The coronavirus has caused more instances of severe disease in the overweight and obese, and scientists may finally know why. According to reporting from The New York Times, researchers have found that the coronavirus can infect fat cells and immune cells within body fat. “The bottom line is, ‘Oh my God, indeed, the virus can infect fat cells directly,’” said Dr. Philipp Scherer, a scientist who studies fat cells at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. “Whatever happens in fat doesn’t stay in fat,” he added. “It affects the neighboring tissues as well.” The study’s senior authors hope that the results could lead to new COVID treatments that target body fat. “Maybe that’s the Achilles’ heel that the virus utilizes to evade our protective immune responses — by hiding in this place,” said Dr. Vishwa Deep Dixit, a professor of comparative medicine and immunology at Yale School of Medicine. Most American adults are overweight and 42% are obese. 

Finland Prime Minister Sanna Marin, one of the world’s youngest elected leaders at 36 years of age, apologized on Monday after facing backlash for spending a night out after she had been exposed to COVID-19. In a Facebook post, Marin said she had spent some time with her husband in Helsinki, the nation’s capital, on the Independence Day Weekend. They went out for dinner, went shopping, met up with friends, and enjoyed the city’s nightlife on Saturday night. She added that earlier that evening she had been told that Foreigns Affair Minister Pekka Haavisto had tested positive after being in close contact with her, but was also told ministers didn’t need to quarantine if they had been fully vaccinated, which she was. While out on Saturday, she received a text message urging her to avoid contact and to apply for a COVID-19 test. However, she wrote that she had left her work phone at home while out. “I should have used better consideration on Saturday night … I’m really sorry,” she said in the Facebook post, later adding she had tested negative for the virus Sunday.

Maine and New York state have deployed the National Guard as a result of dangerously low capacities in medical facilities across the two states. According to CNN, the National Guard has been deployed by the governors of both states as the pandemic has impacted capacity in medical facilities. The New York national guard deployed 120 medics and medical technicians across the state. The governor of Maine, Janet Mills, has also activated the state's national guard, saying "I do not take this action lightly, but we must take steps to alleviate the strain on our health care system and ensure care for all those who need it.” New Hampshire has now also called on the national guard for help as well to help prepare for a winter surge of COVID-19 cases. "We reached out to FEMA to request some staffing assistance in our health care facilities, preparing for the winter surge,” New Hampshire Gov. Christopher Sununu said.

Massachusetts is facing a new wave of the coronavirus despite having one of the nation’s highest vaccination rates, ABC News reported. New hospital admissions have more than doubled in the last month alone, and new daily caseloads are at the highest point in nearly a year. The UMass Memorial Health System has found itself overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients. "You can't imagine how exhausted caregivers are right now," UMass Memorial Health Care President Dr. Eric Dickson said. "The biggest challenge for us right now is that our people are extremely, extremely fatigued. This is their third surge over the course of about 20 months, and that's really taking a toll on them." The hospital system was forced to fire 200 employees who refused to get vaccinated. "This pandemic is clearly not over," Dickson said. "This is really the toughest period of this whole pandemic right now for some of us.” Hospital officials have seen a rising number of vaccinated people ending up in the hospital, citing waning levels of immunity. Still, 60 to 75% of those hospitalized with COVID-19 are unvaccinated.

The Food and Drug Administration has expanded emergency use authorization of Pfizer-BioNTech’s coronavirus booster to include 16 and 17-year-olds, Axios reported. Booster shots had been fully authorized for all adults in November. The new authorization comes as the omicron variant threatens to spread widely. The two companies said on Wednesday that two doses of their vaccine is significantly less effective against omicron, but a three-dose course is more effective. “The booster vaccination increases the level of immunity and dramatically improves protection against COVID-19 in all age groups studied so far," BioNTech CEO Ugur Sahin said

A year after the world’s first COVID-19 vaccine dose was administered, 8.3 billion doses have been administered worldwide, Bloomberg reported. Still, the pandemic appears far from over, with mutated strains of the disease like the delta and omicron variants challenging the vaccine’s effectiveness while developing nations continue to struggle to get enough vaccines to administer their populations. Even in developed nations, pockets of unvaccinated people have been blamed for rises in infections that have challenges healthcare systems worldwide. Since the first vaccine dose was administered, more than 267 million people caught COVID-19, with 5 million people dying from the virus. For more information, watch the video below.

With the emergence of the rapidly spreading omicron variant, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson implemented tougher COVID-19 restrictions on Wednesday, Reuters reported. The new restrictions require Englanders to work from home, mask up in public venues and use vaccine passes if they went to enter venues with large crowds, such as nightclubs. Johnson told the public that he felt he had no choice but to move to “Plan B” while the country rolls out its booster shot program. "While the picture may get better, and I sincerely hope that it will, we know that the remorseless logic of exponential growth could lead to a big rise in hospitalizations and therefore, sadly, in deaths," Johnson said. Health Secretary Sajid Javid says he and his fellow experts believe that there could already be close to 10,000 omicron cases in the country, with data suggesting that the number of omicron infections could double in just two to three days.

The United States Senate approved a bill that overturns President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine-or-test mandate for all private businesses with over 100 employees, with two Democrats joining the Republican backed measure, Reuters reported. The bill, approved 52-48, will be sent to the House of Representatives for a vote, but even if it succeeds there, Biden has threatened to veto the legislation. “I do not support any government vaccine mandate for private businesses. It is not the place of the federal government to tell private business owners how to protect their employees from COVID-19 and operate their businesses," said Senator Joe Manchin, one of the Democratic senators who voted to overturn Biden’s mandate. The Biden administration says that the mandate has little effect on employers, given that most American adults are fully vaccinated and that small businesses are exempted.

