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Coronavirus category, Page 31

Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
Clues about how society emerges from covid-19 can be gleaned by looking back on 1918 Spanish flu, experts say
Karen Baldridge rolled up her sleeve to get her covid-19 booster vaccine. “I’m trying to baby myself and (am) doing everything that I can to keep healthy,” she said this past week while at Excela Square at Norwin. “I feel there’s about a 90% chance I wouldn’t get (covid), but...
CDC awards $7.5 million grant to Allegheny County health department
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded $7.5 million in grant funding to the Allegheny County Health Department to boost its public health workforce and address covid-19 and related public health disparities in the county. “This funding is essential to address the ongoing challenge posed by covid-19, and it...
Local doctors cautiously optimistic about potential pill to treat covid-19
Local doctors said a pill to treat covid-19 could help keep patients healthy and ease the burden on overstrained hospitals, though they’re eyeing the drug with cautious optimism while awaiting final data. Merck & Co. on Friday announced its experimental pill cut hospitalizations and deaths in half for people recently...
U.S. hits 700,000 covid deaths just as cases begin to fall
MINNEAPOLIS — The United States reached its latest heartbreaking pandemic milestone Friday, eclipsing 700,000 deaths from covid-19 just as the surge from the delta variant is starting to slow down. It took 3 ½ months for the U.S. to go from 600,000 to 700,000 deaths, driven by the variant’s rampant...
Merck says experimental pill cuts covid hospitalizations, deaths by half
WASHINGTON — Drugmaker Merck said Friday that its experimental covid-19 pill reduced hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the coronavirus and that it would soon ask health officials in the U.S. and around the world to authorize its use. If cleared, the drug would be the...
Fewer Americans than ever remain opposed to getting a covid-19 vaccine, new poll finds
The number of Americans opposed to getting a covid-19 vaccine reached a new low this month, a poll found. The Gallup poll, conducted Sept. 13-19, found fewer respondents than ever said they don’t plan to get a coronavirus vaccine while more than ever said they are already vaccinated or plan...
Pa. officials calling thousands in effort to address bus driver shortage
Pennsylvania officials are searching statewide for school bus drivers as the driver shortage plaguing the nation continues to hit close to home. PennDOT is reaching out to about 375,000 people across the state who have commercial driver’s licenses to highlight the need for bus drivers and the process for obtaining...
United says some workers facing termination got vaccinated
DALLAS — United Airlines says the number of employees facing termination for refusing to get vaccinated against covid-19 has dropped nearly by half, to 320, as more workers provide evidence of vaccination. An airline spokeswoman said Thursday that the declining number of potential firings shows that the company’s policy of...
At last minute, Pa. lawmakers vote to extend dozens of covid-19 waivers
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania legislature unanimously voted Wednesday to extend dozens of regulatory waivers put into place last year to help...
Woman who survived 1918 flu, world war succumbs to covid
She lived a life of adventure that spanned two continents. She fell in love with a World War II fighter pilot, barely escaped Europe ahead of Benito Mussolini’s fascists, ground steel for the U.S. war effort and advocated for her disabled daughter in a far less enlightened time. She was,...
It’s flu vaccine time, even if you’ve had your covid shots
Amid all the focus on covid-19 vaccinations, U.S. health experts have another plea: Don’t skip your flu shot. Flu cases have dropped to historically low levels during the pandemic. The U.S. and Europe experienced hardly any flu last winter, and the Southern Hemisphere just ended its second flu season of...
Excela Health limiting visitors at its 3 emergency departments
Excela Health is asking visitors to the emergency departments at its three hospitals to stay in their vehicles until their loved one is discharged. Visitors to the emergency departments will be limited effective immediately. Hospital systems around the country have made similar restrictions in recent weeks and months. Exceptions will...
Covid cases, deaths rising among younger Allegheny County residents
As covid-19 cases have continued to rise, particularly among younger people, so too have deaths, said Allegheny Health Director Dr. Debra Bogen. Five people in the 25- to 49-year-old age group have died so far in September, Bogen said. “If you’re young and healthy and you get covid, there’s a...
5 things to know about covid-19 vaccine booster shots
Some people who are at risk for severe complications from covid-19 are now eligible for a booster dose of the Pfizer vaccine. First of all, the booster — a third dose of the mRNA covid-19 vaccine — is identical to the original doses. Here’s what people should know if they...
Pfizer vaccine for children may not be available until November
WASHINGTON — Pfizer has submitted research to the Food and Drug Administration on the effectiveness of its covid-19 vaccine in children but the shots may not be available until November. The company said Tuesday it provided health regulators with data from a recent study of its vaccine in children 5...
How many parents would get young children vaccinated against covid? What a poll found
A new poll found a slim majority of parents would get their young children vaccinated against covid-19. The Gallup poll released Tuesday found 55% of parents with children under 12 plan to get them a coronavirus vaccine when one is authorized for use in younger kids while 45% said they...
Employer vaccine mandates convert some workers, but not all
NEW YORK — Businesses that have announced vaccine mandates say some workers who had been on the fence have since gotten inoculated against covid-19. But many holdouts remain — a likely sign of what is to come once a federal mandate goes into effect. Even before President Joe Biden’s Sept....
Pfizer submits vaccine data from kids 5-11 to FDA
NEW YORK — Pfizer has submitted research to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on the effectiveness of its covid-19 vaccine in children as it moves closer to seeking approval for expanded use of the shots. The drugmaker and its partner, Germany’s BioNTech, say they expect to request emergency use...
Federal judges: New York City can impose vaccine mandate on teachers
NEW YORK — The nation’s largest school district can immediately impose a vaccine mandate on its teachers and other workers, after all, a federal appeals panel decided Monday, leading lawyers for teachers to say they’ll ask the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene. The city’s Department of Education said the mandate...
Biden gets covid-19 booster shot after authorization
President Joe Biden received his covid-19 booster shot on Monday, days after federal regulators recommended a third dose of the Pfizer vaccine for Americans age 65 or older and approved them for others with preexisting medical conditions and high-risk work environments. “The most important thing we need to do is...
Vaccination deadline arrives for NY healthcare workers 
ALBANY, N.Y. — As the deadline closed in for hospital and nursing home workers in New York state to be vaccinated against covid-19, Gov. Kathy Hochul made an 11th-hour plea to holdout health care workers to get inoculated. “To those who have not yet made that decision, please do the...
Measure on masking in youth sports clears Pa. House committee
HARRISBURG — Legislation that cleared a House committee on Monday would give Pennsylvania school districts the authority to decide whether student athletes must wear masks while playing. The Republican-controlled House State Government Committee approved the measure 15-10 along party lines. It would give “exclusive authority” to schools, recreational clubs, community...
CDC director warns of ‘dire straits’ in covid-hit areas of U.S. 
WASHINGTON — Parts of the U.S. health system “are in dire straits,” as the spread of the covid-19 delta variant forces some states to prepare for rationed medical care, said Rochelle Walensky, head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “That means that we are talking about who...
U.S. has enough covid-19 vaccines for boosters, kids’ shots 
MADISON, Wis. — With more than 40 million doses of coronavirus vaccines available, U.S. health authorities said they’re confident there will be enough for both qualified older Americans seeking booster shots and the young children for whom initial vaccines are expected to be approved in the not-too-distant future. The spike...
Federal judge deals blow to vaccine mandate for NYC teachers
NEW YORK — New York City schools have been temporarily blocked from enforcing a vaccine mandate for its teachers and other workers by a federal appeals judge just days before it was to take effect. The worker mandate for the the nation’s largest school system was set to go into...


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