COVID

The politicization of pandemic policies has reached the online review platform Yelp, and has resulted in an increase in negative restaurant reviews targeting COVID-19 safety policies,

Why it matters: The food and service industry doesn't need any other hurdles to overcome following almost two years of constant COVID-related setbacks.

D.C. Council members are debating a vaccine mandate for themselves and their staffers, and one lawmaker is mum on whether he received a shot.

• The new proposed mandate would require all council employees to receive a vaccine by the end of the month or face unpaid leave and potential termination.
• The policy says council members who don't get vaccinated would be subject to "appropriate discipline."
• The rule allows for medical or religious exemptions but would still mandate regular COVID-19 tests.

Yes, but: Ward 8 council member Trayon White has pushed back against any proposed reprimands for the unvaccinated, Axios' Cuneyt Dil reports.

When I first needed a COVID-19 test last June, she waited three hours outside a firehouse testing site. Now, testing options across the city are more numerous, so where should patients go if they need one?

Why it matters: Testing is paramount to identifying COVID-19 infections and stopping the spread, even in fully vaccinated people.

When Columbia Heights resident Sarah Nesbit, 25, lost her sense of smell, she joined more than 4,000 D.C. residents who have contracted COVID-19 despite being vaccinated.

Driving the news: D.C.'s publicly reported data on breakthrough cases offers a unique window into how the pandemic continues to impact vaccinated people, Axios' Chelsea Cirruzzo reports.

D.C. is cracking down on vaccine mandates for some workers, going further than surrounding counties by getting rid of test-out options for public employees. 

Why it matters: With the region's rate of partially vaccinated individuals hovering around 70%, government mandates are a key tool in fighting COVID-19. 

All D.C. school and daycare employees — public, private, and charter — must be fully vaccinated by Nov. 1 with no option to test out, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced today.

• Student athletes over the age of 12 will also be required to get vaccinated in order to participate in after-school programs, the mandate says.