According to Johns Hopkins University figures, more than 200 million Americans have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. About 61% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated. The seven-day average number of vaccine doses administered has ticked up to 1.92 million as the country’s booster shot campaign accelerates and others sit down for their first shots. The number of new COVID-19 cases in the U.S. continues to rise, with the seven-day average of new cases reporting rising to above 121,000. The seven-day average of the positivity ratio, a measure of the percentage of tests that return a positive result, is holding steady above 7%. For more facts and figures on the state of the global pandemic, watch the video below.

An Italian dentist is facing possible criminal charges after using a fake silicon arm to try and fake getting a coronavirus vaccine, The Associated Press reported. The nurse administering the vaccine, Filippa Bua, said she knew something was off as soon as the man arrived. “When I uncovered the arm, I felt skin that was cold and gummy, and the color was too light,” Bua said, adding she initially believed he might have been an amputee, but she quickly realized that was not the case. “I understood immediately that the man was trying to avoid the vaccination by using a silicone prosthetic, into which he hoped that I would inject the drug, unaware.” After failing to get the vaccine, the man left respectfully, but after realizing the severity of the issue, the nursing staff reported the case to prosecutors. More than 85% of Italy’s vaccine-eligible population has been fully vaccinated, but millions are still yet to receive their first jab.

Higher proportions of people belonging to Gen Z, or people between the ages of 13 and 24, say the pandemic has made their education, career goals and social lives more difficult compared with millennials and Gen X, The Washington Post reported from a U.S. survey released Monday. Nearly half (46%) of those in the Gen Z age group who participated said the pandemic had especially made their schooling and career aspirations more difficult, according to a survey conducted by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, with funding from MTV. In addition to education and career prospects, 45% of Gen Z participants said maintaining friendships was more difficult and 40% said their romantic relationships had also become more difficult. Americans in older age groups were less likely to have had the pandemic dispute their education or careers, according to the survey.

The number of deaths from COVID-19 reported on Wednesday in Germany was the highest since February, Reuters reported. Germany is currently fighting a fourth wave of the virus that is being blamed for 527 new deaths, the highest figure since Feb. 12. The county’s Robert Koch Institute also reported a total of 69,901 new infections. Germany officials announced last week that unvaccinated individuals would be banned from many public places with the exception of essential businesses such as grocery stores, pharmacies and bakeries, Reuters said.

The number of COVID-19 patients across Michigan rose to a new record on Monday, CNN reported, citing data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Hospitals across the state had reported 4,638 hospitalizations, topping the state’s last record set in November 2020. New cases per capita are also on the rise across the state. Over the past week, Michigan reported more new cases per capita than any other state, though Minnesota and Rhode Island trailed close behind, according to data from John Hopkins University (JHU). The daily case rate was more than double the U.S. case rate, CNN reported. As of Wednesday, roughly 55% of the state’s population is fully vaccinated, trailing behind the U.S. average of 61%, according to JHU data.

A new regulation passed by Maryland’s Board of Education on Tuesday would allow mask mandates to be dropped in public schools if certain criteria are met, The Associated Press reported. School districts will be able to rescind the mask mandate if 80% of students and staff in a school are fully vaccinated. The mandate could also be dropped if 80% of a county or city’s population is fully vaccinated. The current state guidelines require anyone in a Maryland public school to wear a mask.

In an effort to slow the ongoing rise in COVID-19 cases, the Norwegian government announced that it is imposing limits for gatherings at private homes, The Associated Press reported. The limit for private homes has been set to 10, while attendance at public events without assigned seating has been limited to 50 people. The new restrictions will go into effect at 12:01 a.m. Thursday and last four weeks. “We consider the situation as being serious. Both delta and omicron infections are increasing in Norway. The number of people who are admitted to hospitals and intensive care units is increasing,” Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said, according to the AP. The Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony is scheduled for Friday at Oslo City hall. Officials said the ceremony will still take place, but in a scaled-down manner.

The city of Baltimore is set to reward employees with a $1,000 payment for all those who are already fully vaccinated or who receive the necessary shots to become fully vaccinated by Jan. 14, Brandon Scott, the city's mayor, announced on Wednesday. According to The Associated Press, the city enacted a vaccine mandate back in October, but the vaccination rate of city workers has remained below 75%. “This incentive is about doing everything in our power to protect our employees and our residents,” Scott said in a statement. “We are still in a pandemic. People are still losing their lives and getting seriously ill because they are not vaccinated.” City workers who do not share their vaccination status or fail to comply with the weekly testing option "will be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination," Scott's announcement said.

Early data from South Africa suggests that the omicron variant may be milder than previous ones, but Dr. Anthony Fauci cautioned in a press briefing on Tuesday that this insight could have been influenced by a younger cohort of those infected. “It’s still too early to be able to determine the precise severity of disease,” the chief medical advisor to the president said, adding that what is currently available is still an anecdotal picture. The information he referenced is a Dec. 4, 2021 report from Steve Biko/Tshwane District Hospital Complex in South Africa based on the first two weeks of the omicron wave in Tshwane, which had seen a different clinical picture compared to previous waves in the country. About 70% of COVID-19 cases had not needed supplemental oxygen, and few patients had developed COIVD-19 pneumonia or had required high-level care. Average hospital stays had dropped to 2.8 days compared to the 8.5 days recorded in the area over the previous 18 months. While South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) confirmed that almost all cases of the coronavirus in Tshwane are due to the new variant, it was unable to confirm that every instance of the infection from the report was the omicron variant since the PCR machine used doesn’t screen for the S-gene. “A reasonable assumption is being made that the cases described here represent infection with the new variant,” the report noted.

“It might — and I underscore ‘might’ — be less severe, as shown by the ratio of hospitalizations per number of new cases. However, this could be influenced by the fact that many in this particular cohort are young individuals,” Fauci cautioned. “The hospital stays seem to be less and the use of supplemental oxygen needs to be less. Again, I caution you, these are still preliminary.”

