US launches new global vaccine access program; more K-12 students in Indiana test positive for COVID: Live updates The U.S. will allocate more resources toward international vaccine access as the omicron variant is identified in more countries. Latest COVID news. YahooNews

The U.S. is expanding its aid for international COVID-19 vaccine access.

Pro-Trump counties now have far higher COVID death rates. Misinformation is to blame

Since May 2021, people living in counties that voted heavily for Donald Trump during the last presidential election have been nearly three times as likely to die from COVID-19 as those who live in areas that went for now-President Biden. That's according to a new analysis by NPR that examines how political polarization and misinformation are driving a significant share of the deaths in the pandemic.

NPR looked at deaths per 100,000 people in roughly 3,000 counties across the U.S. from May 2021, the point at which vaccinations widely became available. People living in counties that went 60% or higher for Trump in November 2020 had 2.7 times the death rates of those that went for Biden. Counties with an even higher share of the vote for Trump saw higher COVID-19 mortality rates.

New York City will implement vaccine mandate for all private sector workers All private sector employers in New York City will now be required to implement a Covid-19 vaccine mandate by Dec. 27, the city’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, announced Monday. By <a href="/profiles/ivana-kottasova">Ivana Kottasová</a> and Kathryn Snowdon, CNN CNN

...Public sector workers were already subject to vaccine mandates.  

With the first case of omicron confirmed in California and more cases expected across the U.S., public health officials who know the difference between good and bad crisis communication say they can't afford to be quiet and wait until scientists know how risky the new variant is before they speak out.

"We don't want to just be silent on the matter, because then that can cause fear and then that can allow for misinformation to creep in," says Elya Franciscus, the epidemiology operations manager for COVID-19 in Harris County, Texas.