by Staff Reporter | Sep 30, 2025 | News
By Staff Reporter |
Governor Katie Hobbs has rejected the Federal Drug Administration’s restrictions on the new COVID-19 vaccine.
The FDA limited administration of the 2025-26 formula for the COVID-19 vaccine to individuals 65 and older. However, last week, Hobbs issued an executive order expanding access to anyone over the age of six months old.
The governor claimed she issued the executive order to ensure Arizonans’ health and safety.
In explanations of its August announcement to the media, the FDA explained it recommended limitations on the newest vaccine formula in order to address safety and efficacy concerns.
“The American people demanded science, safety, and common sense,” said Secretary Robert Kennedy. “This framework delivers all three.”
In a May report, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary and FDA Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research Director Vinay Prasad recommended randomized clinical trials to prove the vaccines’ safety and efficacy.
The FDA did recommend allowing immunization to those as young as six months on the condition that they have “at least one underlying condition” rendering them “at high risk for severe outcomes from COVID-19.”
The CDC defines these underlying conditions to include: Asthma; cancers; cerebrovascular disease; chronic kidney disease; chronic lung diseases limited to bronchiectasis, COPD, interstitial lung disease, pulmonary embolism, pulmonary hypertension; chronic liver diseases limited to cirrhosis, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, alcoholic liver disease, autoimmune hepatitis; cystic fibrosis; diabetes; heart conditions such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies; HIV; mental health conditions limited to mood disorders including depression and schizophrenia spectrum disorders; neurologic conditions limited to dementia and Parkinson’s disease; obesity; physical inactivity; pregnancy; primary immunodeficiencies; smoking, current and former; solid organ or blood stem cell transplantation; tuberculosis; use of corticosteroids or immunosuppressive medications; epilepsy; hemophilia; sickle cell disease; and substance use disorder.
Despite the conflict with FDA recommendations, the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) teamed up with Hobbs to expand eligibility to those as young as six months in Arizona.
ADHS determined outside FDA recommendations that the the Moderna Spikevax is appropriate for children aged six months to 11 years, the Pfizer BioNTech (Comirnaty) is appropriate for children aged five to 11 years, and the Moderna (Spikevax), Novavax (Nuvaxovid), and Moderna (mNEXSPIKE) are appropriate for children 12 years and older.
Dr. Richard Carmona, ADHS Public Health Medical Advisor and former U.S. Surgeon General, indicated the 2025-26 formulation was as safe and effective as prior formulations.
“Vaccines are one of the most important tools we have to protect our communities,” said Carmona. “The COVID-19 vaccine has proven to be safe and effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalization, and death. Vaccines help us limit the spread of disease and reduce pressure on our healthcare system.”
ADHS interim director Sheila Sjolander called the updated FDA recommendations a “confusion” that the governor and ADHS clarified.
“We understand the federal changes have caused confusion about eligibility for vaccination,” said Sjolander. “We are committed to keeping the public updated on our recommendations throughout this respiratory season. ADHS has updated our website with the latest information on what the standing order means for Arizonans.”
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by Kim Miller | Sep 17, 2025 | Opinion
By Kim Miller |
It says a lot when an influential leader takes the time to help other emerging leaders who are fighting on the same battlefield. How many great leaders would stop what they’re doing—and bring their entourage with them—to meet with a bunch of moms battling tyranny at their sons’ high school?
Charlie Kirk was a force who stirred a nation to wake up. But it will be his heart for Jesus, people, and American ideals that changes this nation for good. God used Charlie Kirk to bless a generation of youth—but he also inspired and challenged millions of women like us!
Back in 2021, Arizona Women of Action (AZWOA) was a new movement finding our way when Charlie came to my home to help a band of Brophy moms fight back against a near-mandate that every student comply and get the Covid-19 injection. We had become the voice for hundreds of parents. We gathered at auditoriums and produced a petition signed by 850 or so citizens (including over 30 AZ lawmakers) to urge Brophy College Prep to consider medical concerns and more studies. Still, they ignored the community.
