CRANSTON, RI: "A Cranston-based dentist who was denied an exemption from the state’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for health care workers has filed a lawsuit against Governor Dan McKee and the RI Department of Health. Dr. Stephen Skoly has been battling the state since the mandate went into effect Oct. 1, which forced him to shut down his oral surgery practice. In the lawsuit, he claims the state is “acting unconstitutionally and being irrational and arbitrary by denying his medical exception from the vaccine,” and also preventing him from seeing patients. The lawsuit mentions Skoly’s history of Bell’s palsy and notes the “scientifically demonstrated association between the COVID-19 vaccination and the onset of bell’s palsy paralysis.” Skoly said the state denied his exemption request because Bell’s palsy is not listed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as a known side effect of the vaccine. Skoly had a hearing Monday morning with the Department of Labor and Training about why he’s being denied unemployment benefits and said he was insulted by their response."

https://www.wpri.com/health/coronavirus/dentist-files-suit-against-ri-after-being-denied-covid-vaccine-exemption/

NEW YORK: "Municipal workers in New York City who have not complied with the city’s COVID vaccine mandate will be terminated on Friday. On Aug. 2, all new hires were required to be fully vaccinated as a condition of employment. Last week, separation letters were sent to all city workers who were not in compliance with the mandate. Anyone waiting on a religious exemption appeal will be allowed to stay. As the deadline looms, Mayor Eric Adams told PIX11 News in a statement on Monday that more than 90% of the city workforce was fully vaccinated, and that number keeps climbing. The state comptroller revealed the NYPD Detective Bureau has lost 5% of its personnel because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The vaccine mandate would cost the city an additional four detectives. Detectives Endowment Association President Paul DiGiacomo told PIX11 News on Monday the union plans to file a lawsuit. It remained unclear on Monday exactly how many of the city’s 370,000 workers were unvaccinated. A city spokesperson said the true number won’t be known until the deadline arrives."

https://pix11.com/news/coronavirus/nyc-covid-vaccine-mandate-deadline-looms-with-thousands-of-jobs-on-the-line/