Health officials in Connecticut are describing the rise in coronavirus cases in the state as “extremely concerning” after at least 500 hospitalizations were reported on Monday and Tuesday, which is an 80% increase in the past two weeks, ABC News reported. “To go from 300 hospitalizations to 500 hospitalizations in such a short period of time is extremely concerning,” Dr. Manisha Juthani, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Public Health, told WTNH in New Haven on Tuesday. The state’s positivity rate also increased to 8.3% on Tuesday, up from 5.3% on Monday, a stat that Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont called “distressing.”

Nearly a year into the U.S. vaccination campaign, almost 200 million Americans have been fully vaccinated as of Thursday, according to John Hopkins University figures. The 199.7 million Americans make up 61% of the population. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Wednesday morning that 70% of New Yorkers are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, including over 80% of adults and 12-17 year olds respectively, and 20% of 5-11 year olds. States like California, Texas, New York, Florida and Pennsylvania continue to vaccinate thousands of residents, though a few states like Texas and Pennsylvania continue to trail the national average. On Tuesday, Dec. 7, the country reported 192,917 new confirmed cases and 1,382 deaths related to COVID-19.

Pfizer and BioNTech said Wednesday that blood samples showed a third dose of their COVID-19 vaccine provides significant protection against the new and fast-spreading omicron variant, The New York Times reported. The drug companies said early data suggests that two vaccine doses alone “may not be sufficient" to prevent infection by the omicron variant, but could still protect against severe disease. A third shot, though, raised antibody levels enough to block the latest variant in the samples, Pfizer's data revealed.

While the Welsh government has only identified five cases of the omicron variant within its borders, the number is expected to rise and peak by the end of January, The BBC reported. First Minister Mark Drakeford said on Tuesday that Wales stands at the brink of “another potentially perilous moment” in the pandemic and that Wales has to “brace ourselves for the potential for a formidable wave of new infections in the new year” if the new variant couldn’t be slowed. He also urged for people who haven’t already to go and get vaccinated . While no new restrictions have been introduced yet, Health Minister Eluned Morgan voiced that she would give no assurances as information is still coming out surrounding the omicron variant.

Scientists have reportedly identified a “stealth” version of the omicron variant, which can’t be differentiated from the other variants using PCR tests that public health officials rely on to gain insight into its spread across the world, The Guardian reported. The stealth variant has similar mutations to the standard omicron variant, but it does lack a particular genetic change that allows lab-based PCR tests to flag probable cases, the news source explained. It’s still too soon for researchers to know whether this “stealthy” version of the omicron will spread in the same way as the standard version. It has currently been identified recently in South Africa, Australia and Canada, though it’s possible that it has spread more widely.

The World Health Organization has recommended against using blood plasma from COVID-19 survivors as a treatment, saying that the expensive, time-consuming transfusions have not been found to be effective in preventing severe illness or death, The Associated Press reported. Their recommendation was based on 16 trials involving more than 16,000 patients and found no clear benefits of administering the treatment. “As such, the WHO makes a strong recommendation against the use of convalescent plasma in patients with non-severe illness, and a recommendation against its use in patients with severe and critical illness, except in the context of a randomized controlled trial,” the WHO said.

New measures tightening restrictions on the unvaccinated went into effect in Italy on Monday, Reuters reported. The measures limit the unvaccinated’s access to museums, cinemas, sporting events and indoor dining in bars and restaurants unless they have recently recovered from COVID-19. Italy requires all unvaccinated workers to have proof of a negative COVID-19 test before going to their place of employment, a measure it has also extended to all public transportation. "It is an absolutely necessary measure," Rome resident Marco Formichella said. "If we don't want to go back to the restrictions that we have had to endure for a year and a half then we must adapt.

The British drugmaker GSK says that its antibody-based COVID-19 therapy is effective against the omicron variant, Reuters reported. The data, which comes from early-stage studies that have not yet been peer-reviewed, show that sotrovimab, the company’s treatment, is effective against all 37 mutations identified in omicron. "These pre-clinical data demonstrate the potential for our monoclonal antibody to be effective against the latest variant, omicron, plus all other variants of concern defined to date by the WHO," GSK Chief Scientific Officer Hal Barron said.

While the omicron COVID-19 variant has been spreading quickly enough to rival the delta variant, many are holding onto the hope that the former causes less serious illness than other mutations of the virus. Researchers at a major hospital complex in Pretoria, South Africa, reported that their patients with the virus were much less sick than those they had treated before, and other hospitals were seeing similar trends, The New York Times reported. The cases were so mild that most of their infected patients had been admitted for other reasons and had no symptoms relating to COVID-19. Of the 42 patients mentioned in the doctors’ report at the Steve Biko Academic and Tshwane District Hospital Complex, 70% of the patients were not relying on supplemental oxygen, and four of the 13 patients who were on ventilators needed the supplemental oxygen for reasons unrelated to the virus. Only one of the 42 patients was in intensive care. 

However, scientists have cautioned against placing too much stock in either the potential good news of less severity or and news like early evidence that prior coronavirus infection offers little immunity against the new variant. “It would not be shocking if that’s true, but I’m not sure what we can conclude that yet,” Dr. Emily S. Gurley, an epidemiologist at John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told the New York Times, referring to the signs that the variant may be less severe. Dr. Fareed Abdullah, the author of the report, also cautioned against drawing conclusions too soon.

NBA players who are not vaccinated and have temporary visa status won’t be able to reenter the United States after playing a game in Canada, or if they were to take a vacation out of the U.S. during the league’s all-star break, according to a league memo obtained by ESPN. Unvaccinated players will not be able to travel to Toronto for games beginning on Jan. 15, as a new Canadian law requires that all visitors entering the country must be vaccinated, ESPN reported. About 97% of NBA players are vaccinated, according to league officials.

