The C.D.C. said that children in elementary schools need to be kept only three feet apart when wearing masks, versus six feet previously.
France resumed the use of AstraZeneca’s vaccine for people over 55.
The F.B.I. is investigating whether the Cuomo administration gave the Justice Department false information about Covid deaths in nursing homes.
Get the latest updates here, as well as maps and vaccines in development.
More Americans are eligible for doses
States are racing to expand vaccine eligibility to all adults as part of a sprint to meet President Biden’s goal of universal vaccine access by May 1.
At least 18 states have said they will open vaccination appointments for the general public in March or April. Officials expect a surge of doses to become available in the coming weeks, which should increase the pace of inoculations from the current rate of about 2.5 million a day.
In Utah, universal eligibility will begin next week. In Ohio, it starts March 29; in Montana, it’s April 1; and in Connecticut, April 5. Illinois, Kentucky, Rhode Island, Maryland and Missouri have all said that every adult will be allowed to sign up for a dose in April. Florida plans to open eligibility for all adults in the coming weeks.
President Biden said yesterday that the U.S. was already set to hit his goal of administering 100 million vaccine doses in 100 days — six weeks ahead of his self-imposed deadline. So far, the country has delivered more than 151 million doses to the states, with about 77 percent of those having already been administered.
The recent success of the vaccination campaign has even inspired some officials to speak more openly about what post-pandemic life may look like.
“As more Montanans get the vaccine,” said Gov. Greg Gianforte, “we will begin to approach the time when we are no longer in a state of emergency and we can remove our masks and throw them in the trash.”
Capitol Hill holdouts: As the country approaches universal access, there will undoubtedly be more signs of vaccine hesitancy — with Congress as Exhibit A.
A quarter of congressional lawmakers have yet to get coronavirus vaccines, even though they have all been eligible since December. A handful of Republicans said they don’t ever intend to take one. The reluctance mirrors broader trends in the country, especially among Republicans.
Who’s in, who’s out: Turning down a vaccine remains a luxury for most of humanity. As a new Times investigation starkly illustrates, getting vaccinated today means living in the right place, knowing the right people, or both.
The New York Times