COVID-19 coronavirus in Oklahoma

The CDC has advised that children take the COVID-19 vaccine before attending school. That doesn’t mean it will be required for attendance, as misinformation swirls around the ruling.

This Week in Oklahoma Politics discusses State Question 820 not making the November ballot, a law banning mask mandates in schools being partially overturned and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Joy Hofmeister calling for a $5,000 raise for teachers.

Oklahoma's Supreme Court ruled a ban on mask mandates in schools that relies on action by the governor is unconstitutional. The ruling affirms local control, while leaving much of a 2021 law intact.

Researchers at the University of Oklahoma started developing a monitoring program in 2020. Now, they're working with state health officials to scan for about a dozen pathogens.

It's year three of the COVID-19 pandemic, so precautions in schools look familiar.

This episode of Focus: Black Oklahoma features reports on tribal tax exemptions, new data on the long-term effects of COVID and Black excellence being showcased in an exhibit at the Claremore Museum of History.

Federal auditors have recommended clawing back hundreds of thousands of dollars disbursed by Gov. Kevin Stitt as part of federally funded coronavirus relief grants.

Since the coronavirus pandemic began, public schools have received a windfall of federal funding. But only a fraction of it has been spent.

They're six times more contagious, but appear to be less damaging. That being said, long-term impacts are still a major risk, even if we aren't sure what they are yet.

Now that lab testing for COVID is significantly rarer, it's hard to know how many Oklahomans have the virus. But if it seems a lot of your friends, family members and coworkers have it right now, you’re not alone.