As the number of new coronavirus cases continues to rise in France, the government is imposing new restrictions in an attempt to slow the spread, France 24 reported. Schoolchildren will face stricter social distancing rules and mask usage will be extended in French schools. In addition, nightclubs in France will be forced to close for at least four weeks, something that has angered nightclub owners, who say they feel unfairly targeted. "Once again there's no clampdown for any other sector," said Thierry Fontaine, a member of a nightclub industry association. "They cancel New Year's Eve for us... but they'll be dancing in all the restaurants."

Jean Castex, the Prime Minister of France, also encouraged employers to let staff work from home and to cancel office social events.  "We have all had a tendency to lower our guard" in recent weeks, Castex said. The government said it would not institute a lockdown, given that nearly 90% of France’s eligible population is vaccinated. Vaccinations may soon be extended to kids ages 5 to 12.

The European Medicines Agency has formally backed the mixing and matching of different vaccines to help battle the coronavirus as the omicron variant spreads globally, The Associated Press reported. The practice, known officially as heterologous vaccination, can provide as good or better protection than getting the additional doses of the same vaccine. “The evidence available so far with different types of authorized vaccines indicates that a heterologous booster appears as good as or better in terms of immune responses than a homologous booster,” the agency said in a statement, adding that allowing mixing and matching could give nations more flexibility as many seek to bolster their booster shot campaigns.

Medicago, a Canadian biotechnology company, announced Tuesday its plant-based COVID-19 vaccine showed strong protection against the coronavirus, and it will soon seek authorization in Canada as well as beyond its borders, The Associated Press reported. The company announced that its two-dose vaccine was 71% effective at preventing COVID-19 infection in a large, late-stage study, which included several variants, including the delta variant. The omicron variant had not been circulating during the study period, the AP added. While the company is beginning the process of seeking approval from Canadian regulators as well as other countries, it’s also preparing to send its data to the World Health Organization. Medicago uses plants as living factories to grow virus-like particles, which mimic the spike protein that interacts with the coronavirus. GlaxoSmithKline, the company’s British partner, contributed the immune-boosting chemical adjuvant to the vaccine.

A Magen David Adom medic gives an Israeli girl a COVID-19 Antigen rapid test at a testing center in Jerusalem, on Wednesday, September 29, 2021. Photo by Debbie Hill/UPI

(Debbie Hill / UPI)

As the number of new coronavirus cases in the United States continues to increase, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging Americans to take a rapid test before any indoor gathering, ABC 7 News New York reported. While less accurate than a PCR test, rapid at-home tests are available at most pharmacies nationwide, and health insurance companies are required to reimburse their purchase. “Consider using a self-test before joining indoor gatherings with others who are not in your household,” the new guidance reads.

The number of new coronavirus cases is rising across the United States as the country enters a possible fifth wave of infections, according to Johns Hopkins University figures. More than 192,000 new coronavirus cases were reported on Tuesday, a figure which brought the seven-day average of new cases further upward to above 119,000. The positivity ratio, the percentage of tests that return a positive result, continued to climb to 7.88%. The seven-day average number of deaths continued to hold steady above 1,500. The U.S. continues to lead the world in new cases, followed by Germany, the United Kingdom and France. For more facts and figures on the state of the global pandemic, watch the video below.

Researchers at Colorado State University have found that men are better spreaders of the coronavirus, spreading more virus particles than women or children, CBS News reported. The study was originally intended to find what performing arts institutions could do to safely return to the stage. Researchers at CSU brought 75 people into a chamber and tested how they emit particles into the air, discovering more about the virus in the progress. "Adults tend to emit more particles than children," said John Volckens, a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at CSU. "The reason men tend to emit more particles is because we have bigger lungs,” Volckens said, adding that louder volumes also transmit the virus more. "The performing arts did the right thing by shutting down in 2020, they definitely saved lives.” Volckens said.

On Saturday, the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, announced that its yearly New Year’s Eve party will be canceled due to fears over the omicron variant, The Associated Press reported. The mayor of Rio, Eduardo Paes, had promised the biggest New Year’s Eve party ever, with firework shows and dozens of artists performing across the city. The celebration has gathered more than 1 million revelers in the past. Other cities in Brazil have seen holiday celebrations canceled due to the omicron variant, including Sao Paulo and Salvador. At least five cases of omicron have been confirmed in Brazil.

Thousands of protesters gathered in Brussels to protest Belgium's newly announced pandemic restrictions, Bloomberg reported. The number of new coronavirus cases in Belgium has climbed to dangerous levels, with the country’s health service threatening to be overwhelmed. The gathered protestors were upset with the idea that vaccinations could be made mandatory, though those are not the restrictions that Belgium has recently employed. “I think that every person has the choice to take the vaccine,” said a protestor only identified as Gecht. “It’s my own choice. And that’s freedom in my opinion.” The new measures imposed by the Belgian government include closing schools early for the winter holidays and a 200-person cap on indoor gatherings, The Associated Press reported. 

Breakthrough cases are starting to turn up in people following their booster shots, but they remain extremely rare, The Wall Street Journal reported. Heather Green, 47, got her booster in September. A month later, Green experienced mild allergy-like symptoms and ended up testing positive for the coronavirus. “I was thankful that I had gotten the booster because this illness is so unpredictable,” said Green, who was only symptomatic for two days. Doctors say that they are seeing very few cases in people who got a booster. Out of 24,000 positive coronavirus tests analyzed by Pennsylvania-based healthcare provider Geisinger, just 0.2% were in people who had received a booster dose.

