General Electric will require all of its workers in the U.S. to be vaccinated against COVID-19, citing President Biden's executive order for federal contractors, the company confirmed to Axios on Tuesday.
Why it matters: General Electric is the latest in a slew of major companies to mandate the vaccine for workers, following in the footsteps of American Airlines, Tyson Foods and Microsoft, among others.
Puerto Rico has the highest percentage of people fully vaccinated against the coronavirus in the United States as of Oct. 19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The big picture: The mandate, which was announced in August by Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, says that Maine health care workers need to be vaccinated by Oct. 29 or risk losing their jobs and not qualifying for unemployment benefits.
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam still has long COVID-19 symptoms more than a year after his initial infection, he said in an interview with the Virginian-Pilot.
Why it matters: The Democratic governor is one of millions of Americans suffering from symptoms of long COVID, which could have serious implications for employers and social programs if enough people can no longer work because of it, per Axios' Caitlin Owens.
A new proposal from the Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday marked the first step in allowing a new category of hearing aids to be sold over the counter without a medical exam or audiologist fitting.
Why it matters: Advocates and lawmakers who have long pushed for over-the-counter hearing aids say the market for the products, if the proposal is approved, would look like the eye care industry, in which consumers have choices to purchase reading glasses and bifocals through their doctor's office or elsewhere.
Johnson & Johnson registered $502 million of global revenue from its COVID-19 vaccine in the third quarter, bringing year-to-date vaccine sales to $766 million.
The big picture: J&J, which is selling the vaccine at a not-for-profit price of $7.50 per dose, still expects to generate $2.5 billion of COVID vaccine sales this year, executives said Tuesday. But that total will still dwarf the use and sales of the vaccines made by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna.
The pro-euthanasia and death with dignity movement is starting to take off in Latin America and the Caribbean, a heavily Catholic region.
Why it matters: The movement comes as a wave of progressive laws has swept through the region, such as the decriminalization of abortion in several countries, the legalization of equal marriage, and in some places the recognition of a nonbinary gender and of gender transitions in official documents.
Mayor Juan Espadas announced on Monday that Seville, Spain would become the first city to name and categorize heat waves.
Why it matters: As heat waves become increasingly common due to climate change, naming and categorizing them has the potential to help raise awareness around the devastation they cause and help governments better prepare for them.
It's official: Johnson & Johnson has invoked a Texas legal loophole in an attempt to protect the bulk of its corporate assets from claims that its baby powder caused ovarian cancer and mesothelioma.
Why it matters: It's the biggest and boldest invocation yet of the so-called Texas two-step defense. But it's still not clear whether it's going to work.
Even vaccinated Americans who are 80 or older are at higher risk of dying from the coronavirus than anyone — vaccinated or not — under the age of 50, according to CDC data.
Why it matters: The vaccines work really well against hospitalization and death, but they're not perfect. Reducing the level of COVID circulating in the community is key to protecting older or vulnerable adults — even vaccinated ones.
Recalling ineffective or even potentially lethal medical devices is a slow process that jeopardizes patient care, a new report from MedTech Dive explains.
The big picture: "Unless you're hands-on dealing with recalls — even at a hospital — a lot of people don't realize just how broken the process is," the founder of a company that works with providers to process recalls told MedTech Dive.
After more than 18 months in their respective bubbles, thousands in the health care industry returned this week for what was, for many, their first in-person health care conference since the pandemic began.
Why it matters: As the Delta variant wanes and more events actually occur in person, each comes with its own health protocols and awkward navigation of health-friendly business etiquette.
Washington State University announced Monday that head coach Nick Rolovich and four assistant coaches were fired for not complying with the state's COVID-19 vaccine requirement.
The big picture: The former head coach has been vocal about his refusal to get the vaccine and applied for religious exemption earlier this month. Jake Dickert, the team's defensive coordinator, was named acting head coach.
