Entire School Board Resigns After Mocking Parents On Reopening

ACROSS AMERICA — It's a gaffe as old as the coronavirus pandemic.

During a meeting, the entire board of the Oakley Union Elementary School District in Contra Costa County, California, thought their mute button was on. However, the meeting was actually being live-streamed, meaning the entire district could see and hear when board members openly mocked parents over their desire to reopen schools.

Video of the Wednesday night meeting circulated on social media, according to a USA Today report, appearing to capture the board's reactions to parents who had written letters petitioning to reopen schools.

"They want to pick on us because they want their babysitters back," Board President Lisa Brizendine was heard saying.

Greg Hetrick, superintendent of the district, sent a letter to district residents, USA Today reported, confirming every member of the board has submitted their resignations.

Board members expressed their "sincerest apology" and said they "deeply regret the comments that were made in the meeting."

The Latest

As the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States approaches 30 million, seven U.S. airlines have agreed to start collecting information from international passengers in order to help health officials more quickly warn travelers if they have been exposed to coronavirus.

The announcement marks a big change for the airline industry, which in the past has pushed back against requests to aid in contact tracing.

Under the plan, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines said they will start collecting information from travelers on U.S.-bound flights, according to a Washington Post report.

Passengers can voluntarily provide information including their legal name, two phone numbers, an email address, and the address of the place where they will be staying in the United States or of their permanent U.S. residence.

As the weekend draws to a close, nearly 75 million coronavirus vaccines have been distributed to sites across the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

At least 6 million of those have been delayed due to winter weather, the White House announced Friday, creating a backlog that's affecting every state and throwing off the pace of vaccination appointments over the next week, according to a New York Times report.

Of the 6 million doses, 1.4 million were already in transit on Friday, the Times reported. Remaining doses are expected to be delivered in the next week.

The delay will mount to a "temporary setback," Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, said on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday. The vaccine plan should be back on track by the middle of this upcoming week, he added.

“The number was 6 million doses got delayed. We’ve gotten two million out, and we project that by the middle of the week, we will have caught up,” Fauci said.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden's pre-inauguration goal to have 100 million shots administered during the first 100 days of his presidency is looking like a "lowball" number, according to another report from the Times.

More than 35 million doses have been administered in the first four weeks of his presidency, an average of 1.72 million doses a day over the past week.

Biden said this week that vaccines should be available to anyone who wants one by the end of July, the Times reported.

As people receive vaccines, many are asking the question: do I still have to wear a mask?

The short answer is yes.

The CDC hasn't changed its guidelines: At least for now, people should follow the same rules as everybody else about wearing a mask, keeping a 6-foot distance and avoiding crowds — even after they've gotten their second vaccine dose.

Vaccines in use so far require two doses, and experts say especially don't let your guard down after the first dose.

The vaccines are highly effective at preventing symptomatic COVID-19, especially severe illness and death, but experts have yet to learn how well they block the spread of the coronavirus.

"Friends coming over for dinner, we should still try to follow the guidelines," University of Pennsylvania immunologist E. John Wherry told The Associated Press. "You never know who is compromised, where the vaccine may not work as well."

• Can You Stop Wearing Masks After Vaccine? Experts Say Not Yet

Finally this week, American life expectancy saw its steepest dip since World War II during the first half of 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic was claiming its first wave of deaths. Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that life expectancy dropped an entire year during that period.

And it could get worse, other experts have added.

"What is really quite striking in these numbers is that they only reflect the first half of the year. ... I would expect that these numbers would only get worse," said Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, a health equity researcher and dean at the University of California, San Francisco.

Newest Numbers

As of Sunday afternoon, the United States had reported more than 28.1 million cases and more than 498,200 deaths from COVID-19-related illnesses, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

At least 2,089 deaths and 72,857 new cases of coronavirus had been reported in the United States on Saturday, according to a Washington Post database. The Post's reporting shows that over the past week, new daily cases have fallen 29.2 percent, new daily deaths have fallen 29.7 percent and COVID-19-related hospitalizations have fallen 15.9 percent.

Nearly 75 million vaccine doses have been distributed and nearly 61.3 million administered in the United States as of Sunday, according to the CDC. More than 42.8 million people have received one dose, and nearly 17.9 million have received two.

Currently, 58,222 people are hospitalized with a coronavirus-related illness in the United States, according to the Covid Tracking Project.

As of Sunday, 26 states and U.S. territories remained above the positive testing rate recommended by the World Health Organization to safely reopen. To safely reopen, the WHO recommends states remain at 5 percent or lower for at least 14 days.

Stay up to date on the latest coronavirus news via The New York Times or The Washington Post.

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