With the emergence of the omicron variant, doctors are doubling down on recommending Americans get their booster shots. That said, even a booster shot does not guarantee immunity from the virus. “Even with boosting, it’s not a special force field that magically protects the virus from entering our nose and throat,” said Dr. Wohl, a professor of medicine in the division of infectious diseases at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, “It still can. We’re just really good at getting rid of it quicker.”

A majority of U.S. voters would be willing to take some form of COVID-19 treatment if it existed, according to a new poll from Hill-HarrisX. In a survey conducted from Nov. 29-30, 83% of U.S. registered voters said they would likely take a treatment for COVID-19 if they were infected with the virus. Fifty percent of the voters said they would be very likely and 33% said they would be somewhat likely, The Hill reports. Just 17% of voters said they would be unlikely to take a treatment for the virus.

Amid concerns about rising COVID-19 cases in Michigan, Ford has informed salaried employees that is delaying its return-to-work hybrid plan, CNBC reported. “The state of COVID-19 virus remains fluid, and despite the success of our ongoing safety protocols and increased vaccination rates, we are shifting the start date of the hybrid work model to March,” the company said in an emailed statement, according to CNBC. The hybrid plan is a mix of on-site work and remote working for employees who don’t need to be in a facility. Ford’s decision comes several days after Google announced it would delay its plans to have employees return to the office in January.

The Chinese city of Harbin is paying $1,570 to anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 without having to be contact traced in an attempt to encourage people to get tested if they feel unwell, Insider reported. The city is looking to reward those who voluntarily come forward to get a test if they feel unwell. "If you come forward independently after feeling symptoms and visit a medical institution to see a doctor and explain your circumstance, those who test positive for COVID-19 will be rewarded with 10,000 Chinese yuan," the city government said. Less than 10 coronavirus cases have been reported per day over the past week in the city, many of which have been discovered through routine testing and contact tracing. Coronavirus cases in China remain low, with just 1,060 active cases reported in the country.

A Norwegian Cruise Line ship docked in New Orleans on Sunday with at least 17 infected passengers and crew, one of whom is suspected to be infected with the omicron variant, CBS News reported. The cruise liner first departed from New Orleans on Sunday, Nov. 28, and made stops in Belize, Honduras and Mexico before it returned to port. Norwegian Cruise Line says that in all of the cases it has identified, the infected are asymptomatic. Norwegian requires all passengers and cruise members to be vaccinated before departure. "We are testing all individuals on Norwegian Breakaway prior to disembarkation," the company said. "Any guests who have tested positive for COVID-19 will travel by personal vehicle to their personal residence or self-isolate in accommodations provided by the company."

Cases of the omicron variant of COVID-19 have been detected in about one-third of U.S. states, Reuters reported. At least 16 U.S. states have reported cases of the omicron variant: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin. Many of the cases identified were in fully vaccinated individuals, most of whom presented mild symptoms. The delta variant still accounts for 99.9% of new cases in the United States, but the number of omicron cases is expected to increase. "We are everyday hearing about more and more probable cases so that number is likely to rise," said Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In its latest attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus, New York City employers will be forced to mandate their workers get the COVID-19 vaccine starting on Dec. 27, The Associated Press reported. The city has already required hospital workers, nursing home employees and city employees to get vaccinated. “We in New York City have decided to use a preemptive strike to really do something bold to stop the further growth of COVID and the dangers it’s causing to all of us,” de Blasio said. “All private-sector employers in New York City will be covered by this vaccine mandate as of Dec. 27.”  The mayor said that "colder weather, which is going to really create additional challenges" was among the factors driving these new rules. New York City’s new COVID-19 rules will also require people to get two doses of a coronavirus vaccine for them to dine indoors, visit entertainment venues and work out in gyms.

While health experts say it is still too early to draw conclusions about the omicron variant, early indications suggest that omicron may be less severe than delta, The Associated Press reported. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, noted that hospitalizations have not risen dramatically in South Africa despite omicron being the dominant strain there. “Thus far, it does not look like there’s a great degree of severity to it,” Fauci said. “But we have really got to be careful before we make any determinations that it is less severe or it really doesn’t cause any severe illness, comparable to delta.” Fauci added that the United States is considering lifting travel restrictions to southern African countries, restrictions that the U.N. Secretary-General called “travel apartheid.” Omicron has already been detected in nearly a third of U.S. states, though delta remains the dominant variant. 

The number of coronavirus deaths in the United States is approaching 790,000, a milestone that comes as the country braces for more cases due to the omicron variant. According to Johns Hopkins University figures, more than 32,000 people have died of the coronavirus in the last 28 days. In that same period, more than 2.5 million new COVID-19 cases have been reported. The seven-day moving average number of new cases has climbed above 120,000, with the positivity ratio surging above 8.3%. The U.S. is now reporting a seven-day average of new cases that is more than double of any other country worldwide, with Germany the closest behind at a seven-day average of more than 56,000. For more facts and figures on the global pandemic, watch the video below.

Here are the latest global coronavirus numbers, provided by Johns Hopkins University:

• Confirmed cases: 265,819,747

• Fatalities: 5,255,402

• Vaccine doses administered: 8,172,054,815

German Health Minister Jens Spahn said Friday that more than 1% of Germany’s population, nearly 1 million people, are currently infected with COVID-19, The Associated Press reported. On Friday, over 74,000 new daily COVID-19 cases were reported along with 390 additional deaths, with the unvaccinated making up a disproportionate share of the infected and seriously ill. “If all German adults were vaccinated, we wouldn’t be in this difficult situation,” Spahn said. Just under 69% of Germany’s population is fully vaccinated, below the government target of 75%. Germany’s new government, which takes office next week, plans to submit a general vaccine mandate to Parliament for consideration, with a vote on the legislation likely to occur next week. 

