"Folks, please get vaccinated. It's our greatest tool to beat this virus and protect our people," the governor said. 

“This is a difficult but necessary step to help deal with this situation,” said Baptist Health Paducah President Chris Roty said in a statement. 

UPDATED: 7/30 2 p.m.

A new study shows the Delta Covid-19 variant produced similar amounts of virus in vaccinated and unvaccinated people if they get infected.

Paducah Public Schools have announced a reopening plan for the 2021-22 school year that begins Aug. 5.

CARBONDALE, IL — Southern Illinois University Carbondale says nearly 80% of students, faculty and staff who responded to a survey from the university on COVID-19 vaccination report they've gotten their shots. 

Employers' emerging vaccine policies take many forms, including those requiring shots for being on site, and those that provide alternatives such as strict testing and masking rules.

The governor said he can't discipline state workers in those offices for not following the mandate, but he warned they face a much higher likelihood of contracting COVID-19 without a mask.

There are concerns about rising COVID-19 cases, but organizers say they also have plans to make the event run smoothly.

The state announced the change Thursday, in a news release warning that data from the Centers for Disease Control and prevention show the majority of Illinois counties have substantial or high rates of transmission, including Cook County. 

Of the more than 4 million federal employees, nearly half are members of the military. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has said at least 70% of the force has gotten at least one dose.

A suburban St. Louis health director says he was called racial slurs and physically assaulted after defending a mask mandate to combat COVID-19.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday recommended that even vaccinated people return to wearing masks indoors if they live in areas with high rates of virus transmission.

"This is a direct result of our region, Region 5, experiencing an increase in the number of positive COVID-19 cases, which has categorized Jackson County as an area of 'high transmission,'" the news release states. 

Here are the companies that have announced COVID-19 vaccine requirements for at least some of their employees.

It's a move that represents both the speed with which the White House is moving on the issue and also the recognition that there are an array of key stakeholders that will play prominent roles in the days and weeks ahead as the policy is implemented.

Starting Thursday, a mask requirement will be in place for all state employees — vaccinated or not — while indoors while around other people at work. All visitors to state buildings will also be required to wear masks. 

"The rest of the world is currently operating without masks. Placing the restriction of wearing masks on our students when no other entity in the state is doing so accomplishes nothing," Superintendent Steve Miracle writes. 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A group of Tennessee Senate Republicans are urging the public to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, a move that comes as case numbers are beginning to once again climb throughout the state.

The universal mask mandate for the district is based on the latest guidance from the Center's for Disease Control and Prevention.

The university announced the mask policy change Tuesday, after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its recommendations.

The plan says the district will reopen all prekindergarten through 12th-grade classes at 100% capacity Monday through Friday.

Some west Kentucky school districts have decided against mandating masks in school buildings. Others remain undecided. 

Ballard County Schools on Tuesday released its "Back-to-School Plan" for COVID-19 precautions as students and staff soon head into the 2021-2022 school year. 

Asked if he thinks the new revised guidance on masks from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will lead to confusion for Americans, Biden cast blame on unvaccinated Americans, saying that if they had been vaccinated "we'd be in a very different world."

Only 47.4% of Missourians have received at least one dose of the vaccine, compared with 56.8% nationally, state and federal data shows. 

"In areas with substantial and high transmission, CDC recommends fully vaccinated people wear masks in public indoor settings to help prevent the spread of the Delta variants and protect others — this includes school," CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told a media briefing on Tuesday.

The CDC is also urging vaccinated people in certain areas of the country to resume wearing masks because of Covid-19.

Positive cases in Marshall County have seen a sharp increase in the past week.

The US could see about four times the current rate of Covid-19 cases in the next four to six weeks as the Delta variant spreads and the population hits a wall on vaccinations