(MOSCOW) — As the Hispanic and Latino population grows throughout the U.S., New Mexico has established itself as a haven for people of Latin American and Hispanic descent.
That culture can be seen throughout the streets — in the Pueblo- and Spanish-style architecture, the traditional santeros and the Mexican artistry.
“The Land of Enchantment” is the most Hispanic and Latino state in the country, with 49% of its population identifying as such, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. But this population can’t be so easily defined.
“We see ourselves as multicultural: Mexican, American, Latino, Chicano, Indigenous — We’re what we call ‘mestizaje,’ a mixture of blood and culture,” said Denise Chavez, a Chicana writer and playwright. “There’s no place quite like it.”
This state has a turbulent history of colonialism that led to diverse traditions, a blend of cultures, a complicated clashing of identities.
Indigenous and Native communities have occupied now-New Mexico for centuries. It wasn’t until the late 1500s that Spanish colonizers created their first settlements.
New Mexico’s capital, Santa Fe, is the oldest in the U.S., since it was designated 400 years ago. It became the 47th state in 1912, about five weeks before Arizona gained statehood.
“Spanish is the first [European] language we spoke in what is today the United States, so it’s not a foreign language,” said Rob Martinez, a state historian.
With the region dominated by Spain before Mexico governed it the 1800s, those Indigenous roots run deep, Martinez explained.
“It’s never pleasant to be on the receiving end of conquest and colonization,” Martinez said. “I like to tell people: Our culture and our history are brilliant, they’re magnificent, but history is also violent and scary, and you have to be brave to study your history.”
This culture represented in the lively traditions seen throughout the streets.
Art is a major part of the culture — Mexican retablos, paintings of saints on wood, and santeros, the painted and carved images of saints, can be seen at historical sites, churches and homes throughout New Mexico.
“This is a tradition from the late 1700s and early 1800s — it’s truly New Mexican,” Martinez said. “It’s a combination of Roman Catholicism and folk Catholicism. It’s a very beautiful, very stark and straightforward art form. People love this religious and cultural expression.”
And when in New Mexico, Chavez said, visitors must have a dish featuring the state’s prized vegetable: chile. It’s used to add a pungent, smoky kick to stews, sauce, tamales, sandwiches and more — and is a staple of New Mexican cuisine.
“We’re just at the end of chile season, which is an incredible time in New Mexico,” Chavez said. “The smell of green chile, the harvest, going out to the farms, getting your chile and roasting it … a lot of our traditions have to do with food.”
Another integral, and controversial, piece of New Mexican culture is the Fiesta de Santa Fe.
The annual celebration commemorates the reconquest of Santa Fe in 1692, according to Martinez. The city was “founded” by Spanish colonists in 1610, but in 1680 Pueblo natives fought back, burning down the city and driving out the Spanish, who fled to present day Juarez, Mexico.
“They didn’t want to get rid of their languages, they did not want to lose their religion, they did not want to lose their culture,” Martinez said. “So there’s a revolt — the first revolution in what’s today the United States.”
In 1692, the king of Spain ordered a resettlement mission. The Spanish retook those lands and began oppressing the natives, said Patricia Marie Perea, the Hispanic and literary arts educator at the National Hispanic Cultural Center.
“There’s always some tension between the Indigenous communities and those who are celebrating the Spanish and the conquest into New Mexico,” said Perea. “It’s such a hard thing to contend with.”
For this reason, Perea said, celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month — Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 — can be a bit complicated.
“Hispanic” refers to people who descend from Spanish-speaking countries. Considering the state’s long history of Spanish colonialism, many New Mexicans denounce the term.
And while the population has expanded to include so many people of many Latin American cultures, the state’s history adds to the intensity and passion with which New Mexicans defend their roots.
“There is hope here,” Chavez said, “and that’s what makes New Mexico so wonderful — the never-dying hope of its people.”
(MOSCOW) — Russia’s best-known opposition figure, Alexey Navalny, has criticized Google and Apple for bending to Kremlin demands for censorship during recent parliamentary elections, accusing the tech giants of “cowardice” and of becoming “accomplices” to president Vladimir Putin’s efforts to suppress political opposition.
Both companies bowed to Russian government pressure to delete content relating to a tactical voting campaign promoted by Navalny during elections last weekend that saw Russia’s ruling pro-Putin party retain its majority amid accusations of widespread ballot-rigging and a crackdown on anti-Kremlin opposition.