So, we decided to call Charlie Kirk. He came around 7 pm the end of August 2021 to my dining room table, along with some of his staff, his pastor Rob McCoy, a former U.S. Congressman from the Midwest (who had been on his podcast earlier), and Charlie’s newly wedded wife Erika. He listened to the facts and the effects on families. And in the following days Charlie called out Brophy’s board on his podcast and social media. This made a huge difference, and concessions were eventually made (though no public acknowledgement came regarding our cause).
In the months and years since then, Arizona Women of Action collaborated at the local level with Charlie and his team here in Arizona. We spoke on panels with Turning Point USA and were flown out to Detroit in 2024 to present two break-out sessions at ‘The People’s Convention.’ We’ve had tables at Turning Point Faith events, and of course we included them at AZWOA’s. Charlie Kirk recognized the power of grassroots and generously invited hundreds to collaborate with him for the cause of freedom.
Before the 2024 election, Charlie and Turning Point partnered with AZWOA on a get-out-the-vote ballot initiative to reach women—a tough demographic. American men had been responding to conservative messaging, but most women still leaned Left. So, a strategic national organization saw the power of joining the forces of Turning Point and AZWOA. I was blessed to get to know Charlie better. Once when we were backstage, Charlie asked whether I thought America’s women could be awakened like men had. He cared about reaching EVERYONE with the truth. And not just the truth about values, virtue, family, science, philosophy, and Americanism (though he DID care deeply for those).
Charlie Kirk wanted everyone (ultimately) to know the Truth that can set them free. It begins with knowing and following your Creator. You and I cannot be free in any other way. In fact, THERE IS NO FREEDOM WITHOUT GOD. That is WHY Americans are free. Because the God of the Bible is our foundation.
I answered Charlie’s question by committing to him that we’d work as hard as he worked—at our mission to awaken women. We would engage women in the most effective, lasting way we could—through local relationships in action. Because of Charlie Kirk, and the hearts poured out by his team and ours, Arizona reached thousands and won by the highest margin of victory of all swing states.
But Charlie knew that America couldn’t be satisfied by winning political victories for conservatives and Christians. That’s fleeting and hollow by itself. Lasting joy—lasting victory—comes when God wins souls to a new life and hope for eternity! And He used Charlie Kirk for this specific purpose. Thank you, Charlie, for saying YES to God—and for all you did for each one of us!
But now what about you? Don’t miss this opportunity. God made YOU just as uniquely and specifically for a purpose that will bless everyone in the sphere He’s given to YOU.
What will YOU do, knowing you are here for a purpose, knowing people NEED YOU to stand up for them—and the truth that sets them free? What is worth your time, treasure and talent? What will you sacrifice to make a difference?
Let us all honor the message and memory of Charlie Kirk’s life!
“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” – Missionary and martyr, Jim Elliott
“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” – 1 Corinthians 15:58
“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in this same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again?” – Matthew 5:10-13
Kim Miller is the President and Founder of Arizona Women of Action. You can find out more about their work here.
by Matthew Holloway | Jan 29, 2025 | Education, News
By Matthew Holloway |
In a recent report, the Common Sense Institute of Arizona (CSI) addressed the gradual slowing of enrollment in Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program and traditional public school classrooms. The report shows that despite narratives for one or the other, the decline in both can be explained quite directly as a matter of demographics and parental choice.
In a press release issued Monday, CSI explained, “Headlines about declining enrollment and the subsequent financial struggles this creates in Arizona’s public schools have caught the state’s attention. However, CSI’s data shows this shift was inevitable, driven by dramatic demographic changes and a shift in enrollment preferences during the pandemic.”
Among CSI’s findings, it found that the school-age population of Arizona peaked in 2021 and is projected to decrease by 40,000 by 2028, heavily impacting an educational system which was structurally predicated on the assumption of a continually growing population.
