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Schools
COVID-19: Children Should Keep Wearing Masks In School Even If Vaccinated, CDC Says COVID-19: Children Should Keep Wearing Masks In School Even If Vaccinated, CDC Says
Covid-19: Children Should Keep Wearing Masks In School Even If Vaccinated, CDC Says The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said the agency will continue to recommend that children wear masks this winter while in school, regardless of their COVID-19 vaccination status.  CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky made the announcement on Wednesday, Oct. 20, at a news briefing.  She said once COVID-19 vaccinations are authorized for children ages 5 to 11, the CDC will work to scale up pediatric vaccinations, but she added that this will take some time. "And as I just noted, as we head into these winter months, we know we cannot be complacent,"…

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by Nicole Valinote
News
CDC Urges Americans To Get Flu Vaccine, Reveals Time Frame For Highest Effectiveness CDC Urges Americans To Get Flu Vaccine, Reveals Time Frame For Highest Effectiveness
CDC Urges Americans To Get Flu Vaccine, Reveals Time Frame For Highest Effectiveness The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is urging Americans to get the annual flu vaccine. The CDC said everyone 6 months of age and older should get the vaccine every year "with rare exceptions." Health officials said this is particularly important for those who are at a higher risk of serious complications if they get sick. The CDC recommends September and October as good times to get vaccinated, adding that those who are best protected get the vaccine by the end of October. The public health agency said adults, especially seniors, should generally not get vaccinated in Ju…

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by Nicole Valinote
News
COVID-19: NY Now Seeing All Red, With All 62 Counties At High Risk For Spread COVID-19: NY Now Seeing All Red, With All 62 Counties At High Risk For Spread
Covid-19: NY Now Seeing All Red, With All 62 Counties At High Risk For Spread New Yorkers are seeing red as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has designated all 62 of the state’s counties as areas of “high transmission" for the spread of COVID-19. In the latest update from the CDC, the organization is monitoring every county in New York as variants of the virus continue surging throughout the country. Over the summer, only Nassau and Suffolk County on Long Island were in the “high transmission” category. Earlier story - COVID-19: More NY Counties Reach CDC Level Recommending Indoor Mask Use In Public Settings In the past seven days, according to …

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by Zak Failla
Events
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade To Return 'Live' This Year Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade To Return 'Live' This Year
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade To Return 'Live' This Year The Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade is returning to the streets of New York City for its 95th celebration after being curtailed last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Macy's made the announcement on Wednesday, Sept. 8, saying the parade will be delight crowds once again on Thursday, Nov. 25 beginning at 9 a.m. This year's parade will feature the signature mix of giant character helium balloons, fantastic floats, marching bands, performance groups, celebrities, clowns, and the one-and-only Santa Claus, Macy's said. “We are thrilled to welcome back in its full form the Macy’s Thanksgiving D…

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by Kathy Reakes
News
COVID-19: FDA Expected To Authorize Booster Shots For Immunocompromised People COVID-19: FDA Expected To Authorize Booster Shots For Immunocompromised People
Covid-19: FDA Expected To Authorize Booster Shots For Immunocompromised People The US Food and Drug Administration is expected to move forward quickly with authorization of COVID-19 booster shots for some Americans who are immunocompromised, according to reports. Health officials said that the third shot of the current two-dose Pfizer and Moderna vaccine could be authorized within the next 48 hours, though no official timetable has been set as variants of the virus and COVID-19 mutations continue to cause a surge in new cases. Before a vaccine can be used in new ways outside existing authorization it requires new approval from the FDA. Currently, the Moderna, Pfizer…

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by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: Cape Cod Cluster Among Vaccinated Led To Mask Shift; 'The War Has Changed' CDC Says COVID-19: Cape Cod Cluster Among Vaccinated Led To Mask Shift; 'The War Has Changed' CDC Says
Covid-19: Cape Cod Cluster Among Vaccinated Led To Mask Shift; 'The War Has Changed' CDC Says A cluster of hundreds of COVID-19 cases on Cape Cod, many involving vaccinated people, prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to change its policy on mask-wearing this week. The July 4th outbreak in Provincetown, Massachusetts showed that vaccinated people infected with the Delta variant could spread the virus. A total of nearly 900 infections have been linked to the cluster. The high viral load of the Delta variant, which was first discovered in India late last year, makes it possible for vaccinated who become infected through breakthrough cases to spread the virus i…