“If something surprised me in the latest elections, it was not how Putin forged the results, but how obediently the almighty Big Tech turned into his accomplices,” Navalny said on Twitter on Thursday — a message written from prison and published by colleagues.
Navalny’s campaign, named Smart Voting, had called for people to vote for any candidate with the best chance of defeating the ruling party, United Russia. The online content had contained lists of registered candidates recommended by Navalny’s team.
Google and Apple removed Smart Voting apps from their stores in Russia, and Google blocked two related videos on YouTube.
The removals are the biggest concession the tech firms have made to Kremlin demands to restrict content and it has set off fears among liberal Russians that it is a significant step towards the companies accepting broader censorship in the country.
Russian authorities outlawed Navalny’s movement earlier this year, after jailing the anti-corruption activist and pro-democracy campaigner who survived a nerve-agent poisoning in 2020. The government in June designated Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation and its regional political offices as “extremist organizations,” equating them to violent terrorist groups and requiring social media platforms to ban their content.
The designation has been widely condemned internationally, including by the United States, as politically motivated.
Neither Google nor Apple have made a public statement on the app removals, and each declined to comment to ABC News. In an email explaining the decision to the Anti-Corruption Foundation, published online by Navalny’s team, Apple said it was obliged to follow local laws and cited Russian prosecutors’ allegations that the app enabled “election interference.”
Navalny accused the companies of allowing themselves to be used as instruments of the Kremlin to block legitimate efforts at peaceful opposition, saying they were worried about losing market access to Russia and calling them “hypocrites” for presenting themselves as firms driven by values such as improving the world. Google famously used “Don’t be evil” as a company motto.
“In our case, the very intention to organize voters in order to put competitive pressure on the ruling party was declared criminal, and Big Tech agreed with this,” Navalny wrote.
He also called on employees inside the companies to raise the issue, writing: “I know that most of those who work at Google, Apple, etc. are honest and good people. I urge them not to put up with the cowardice of their bosses.”
Google and Apple in the past largely have resisted Russian government demands that they remove content that criticizes authorities, racking up fines imposed by Russia’s state censor. But recently the Kremlin has escalated pressure on U.S. tech companies amid a broader crackdown on dissent.
The day before Apple and Google each removed the voting app, the companies were made to appear before a committee of Russia’s senate. Andrey Klimov, a prominent senator who heads a commission — Protection of State Sovereignty and Prevention of Interference in the country’s Internal Affairs — accused them of illegal election interference and threatened to penalize them with new legislation.
Days before that, court bailiffs visited Google’s offices in Moscow, demanding the company pay unpaid fines imposed by the state censor. The New York Times reported Google made the decision to remove Navalny’s app after authorities threatened to arrest local employees at Google’s Moscow office.
Security experts have said they’re concerned the Kremlin is now increasingly bent on taming foreign tech giants as it tightens its grip on the Russian internet. The government has blocked a growing number of sites and is developing infrastructure to allow it to cut off Russia’s acces to the global web, if deemed necessary. This year it began slowing down Twitter after the company refused to remove content.
Andrey Soldatov, author of “Red Web,” which examines the Russian government’s efforts to control the internet, said last week’s concession was unlikely to discourage the Kremlin from leaning on Google and Apple further. He said the government was increasingly confident in its technical capabilities to block major international platforms.
“To be honest,” he told ABC News by phone, “things look really, really dark right now.”
(FORT BLISS, N.M.) — The FBI is investigating after a female U.S. service member reported she was assaulted by a group of male Afghan evacuees at Fort Bliss in New Mexico.
The woman, who was helping to support the evacuees brought from Afghanistan to the United States in the wake of the Taliban reclaiming the country, reported she was assaulted by a small group at the Doña Ana Complex on Sept. 19, according to Lt. Col. Allie M. Payne, the director of public affairs for Fort Bliss.
“We take the allegation seriously and appropriately referred the matter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” Payne said in a statement. “The safety and well-being of our service members, as well as all of those on our installations, is paramount. We immediately provided appropriate care, counseling and support to the service member.”
The base also said it is adding security measures, like increased lighting, safety patrols and enforcing a buddy system.
“We received the referral from Fort Bliss and our office is investigating the allegation,” FBI El Paso said in a statement.
There were no further details about the incident.
The Doña Ana Complex, which is about a half hour north of Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, across the New Mexico border, is used as a firing range, but was converted into a sprawling, air conditioned tent city for incoming evacuees.