CSI added, “The 2012 kindergarten cohort—the state’s largest ever—is now preparing to graduate. Future K-12 enrollment is not expected to grow in the foreseeable future.”
CSI observed further that during the COVID-19 lockdowns, Arizona’s public schools lost 50,000 enrolled students from 2020-2021. Only 18,000 of those students re-enrolled in charter schools with the remaining approximate 32,000 otherwise unaccounted for. It is likely that this number presents a combination of expanded home schooling, relocation out of Arizona, and even enrollment in private schools. Indeed, the report indicates that private school enrollment spiked by 33% over that period with homeschooling experiencing a surge from 2% of the total student population to 11%, and settling back to 6% as of today.
Glenn Farley, CSI Arizona’s Director of Policy and Research summarized, “Arizona’s classrooms are entering a new era. The numbers have been clear for years: the system built for growth has reached its peak. Moving forward, policymakers must adapt to a smaller, more diverse student population and rethink how we allocate resources.”
The CSI report noted the effect on budgetary considerations has been extreme. “Declining public school enrollments since 2020 reduced public K-12 funding formula costs by an estimated $450 million/year, and growing, compared to pre-pandemic trends. Since last year, the universal ESA program has returned these ‘missing kids’ to the public K-12 rolls – reinvesting prior ‘savings’ into education.”
The ESA, a subject of controversy in the state legislature, has reached a “steady state” according to CSI, with the recent period of rapid growth unlikely to be repeated and future increases owing almost exclusively to parental and student choice.
CSI concluded, “Demographic changes likely mean fewer school-aged children and lower overall enrollment across Arizona’s publicly funded K-12 options over the next ten years. And ultimately it is this demographic change, and pandemic-era changes in parental behavior that are changing K-12 in Arizona – and not-so-much universal ESA itself.”
As previously reported by AZ Free News, Governor Katie Hobbs’ repeated attacks on ESAs have centered primarily on the narrative of the program alternately being “rife with waste, fraud and abuse,” being costly to the state budget, and calling for a repeal of the popular program.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Corinne Murdock | Dec 4, 2023 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
Rep. Debbie Lesko (R-AZ-08) announced on Friday that her congressional committee will be questioning Anthony Fauci for the first time ever next month.
The hearing is scheduled to take place before the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic for 14 hours over the course of two days: Jan. 8 and 9, 2024. Each day will consist of seven hours of uninterrupted, transcribed testimony. Additionally, Fauci will be made to appear at another public hearing before the subcommittee at a later date yet to be announced.
“Dr. Fauci will finally be answering the American people,” said Lesko.
In their announcement of Fauci’s hearing, the subcommittee issued an X thread highlighting some of Fauci’s “most egregious pandemic-era failures.” The subcommittee cited Fauci’s attempt to push the “Proximal Origin” theory published through mainstream media to disprove the Wuhan, China lab leak theory; Fauci’s awareness of the dangers of the gain-of-function research that resulted in COVID-19 prior to the pandemic, and his inaction to stop it; Fauci’s recent admission that COVID-19 vaccine mandates were a coercion tactic; and Fauci’s quick reversal on mask efficacy early on in the pandemic.
“[Fauci’s] upcoming testimonies will aid [our] ongoing effort to hold American public health officials accountable for pandemic-era failures,” stated the subcommittee.
The subcommittee, formed in 2020 under the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, consists of Lesko along with Republican Reps. Brad Wenstrup, chairman (OH-02), Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-01), Michael Cloud (TX-27), John Joyce (PA-13), Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA-14), Ronny Jackson (TX-13), and Rich McCormick (GA-06); and Democratic Reps. Raul Ruiz (D-CA-25), Debbie Dingell (MI-06), Kweisi Mfume (MD-07), Deborah Ross (NC-02), Robert Garcia (CA-42), Ami Bera (CA-06), and Jill Tokuda (HI-02).
