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Pfizer shots protect kids from severe COVID even in omicron

AP Medical Writer Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine gave children 5 and older strong protection against hospitalization and death even during the omicron surge that hit youngsters especially hard, U.S. health officials reported Tuesday. New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention come a day after a study of New York children suggested the vaccine may not be as effective in 5- to 11-year-olds as in older kids -- especially at blocking milder infections. That data raised the question of whether kid-sized doses given to those under 12 might be too low. But the CDC said data ...

California, Oregon, Washington to drop school mask mandates

Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Schoolchildren in California, Oregon and Washington will no longer be required to wear masks as part of new indoor mask policies the Democratic governors of all three states announced jointly on Monday. “With declining case rates and hospitalizations across the West, California, Oregon and Washington are moving together to update their masking guidance,” the governors said in a statement. There are more than 7.5 million school-age children across the three states, which have had some of the strictest coronavirus safety measures during the ...

Nearly half of Biden’s 500M free COVID tests still unclaimed

Associated Press WASHINGTON — Nearly half of the 500 million free COVID-19 tests the Biden administration recently made available to the public still have not been claimed as virus cases plummet and people feel less urgency to test. Wild demand swings have been a subplot in the pandemic, from vaccines to hand sanitizer, along with tests. On the first day of the White House test giveaway in January, COVIDtests.gov received over 45 million orders. Now officials say fewer than 100,000 orders a day are coming in for the packages of four free rapid tests per household, delivered by ...

As ‘stealth omicron’ advances, scientists are learning more

AP Science Writer The coronavirus mutant widely known as “stealth omicron” is now causing more than a third of new omicron cases around the world, but scientists still don’t know how it could affect the future of the pandemic. Researchers are slowly revealing clues about the strain, a descendant of omicron known as BA.2, while warily watching it become ever more prevalent. “We’re all keeping an eye on BA.2 just because it has done particularly well in some parts of the world,” including parts of Asia, Africa and Europe, said Dr. Wesley Long, a pathologist at Houston ...

CDC to significantly ease pandemic mask guidelines today

Associated Press WASHINGTON — The Biden administration will significantly loosen federal mask-wearing guidelines to protect against COVID-19 transmission today, according to two people familiar with the matter, meaning most Americans will no longer be advised to wear masks in indoor public settings. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday will announce a change to the metrics it uses to determine whether to recommend face coverings, shifting from looking at COVID-19 case counts to a more holistic view of risk from the coronavirus to a community. Under current ...

US vaccination drive is bottoming out as omicron subsides

Associated Press HAMILTON, Ala. — A handwritten log kept by nurses tells the story of the losing battle to get more people vaccinated against COVID-19 in this corner of Alabama: Just 14 people showed up at the Marion County Health Department for their initial shot during the first six weeks of the year. That was true even as hospitals in and around the county of roughly 30,000 people filled with virus patients and the death toll climbed. On many days, no one got a first shot at all, while a Mexican restaurant up the street, Los Amigos, was full of unmasked diners at ...