease, while 55.6% of the population has received at least a single dose of a vaccine.

While the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines require two shots, the Johnson & Johnson Janssen vaccine only involves one shot.

So far there have been more than 33.9 million COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and more than 607,000 fatalities, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.