Coronavirus category, Page 18
‘Don’t panic.’ How parents with kids too young to vaccinate can navigate omicron
As waves of the coronavirus battered the United States, parents of young kids could comfort themselves with the knowledge that covid-19 tends to have milder effects in children and that most — but not all — kids who get infected are fine. But even though it’s low-risk, many parents don’t...
Soaring covid-19 cases renew U.S. debate over mask mandates
Officials across the U.S. are again weighing how and whether to impose mask mandates as covid-19 infections soar and the American public grows ever wearier of pandemic-related restrictions. Much of the debate centers around the nation’s schools, some of which have closed due to infection-related staffing issues. In a variety...
Omicron wave prompts media to rethink which data to report
NEW YORK — For two years, coronavirus case counts and hospitalizations have been widely used barometers of the pandemic’s march across the world. But the omicron wave is making a mess of the usual statistics, forcing news organizations to rethink the way they report such figures. “It’s just a data...
Kids’ low covid-19 vaccination rates called a ‘gut punch’
Suspicion, misinformation, complacency and delays because of the holidays and bad weather have combined to produce alarmingly low covid-19 vaccination rates in U.S. children ages 5 to 11, authorities say. As of Tuesday, just over 17% were fully vaccinated, more than two months after shots for the age group became...
Anti-vaccine protesters try to storm Bulgarian parliament
SOFIA, Bulgaria — Protesters opposing covid-19 restrictions in Bulgaria clashed Wednesday with police as they tried to storm the Parliament in the capital of Sofia. A heavy police presence prevented protesters from entering the building and some were detained. Several people, including police officers, were injured during the clashes. Eventually,...
Biden is sending more covid tests to schools to keep them open
The Biden administration is increasing federal support for covid-19 testing for schools in a bid to keep them open amid the omicron surge. The White House announced Wednesday that a dedicated stream of 5 million rapid tests and 5 million lab-based PCR tests will be made available to schools starting...
West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice tests positive for covid-19
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice tested positive for covid-19 on Tuesday, his office announced. Justice had a sudden onset of symptoms, then was administered a PCR test that was positive for the coronavirus. A test by a state laboratory confirmed the initial result and an additional test...
Omicron may be headed for a rapid drop in U.S. and BritainVideo
Scientists are seeing signals that covid-19′s alarming omicron wave may have peaked in Britain and is about to do the same in the United States, at which point cases may start dropping off dramatically. The reason: The variant has proved so wildly contagious that it may already be running out...
Police: Nurse in Italy caught faking shots, ditching vaccine
ROME — Police in Italy have arrested a nurse on charges that he faked giving coronavirus vaccinations to at least 45 people so they could get a health pass fraudulently, ditching vaccines in a bin and even putting bandages on his “patients” so no one would suspect the scam. Police...
Some health officials letting covid-infected staff stay on the job
Health authorities around the United States are increasingly taking the extraordinary step of allowing nurses and other workers infected with coronavirus to stay on the job if they have mild symptoms or none at all. The move is a reaction to the severe hospital staffing shortages and crushing caseloads that...
Home covid tests to be covered by insurers starting SaturdayVideo
WASHINGTON — Starting Saturday, private health insurers will be required to cover up to eight home covid-19 tests per month for people on their plans. The Biden administration announced the change Monday as it looks to lower costs and make testing for the virus more convenient amid rising frustrations. Under...
Michigan sets record for covid hospitalizations amid 4th surge of virus
DETROIT — Michigan on Monday set a record for the highest number of patients hospitalized with covid-19 since the pandemic began in March 2020. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services reported 4,581 adults were hospitalized with confirmed infections, the highest number during the pandemic so far. Monday’s inpatient...
Port Authority to require covid-19 vaccination for all employees by mid-March
Port Authority of Allegheny County leaders will require all employees to be vaccinated against covid-19 by mid-March or face firing, officials said Monday. There will be no option for increased testing requirements for those who aren’t vaccinated. The policy goes into effect Feb. 1, and employees must be fully vaccinated...