With the arrival of the omicron variant coinciding with the Christmas season, the demand for booster shots is increasing, but getting one might require some patience, CBS 5 Phoenix reported. Booster shots are available at major pharmacies, but appointments to get the jab are filling up. “Three weeks ago, we were doing 30 vaccines a day, now last night we did 115, so the demand has definitely increased,” said Dr. Vershalee Shukla, a doctor at the Vincere Cancer Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Shukla says that she doesn’t expect this to be the final coronavirus booster that Americans will take. “I think this will be our new way of life similar to flu shots,” said Dr. Shukla.

While much is still unknown about the new omicron variant, scientists do have an inkling of how the variants might differ, CNET.com reported. Right now, scientists believe that omicron is likely to be as contagious as the already extremely transmissible delta variant, if not even more contagious. However, scientists still believe that the vaccine will protect against severe disease and that our current array of public health measures will remain effective. It is too soon to tell if omicron is more severe than delta or if it can get around people’s antibody protection, though the variant has troubling mutations to its spike protein. "What all those changes in the aggregate are going to do for the things that matter for this virus, we don't really know yet," said Robert Garry, a virologist at Tulane University.

It’s been a longstanding question: Will it become the norm to receive a COVID-19 booster shot alongside the flu shot every year? “Based on everything I have seen so far,” The Telegraph quoted Pfizer CEO Dr. Albert Bourla as saying Thursday, “I would say that annual vaccines … are likely to be needed to maintain a very robust and very high level of protection.” Others have been more hesitant to confirm an answer just yet. Professor Saul Faust, leader of a trial looking into the effectiveness of seven different booster shots given after either the AstraZeneca or Pfizer vaccines, told The Telegraph that anyone willing to answer the question in certain terms is “just speculating.” The professor of pediatric immunology and infectious diseases at the University of Southampton added, “No one can know at this stage whether we will need boosters every year.”

The Indian government expects that the omicron variant will not cause severe disease in the country, due to the country’s vaccination campaign and the fact that nearly 70% percent of the country was infected with the delta variant by July, Reuters reported. About 84% of the population have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, with the government pushing to vaccinate even more of the population with at least two omicron cases reported in the country, including one that was seemingly due to local transmission. "Given the fast pace of vaccination in India and high exposure to Delta variant ... the severity of the disease is anticipated to be low," the ministry said in a statement. "However, scientific evidence is still evolving."

Allergy sufferers may have a lower risk of catching the coronavirus, according to research published in the journal Thorax, Fox News reported. Researchers from the Queen Mary University of London surveyed over 15,000 people in the United Kingdom between May 1 2020 and Feb. 2021, finding that those with allergy-related diseases like eczema and hay fever had a 23% lower risk of catching COVID. The researchers also found that being older, being male and having underlying conditions did not boost one’s risk of infection, a result contrary to that of other studies. 

As the omicron variant threatens to spread across the United States, most fully vaccinated Americans say that they will or have gotten their booster shot, CNN reported. According to a survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation, about 60% of fully vaccinated adults have gotten their booster or say they “definitely” will. However, about one in five fully vaccinated adults say they “probably” or “definitely” will not get their booster dose. Intent to get a booster dose is lower among older Republicans, with 87% of fully vaccinated Democrats over the age of 50 planning to get a booster shot, while just 58% of older Republicans say the same. Overall, more than one-quarter of Republicans still say they will not get vaccinated. Frustration has replaced optimism as the most common feeling towards vaccines in the country, with less than half of adults feeling “optimistic” about vaccines in the U.S., down from 66% in January. 

A World War II veteran from Alabama who survived a battle with the coronavirus last year turned 105 on Friday, The Associated Press reported. Major Wooten will receive the French Legion of Honor in recognition of his service during the war, in which Wooten repaired bomb-damaged trains in France while he served. “The Legion of Honor is bestowed upon French citizens as well as foreign nationals who have served France or the ideals it upholds, including individuals who have contributed to the country professionally, as well as veterans such as the Americans who risked their lives during World War II fighting on French soil,” the consulate announcement said. Wooten caught the coronavirus in Nov. 2020 but managed to fight off the disease. He battled long COVID symptoms like brain fog, but his physical strength and mental sharpness have returned, according to his granddaughter.

Slovakia reported a record high number of new daily coronavirus cases on Friday despite entering a nationwide lockdown last week, The Associated Press reported. The country demolished its previous record, reporting 15,278 new cases on Thursday, 5,000 higher than the previous record set a little over a week ago. The staggering total is at least in part due to a backlog in testing results, but cases are still rising week-to-week in the country. Under its current lockdown, people can only leave their homes for specific reasons and the unvaccinated must get tested before being allowed to work. The government is debating paying those 60 and older more than $550 to get vaccinated against the coronavirus; just 46.3% of the country’s population is fully vaccinated. 

The Biden administration is set to ship 9 million more coronavirus vaccines to Africa as concerns grow over the omicron variant, NBC News reported. With the new donations, the U.S. has now sent 100 million vaccines to Africa. On Thursday, President Joe Biden pledged to ship more than 200 million vaccine doses abroad within the next 100 days. In total, the United States is shipping out 11 million doses on Friday, with 2 million going to other places overseas. "That's more doses donated by the U.S. in a single day than what all but seven other countries have donated in total since the start of this pandemic," said White House coronavirus response coordinator Jeffrey Zients. Many African countries have struggled to vaccinate their population due to a combination of supply issues, vaccine hesitancy and logistical challenges such as cold storage for vaccines.

