The Washington Post. Coronavirus Updates: Employees deserve time off for shots, Biden says.

Important developments in the pandemic.

By Ben Guarino with Angela Fritz  Email The Post's coronavirus coverage linked in this newsletter is free to access from this email.   The latest President Biden urged employers to pay workers to take time off for vaccine appointments and recovery in remarks Wednesday. “I’m calling on every employer large and small in every state to give employees the time off they need, with pay, to get vaccinated,” Biden said. The president also announced the country was on track to reach 200 million doses administered by the week's end. The protective benefits of the Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine outweigh the remote risk of blot clots, according to the European Medicines Agency. The agency, which evaluates medical products for the European Union, said Tuesday that the J&J vaccine should carry a warning label but its use does not require additional restrictions. U.S. regulators are expected to offer their guidance for this vaccine as soon as Friday.  With most of its adult populations vaccinated, including 90 percent of people age 50 and up, Israel is reopening. Restaurants, bars and beaches are busy again. Although its population can breathe a little easier, health officials note the pandemic is not yet over. Cases remain high among the 5 million Palestinians living in West Bank and Gaza, where Israel has not provided vaccine doses on a major scale.  And another Pacific island is easing its restrictions, too: Hawaii is simplifying travel rules beginning next month by allowing vaccinated state residents to travel between islands without needing a negative test. Hawaii officials said vaccine exemptions for out-of-state travelers would begin later this summer, but did not give a date. Israel isn't the only country enjoying the resumption of social life. New Zealand and Australia's dual-country travel bubble officially began this week when a plane from Australia landed in New Zealand, without any of the passengers having to quarantine. Travelers were greeted with live bands, tearful embraces and, in one New Zealand tourist town, an offer of a free bungee jump into a canyon.  But there will be side effects from the return to pre-pandemic habits: A forecast from the International Energy Agency projects carbon emissions will make their second-highest-ever yearly rise in 2021. The agency estimated global demand for oil will increase by 6 percent this year and for coal by 4.5 percent. Other important news India’s health-care system is breaking under the pressure from the 1.6 million covid-19 cases added in the past week. In one hospital there, 22 covid patients died after an oxygen tank ruptured. In-person learning is expanding in D.C. schools, but the wealthiest are disproportionately adding more room for students. An inspection report from the Food and Drug Administration lists systemic problems – including unsanitary conditions and poor worker training – at the Baltimore plant where Johnson & Johnson vaccines were contaminated.  On Thursday at noon Eastern time, Post reporters will be answering questions about vaccine distribution in D.C., Maryland and Virginia. Have questions? Ask them here.   Guide to the pandemic Track confirmed cases, hospitalizations and deaths in the U.S. and the spread around the world. U.S. vaccine distribution and delivery, tracked by state. Guides: Finding vaccine appointments | Vaccines | Variants | Masks Follow updates about the pandemic from Post reporters across the globe. Submit a question and we may answer it in a future story or newsletter.    Your questions, answered "If we are fully vaccinated, why should we be concerned if we get covid-19? It seems like all the data has suggested if you get it, the chances of which are slim, you will not get a serious case or be hospitalized. So it seems like it doesn't really matter once you are vaccinated if you get it, no?" —James in Massachusetts We've been challenged to calculate all these new risks since the beginning of the pandemic — going to the store, visiting elderly parents, taking the kids to the playground — and now we have to recalibrate that risk analysis for a post-vaccine life.  Yes, any of the vaccines will significantly reduce your chances of contracting covid-19, and if you happen to get it, then it is more likely to be akin to a cold rather than a severe respiratory illness that could put you in the hospital. But rarely in life, and in medicine in particular, are the risks zero. There's still a chance of getting sick, which you might personally be willing to take. Weighing the pros and cons, it might feel like you're ready to get back to normal once you're fully vaccinated. Here's the problem, though. We still have a lot of people in the United States (and the world) who have not yet received the vaccine. They fall into three categories: 1) the people who are refusing to get one; 2) the people still waiting in line or who are scheduled in the future; and 3) the immunocompromised people whose doctors have advised them not to get the shot, or for whom the shot is not working. Focus on those last two categories. As long as there's still a significant number of unvaccinated among us, our “vaccinated” choices will affect them. You might decide that you'll take the small risk of cold-like symptoms (or a symptomless infection), but if you do get it you can spread it to others, including, for example, strangers at the grocery store who haven't had the vaccine because they are immunocompromised. Double whammy: they can't get the shot yet and they are at higher risk of a life-threatening bout of covid. That is just one of the things public health experts are thinking about right now, and why they haven't said “once you get the vaccine, you're free.” Because with viruses, it's never just about us. We need all the healthy folks to get shots, so the people who can't will still be protected by the “herd” of immune people around them. That's when we can ease up on the concern.  Until then, we should take the standard precautions like wearing masks and social distancing.   Today’s top reads Find more stories, analysis and op-eds about the pandemic on our coronavirus page. Community pantries offer reprieve from covid-19 hardships in the Philippines By Regine Cabato ●  Read more »   Inmates sent home amid pandemic may have to return under Trump-era policy By Justin Wm. Moyer and Neena Satija ●  Read more »   The covid-19 vaccines are an extraordinary success story. The media should tell it that way. Opinion ●  By Leana S. Wen ●  Read more »