U.S. hospitals letting infected staff members stay on the job
Hospitals around the U.S. are increasingly taking the extraordinary step of allowing nurses and other workers infected with the coronavirus to stay on the job if they have mild symptoms or none at all. The move is a reaction to the severe hospital staffing shortages and crushing caseloads that the...
UPMC opens covid-19 vaccine clinic in Pittsburgh’s Hill District
In an effort to make vaccines more easily accessible and combat vaccine hesitancy, UPMC opened a covid-19 vaccine clinic in Pittsburgh’s Hill District. “Access to vaccinations is not there for everybody,” said Rachel Marini, an infectious disease pharmacist at UPMC. In underserved communities like the Hill District, she said, it...
Will omicron finally free us from the covid shackles?
Maybe the record-setting omicron storm is the prelude to the sunnier place we’ve hoped for during two years of covid-19. Dr. John Goldman, a UPMC infectious disease specialist, believes it’s possible. He bases it on the fact ultra-contagious omicron is touching so many people so fast it won’t be much...
Pfizer seeks conditional EU authorization for covid pill
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The European drug regulator said Monday it has started evaluating an application by Pfizer for its pill to treat the effects of covid-19. The announcement comes as countries in much of the 27-nation bloc are reporting soaring numbers of infections as the highly transmissible omicron variant...
Pope on covid vaccines says health care a ‘moral obligation’
ROME — Pope Francis suggested Monday that getting vaccinated against the coronavirus was a “moral obligation” and denounced how people had been swayed by “baseless information” to refuse one of the most effective measures to save lives during the pandemic. Francis used some of his strongest words yet calling for...
Pitt students shelter in place to start spring semester
Students returning Monday to the University of Pittsburgh campus in Oakland for the start of the spring semester have been ordered to remain in their dorms and get tested to make sure they have not been infected with coronavirus. The university announced it will provide its approximately 34,000 returning students...
Stay home or work sick? Omicron poses a conundrum
As the raging omicron variant of covid-19 infects workers across the nation, millions of those whose jobs don’t provide paid sick days are having to choose between their health and their paycheck. While many companies instituted more robust sick leave policies at the beginning of the pandemic, some of those...
Moderna gives Mexico 2.7 million shots as deaths top 300,000
MEXICO CITY — The U.S. company Moderna donated 2.7 million doses of coronavirus vaccine to Mexico on Saturday as the country’s official death toll topped 300,000. Mexico passed 300,000 test-confirmed coronavirus deaths this week, but so little testing is done in the country that a government review of death certificates...
Omicron explosion spurs nationwide breakdown of services
Ambulances in Kansas speed toward hospitals then suddenly change direction because hospitals are full. Employee shortages in New York City cause delays in trash and subway services and diminish the ranks of firefighters and emergency workers. Airport officials shut down security checkpoints at the biggest terminal in Phoenix and schools...
Diocese of Pittsburgh announces new safety protocols in response to surges in covid
All Diocese of Pittsburgh priests, deacons, choir members and everyone entrusted with the distribution of Holy Communion must wear masks during Mass, according to new safety protocols announced by diocese officials Friday. The diocesan protocol updates are based on the surge in community spread of covid and the highly contagious...
Supreme Court casts doubt on Biden’s vaccine rule for the workplace
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court’s conservative majority cast doubt Friday on President Joe Biden’s plan to require that most American employees be vaccinated for covid-19 or undergo weekly testing. The justices agreed to weigh in on the partisan divide over vaccines and hear from lawyers for 27 Republican-led states, who...
Where are the covid-19 tests that Biden promised?
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden announced last month that the federal government will buy half a billion covid-19 rapid test kits and distribute them free to people to use at home. But despite high public demand for tests, it will still be several more weeks before these kits are available...
