Coronavirus category, Page 57
Covid cases continue slow increase as over 40% of Pa. has at least 1 vaccine dose
For the fifth straight day, Pennsylvania has posted a new daily covid case number above 5,000 — something it has not done since mid-January. The state’s seven-day case average rose to 4,949, with a total of 34,642 cases during that seven-day span. The last time the state’s seven-day case average...
New restrictions ire many in Canada’s most populous province
TORONTO — New pandemic restrictions imposed by Canada’s most populous province immediately ran into opposition on Saturday as police departments insisted they wouldn’t use new powers to randomly stop motorists and health experts complained the rules focus on outdoor activities rather than more dangerous indoor settings. Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s...
Federal officials reverse limits on fetal tissue research
Federal officials on Friday reversed Trump administration restrictions on using human fetal tissue for medical research. The changes clear the way for using government money on work that in the past has led to treatments for a variety of diseases, including covid-19. Government scientists now will be able to resume...
Michigan extends mask order, capacity limits amid surge
LANSING, Mich. — Michigan on Friday extended by five weeks a pandemic order that limits business capacity and requires masks in public, even for young children in day care, as the state battles the country’s highest daily coronavirus infection rate. The measure, which was expected and replaces one that had...
Pennsylvania sounds alarm on vaccine hesitancy
A growing number of unfilled appointments and low uptake among nursing home workers are early signs that vaccine hesitancy is becoming an issue in Pennsylvania, prompting state officials to sound the alarm Friday and urge residents to get their covid-19 shots as quickly as possible. After months of demand outstripping...
Pennsylvania sees rising covid cases, deaths, hospitalizations
Pennsylvania on Friday reported 5,650 new cases of covid-19, raising the seven-day average to 4,916, the highest average since early February. There have been 1,098,502 cases recorded since the pandemic began, according to data from the state Department of Health. The state added 56 new covid-related deaths, the second most...
New Hampshire’s governor will lift mask mandate on Friday
CONCORD, N.H. — New Hampshire will lift its mask mandate Friday, though individual communities and businesses will be allowed to continue the requirement, Gov. Chris Sununu said Thursday. New Hampshire was the last state in New England to adopt a statewide mask mandate in November and with Friday’s change, will...
Pfizer CEO says 3rd covid-19 booster shot ‘likely’ needed within a year of getting vaccinatedVideo
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla predicted Thursday that people who have received the company’s covid-19 vaccine will “likely” need a third booster shot within a year to maintain protection against the virus. “It is extremely important to suppress the pool of people that can be susceptible to the virus,” Bourla told...
France hits unwanted milestone: Over 100,000 virus deaths
PARIS — France on Thursday became the third country in Europe after the U.K. and Italy to reach the unwanted milestone of 100,000 covid-19-related deaths as new infections and deaths surged due to virus variants. The country of 67 million is the eighth nation in the world to reach the...
Pa. officials extend Johnson & Johnson vaccine pause
Pennsylvania vaccine providers will not administer Johnson & Johnson vaccine until at least April 24, state officials said Thursday, extending the distribution pause by four days. Federal regulators had recommended a pause in the single-shot vaccine Tuesday, after six women reportedly experienced blood clots and low platelet counts in the...
Covid hospitalizations continue to be a concern in Allegheny, Westmoreland
A day after a data dump by a lab in Allegheny County led to more than 1,300 additional covid cases being reported, the county saw 403 cases on Thursday. The abnormally high number of cases Wednesday was attributed to GS Lab’s delayed return of data to the state and county....
J&J vaccine to remain in limbo while officials seek evidenceVideo
Johnson & Johnson’s covid-19 vaccine will remain in limbo for a while longer after government health advisers declared Wednesday that they need more evidence to decide if a handful of unusual blood clots were linked to the shot — and if so, how big the risk really is. The reports...
Ivanka Trump receives 1st dose of Pfizer vaccine
WASHINGTON — Ivanka Trump has received her first covid-19 shot and is encouraging others to get vaccinated as quickly as they can. Two people familiar with Ivanka Trump’s plans say she was eligible to get vaccinated along with other White House staff when she worked as a senior adviser, but...
