A recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey highlights common trends in health equity, telehealth access and quality, and coverage expansion initiatives.

In a letter to CMS, Republican Govs. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia and Jim Justice of West Virginia cite strained health care workforce and staffing crises as reasons for requesting relief. They ask for broader conscience exemptions, flexibility on enforcement, or simply a six-month delay of the rule.

Alabama extends its state of emergency, enabling hospitals to relax regulations to expand capacity and allowing out-of-state clinicians to practice in Alabama. A new West Virginia initiative provides hospitals financial and staffing support to avoid the need for care rationing.

States are using varying techniques to encourage the public to get vaccinated for COVID-19. Some states are linking vaccination rates to loosening restrictions or offering financial incentives to those receiving a vaccine, while others focus on forming partnerships to scale up vaccination efforts.

So far, 26 states and Washington, D.C., publicly report varying data on race and ethnicity for individuals who have received the vaccination. States also have taken different approaches to addressing disparities in vaccine administration and vaccine hesitancy.