COVID-19

WHO downgrades COVID pandemic, says it’s no longer emergency

GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization said Friday that COVID-19 no longer qualifies as a global emergency, marking a symbolic end to the devastating coronavirus pandemic that triggered once-unthinkable lockdowns, upended economies and killed millions of people worldwide. The…

US to lift most federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates next week

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration will end most of the last remaining federal COVID-19 vaccine requirements next week when the national public health emergency for the coronavirus ends, the White House said Monday. Vaccine requirements for federal workers and federal contractors, as…

Biden ends COVID national emergency after Congress acts

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. national emergency to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic ended Monday as President Joe Biden signed a bipartisan congressional resolution to bring it to a close after three years — weeks before it was set to expire alongside…

President Biden to end COVID-19 emergencies on May 11

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden informed Congress on Monday that he will end the twin national emergencies for addressing COVID-19 on May 11, as most of the world has returned closer to normalcy nearly three years after they were…

White House reveals winter COVID-19 plans, more free tests

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is once more making some free COVID-19 tests available to all U.S. households as it releases its contingency plans with coronavirus cases ticking upward this winter. After a three-month hiatus, the administration is making four rapid virus tests…

Test scores show historic COVID setbacks for kids across US

By COLLIN BINKLEY AP Education Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The COVID-19 pandemic caused historic learning setbacks for America’s children, sparing no state or region as it erased decades of academic progress and widened racial disparities, according to results of a…

CDC endorses updated COVID boosters, shots to begin soon

By LAURAN NEERGAARD AP Medical Writer The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has endorsed updated COIVD-19 boosters. The decision opens the way for a fall vaccination campaign that could blunt a winter surge if enough Americans roll up their…

CDC drops quarantine, screening recommendations for COVID-19

NEW YORK (AP) — The nation’s top public health agency on Thursday relaxed its COVID-19 guidelines, dropping the recommendation that Americans quarantine themselves if they come into close contact with an infected person. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention…

CDC advisers endorse more traditional Novavax COVID shot

U.S. adults who haven’t gotten any COVID-19 shots yet should consider a new option from Novavax -- a more traditional kind of vaccine, influential government advisers said Tuesday. Regulators authorized the nation’s first so-called protein vaccine against COVID-19 last week, but…

White House urges caution on COVID variants, pushes boosters

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is calling on people to exercise renewed caution about COVID-19, emphasizing the importance of getting booster shots for those who are eligible and wearing masks indoors as two new highly transmissible variants are spreading rapidly across…

US allows pharmacists to prescribe Pfizer’s COVID-19 pill

WASHINGTON (AP) — Pharmacists can prescribe the leading COVID-19 pill directly to patients under a new U.S. policy announced Wednesday that’s intended to expand use of Pfizer’s drug Paxlovid. The Food and Drug Administration said pharmacists can begin screening patients…

Shots for tots: COVID vaccinations start for US kids

By LINDSEY TANNER and ANGIE WANG Associated Press The nation’s youngest children are getting their chance at vaccines for COVID-19. Shots began Monday at a few locations, though they were expected to ramp up after the Juneteenth federal holiday. The…

US lifts COVID-19 test requirement for international travel

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is lifting its requirement that international travelers test negative for COVID-19 within a day before boarding a flight to the United States, ending one of the last remaining government mandates designed to contain the…

Officials: Millions of COVID-19 shots ordered for youngest

NEW YORK (AP) — Millions of COVID-19 vaccine doses have been ordered for small children in anticipation of possible federal authorization next week, White House officials say. The government allowed pharmacies and states to start placing orders last week, with…