World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned countries worldwide to take the threat of omicron “extremely seriously,” Bloomberg reported. The variant has already spread globally, with at least 23 countries reporting omicron cases in five out of six of the WHO’s global regions. “We call on all countries to take rational, proportional risk reduction measures in keeping with international health regulations,” Tedros said. “These include measures to delay or reduce the spread of the new variant, such as screening of passengers prior to traveling or upon arrival,” Tedros added, criticizing blanket travel bans, which he says will not stop the spread of the variant. “[Bans] place a heavy burden on lives and livelihoods.” To see more of Tedros’ statement, watch the video below.

As fears over the new omicron variant spread across the globe, hotels are experiencing cancellations as the holiday season approaches, the BBC reported. Best Western GB, which runs hundreds of hotels across the United Kingdom, has seen cancellations in nearly three-quarters of its hotels. "This Saturday night, we were supposed to have 100 people eating in our restaurant. Now there'll only be 12," said Jonathan Fletcher, who manages a Best Western hotel. "We were full for four nights this week, but 35% of our rooms have now been canceled and we're not receiving bookings to replace them.” Fletcher and other hoteliers are concerned that the omicron variant will cost hotels and their staff lots of money. "If this continues, financially, we'd almost be better off in lockdown and having furlough back," Fletcher said.

Due to rising infection rates and concerns about the recently discovered omicron variant, officials in Germany on Thursday decided to reduce attendance capacity for outdoor sporting events to a maximum of 15,000 people, The Associated Press reported. The decision comes ahead of this weekend’s anticipated soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich. About 67,000 fans were expected to be on hand in Dortmund. Borussia Dortmund responded to the news by saying it would cancel and refund tickets it had sold, but would resell a smaller quantity. Indoor sporting events in Germany currently have a maximum capacity of about 5,000 people.

A new coronavirus vaccine made by a French startup is under “rolling review” by European Union drug regulator European Medicines Agency. It’s a first step toward giving the vaccine, made by Valneva, the greenlight to be used in the EU. According to The Associated Press, the EU approved a contract with Valneva for member nations to buy almost 27 million doses. A rolling review is a quicker way of assessing new drugs that allows experts to look at data from ongoing studies as they become available.

As concerns rise in the United States over the omicron variant, the number of COVID vaccinations rose sharply on Wednesday and Thursday, CNBC reported. Nearly 2.2 million doses were administered on Thursday, the largest single-day total since May. About half the shots administered were booster doses, with about one-third being first doses. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended a booster dose for all eligible adults on Monday due to concern over the omicron variant. Nearly 60% of Americans are fully vaccinated, with 70% of Americans having received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. Of the fully vaccinated, 21% have received a booster dose.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown and safety Mike Edwards have been suspended immediately by the NFL. According to USA Today, Brown was accused of obtaining a fake vaccine card. A statement released by the NFL Thursday said Brown and Edwards have been suspended without pay for the next three games and that the "health and safety of players and personnel is our top priority." Free Agent John Franklin III is also suspended for three games, which he will serve if signed by a team. All three players accepted the discipline and waived their right of appeal.

Buetwa Maguga, from the Lawley clinic, meets with local government officials in Lawley, South Africa, for the launch of the Vooma vaccination program against COVID-19 Friday Dec. 3, 2021. South Africa has accelerated its vaccination campaign a week after the discovery of the omicron variant of the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)

The new omicron variant causes three times as many reinfections than delta, a preliminary study published by South African scientists Thursday finds. Reuters reported that the South African Centre for Epidemiological Modeling and Analysis (SACEMA), along with the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) said the findings "provide epidemiological evidence for Omicron's ability to evade immunity from prior infection." Analysis of data from South Africa from March 2020 to November 27 showed the “reinfection risk profile of omicron is substantially higher than that associated with the beta and delta variants during the second and third waves,” NICD said in the statement on Thursday.

New international air travel rules will take effect in the United States on Monday as the country looks to slow the spread of the omicron variant, Reuters reported. Under the old rules, vaccinated travelers must present a negative COVID-19 test within three days prior to their departure, while unvaccinated travelers must present a test less than a day old. The new rule forces the unvaccinated and vaccinated alike to present a negative test result taken within one day of their departure. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky issued the order, which said the agency "must take quick and targeted action to help curtail the introduction and spread of the omicron variant into the United States." Foreign nationals from eight southern African countries are still barred from entering the country; travel bans have not been extended to other countries where omicron cases have been confirmed.

As omicron cases continue to spread across the United States, experts say it’s still too early to conclude if it will be less severe than the Delta variant. In an interview Friday on Good Morning America, Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director, urged the public not to lose sight of the fact that the vast majority of new COVID-19 cases in the U.S. continue to be Delta and we know how to respond to those “with vaccines, with boosters with masking and all of our prevention measures we’ve been using all along.” She went on to explain that this means we have the tools and are in a much better place to tackle these variants quickly and that while there is still a lot of science to understand how these vaccines are working against omicron, “we know for every variant we’ve had, it’s better to be vaccinated than unvaccinated.”

With the omicron variant of the virus threatening to outpace delta, the World Health Organization says that the same strategies used to control delta should continue to be how the world fights omicron, The Associated Press reported. In a reversal of previous statements, the WHO did admit that travel restrictions can bide time against the variant. While now more than three dozen countries have reported omicron cases, the numbers are low outside of South Africa and little is currently known about the virus; whether it is more contagious, more virulent or able to evade vaccine protection. “Border control can delay the virus coming in and buy time. But every country and every community must prepare for new surges in cases,” Dr. Takeshi Kasai, the WHO regional director for the Western Pacific. “We cannot be complacent.”

The seven-day moving average positivity rate in the United States continues to rise, surging past 7% to its current level at 7.38%, according to Johns Hopkins University figures. Over 140,000 new coronavirus cases were reported in the U.S. on Friday, along with 3,800 new deaths, with today’s death toll about 600 deaths away from the record high. The seven-day average of vaccine doses administered rose to 1.42 million as U.S. officials urge those eligible to get their booster shots to get the jab as the omicron variant threatens to spread across the country, The U.S. continues to lead the world in reporting the highest seven-day average number of cases, with that figure surging past the 100,000 mark. For more facts and figures on the global pandemic, watch the video below.

