Health

Arizona can’t use COVID money for anti-mask grants, feds say

By Collin Binkley, Associated Press

In a letter to Ducey, the Treasury Department said the grant programs are "not a permissible use" of the funding.

Dr. Francis Collins, who led fight against cancer and COVID, steps down as NIH head

By Dino Hazell, Associated Press

Dr. Francis S. Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health for 12 years, said Tuesday he is stepping down, capping a career in which he directed crucial research into the human genome and the fight against serious diseases like…

Australia won’t welcome foreign tourists until at least 2022

By Rod McGuirk, Associated Press

Australia's prime minister says foreign tourists won’t be welcomed back until at least next year. Prime Minister Scott Morrison outlined plans Tuesday for lifting some of the toughest and longest COVID-19 travel restrictions imposed by any democracy.

J&J seeks U.S. clearance for COVID-19 vaccine booster doses

By Matthew Perrone, Associated Press

Johnson & Johnson asked the Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday to allow extra shots of its COVID-19 vaccine as the U.S. government moves toward expanding its booster campaign to millions more vaccinated Americans.

Trial against pharmacy chains’ opioid sales begins

By Mark Gillispie, Associated Press

Jurors have heard opening statements in a federal court trial to determine whether retail pharmacy chains created a public nuisance in how they dispensed addictive painkillers in two Ohio counties.

Southwest is latest airline to mandate vaccines for workers

By Associated Press

The Dallas-based company said its workers must be fully vaccinated by Dec. 8 in order to continue working at the airline.

Ship’s anchor among possible causes of California oil spill

By Amy Taxin, Christopher Weber, Associated Press

The spill sent up to 126,000 gallons (572,807 liters) of heavy crude into the ocean. It contaminated the sands of famed Huntington Beach and other coastal communities.

Biden lifts abortion referral ban on family planning clinics

By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Associated Press

Monday's action by the Department of Health and Human Services lifts a Trump-era restriction as political and legal battles over abortion grow sharper from Texas to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Company suspected in oil spill had dozens of violations

By Amy Taxin, Christopher Weber, Associated Press

The company is under scrutiny after a suspected leak in an underwater pipeline fouled the sands of famed Huntington Beach and other coastal communities.