Health & Safety

Health & Safety

Omicron cases could overwhelm an already fragile health system

7:56am December 17, 2021

NPR's Steve Inskeep talks to Dr. Craig Spencer of New York-Presbyterian and Columbia University Irving Medical Center in Manhattan, about the omicron variant's effect on medical care in the U.S.

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News brief: omicron variant, spending bill stalls, abortion pill decision

5:38am December 17, 2021

How bad could the pandemic get this winter because of the omicron variant? One of President Biden's key agenda items is stalled. The FDA relaxes restrictions on access to abortion pill by mail.

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We want to hear from you! What unexpected places did you find joy this year?

Health & Safety

How did you find joy this year? We want to hear from you!

5:01am December 17, 2021

It's been another tough pandemic year. Where did you find joy, delight or awe? Tell us what small corners, tiny moments, or specific rituals provide you refuge in stressful times.

Judge overturns settlement that protected the Sackler family from opioid lawsuits

9:52pm December 16, 2021

by Brian Mann

A federal judge has overturned a bankruptcy settlement worth more than $4 billion which granted immunity from opioid lawsuits to members of the Sackler family who own the company that makes Oxycontin.

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Doses of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine are stacked in boxes at the McKesson facility in Shepherdsville, Ky., on March 1.

Health & Safety

CDC narrows use of J&J vaccine due to concerns about rare blood clots

8:07pm December 16, 2021

The agency implemented experts' advice because of a rare and sometimes fatal blood-clotting problem known as TTS. More than 16 million people in the U.S. have received a shot of the J&J vaccine.

Sikhulile Moyo, the laboratory director at the Botswana-Harvard AIDS Institute Partnership and a research associate with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, headed the team that identified the omicron variant.

The scientist in Botswana who identified omicron was saddened by the world's reaction

7:19pm December 16, 2021

by Melody Schrieber

He and his team were stunned by the number of mutations. They felt they'd made a contribution by alerting the world to a dangerous variant. Then came the travel bans for residents of southern Africa.

FDA relaxes restrictions on abortion pill

5:53pm December 16, 2021

by Sarah McCammon

The Food and Drug Administration has reviewed its rules for the abortion pill mifepristone. Patients will now permanently be able to get the drug through the mail.

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Omicron infections are surging in the professional sports world

5:03pm December 16, 2021

by Tom Goldman

The Cleveland Browns are the latest pro sports team to have a number of its fully-vaccinated players catch COVID. The virus has hobbled the NBA and NHL and is causing concern across the sports world.

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CDC advisers recommend limiting the use of the J&J vaccine due to rare blood clots

5:03pm December 16, 2021

by Pien Huang

CDC advisers called an emergency meeting to review new data and update their recommendations for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. It's been linked to very rare blood clotting that can be fatal.

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Researchers are learning that the coronavirus can infect neurons and may cause lasting damage in some cases.

From blood clots to infected neurons, how COVID threatens the brain

3:26pm December 16, 2021

by Jon Hamilton

The virus that causes COVID-19 can cause strokes, inflammation, oxygen deprivation and infection in the brain. And each of these may lead to long-term neurological problems.