Louisiana Supreme Court hears oral arguments over Ochsner vaccine mandate
Supreme Court Justice: Do Ochsner employees ‘not have a choice’ to work elsewhere?
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Vaccines
Building Alliances: How rural St. Landry Parish gave its Covid vaccination effort a boost
Compared with other rural communities, St. Landry Parish mounted a better pandemic response and has rivaled wealthier, urban peers. It has the second highest vaccination rate in Acadiana, sneaking up just behind Lafayette Parish.
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Hospitals have long required vaccines for their employees. Is the Covid vaccine different?
At the heart of the suits filed against Ochsner and Lourdes is the contention that with Covid vaccines, hospitals have done something new and overreached on civil liberties.
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University of Louisiana system vaccination rates range from low twenties to high seventies
Just 43% of UL Lafayette students have had at least their first shot. University vaccine requirements are easy to work around.
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Door-to-door vaccine outreach finds success in Lafayette’s Latino community
Language and access, not resistance, are big barriers to vaccines for Lafayette’s Latinos. ACLA’s solution is simple: knock on the door.
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Legislative Roundup: Power-based abuse; vaccine ‘anti-discrimination’; solar incentive pause; and more
Legislation is advancing in a hurry as the session’s end nears.
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The slow road to getting vaccinated after back-to-back hurricanes
A state program aims to make COVID-19 vaccinations accessible to residents of southwest Louisiana, where vaccine rates are low and people are displaced.
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In a bid to boost low vaccine participation, Ochsner Lafayette General added 5,000 appointments and is pushing to grow awareness among those now eligible for vaccination. Via the Daily Advertiser:
The hospital system, which has been operating an appointment-only vaccine clinic in Lafayette’s Heymann Performing Arts Center, is expanding the clinic’s hours to now operate from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with Saturday operations in the works.
Louisiana is expanding vaccine eligibility to include most adults with certain health conditions that put them at high risk. Announced Tuesday by Gov. John Bel Edwards, the new eligibility extends the age range in the high risk pool to as young as 16-years-old, substantially increasing the current priority group. Around 1.6 million people are estimated to now qualify. Below are the conditions listed in the update:
- moderate to severe asthma
- cerebrovascular disease
- cystic fibrosis
- hypertension or high blood pressure
- immunocompromised state from blood or bone marrow transplant, immune deficiencies, HIV, use of corticosteroids or use of other immune weakening medicines
- neurologic conditions, such as dementia
- liver disease
- overweight
- pulmonary fibrosis
- thalassemia
- type 1 diabetes mellitus
Trust, representation and access are big hurdles for vaccine distribution in Lafayette’s Black community
The proportion of African Americans who’ve gotten their first vaccine shot continues to fall short both nationally and in Lafayette Parish.
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Beginning Monday, K-12 teachers and school staff and people aged 55-64 with certain health conditions will be eligible to receive Covid vaccines, Gov. Edwards announced Thursday, reported here by The Advocate. The massive ongoing winter event has disrupted already delayed vaccine logistics. Closed roads and offices forced delays in vaccine shipments and providers have had to reschedule both first- and second-dose appointments. LDH officials say that a few days delay on second doses shouldn’t be a problem. Just over a quarter-million people have been fully vaccinated in Louisiana. Hospitalizations have plummeted, however. As of Thursday, the Acadiana region posted fewer than 60 Covid in-patients for the first time since Nov. 2.
The winter storm disrupted already delayed vaccine logistics, too. Closed roads and offices forced delays in vaccine shipments and providers have had to reschedule both first- and second-dose appointments. LDH officials say that a few days delay on second doses shouldn’t be a problem. Just over a quarter-million people have been fully vaccinated in Louisiana.