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by Joe Lombardi
News
COVID-19: Delta Variant As Contagious As Chickenpox, Internal CDC Document Says COVID-19: Delta Variant As Contagious As Chickenpox, Internal CDC Document Says
Covid-19: Delta Variant As Contagious As Chickenpox, Internal CDC Document Says The Delta variant, which now accounts for about 85 percent of new COVID-19 cases in the United States, is as contagious as chickenpox, according to internal documents by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC). Details of those documents were reported on Friday, July 30 by both The Washington Post and New York Times. The high viral load of the Delta variant makes it possible for vaccinated who become infected through breakthrough cases to spread the virus in some cases, the CDC now says. “We have studies that have now shown that even on the first swab on somebody with a…

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by Joe Lombardi
News
COVID-19: State Workers In NY, Hospital Employees To Be Required To Get Vaccinated COVID-19: State Workers In NY, Hospital Employees To Be Required To Get Vaccinated
Covid-19: State Workers In NY, Hospital Employees To Be Required To Get Vaccinated New York will require state workers to be vaccinated by Labor Day, or else face weekly testing for COVID-19 as the country faces off against variants of the virus, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced. During a briefing on Wednesday, July 28, Cuomo announced that state employees would be required to get the vaccine while encouraging local governments to take similar steps across New York, specifically citing areas with high COVID-19 rates. Cuomo said that all patient-facing health care workers at state hospitals will also be required to be vaccinated. “We want to make sure health care workers ar…

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by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: Majority Of NY Restrictions Lifted As State Hits Vaccine Milestone COVID-19: Majority Of NY Restrictions Lifted As State Hits Vaccine Milestone
Covid-19: Majority Of NY Restrictions Lifted As State Hits Vaccine Milestone New York has officially climbed the COVID mountain and come down the other side.  With New York hitting the designated 70 percent vaccination rate, Gov. Andrew Cuomo boisterously announced on Tuesday, June 15 that the COVID-19 restrictions put in place during the pandemic have been lifted. “What does 70 percent mean? It means that we can now return to life as we know it,” Cuomo announced. “We now enter a phase where we successfully deployed the weapon that was going to win the war. “That weapon was the vaccine, and we knew it. But the question was could we do it? Would we do it? Could…

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by Zak Failla
Schools
COVID-19: New York Loosening Mask Restrictions On Schools COVID-19: New York Loosening Mask Restrictions On Schools
Covid-19: New York Loosening Mask Restrictions On Schools New York is loosening its mask-wearing restrictions for students and staff next week as the state continues its recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Beginning on Monday, June 7, masks will no longer be required indoors or outdoors in New York schools after seeing nearly two straight months of the COVID-19 positivity rate dropping. As of Monday, masks will be “strongly encouraged” for unvaccinated people, but not required. They will also not be needed outdoors, though people not fully vaccinated will be encouraged to wear them in high-risk circumstances. Anyone who is fully vaccinated will …

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by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: CDC Issues Brand-New Guidance For Summer Camps COVID-19: CDC Issues Brand-New Guidance For Summer Camps
Covid-19: CDC Issues Brand-New Guidance For Summer Camps The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) has just issued brand-new guidance for summer camps amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Vaccinated adolescents do not need to wear masks at camp, and younger campers who have not been vaccinated can usually shed face coverings when outdoors, the CDC said on Friday, May 28. For camps where everyone is fully vaccinated prior to the start of camp, it is safe to return to full capacity, without masking, and without physical distancing in accordance with the CDC’s Interim Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People, except where requir…

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by Joe Lombardi
News
COVID-19: New Time Frame Provided For When Vaccine Booster Shots May Be Necessary COVID-19: New Time Frame Provided For When Vaccine Booster Shots May Be Necessary
Covid-19: New Time Frame Provided For When Vaccine Booster Shots May Be Necessary Executives and experts at the center of COVID-19 pandemic response are now providing a more specific possible time frame for when Americans who were first to receive a vaccine dose may need to take a booster shot. Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, speaking during an Axios event, said that the data he has reviewed supports the notion "that likely there will be a need for a booster somewhere between eight and 12 months" after the initial vaccination regime. That means those who were among the first to get a vaccine shot in mid to late December 2020 or early January 2021 would likely need a booster sh…

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by Joe Lombardi