Thursday, December 19

Tag: COVID-19

COVID infections on the rise as new year begins
2Jan By adminNo Comments
Health

COVID infections on the rise as new year begins

COVID infections on the rise as new year begins - CBS News Watch CBS News A rise in COVID-19 infections has prompted at least five states to reinstate mask requirements at health care facilities. Elise Preston reports. Be the first to know Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Not Now Turn On
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New COVID variant JN.1 surges to 44% of cases, CDC estimates — even higher in New York, New Jersey
24Dec By adminNo Comments
Health

New COVID variant JN.1 surges to 44% of cases, CDC estimates — even higher in New York, New Jersey

The new COVID-19 variant that scientists call JN.1 now makes up about 44.1% of COVID-19 cases across the country, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated Friday, marking another week of the fast-spreading variant's steep rise in the U.S.The increase is more than two times larger than the 21.3% that the CDC now estimates the strain made up of infections for the week ending Dec. 9, after Thanksgiving.Among regions with enough data reported from testing labs to produce these latest projections, the CDC estimates that JN.1's prevalence is largest in the Northeast region spanning New Jersey and New York, where the strain is 56.9% of cases in those states. "JN.1's continued growth suggests that the variant is either more transmissible or bett...
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Flu and COVID-19 infections rise ahead of holiday gatherings
23Dec By adminNo Comments
Health

Flu and COVID-19 infections rise ahead of holiday gatherings

Flu and COVID-19 infections rise ahead of holiday gatherings - CBS News Watch CBS News An increase in COVID-19 and flu infection rates could get worse in coming weeks, fueled by holiday gatherings and low vaccination rates. CBS News' Lilia Luciano shares what you can do to keep yourself and your loved ones safe. Be the first to know Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Not Now Turn On
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Are COVID-19 symptoms still the same? What to know about this winter’s JN.1 wave
21Dec By adminNo Comments
Health

Are COVID-19 symptoms still the same? What to know about this winter’s JN.1 wave

Reports of respiratory illness have now reached "high" or "very high" levels across at least 16 state or big city health departments, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, as trends of COVID-19 and influenza have accelerated in many parts of the country. And while a fast-growing new COVID variant called JN.1 is estimated to be driving a large share of the current winter wave of infections, officials say there have so far been no signs of new or unusual symptoms caused by the virus.Here's the latest about what we know about this winter's wave so far.Are COVID-19 symptoms still the same?Experts caution that teasing out subtle changes to the symptoms being caused by different COVID-19 variants has proven tricky, given the now wide-ranging variety of antibodies that people have...
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WHO declares new JN.1 COVID strain a “variant of interest.” Here’s what that means.
20Dec By adminNo Comments
Health

WHO declares new JN.1 COVID strain a “variant of interest.” Here’s what that means.

The World Health Organization announced Tuesday it would step up its classification of the new COVID-19 variant JN.1 to a standalone "variant of interest," after tracking the strain's rapid ascent around the world. Health officials have been careful to say that JN.1 has so far not been found to lead to different or more severe symptoms compared to previous variants.However, the WHO said JN.1's "rapidly increasing spread" in multiple parts of the world was enough to warrant ungrouping the strain from its slower-moving ancestor BA.2.86."JN.1 continues to be reported in multiple countries, and its prevalence has been rapidly increasing globally and now represents the vast majority of BA.2.86 descendent lineages reported," the WHO wrote. What is a variant o...
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COVID and flu surge could strain hospitals as JN.1 variant grows, CDC warns
16Dec By adminNo Comments
Health

COVID and flu surge could strain hospitals as JN.1 variant grows, CDC warns

Hospitals and emergency rooms could be forced to ration care by the end of this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned Thursday, saying recent trends in COVID-19 and influenza are now on track to again strain America's health care system. The new COVID variant JN.1 is making up an increasing share of cases, the CDC's tracking shows."COVID-19 hospitalizations are rising quickly," the agency said in its weekly update. "Since the summer, public health officials have been tracking a rise in multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), which is caused by COVID-19. Influenza activity is growing in most parts of the country. RSV activity remains high in many areas." The CDC has been urging people to get vaccinated as the peak of this year's mix of three seasonal r...
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COVID-19 now increasing again, especially in Midwest and Mid-Atlantic, CDC says
1Dec By adminNo Comments
Health

COVID-19 now increasing again, especially in Midwest and Mid-Atlantic, CDC says

Several key COVID-19 trends that authorities track are now accelerating around the country, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Friday. It's the first major nationwide uptick in the spread of the virus seen in months.The largest increases are in the Midwest and the Mid-Atlantic, the agency said in its weekly report updated Friday, though virtually all regions of the country are now seeing accelerations.Data reported by the agency from emergency rooms and wastewater sampling have tracked some of the steepest increases so far this season in the region spanning Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. Rates of infections of nursing home residents across this Midwestern region have also soared in recent weeks, higher ...
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Schools across the U.S. will soon be able to order free COVID tests
30Nov By adminNo Comments
Health

Schools across the U.S. will soon be able to order free COVID tests

Schools across the country will soon have the ability to order free COVID tests, courtesy of the Biden administration, the U.S. Department of Education announced Wednesday. The tests will be available starting in December, and schools can use them to supply students, families, staff and larger school communities."These self-tests are easy to use and can play an important role in preventing the spread of COVID-19," said Roberto Rodriguez, the Education Department's assistant secretary for planning, evaluation and policy development."We encourage schools to make use of these free resources to safeguard students, parents, and staff throughout the 2023-24 school year." COVID-19 antigen rapid test kits are pictured. ...
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COVID variant BA.2.86 triples in new CDC estimates, now 8.8% of cases
29Nov By adminNo Comments
Health

COVID variant BA.2.86 triples in new CDC estimates, now 8.8% of cases

Nearly 1 in 10 new COVID-19 cases in the U.S. are from the BA.2.86 variant, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated Monday, nearly triple what the agency estimated the highly mutated variant's prevalence was two weeks ago. Among the handful of regions with enough specimens reported from testing laboratories, BA.2.86's prevalence is largest in the Northeast: 13.1% of cases in the New York and New Jersey region are blamed on the strain.Monday's figures mark the first time BA.2.86's prevalence has surged enough to be listed as a standalone variant on the CDC's estimates. Scientists first warned of the highly mutated strain's discovery over the summer.  "In previous Nowcast updates, BA.2.86 was too uncommon to be shown separately and was gr...
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Tips for staying healthy as experts warn of possible holiday surge in respiratory illnesses like RSV, COVID
23Nov By adminNo Comments
Health

Tips for staying healthy as experts warn of possible holiday surge in respiratory illnesses like RSV, COVID

Experts are warning of a possible holiday surge in respiratory illness, including RSV, COVID and the flu. CBS News medical contributor and KFF editor-at-large for public health Dr. Celine Gounder sat down with "CBS Mornings" to discuss what people can do to try to stay healthy during the holidays. Gounder said it's not too late to get a flu or COVID vaccine before the holidays, as well as an RSV shot for those eligible. When it comes to RSV, those most at risk are people over 60, and babies. "There are three tools, really, here available," Gounder said, including a monoclonal antibody that can be given to infants under the age of 6 months and a second monoclonal antibody that can be given to infants who are 8-19 months old.  The third option is an RSV v...
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