Free Republic

In its latest effort to make permanent pandemic-era mandates for health care workers, the federal agency regulating workplace safety has submitted a final draft of rules to the White House budget office for review. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which sees exposure to COVID-19 as a matter of workplace safety, in June 2021 issued a temporary emergency standard for health care facilities that include requirements around screening, ventilation, physical distancing, physical barriers, cleaning and disinfection, and masks. In December 2021, however, OSHA announced that it would stop enforcing all temporary emergency standard requirements except for a few related...

During remarks about the new Xi variant of Wuhan coronavirus at the White House Monday, President Joe Biden was asked to define a "new normal" for the American people. Biden responded by saying the "new normal" is endless vaccination and booster shots. "Mr. President, is this the new normal that Americans should expect: anticipating future potential variants?" a reporter asked. "To answer your first question first, the answer is: I expect this not to be the new normal. I expect the new normal to be everyone ends up getting vaccinated and the booster shot so we reduce the number of...

A year into the pandemic, a lot has changed. And we're reminded of that every time we go outside (if we go outside). Masks have joined the traditional don't-leave-home-without-them trifecta of keys, wallets and phones - and they are here to stay. There are folks who hate them, who can't breathe through them, or who think they're a sign of political oppression. But for others, the widespread use of masks has made the past year one of liberation. With a mask, you can sing in the grocery store, talk to yourself on a walk, grimace in the gym, leave the...

Talk show host Bill Maher said he wishes there was more optimism going around now that COVID-19 is on the decline and vaccinations are rolling out. Maher, who hosts the HBO show Real Time with Bill Maher, targeted Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, saying he is “always a downer.” “Can we be a little happy?” Maher said on his show. “Can we be a little happy about where we are COVID-wise as opposed to ... it’s just like they really don't want you. I think it's counterproductive. I really do. The...