The Biden administration chose Fort Bliss two weeks ago when it granted access to the media to one of the facilities housing the tens of thousands of Afghan evacuees who were flown out of Kabul in a frenzied, chaotic process prompted by the Taliban reasserting control of the country much sooner than anticipated.
About 10,000 evacuees are staying at the facility until they can be processed and resettled, according to U.S. officials. All of the evacuees were subject to a thorough vetting process before they were flown to the U.S., according to U.S. officials.
News of the investigation of the assault on a female service member follows the arrests of two Afghan evacuees at Fort McCoy in Wisconsin this week.
Mohammad Haroon Imaad, 32, was charged with strangling and suffocating his wife in an incident that took place Sept. 7, according to the indictment, and Bahrullah Noori, 20, was charged with attempting to engage in a sexual act with a minor.
Court documents say 13,000 people related to the resettlement are being housed at Fort McCoy.
Legendary singer Kelly Price has reportedly been found safe after being listed as a missing person following her release from a Georgia hospital due to a COVID-19 diagnosis.
According to a report from TMZ, Price’s representatives claim that the singer is not missing, but safely recovering from COVID-19 at an undisclosed location. However, it has not yet been confirmed by Georgia police that Price’s missing person investigation has been closed.
As previously reported by TMZ, Price was listed as a missing person with the National Crime Information Center after Georgia authorities conducted a welfare check at Price’s home on Saturday, September 18. They reportedly found no evidence of foul play and spoke with Kelly’s boyfriend at the residence.
The gossip site says the family reportedly received a call about Price’s discharge and were concerned because she was not believed to be in full health.
Price’s alleged disappearance comes after the singer took to Instagram in July to share she was “COVID Positive.”
“I’m following Dr’s orders. I’m quarantined. Feeling really drained. Splitting headache…,” she wrote. “I’m grateful and expecting to have a full recovery.”
Legendary singer Kelly Price has reportedly been listed as a missing person following her release from a Georgia hospital after being diagnosed with COVID-19.
TMZ reports that Price is now listed with the National Crime Information Center after Georgia authorities conducted a welfare check at Price’s home on Saturday, September 18. They reportedly found no evidence of foul play and even spoke with Kelly’s boyfriend at the residence.
The gossip site says the family reportedly received a call about Price’s discharge, but were concerned because she was not believed to be in full health.
Price’s alleged disappearance comes after the singer took to Instagram in July to share she was “COVID Positive.”
“I’m following Dr’s orders. I’m quarantined. Feeling really drained. Splitting headache…,” she wrote. “I’m grateful and expecting to have a full recovery.”
On Thursday night, Madonna graced the New York City premiere of her upcoming Paramount+ documentary Madame X, which streams starting October 8. On the red carpet, she revealed that she’d recently spoken to Britney Spears, her duet partner on the 2003 song “Me Against the Music.”
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, Madonna said of Britney — who she famously smooched at the 2003 MTV VMAs — “[I was] just checking in on her, and congratulating her on her marriage…or her pending marriage. I love her.”
Madonna also told ET that she was “really proud” of her eldest child, 24-year-old Lourdes, who made her Met Gala debut last week and who also can be seen strutting herself in Rihanna‘s Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 3 lingerie fashion show, which is now streaming on Amazon.
“Anything is possible for her,” Madonna said of Lourdes, adding, “She’s way more talented than I was, am, whatever.”
Madonna said that her Madame X documentary — which captures her theater tour in support of her 2019 album Madame X — includes “great art, thoughtfulness, incredible dancing, incredible music, provocation, politics, spirituality, family. Everything!”
Just a reminder that The Rolling Stones will kick off their 2021 No Filter Tour of the U.S. this Sunday, September 26, in St. Louis at The Dome at America’s Center.
The trek marks the band’s first-ever without longtime drummer Charlie Watts, who died August 24 at age 80. Stepping in for Watts will be respected session drummer Steve Jordan, who Charlie had chosen as his fill-in before his passing.
The Rolling Stones are giving fans the opportunity to help pick one song that they’ll play at each show of the tour, by visiting Vote.RollingStones.com. The tunes that fans can choose from for the St. Louis gig are “Angie,” “Fool to Cry,” “Ruby Tuesday” or “Wild Horses.” Those who participate in the voting also can enter a competition to win a personalized video message from one of the band members.
