COVID-19

WASHINGTON — The White House said Monday that President Biden will end dual national emergencies declared to deal with the COVID-19 public health crisis in May, nearly three years after they were first declared. The announcement came 24 hours before... Read More

WASHINGTON — House Republicans put more pressure on social media companies Thursday by introducing a bill that would block the Biden administration from trying to remove certain kinds of information from their websites. Republicans who introduced the bill said they... Read More

WASHINGTON — Three months after stopping the practice, the Biden administration is once again making free COVID-19 tests available to all U.S. households. The goal, administration officials said, is to stop a potential surge in COVID-19 cases heading into winter.... Read More

The incidence rate of infective endocarditis — a rare but often fatal inflammation of the heart valves — among patients with cocaine use disorder or opioid use disorder increased from 2011 to 2022, with the steepest increase occurring from 2021... Read More

WASHINGTON — Deep flaws in the nation’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic gave a glimpse into how to prepare for the next infectious outbreak, according to a report adopted Wednesday by a congressional panel. The hearing of the House Select... Read More

WASHINGTON — The United States will not support extending a Dec. 17 deadline for waiving intellectual property protection for COVID-19 tests and treatments, and instead is asking the U.S. International Trade Commission to first investigate market dynamics such as pricing,... Read More

ATLANTA — This year’s flu shot so far appears to be a “very good match” for the circulating strains, but more people — especially children, adults over 65 and pregnant women — need to take advantage of it to contain... Read More

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is making $350 million available to increase COVID-19 vaccinations at Health Resources and Services Administration-supported health facilities. The funding will support health centers administering updated COVID-19 vaccines through mobile, drive-up, walk-up or community-based vaccination events,... Read More

ATLANTA — The increased use of telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have resulted in individuals with addiction problems staying in treatment longer and reduced their likelihood of overdosing, according to a new study. The research was a... Read More

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland's high court is expected to rule soon on whether insurers for corporations whose businesses suffered because of the COVID-19 pandemic must cover the lost income. On Friday, the Maryland Court of Appeals heard arguments from fashion... Read More

WASHINGTON — The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday authorized updated COVID-19 booster shots specifically targeting a subvariant of omicron. The agency approved two options aimed at the BA.5 subvariant of omicron that is now dominant in the U.S.: one... Read More

NEW YORK — New York is keeping its COVID-19 vaccine mandate for municipal workers for now while Washington, D.C., is losing its mandate because of recent judges’ decisions. The differing court rulings within days of each other add to confusion... Read More

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Pharma giant Moderna sued Pfizer and BioNTech on Friday, claiming that their popular COVID vaccine was copied from groundbreaking science Moderna performed. In a statement posted on its website, Moderna said Pfizer and BioNTech infringed on patents... Read More

KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C — First Lady Dr. Jill Biden is isolating after a positive test for COVID-19 Tuesday morning, a spokesperson for her office said Tuesday. “After testing negative for COVID-19 on Monday during her regular testing cadence, the first... Read More

WASHINGTON — The new school year starts within weeks with questions about what protections against COVID-19 will be required of students still unresolved in many states and counties. Most states have eliminated vaccine requirements but some cling to masks, either as... Read More

WASHINGTON — Only days after the Justice Department announced successful prosecutions of drug runners and seizures of huge stashes of illegal opioids, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said what was on everyone’s mind at a Senate hearing Tuesday. “I think we... Read More

COVID-19 exacted a heavy, wide-ranging toll on our nation, but the time to rebuild and recover has mercifully arrived. Yet, many aspects of our society were already badly in need of repair before the pandemic. COVID highlighted and exacerbated those problems.... Read More

WASHINGTON — Come 12:01 a.m. Sunday, international travelers will no longer have to test negative for the coronavirus before coming to the United States. The Biden administration announced the major change in U.S. policy after the Centers for Disease Control... Read More

WASHINGTON — The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine hosted a two-day workshop this week, during which academy members examined the future of the public health emergency enterprise and what exactly went wrong with the U.S. public health response... Read More

WASHINGTON — The Department of Health and Human Services extended the COVID-19 public health emergency this week beyond the July 15 expiration to October. The eventual expiration of the declaration will lead to changes in certain flexibilities granted to Medicare... Read More

WASHINGTON — Animal disease experts at a congressional hearing Thursday described a bleak future for preventing wildlife viruses from jumping to humans before ballooning into pandemics without stronger government intervention. Human encroachment into the habitats of wild animals along with... Read More

WASHINGTON — An Iowa Supreme Court ruling on Friday that denied insurance coverage for COVID-19 losses to a golf club and a restaurant appears to be a sign of the times in lawsuits coming out of the pandemic. A day... Read More

WASHINGTON — This week the World Health Organization has begun monitoring two new subvariants of the omicron strain known as BA.4 and BA.5, adding to a lengthy tracking list which already includes omicron subvariants BA.2.12 and BA.2.12.1, and the new... Read More

WASHINGTON — Senate negotiators reached an agreement late Monday afternoon on a slimmed-down $10 billion COVID relief package that preserves vaccine and treatment regimes here, but eliminates virtually all funding for similar programs abroad. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.,... Read More

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden received a second booster dose of the Pfizer vaccine on Wednesday, a day after federal regulators approved a fourth shot for those aged 50 and older. He took the precautionary step as the White House... Read More

WASHINGTON — Bypassing its review panel of independent experts, the Food and Drug Administration authorized a fourth dose of the Pfizer and Moderna coronavirus vaccine for people 50 and older. The authorization for the fourth shot comes as an omicron... Read More

WASHINGTON — The U.S. is scaling back COVID-19 response efforts, despite a recent uptick of infections involving an omicron subvariant known as BA.2 which now accounts for about 35% of all positive COVID infections in the country.  “BA.2 is omicron... Read More

OTTAWA, Ont. — Canadian Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos announced on Thursday that the country would no longer require fully vaccinated travelers to show a negative coronavirus test prior to entering the country starting April 1. Duclos’ announcement comes as Canadian... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional leaders reached a bipartisan deal early Wednesday providing $13.6 billion to help Ukraine and European allies plus billions more to battle the pandemic as part of an overdue $1.5 trillion measure financing federal agencies for the... Read More

WASHINGTON — Hours after President Joe Biden declared “it’s time for Americans to get back to work” in his State of the Union address, the White House on Wednesday unveiled its updated plan for dealing with the next phase of... Read More