Dec 21 WATCH: Biden announces 500 million free tests, other changes to COVID-19 strategy By Josh Boak, Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Colleen Long, Associated Press Biden is expected on Tuesday to detail major changes to his COVID-19 winter plan, his hand forced by the arrival of the fast-spreading variant, whose properties are yet not fully understood by scientists. Continue reading
Dec 20 Watch 10:19 Vaccines reduce hospitalizations, but slow testing and rapid omicron spread worry experts By Stephanie Sy, Claire Mufson The rapid and relentless spread of COVID-19 in the midst of a new variant of the coronavirus is leading to growing alarm just ahead of the holidays. Omicron infections are exploding amid a shortage of testing, and governments are imposing… Continue watching
Dec 20 Watch 9:03 Dr. Collins reflects on career at NIH, COVID response effort, work on genome sequencing Judy Woodruff speaks to Dr. Francis Collins, who is retiring from his role as director of the National Institutes of Health after more than a decade, about his career. He warned that the U.S. may face a million COVID cases… Continue watching
Dec 20 Less than a month after discovery, Omicron now 73 percent of U.S. COVID-19 cases By Mike Stobbe, Associated Press Omicron has raced ahead of other variants and is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the U.S. Federal health officials said Monday that omicron accounted for an estimated 73% of new infections last week. Continue reading
Dec 20 Low-income shoppers face inflation squeeze for holiday budgets By Anne D'Innocenzio Retailers expect record-breaking sales for the holiday shopping season, but low-income customers are struggling as they bear the brunt of the highest inflation in 39 years. Continue reading
Dec 19 Watch 4:46 Prices for new and used cars skyrocket leading up to the holidays By PBS NewsHour With the auto industry still reeling from a computer chip shortage and low production due to COVID-19 shutdowns, rising car prices show no signs of abating soon—and consumers are bearing the brunt of it, with record high average asking prices… Continue watching
Dec 19 Omicron may sideline two leading drugs against COVID-19 By Matthew Perrone, Associated Press As strained U.S. hospitals brace for a new surge of COVID-19 cases caused by the fast-spreading omicron variant, doctors are warning of yet another challenge: the two standard drugs they’ve used to fight infections are unlikely to work against the… Continue reading
Dec 19 Restaurants anxious as omicron, high food costs take toll By Dee-Ann Durbin, Mae Anderson, Sylvia Hui, Associated Press Many businesses said hundreds of festive corporate lunch bookings vanished almost overnight as infections began to soar and Johnson announced tighter restrictions, including mandatory mask-wearing in most indoor spaces, though restaurants are open as usual. Continue reading
Dec 18 Watch 5:20 Why the U.S. is lagging behind in rapid COVID-19 testing By PBS NewsHour With the holidays approaching and the omicron variant surging in some parts of the U.S., demand for rapid and at-home COVID-19 tests is higher than ever, and the wait at large PCR test sites can be several hours in some… Continue watching
Dec 18 Netherlands ‘going into lockdown again’ to curb omicron By Danica Kirka, Mike Corder, Associated Press Schools, universities, and all non-essential stores, bars and restaurants in the Netherlands will be closed until Jan. 14 starting Sunday, caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte said Saturday night. Continue reading