Allegheny Health Network opens clinic to treat covid long-haulers
The migraines came first. Two or three weeks after she recovered from covid-19 in August, Jennifer Gorzock said she started experiencing the intense headaches, along with fatigue and disorienting mental fog. She noted her experience with the covid illness itself was relatively mild. She needed medications to get through it...
More than half of Allegheny County’s adult population is partially vaccinated, officials sayVideo
More than 50% of Allegheny County’s adult population has been partially vaccinated for covid-19, local officials said Wednesday. Among residents older than 65, more than 78% have gotten at least one dose. County officials encouraged people to sign up for appointments and get the vaccine as soon as possible. “The...
Lab’s 3-month data delay leads to abnormally high daily covid total in Allegheny County
On paper, Allegheny County on Wednesday recorded its second-highest total of newly reported coronavirus cases since the pandemic began, according to state Department of Health data. In reality, the county’s daily new case total was largely in line with what it has reported since the region emerged from the winter...
UPMC opens Pittsburgh Mills covid vaccine clinic to walk-insVideo
Berke Thompson of Marshall received his first dose of a covid-19 vaccine Wednesday at Pittsburgh Mills mall, where UPMC accepted walk-ins after originally requiring people to set up appointments to get shots during the two-day clinic. Not that Thompson, 16, saw the Pfizer vaccine go into his arm. “I can’t...
Pittsburgh-area medical experts split on Johnson & Johnson vaccine pause
At least one Pittsburgh-area medical expert believes it’s a mistake to altogether halt shots of the Johnson & Johnson single dose covid-19 vaccine after six women developed dangerous blood clots and one died. “Something that is this rare and recognizable and treatable is not something that should derail use of...
Officials: Pennsylvania providers pausing J&J vaccine distribution
The Pennsylvania Department of Health on Tuesday announced all providers in the state would pause use of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine until at least April 20, following advice from federal regulators. “While this announcement is challenging, it highlights the vaccine evaluation process,” Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam...
Pa. sees most covid cases since January with majority reported in eastern counties
Pennsylvania on Tuesday reached a level of reported covid cases that hasn’t been seen since January. But of these additional cases, the majority of them are coming from a specific region of the state, while Pittsburgh-area cases continue within current ranges. Cases Pennsylvania reported 6,638 additional covid-19 cases Tuesday (4,215...
Johnson & Johnson delays vaccine rollout in Europe
BERLIN — Johnson & Johnson said Tuesday it is delaying the rollout of its coronavirus vaccine in Europe amid a U.S. probe into reports of rare blood clots in some recipients. The announcement came after regulators in the United States said they were recommending a “pause” in administration of the...
UPMC clinic at Pittsburgh Mills will continue with different vaccine
Hospital systems in Western Pennsylvania are pausing distribution of the Johnson & Johnson covid vaccine, following recommendations from federal regulators. Both UPMC and Allegheny Health Network last week announced plans for mass vaccine clinics to administer a combined 25,000 shots. On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and...
France suspends all Brazil flights due to virus variants
PARIS — France’s prime minister has announced the suspension of all flights between Brazil and France amid concerns over coronavirus variants. Prime Minister Jean Castex made the announcement Tuesday in parliament. He said: “We note that the situation is getting worse and so we have decided to suspend all flights...
UK hits vaccine target; Boris Johnson warns of more virus deaths
LONDON — Britain began offering coronavirus vaccinations to anyone over 45 on Tuesday after hitting its target of giving at least one dose to everyone over 50 by the middle of April. Despite the good news, Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that the U.K. would inevitably see “more hospitalization and...
U.S. recommends pause in using Johnson & Johnson covid-19 vaccine
WASHINGTON — The U.S. is recommending a “pause” in administration of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson covid-19 vaccine to investigate reports of potentially dangerous blood clots. In a joint statement Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration said they were investigating unusual clots...
