Tag Archives: coronavirus

The New York Times reports: Pfizer and BioNTech said Wednesday that laboratory tests suggest that three doses of their coronavirus vaccine offers significant protection against the fast-spreading Omicron variant of the virus. The companies said that tests of blood from individuals who received only two doses found more than a 25-fold reduction in antibody levels against the Omicron variant compared …

The Associated Press reports: A federal judge on Tuesday blocked President Joe Biden’s administration from enforcing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for employees of federal contractors, the latest in a string of victories for Republican-led states pushing back against Biden’s pandemic policies. U.S. District Judge R. Stan Baker, in Augusta, Georgia, issued a stay to bar enforcement of the mandate nationwide. …

The Hill reports: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is recommending that Americans avoid travel to France, Jordan and Portugal and several other countries because of a “very high level of COVID-19” within their borders. The CDC on Monday also issued Level 4: Do Not Travel advisories for Tanzania, Liechtenstein, Cyprus and Andorra. The agency noted, however, that …

Gallup reports: Republicans are less likely now than they were in the past to say they are confident in the accuracy of important medical advice their doctor gives them. Currently, 60% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents are confident, down from 73% in 2010 and 70% in 2002. These results are based on Gallup’s annual Health and Healthcare survey, conducted Nov. …

The New York Times reports: President Donald J. Trump’s blood oxygen level sank to a precariously low level after he announced that he had tested positive for the coronavirus last year, according to a new book by Mark Meadows, his former chief of staff. The new details contradict Mr. Trump’s denials this year that his Covid bout was more dire …

The Washington Post reports: When he first learned he had tested positive for the corona­virus, President Donald Trump was already aboard Air Force One, en route to a massive rally in Middletown, Pa. With him on the plane that Saturday evening were dozens of people — senior aides, Air Force One personnel, junior staffers, journalists and other members of the …

USA Today reports: A new study found that the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine serves as an effective booster on top of full vaccination from the Pfizer vaccine. A J&J booster, administered six months after two doses of the Pfizer vaccine, increased antibody and T-cell responses, according to the study, demonstrating potential benefits of mix-and-match boosters. “There is early evidence …

Playbook reports:  The Gridiron Club met last night for a members-and-spouses-only dinner at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown D.C., where two marquee-name politicians — former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) — skewered themselves, each other, the audience and two men who were not in attendance: Donald Trump and Joe Biden. Christie said, “I joke about …

NPR reports: Since May 2021, people living in counties that voted heavily for Donald Trump during the last presidential election have been nearly three times as likely to die from COVID-19 as those who live in areas that went for now-President Biden. That’s according to a new analysis by NPR that examines how political polarization and misinformation are driving a …

ABC News reports: Ten people aboard a Norwegian Cruise Line ship approaching New Orleans have tested positive for COVID-19, officials said Saturday night. The Norwegian Breakaway had departed New Orleans on Nov. 28 and is due to return this weekend, the Louisiana Department of Health said in a news release. Over the past week, the ship made stops in Belize, …

The Associated Press reports: Northern California parents knowingly sent their COVID-19 positive child and a sibling to school last month in violation of isolation and quarantine rules, causing a coronavirus outbreak in an elementary school, officials said Saturday. The parents could face a fine or a misdemeanor charge for violating Marin County’s health order, under which people who test positive …

Reuters reports: Outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Germans on Saturday to get vaccinated against COVID-19 to help turn the tide on a fourth wave of cases that she said had become “dramatic” in parts of the country. “We are in a very serious situation. In some parts of the country you can only describe it as dramatic: overfilled intensive care …

The New York Times reports: Underscoring growing concerns about Omicron, scientists in South Africa said on Friday that the newest coronavirus variant appears to spread more than twice as quickly as Delta, until now the most contagious version of the virus. Omicron’s rapid spread results from a combination of contagiousness and an ability to dodge the body’s immune defenses, the …

The Guardian reports: An Italian man is facing charges of fraud after turning up for his Covid-19 vaccine wearing a fake arm. So determined was he to dodge the jab but still obtain a health pass, the anti-vaxxer may have paid hundreds of euros for the silicone prosthetic. The bizarre episode at a vaccine hub in Biella, a town close …

The Washington Post reports: South Africa’s new daily coronavirus cases have almost tripled in three days, according to new figures released Thursday, raising alarms over the possible spread of the new omicron variant recently detected by the country’s scientists. New daily confirmed cases rose to 11,535 on Thursday from 8,561 on Wednesday and 4,373 the previous day, according to official …

Reuters reports: New rules requiring international air travelers arriving in the United States to obtain a negative COVID-19 test within one day of travel will take effect Monday at 12:01 a.m. ET (0501 GMT), according to an order issued late Thursday. Under current rules, vaccinated international air travelers can present a negative test result obtained within three days of their …

CNN reports: As Florida Republicans, led by Gov. Ron DeSantis, escalate their fight against President Joe Biden’s coronavirus vaccine mandate, they are testing a new method to support resisters: giving taxpayer money to the unvaccinated. Florida is one of a handful of states that now ensures people who refuse the shot remain eligible for unemployment benefits if they lose their …

New York City’s ABC News affiliate reports: The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) announced Thursday that it has a confirmed case of the COVID-19 omicron variant in a resident with a recent travel history to New York City. Officials only identified the patient with the omicron variant as a vaccinated adult male who lives in Hennepin County. The person spoke …

The New York Times reports: President Biden, confronting a worrisome new coronavirus variant and the potential of a winter surge, laid out a new pandemic strategy on Thursday that includes hundreds of vaccination sites aimed at families, boosters for all adults, new testing requirements for international travelers and free at-home tests that will be covered by private insurers or available …

Posted to Facebook last week: Tonight, I’m asking for prayers for my Close friend and fellow servant of God John Adams. John lost his wife for 48 years yesterday and tonight he battles Covid pneumonia in the intensive care unit at a hospital in Knoxville. John is an amazing and compassionate friend. He has touched so many lives. John, I …