US will give COVID-19 booster shots in fall to counter Delta variant

As the Biden administration unveiled plans Wednesday to give COVID-19 booster shots this fall to millions of Americans to fight the coronavirus' Delta variant, tens of thousands of students across the country are quarantined or in isolation because of the variant.

The booster shot would be administered about eight months after the second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. The government said it is preparing to offer booster shots beginning the week of Sept 20, pending authorization from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Initial doses will go to those who were fully vaccinated earliest in the vaccine rollout, including healthcare providers, residents of nursing homes and other long-term facilities and other seniors.

The announcement on booster shots comes as the highly contagious Delta variant accounts for more than 98.8 percent of COVID-19 cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

More children are becoming infected and ending up in hospitals. More than 90 percent of COVID-19 cases affecting children now are caused by the Delta variant, the CDC said. Children under 12 are currently ineligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.

Quarantines are in effect in Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Florida, Mississippi, South Carolina and Texas, and more are being announced virtually every day as the Delta variant runs rampant, especially in states with low vaccination rates.

Dr Paul Byers, Mississippi's state epidemiologist, said Tuesday there are about 20,000 students under quarantine — 4.5 percent of the state's public school population.

In Florida, as of Tuesday morning — a week after the start of classes — more than 8,700 students and school employees were either in isolation because of a positive coronavirus test or in quarantine due to potential exposure.

Twelve states have imposed mask mandates in schools, as have the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico — a group that has grown in the past week. Nine states have banned school districts from imposing mask mandates.

"This is a matter of life and death," Mike Siegel told USA Today. The parent of two elementary students in Austin, Texas, and a former Democratic congressional candidate, urged his county to require masks.

In Texas, Republican Governor Greg Abbott, who is fully vaccinated but has tested positive for the coronavirus, has issued an executive order banning districts from mandating masks, though several are openly defying him.

The Paris Independent School District of about 4,000 students in North Texas has made masks a part of its dress code for the academic year, hoping to exploit a possible loophole in Abbott's ban.

Meanwhile, a vaccination mandate in New York City is facing a lawsuit. It requires people to prove they have vaccinated if they dine at indoor establishments.

A group of restaurants sued New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday over his executive order. The order took effect Tuesday and also applies to gyms and indoor entertainment facilities, including theaters, museums and galleries. If restaurants don't follow the requirement, they will face a fine of $1,000 starting Sept 13.

The Independent Restaurant Owners Association Rescue and several affected establishments asked for a permanent injunction against the requirement. They said it wasn't narrowly tailored, didn't allow for exceptions based on religious beliefs and unfairly targets some businesses.

The mayor defended the order on Wednesday, saying that the policy was instituted to encourage people to become vaccinated.