Ahead of the tour, the Stones have posted a special video message from Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood on their socialmediapages. In the clip, they express their excitement about returning to the road, and encourage people who come out to the shows to get the COVID-19 vaccine, wear a mask and/or get tested for the virus.
The band’s U.S. tour leg features a total of 13 shows, and runs through a November 20 concert in Austin, Texas. Check out the group’s full schedule at RollingStones.com.
Janelle Monáe is joined by Beyoncé, Alicia Keys, Chlöe x Halle, Zoë Kravitz and more female stars on the 17-minute song “Say My Name,” which was released Friday. The track calls “attention to the Black women and girls whose deaths at the hands of law enforcement have been silenced.”
“We honor the Black women and girls who lost their lives at the hands of police,” Monáe says in a statement. “This is a rally cry. We aim to give reverence to the countless Black women and girls who should be with us today.”
YoungBoy Never Broke Again dropped his third album, SINCERELY, KENTRELL, and one of the biggest names in hip hop is predicting superstardom for the 21-year-old artist from Baton Rouge, Lousiana. Cash Money Records co-founder Birdman, who launched the careers of Lil Wayne, Drake and Nicki Minaj, believes YoungBoy can be the best MC in five years.
“I think NBA YoungBoy might be the biggest rapper,” Birdman said on the Big Facts Podcast, as reported by HotNewHipHop.com.
Gospel icon Kirk Franklin released a new version of his 1998 single “Lean on Me,” featuring the voices of youth living in poverty around the world. The original version featured Mary J. Blige and Bono from U2, and was nominated for a Grammy for Song of the Year.
“I pray this version provides a little hope for the people across the globe.” Franklin said in a statement.
Finally, Grammy winner Anthony Hamilton released his first new album in five years, Love Is the New Black, featuring Jennifer Hudson, Rick Ross and Lil Jon.
“I wanted this album to feel like what was missing throughout the pandemic,” Hamilton said in a statement. “This is the restoration. We’re making this thing called life, sexy, beautiful, and powerful again.”
Janelle Monáe is joined by Beyoncé, Alicia Keys, Chlöe x Halle, Zoë Kravitz and more female stars on the 17-minute song “Say My Name,” which was released Friday. The track calls “attention to the Black women and girls whose deaths at the hands of law enforcement have been silenced.”
“We honor the Black women and girls who lost their lives at the hands of police,” Monáe says in a statement. “This is a rally cry. We aim to give reverence to the countless Black women and girls who should be with us today.”
YoungBoy Never Broke Again dropped his third album, SINCERELY, KENTRELL, and one of the biggest names in hip hop is predicting superstardom for the 21-year-old artist from Baton Rouge, Lousiana. Cash Money Records co-founder Birdman, who launched the careers of Lil Wayne, Drake and Nicki Minaj, believes YoungBoy can be the best MC in five years.
“I think NBA YoungBoy might be the biggest rapper,” Birdman said on the Big Facts Podcast, as reported by HotNewHipHop.com.
Gospel icon Kirk Franklin released a new version of his 1998 single “Lean on Me,” featuring the voices of youth living in poverty around the world. The original version featured Mary J. Blige and Bono from U2, and was nominated for a Grammy for Song of the Year.
“I pray this version provides a little hope for the people across the globe.” Franklin said in a statement.
Finally, Grammy winner Anthony Hamilton released his first new album in five years, Love Is the New Black, featuring Jennifer Hudson, Rick Ross and Lil Jon.
“I wanted this album to feel like what was missing throughout the pandemic,” Hamilton said in a statement. “This is the restoration. We’re making this thing called life, sexy, beautiful, and powerful again.”
(NEW YORK) — The United States has been facing a COVID-19 surge as the more contagious delta variant continues to spread.
More than 682,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 while over 4.7 million people have died from the disease worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The average number of daily deaths in the U.S. has risen about 20% in the last week, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The U.S. is continuing to sink on the list of global vaccination rates, currently ranking No. 45, according to data compiled by The Financial Times. Just 64.3% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the CDC.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Sep 24, 6:12 pm
VA begins offering booster shots to veterans
The Department of Veterans Affairs said it is already doling out booster shots to veterans at its medical centers and clinics on Friday, just hours after Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky approved the third shots.
“These booster doses are an important step forward in the fight against COVID-19,” VA Secretary Denis McDonough said in a statement. “With the authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech booster for eligible individuals, VA can provide Veterans an opportunity to maximize their protection, continuing our work to keep people safe and save lives during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The boosters, so far only authorized for the Pfizer vaccine, are to be administered six months after an individual receives their initial vaccines.
