COVID-19

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

Omicron is fading away, and so are Americans' worries about COVID-19. As coronavirus pandemic case numbers, hospitalizations and deaths continue to plummet, fewer people now than in January say they are concerned that they will be infected after the rise and fall... Read More

WASHINGTON — It’ll be masks off for President Joe Biden’s first State of the Union address on Tuesday as the House is lifting the mask mandate that has been in place almost since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Brian... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration will significantly loosen federal mask-wearing guidelines to protect against COVID-19 transmission on Friday, according to two people familiar with the matter, meaning most Americans will no longer be advised to wear masks in indoor... Read More

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California became the first state to formally shift to an “endemic” approach to the coronavirus with Gov. Gavin Newsom's announcement Thursday of a plan that emphasizes prevention and quick reaction to outbreaks over mandated masking and... Read More

WASHINGTON — As COVID-19 deaths in the United States approach 1 million, maybe something worthwhile came out of the pandemic, biosecurity experts told a Senate panel Thursday. At least now Americans and their lawmakers are willing to dedicate the resources... Read More

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Police poured into downtown Ottawa on Thursday in what truckers feared was a prelude to a crackdown on their nearly three-week, street-clogging protest against Canada's COVID-19 restrictions. Work crews in the capital began erecting fences outside... Read More

WASHINGTON — The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship met Tuesday to discuss the role of immigrant physicians in the U.S. health care system. “Throughout the pandemic, immigrants in health care fields served on the front lines, and have... Read More

WASHINGTON — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cautioned again this week that it is too soon to stop wearing masks in a warning ignored by many states tired of limitations imposed by COVID-19. Meanwhile, an exodus of health... Read More

WASHINGTON — Members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions met this week to discuss how the pandemic helped to remove some of the barriers to employment for those living with disabilities and how those gains can... Read More

WASHINGTON — The American Hospital Association, health care organizations and nearly 200 members of Congress sent letters to White House officials in January requesting an investigation of nurse staffing agencies based on claims they’ve been exploiting staffing shortages during the... Read More

WASHINGTON — The U.S. surgeon general repeated his call to action Tuesday to resolve a mental health crisis among American young people that has deepened during the COVID-19 pandemic. U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy told a Senate panel that more... Read More

ARLINGTON, Va. — Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin cannot enforce a ban on face mask mandates in the state’s schools until the outcome of several pending cases on the issue are resolved, a state circuit court judge ruled Friday. Judge Louise... Read More

WASHINGTON — House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said Tuesday that he’s tested positive for COVID-19, becoming the latest fully vaccinated member of Congress to contract the virus. Hoyer, the second-ranking House Democrat, said in an email to reporters that... Read More

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Wednesday relaunched the “cancer moonshot” project he oversaw during the Obama administration in an East Room event attended by lawmakers, agency heads, and doctors, nurses and researchers, many of whom will comprise a new... Read More

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a second COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccine has been known as the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine; the approved vaccine, known as Spikevax, was approved after finding the vaccine met rigorous standards for... Read More

NEW YORK —Bowing to pressure from critics who claim it has contributed to the spread of COVID and vaccine misinformation, Spotify announced Sunday it plans to add warning labels to content that blurs the line between truth and fiction. “You’ve... Read More

WASHINGTON — Sens. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., are leading an effort to convince the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service to provide penalty relief for taxpayers amid what they describe as the “extensive”... Read More

CHICAGO — Despite an almost immediate infusion of emergency federal funding, the majority of America’s largest cities saw a sharp and lasting decline in their fiscal well-being when the coronavirus reared its ugly head, a new report says. Published by... Read More