Coronavirus

ABOVE PHOTO: AP’s Zeke Miller interviews White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha, Thursday, May 12, 2022 on the White House complex in Washington. Speaking to the Associated Press, Jha said Americans’ immune protection from the virus is waning and the virus is adapting to be more contagious, and that booster doses for most…

Read More

By LAURAN NEERGAARD Kids ages 5 to 11 should get a booster dose of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, advisers to the U.S. government said Thursday. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention quickly adopted the panel’s recommendation, opening a third COVID-19 shot to healthy elementary-age kids — just like what is already recommended for everybody 12…

Read More

ABOVE PHOTO: Travelers sit in a waiting area at Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport in Providence, R.I., Tuesday, April 19, 2022. A federal judge’s decision to strike down a national mask mandate was met with cheers on some airplanes but also concern about whether it’s really time to end one of the most visible…

Read More

Hans Kellner Board of Health Dept. of Public Health  Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Philadelphia Department of Public Health has relied on local data to guide its efforts to mitigate the crisis. This has included the department’s changing recommendations and mandates about wearing masks to reduce the spread of transmission. In early…

Read More

ABOVE PHOTO: A health worker administers a dose of COVID-19 vaccine during a vaccination clinic in Reading, Pa. COVID-19 vaccinations are at a critical juncture as companies test whether new approaches like combination shots or nasal drops can keep up with a mutating coronavirus — even though it’s not clear if any change is needed….

Read More

By MICHAEL RUBINKAM Philadelphia is ending its indoor mask mandate, city health officials said Thursday night, abruptly reversing course just days after people in the city had to start wearing masks again amid a sharp increase in infections. The Board of Health voted Thursday to rescind the mandate, according to the Philadelphia health department, which…

Read More

ABOVE PHOTO: Travelers wearing protective masks as a precaution against the spread of the coronavirus move about the a terminal at the Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia, Tuesday, April 19, 2022. A federal judge’s decision to strike down a national mask mandate was met with cheers on some airplanes but also concern about whether it’s…

Read More

ABOVE PHOTO: Syringes and a vial of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine are displayed at a mass COVID-19 vaccination site in Batavia, Ill., on March 19, 2021. Moderna hopes to offer updated COVID-19 boosters in the fall that combine its original vaccine with protection against the omicron variant. On Tuesday, April 19, 2022, it reported a…

Read More

ABOVE PHOTO: A sign advising visitors to don face coverings stands outside the main entrance to UCHealth University of Colorado hospital Friday, April 1, 2022, in Aurora, Colo. An extra-contagious version of the omicron coronavirus variant has taken over the world. The variant scientists call BA.2 is now dominant in at least 68 countries, including…

Read More

Due to increasing COVID-19 cases, @PhiladelphiaGov will move to Level 2: Mask Precautions beginning today. In order to provide a one-week education period for businesses, masks will be required in all indoor public spaces as of Monday, April 18, 2022. The mask mandate is tied to the COVID Response Levels, and as COVID cases rise…

Read More