It also said in a statement that it continues to reach out to veterans who have not been vaccinated at all.
Sep 24, 4:37 pm
US reaches vaccine milestone
Seventy-five percent of those eligible (12 years and older) have received at least one dose of a COVID vaccine, the White House’s COVID-19 data director Cyrus Shahpar posted on Twitter Friday.
Calling the statistic a “milestone,” Shahpur also tweeted, “Let’s add more!”
Sep 24, 3:51 pm
Millions of federal contractors must be fully vaccinated by Dec. 8
The White House said Friday millions of federal contractors must get fully vaccinated against the coronavirus by Dec. 8.
The announcement came in a document issued Friday by the White House’s budget office, the Office of Management and Budget, following up on an executive order President Joe Biden signed Sept. 9 that mandated vaccinations for federal contractors, Reuters reported.
The formal guidance also says that after Dec. 8 “all covered contractor employees must be fully vaccinated by the first day of the period of performance on a newly awarded covered contract.”
An OMB spokesperson told ABC News that “millions” of people would be covered but didn’t share more exact numbers.
Earlier this month, the White House said that federal government employees and contractors will now be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will create a rule for private businesses with 100 or more employees to require their employees to be vaccinated or undergo weekly testing.
-ABC News’ Ben Gittleson, Molly Nagle, Sarah Kolinovsky, and Justin Gomez
Sep 24, 3:34 pm
Nurses laud CDC decision to include front-line workers as eligible booster shot group
National Nurses United, the nation’s largest union of registered nurses, is lauding CDC director Rochelle Walensky’s inclusion of front-line and health care workers in her recommendations for who may now get a third Pfizer booster dose — a decision which overruled the agency’s independent panel conclusion.
The CDC’s advisory group had rejected the idea of third Pfizer doses for “high risk” workers like nurses and teachers, saying that without further data it wasn’t comfortable with automatically adding younger, healthier people simply by occupation.
The nurses’ union urged Walensky to bypass what her advisory panel had said — which is what she ultimately did.
“Nurses across the country are beyond relieved today to wake up to the news that CDC Director Rochelle Walensky prioritized the health and safety of health care and other essential workers most at risk of contracting Covid-19,” NNU president Deborah Burger told ABC in a statement Friday.
“It takes courage to do the right thing, especially when it involves going against the CDC’s own advisory panel,” Burger added. “We applaud this bold decision-making that prioritizes the health and safety of workers on the front lines of this ongoing crisis, and we know that her decision will absolutely save lives.”
Walensky however, insisted that she did not overrule the CDC’s advisory panel’s decision on booster shots for at-risk, front-line workers. She defended the decision as a “scientific close call” saying that she would advocate for the boosters if she was in the room.
“I want to be very clear that I did not overrule … the advisory committee,” she said. “I listened to the votes. I listened to the comments on the vote and this was a scientific close call … It was my call to make. If I had been in the room, I would have voted ‘yes.'”
She also said that boosters were not a solution for ending the pandemic.
“I want to be clear we will not boost our way out of this pandemic. Infections among the unvaccinated continue to fuel this pandemic rise, resulting in a rising number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths where people are in vaccinated,” Walensky said.
-ABC News’ Sasha Pezenik and Matthew Vann
Sep 24, 2:28 pm
CVS says it will make Pfizer booster available today
On the heels of pharmacy retail chain Walgreens’ announcement that it is now ready to give third booster doses of the Pfizer vaccine to newly eligible groups, CVS announced it too will be ready “later today.”
“We are reviewing the CDC guidance and will be ready to provide the booster dose at CVS Pharmacy and select MinuteClinic locations that offer the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine later today. We strongly encourage customers to schedule an appointment in advance at to ensure they are able to access the correct vaccine at a convenient time and location,” the drugstore chain said in a statement Friday.
-ABC News’ Sasha Pezenik
Sep 24, 1:08 pm
COVID-19 outbreaks increase in school districts without masking policies: CDC study
School districts without a universal masking policy in place at the start of the school year saw a significant increase in COVID-19 outbreaks, according to three new studies released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Additionally, school districts in those counties saw more than double the number of pediatric COVID-19 cases during this same period, the studies, released Friday, also found.
