COVID-19 is on the rise again in the Americas as many countries have abandoned measures like masking and social distancing and many lag in vaccination rates, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said on May 18.
Shanghai set out plans on May 16 for the end of a painful COVID-19 lockdown that has lasted more than six weeks, heavily bruising China’s economy, and for the return of more normal life from June 1.
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, pulmonologist Joseph Varon offered an opinion that made headlines around the world and went viral on social media. Varon was fighting two wars, he said: one against COVID and one against stupidity.
Philadelphia will again require masks in indoor public settings such as restaurants, schools and businesses starting next week, the city said on April 11, responding to what appears to be a fresh wave of coronavirus transmissions.
New York Mayor Eric Adams is set to lift the city’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for performers and professional athletes as early as this week, Politico reported on March 23, a rule that has come under growing criticism by local sports teams.
The U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) proposed more than 900 civil penalty fines and 2,700 warning notices against maskless passengers since February 2021, a government report issued March 14 said.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) late on March 10 said some 98 percent of the U.S. population live in locations where COVID-19 levels are low enough that people do not need to wear masks indoors.
President Joe Biden’s administration will extend requirements for travelers to wear masks on airplanes, trains and in transit hubs through April 18 as public health authorities review when mask requirements should be dropped, an administration official told Reuters.
The BA.2 sub-variant of Omicron was estimated to be 11.6% of the coronavirus variants circulating in the United States as of March 5, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on March 8.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on March 3 said some 93 percent of the U.S. population live in locations where COVID-19 levels are low enough that people do not need to wear masks indoors.