Health & Safety

Health & Safety

Experts hope COVID-19 will evolve to be more like the common cold

6:35am January 12, 2022

by Rob Stein

Some infectious disease experts think there may be something of a silver lining with the omicron surge. It may leave a blanket of enhanced immunity that leaves the virus easier to live with.

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Health & Safety

Medicare considers covering expensive Alzheimer's drug for those in clinical trials

6:35am January 12, 2022

by Jon Hamilton

Under a proposal announced Tuesday, Medicare would cover the expensive and controversial Alzheimer's drug Aduhelm — but only for those participating in clinical trials.

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News brief: omicron overwhelms ERs, NATO-Russia talks, Trump interview

6:02am January 12, 2022

The U.S. hits another COVID record. NATO officials meet with a Russian delegation to try to prevent another invasion of Ukraine. Pressed on election lies, ex-President Trump cuts NPR interview short.

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Health & Safety

As the omicron surge overwhelms emergency rooms, hospitals can't keep up

6:02am January 12, 2022

In the U.S., more people are hospitalized for COVID-19 than at any other point in the pandemic. The omicron variant has slammed ERs, but doctors say this surge feels different than earlier ones.

Health & Safety

Omicron is driving test and treatment shortages — what this means for the Triad

6:00am January 12, 2022

by April Laissle

The omicron variant of COVID-19 has driven a massive surge in case numbers that has Triad health care providers desperate for relief.

A medical worker takes swab samples on residents in central China's Henan province. The northern city of Tianjin ordered a second round of testing on all 14 million residents Wednesday.

China's Tianjin orders more testing on 14 million after omicron reaches city

4:59am January 12, 2022

by The Associated Press

The city of Tianjin ordered a second round of COVID-19 testing on Wednesday in the city about an hour from Beijing, which is set to host the Winter Olympics from February 4th.

In this photo provided by Tokyo Zoological Park Society, Japanese-born twin pandas Xiao Xiao, top, and Lei Lei, bottom, are seen together at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo, Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2022.

Twin panda cubs delight devoted fans at Tokyo zoo in a COVID shortened debut

4:05am January 12, 2022

by The Associated Press

Twin panda cubs made their first public appearance before delighted fans in Tokyo but only briefly for now — just for three days — due to a spike in COVID-19 cases driven by the omicron variant.

The Biogen Inc., headquarters is shown in Cambridge, Mass. Medicare says it will limit coverage of a $28,200-per-year Alzheimer's drug whose benefits have been questioned.

Medicare proposes covering expensive Alzheimer's drug for those in clinical trials

7:55pm January 11, 2022

by Jonathan Franklin

Aduhelm is the first treatment approved in the country to slow cognitive decline in those living with Alzheimer's. Doctors have refused to prescribe it, given the lack of data and evidence behind it.

Two of the children who came for a meal at a soup kitchen in Caracas run by the charity Alimenta la Solidaridad. It serves about 100 people and operates Monday through Friday.

Health & Safety

Why the kids of Venezuela aren't getting enough to eat

6:29pm January 11, 2022

by John Otis

Many are small for their age — a sign of a growing crisis of malnutrition. Government mismanagement is to blame, say political analysts. And there could be lifelong impacts for these children.

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Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief medical adviser to the president, holds up printouts from Sen. Rand Paul's reelection campaign website.

Dr. Fauci says GOP Sen. Paul's false accusations have sparked death threats

6:27pm January 11, 2022

by Brian Naylor

Fauci and Paul sparred at a Senate hearing on COVID-19, escalating exchanges the two have had throughout the pandemic. Fauci also said Paul is attempting to raise money off "a catastrophic epidemic."