One of the key focuses of the committee has concerned pinpointing the origins of COVID-19. Committee hearings and evidence point to the Wuhan Institute of Virology and its taxpayer-funded gain-of-function research as the source of the virus, bolstered by proof of government health leaders’ relationship to EcoHealth Alliance, the nonprofit research organization that funded the research.
In July, the select subcommittee held a hearing to discuss the Proximal Origin theory, a zoonotic proposal that the virus jumped from animals to humans in the nearby wet markets. The subcommittee found that Fauci and former National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis Collins were behind drafting, publishing, and promoting the Proximal Origin theory, and that the theory lacked outside proof or verification.
The University of Arizona (UArizona) has continued to defend the Proximal Origin theory. Michael Worobey, head of the Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Department, maintains that COVID-19 originated in the Huanan Seafood Market, though his research acknowledged that a significant percentage of the first COVID-19 patients neither worked or shopped there, and that the researchers never tested market animals purportedly linked to the initial outbreak.
The Wuhan lab is less than nine miles from the wet market.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Daniel Stefanski | Aug 26, 2023 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
A freshman Arizona Senator is alerting her constituents of the laws protecting their freedoms in the event that another round of politicized COVID-19 cases sweeps the nation.
Senator Janae Shamp sent out a press release on Thursday, “reminding Arizonans of the safeguards put in place by Republicans at the Legislature to protect against future outrageous overreach and scientifically baseless restrictions.”
Shamp’s motivation was seeing “fear over mask mandates and the politicization of COVID-19 from the Left once again become a focal point heading into the upcoming 2024 election cycle.”
The Republican Senator issued the following statement: “With election season upon us, we’re once again witnessing COVID-19 fearmongering from the Left as liberal entities in Georgia, New York and California are now once again overstepping their authority in dictating mask mandates. As a registered nurse who has been detrimentally impacted by government infringement not based on scientific evidence, I want you to rest assured that I will fight tooth and nail to make sure you’re protected from this gross overreach. If you want to wear a mask, wear a mask. If you don’t want to wear a mask, don’t wear one. This is a personal choice that our citizens are allowed to make. If a business wants to force you to wear a mask and you don’t wish to, you have the right to take your business elsewhere. I will work to provide more guidance for you and your family as needed, and I vow to craft more legislation next session that further protects your God-given freedoms.”
Senator Shamp shared four laws:
- In 2021, A.R.S. 44-7951 was enacted to protect businesses in Arizona from being required to enforce a mask mandate established by state, city, county and town governments, or any other jurisdiction within Arizona.
- In 2022, A.R.S. 1-611 was enacted to protect students under the age of 18 at public district or charter schools from being required to wear a mask without the express consent of the child’s parent or guardian.
- Additionally in 2022, A.R.S 36-681 was enacted to protect the public from forced masking at any government building or premises, except where long-standing workplace safety and infection control measures that are unrelated to COVID-19 may be required.
- Furthermore, should the Governor implement a state of emergency for “public health” reasons, last year’s enacted A.R.S 26-303 would require the Governor to first get permission from the Legislature in order to extend the emergency past 120 days.
Reports have surged about an increase in COVID-19 cases with the spread of the EG.5 (“Eris”), FL.1.5.1 (“Fornax”), and BA.2.86 (“Pirola”). These developments have led to the return of some masking requirements around the nation. In Atlanta, Morris Brown College sent an email to its faculty, staff, and students, announcing the reinstatement of its COVID-19 mask mandate because of “reports of positive cases among students in the Atlanta University Center.” The college also reimposed physical distancing and gathering restrictions on campus.
The movie studio Lionsgate in Los Angeles also brought back its mask mandate for the office, as did Kaiser Permanente for its Santa Rosa (California) hospital and medical offices.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently warned, “This week’s national ensemble predicts that the number of daily COVID-19 hospital admissions will increase, with 1,100 to 7,500 daily COVID-19 hospital admissions likely reported on September 18.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
