COVID-19 updates: American Airlines to require employee vaccinations

The airline's CEO and president informed employees in a letter Friday.

Last Updated: October 4, 2021, 6:54 AM EDT

The United States has been facing a COVID-19 surge as the more contagious delta variant continues to spread.

More than 700,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 while over 4.7 million people have died from the disease worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

Just 65% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the CDC.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news developed. All times Eastern.
Sep 28, 2021, 8:55 AM EDT

Pfizer submits initial child vaccine data to FDA

Pfizer on Tuesday submitted data for the Phase 2/3 vaccine trial for 5- to 11-year-olds to the FDA.

Co-teachers at Yung Wing School P.S. 124 Marisa Wiezel, left, and Caitlin Kenny give a lesson to their masked students in their classroom on Sept. 27, 2021, in New York City.
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

Pfizer will make a formal request for authorization in the coming weeks.

The FDA will review the data and make a decision, possibly by the end of October. The timeline for authorization is not set in stone. 

-ABC News' Eric Strauss

Sep 27, 2021, 8:00 PM EDT

Judge upholds NYC school staff vaccine mandate

A three-judge panel from the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has dissolved a temporary injunction that halted New York City's vaccine mandate for school staff.

The panel offered no explanation and cleared the way for the city to enforcement the public school vaccine mandate.

"Vaccinations are our strongest tool in the fight against COVID-19 – this ruling is on the right side of the law and will protect our students and staff," New York City's Department of Education said in a statement.

Melissa Wong, a teacher at Yung Wing School P.S. 124 gives a lesson to her masked students in their classroom, Sept. 27, 2021, in New York.
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

As of Monday night, 87% of DOE employees, including 91% of teachers and 97% of principals, have at least one shot, according to the DOE.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said public school employees will have until the end of day Friday to get at least one dose of vaccine.

Michael Mulgrew, the president of the United Federation of Teachers, released a statement Monday night saying, "We will be working with our members to ensure, as far as possible, that our schools can open safely as the vaccine mandate is enforced."

-ABC News' Aaron Katersky

Sep 27, 2021, 7:02 PM EDT

First lady Jill Biden receives booster shot

First lady Jill Biden received her COVID-19 booster shot Monday, according to Michael LaRosa, her spokesman.

The shot was administered at the White House in the afternoon, LaRosa told ABC News.

-ABC News' Ben Gittleson

Sep 27, 2021, 6:10 PM EDT

Judge rules Arizona ban on school mask mandate unconstitutional

An Arizona judge ruled Monday that the state's ban on mask mandates in schools is unconstitutional.

Judge Katherine Cooper sided with the Arizona School Boards Association, which contended that the Arizona State Legislature's law to ban school districts from issuing a mask mandate violates the state constitution's title requirement and single subject rule.

The association argued that the legislature included policy regarding 30 subjects into one bill.

"The single subject rule precludes legislators from combining unrelated provisions into one bill to garner votes for disfavored measures. Together, these requirements promote transparency and the public’s access to information about legislative action," the judge wrote in her decision.

The law was slated to go into effect on Sept. 29.

The state has until Nov. 1 to file an objection or response to the ruling.

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