Tag Archives: coronavirus

The New York Times reports: Seventy-five percent of people who have died of the virus in the United States — or about 600,000 of the nearly 800,000 who have perished so far — have been 65 or older. One in 100 older Americans has died from the virus. For people younger than 65, that ratio is closer to 1 in …

The Washington Post reports: The number of active-duty U.S. military personnel declining to be vaccinated against the coronavirus by their prescribed deadlines is as high as 40,000, with new Army data showing that, days ahead of its cutoff, 3 percent of soldiers either have rejected President Biden’s mandate or sought a long-shot exemption. Military leaders have few options to address …

Politico Europe reports: Britain faces an oncoming “tidal wave” of cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant, Boris Johnson warned, as he promised all eligible adults in England a third vaccine dose by the end of December. Speaking in a pre-recorded address to the nation Sunday night, the U.K. prime minister urged Britons to get their “booster” dose and launched what …

Reuters reports: Two-dose COVID-19 vaccine regimens do not induce enough neutralising antibodies against the Omicron coronavirus variant, British scientists found, indicating that increased infections in those previously infected or vaccinated may be likely. Researchers from the University of Oxford published results on Monday from a study yet to be peer-reviewed, where they analysed blood samples from participants who were given …

Reuters reports: The United States on Sunday reached 800,000 coronavirus-related deaths, as the nation braces for a potential surge in infections due to more time spent indoors with colder weather and the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the virus. The milestone means the U.S. death toll from this one virus now exceeds the entire population of North Dakota. Even with …

The Hill reports: White House medical adviser Anthony Fauci on Sunday said health officials will “have to deal with it” if it is determined that another COVID-19 booster shot is necessary to protect against the virus, but said he is hoping that additional jabs will not be needed due to protection from initial booster shots. “If it becomes necessary to …

The Washington Post reports: European leaders and scientists warned Friday that the omicron variant could become dominant in some countries startlingly soon, overtaking the delta variant, which has remained the most common version of the virus globally for months. “We expect it to overtake delta within days, not weeks,” Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister of Scotland, said Friday about the …

CNN reports: A formal investigation has been launched by the University of Florida after an internal report detailed a culture of fear among faculty members claiming political influence on campus as well as instances of Covid-19 research data being destroyed and delayed. Vice President of UF Research David Norton announced the investigation in an email to faculty and staff Friday …

The Associated Press reports: Tighter restrictions to curb the coronavirus came into force in Britain on Friday, as the government faced new allegations that officials flouted rules they had imposed on the nation with lockdown-breaking parties last Christmas. Face masks are once again compulsory in indoor public spaces in England under the measures British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced this …

The Washington Post reports: A slim majority of American adults support religious exemptions to coronavirus vaccine mandates, but most also say that too many people are using their faith as an excuse to avoid immunization, a new survey found. The poll by the Public Religion Research Institute and the Interfaith Youth Core found that 51 percent of adults favor letting …

The New York Daily News reports: Gov. Hochul issued a statewide mask mandate on Friday, ordering the use of face coverings in all New York businesses that do not require proof of vaccination, as the state grapples with a winter wave of coronavirus cases that continues to stretch hospitals thin. The directive will enter force on Monday and last for …

ABC News reports: Kentucky’s governor declared the state’s chronic nursing shortage to be an emergency Thursday, taking executive actions amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic to boost enrollment in nurse-training programs. Kentucky is projected to need more than 16,000 additional nurses by 2024, to help fill gaps caused by retirements and people leaving the profession, Gov. Andy Beshear said. Health leaders …

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports: Gov. Tony Evers is asking the Biden administration to send 100 federal health care workers to Wisconsin and is utilizing National Guard nurses in state mental health hospitals as hundreds of health care facilities say they need help to combat staffing shortages and a surge of COVID-19 cases. Hospitals and long-term care facilities in Wisconsin are …

The Associated Press reports: Vaccine makers are racing to update their COVID-19 shots against the newest coronavirus threat even before it’s clear a change is needed, just in case. Experts doubt today’s shots will become useless but say it’s critical to see how fast companies could produce a reformulated dose and prove it works — because whatever happens with omicron, …

The Washington Post reports: Across America, many of the nearly 50 million people infected with the coronavirus continue to suffer from some persistent symptoms, with a smaller subset experiencing such unbearable fatigue and other maladies that they can’t work, forcing them to drop out of the workforce, abandon careers and rack up huge debts. Hard data is not available and …

The New York Times reports: From the start of the pandemic, the coronavirus seemed to target people carrying extra pounds. Patients who were overweight or obese were more likely to develop severe Covid-19 and more likely to die. Though these patients often have health conditions like diabetes that compound their risk, scientists have become increasingly convinced that their vulnerability has …

Via press release from Maine Gov. Janet Mills: Governor Janet Mills announced today that she has activated additional members of the Maine National Guard to help alleviate short-term capacity constraints at hospitals and maintain access to inpatient health care services for Maine people amid a sustained surge of COVID-19. The Governor’s decision follows discussions with Maine’s hospital systems and comes …

The Hill reports: Researchers at the University of Florida allegedly felt pressured to delete COVID-19 data while working on a study for an undisclosed state entity, according to a report released on Monday by the Faculty Senate committee. The report stated that staff felt “external pressure to destroy” data, and “barriers to accessing and analyzing” data in a timely manner. Other …

The Daily Beast reports: Dr. Anthony Fauci said in an interview with CNN Wednesday that his previous position regarding the definition of what it means to be fully vaccinated has evolved. Changing the definition to include booster shots is now a matter of “when, not if,” he said, though he indicated that was his personal opinion. The statement comes a …

Chicago’s NBC News affiliate reports: An Illinois Democratic lawmaker has introduced legislation that would require individuals who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 to pay for their own medical expenses, including hospital bills, if they contract the virus. State Rep. Jonathon Carroll filed HB 4259 on Monday in Springfield. The legislation would impact those residents who choose not to receive …