The studies further emphasize that school mask requirements, along with other prevention strategies, are critical to reducing the spread of COVID-19 in schools.
Other key findings from the studies include:
– Schools in Arizona that opened without a school mask requirement had a 3.5 higher likelihood of having a COVID-19 outbreak than schools that opened with a school mask requirement.
-During the early part of the 2021-2022 academic school year, almost 2,000 schools have been closed and more than 900,000 students in more than 40 states have been impacted.
– Pediatric cases during the start of the 2021-2022 school year were about half in U.S. counties with school mask requirements than in counties without school mask requirements.
To prevent COVID-19 outbreaks in schools, the CDC recommends a multi-layered strategy including vaccination, universal indoor masking, testing and physical distancing.
-ABC News’ Eric Strauss
Sep 24, 12:18 pm
Walgreens announces its doors are open for new Pfizer booster group
Walgreens announced Friday morning that its participating stores are ready to start giving third booster doses of Pfizer’s vaccine to newly eligible groups.
The CDC green-lit Pfizer booster shots on Thursday.
As of Friday morning, those newly eligible groups can walk into any Walgreens location offering the Pfizer shot, the company said.
Also, as of Friday, people can begin scheduling appointments online or over the phone.
-ABC News’ Sasha Pezenik
Sep 24, 12:11 pm
Pfizer booster shot available ‘literally right now’ in NYC: Mayor
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said a third Pfizer booster shot is available to eligible New Yorkers, “literally right now.”
“As of now, as of this exact moment, New Yorkers in a number of categories are eligible for the 3rd booster shot, Pfizer only, for the COVID vaccine,” the mayor told radio station WNYC Friday.
Eligible New Yorkers include anyone who got their second shot six months ago and are 65 or older; in a long-term care facility or nursing home; are between 18 and 64 years old with an underlying medical condition; or are between 18 and 64 years old and a front-line or health care worker doing direct work with the public, the mayor said.
On Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention an independent advisory panel’s recommendation for seniors and other medically vulnerable Americans to get a booster shot of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine six months after their second dose.
“Literally now you can go online, vax4nyc, either make an appointment right now for the coming days or you can get a list of all the city-run sites and you can walk in today if you are in those categories,” de Blasio said.
-ABC News’ Aaron Katersky
Sep 24, 6:23 am
CDC endorses Pfizer boosters for older and high-risk Americans
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has endorsed an independent advisory panel’s recommendation for seniors and other medically vulnerable Americans to get a booster shot of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, six months after their second dose.
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the CDC, also partially overruled her agency’s advisory panel in a notable departure by adding a recommendation for a third dose for people who are considered high risk due to where they work, such as nurses and teachers — a group which the panel rejected in its recommendation. Some panelists said that without further data, they weren’t comfortable with automatically including younger people because of their jobs.
In a statement announcing her decision late Thursday, Walensky pointed to the benefit versus risk analysis she had weighed, and data rapidly evolving.
“In a pandemic, even with uncertainty, we must take actions that we anticipate will do the greatest good,” Walensky said. “While today’s action was an initial step related to booster shots, it will not distract from our most important focus of primary vaccination in the United States and around the world.”
With Walensky’s final sign-off, booster shots will now quickly become available for millions more Americans at pharmacies, doctors’ offices and other sites that offer the Pfizer vaccine as soon as Friday.
Sep 23, 8:40 pm
Leaving nurses out of booster recommendation ‘unconscionable,’ union charges
The nation’s largest union of registered nurses pushed back against the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel’s vote on COVID-19 booster shots, calling not including front-line workers like nurses in its recommendations “unconscionable.”
National Nurses United is urging CDC Director Rochelle Walensky to bypass what the advisory panel, ACIP, recommended and add nurses and other health care workers to the list of eligible booster recipients.
“Nurses and other health care workers were among the first to be vaccinated because of their high risk of exposure to the virus,” Deborah Burger, the union’s president, said in a statement. “Why leave them out of booster shots?”
“It is unconscionable that ACIP would not vote to keep us safer from death, severe Covid, and long Covid,” Burger continued. “We must do everything possible to ensure that the health of our nurses and other health care workers will not be put even more at risk.”
ACIP voted Thursday to recommend a third Pfizer dose for people aged 65 and older, as well as those as young as 18 if they have an underlying medical condition.
In its authorization Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration did agree to make the shots available to front-line workers. But ACIP said there was not yet enough data to support providing booster shots automatically to young people because of their jobs.