With mask mandates being reinstated in parts of the country, experts say that the most important parts of a mask are its comfort, fit and filtration, ABC 7 News Denver reported. Firstly, a mask should be comfortable enough to be worn correctly over one’s mouth and nose. The mask should also fit tightly, with no gaps around the nose, mouth or chin that allow aerosols to leak out. Lastly, the mask should block as many aerosols as possible. “The better the mask, the better the filtration, and the better it can protect you from inhaling COVID-19 aerosols,” said Alan Huffman, an associate professor of chemistry and aerosol science at the University of Denver. That said, a mask is better than no mask. “Any mask is better than no mask, but the better the mask people wear, and the more people wear it, the better for that community,” Huffman added. The gold standard for masks are N95 masks, which filter out 95% of infectious particles. The Chinese, European and South Korean equivalents, known as KN95s, FFP2s, and KF94s, respectively, provide comparable protection to N95s.

A Christmas party in Norway’s capital has led to an outbreak of the omicron variant. According to The Associated Press, at least 50 people located in and around the capital of Oslo have been infected with the variant after a Norwegian company held a Christmas party in a restaurant. The government said that the group involved in the Christmas party has “high vaccination coverage,” and that the infection detection team in Oslo has notified the surrounding municipalities of the outbreak so they can also begin detecting infections. “More cases are expected. Effective tracing is being done to limit transmission routes and prevent major outbreaks,” the Oslo Municipality said.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced late Thursday that state officials have confirmed five cases of the omicron variant. The vaccination status of the five people was unclear, Hochul said during an update on Thursday evening with Mayor Bill De Blasio. One case, discovered in Suffolk County on Long Island, was a 67-year-old individual who had traveled from South Africa. They had originally tested negative on Nov. 25 upon returning to the U.S., though tested positive in a point of care test taken on Nov. 30. Hochul added that the individual had some vaccine history, though it was unclear as to what extent. Two of the remaining four cases had been found in Queens, one in Brooklyn and the last in Manhattan. “Let me be clear: This is not cause for alarm,”Hochul said over Twitter alongside the update. “We knew this variant was going and we have the tools to stop the spread.”

Vaccinated Americans do not have to worry about changing their holiday plans due to the omicron variant, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Dr. Anthony Fauci said. "Just as I said and I'll say it again, if you have a vaccinated situation, enjoy the holidays with your family in a family setting," he said on Wednesday, CNN reports. Fauci said experts are hoping that vaccinations will provide protection against the omicron variant, just as they did for the delta variant. "That's where we're hoping we'll see with the Omicron variant, that if you get your levels high enough it'll spill over and get cross-protection against that variant,” he said.

A woman in Colorado who recently traveled to Southern Africa has been infected with the omicron variant of COVID-19, Colorado Springs news station KKTV reported. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment confirmed the diagnosis on Thursday, adding that the woman was fully vaccinated but experienced minor symptoms and was isolating at home. Everyone who was a close contact with the unidentified woman has tested negative as of Thursday afternoon. Colorado is the third state in the U.S. to confirm a case of the coronavirus variant, joining Minnesota and California.

A third 22-member medical military team has been deployed to Michigan as the state struggles with a fourth wave of COVID-19 infections. The military medical team, which consists of doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists, will aid Covenant Healthcare in Saginaw beginning on Dec. 12, The Associated Press reported. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said the assistance is “much-needed relief” for the state.

Donald Trump tested positive for the coronavirus three days prior to his first debate against Joe Biden, Trump’s former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, wrote in a new book obtained by The Guardian. Meadows also wrote that though he knew each candidate was required to “test negative for the virus within seventy two hours of the start time … Nothing was going to stop [Trump] from going out there.” The former president returned a negative result from a different test shortly after the positive one, Meadows said. Trump tested positive on Sept. 26, after the White House had hosted a Rose Garden ceremony for the then-Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett on the same day, according to Meadows. The event is now widely considered to have been a COVID super-spreader event. Trump announced he had the virus on Oct. 2 with the White House announcing the result within a few hours of the positive test. He was hospitalized later that day.

Following criticisms that Japan’s ban on new incoming international flights was too strict, the government retracted the policy just one day later, The Associated Press reported. The ban was announced in an attempt to prevent the spread of the omicron variant, but it faced criticism from Japanese citizens, who said the ban abandoned Japanese people living abroad. “I have instructed the transport ministry to fully pay attention to the needs of Japanese citizens to return home,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said. Some on social media had criticized the measure, with many disappointed that it would have prevented them from returning home for the holidays. The government will still maintain a cap of 3,500 daily arrivals.

South Africa was one of the first countries to identify the newly-discovered omicron variant, and now it may be to blame for a new wave of infections. In mid-November, South Africa health officials reported around 200 to 300 new cases of COVID-19 infections per day, according to the BBC. Infections are now an order of magnitude higher with 4,300 cases confirmed on Wednesday, followed by 8,500 new cases on Thursday. Health officials in South Africa said that omicron is now the dominant strain in the country and that this is the start of the fourth wave of the virus. Only 24% of South Africans are fully vaccinated, the BBC reported.

Medical staff wait to administer the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccine center in Strasbourg, eastern France, Wednesday Dec. 1, 2021. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias)

The highly-mutated omicron variant of the coronavirus is popping up around the globe after first being identified in Southern Africa. France and India are among the countries that confirmed their first cases of the variant on Thursday, The Associated Press reported. The person in France who tested positive for the omicron variant lives in Paris and recently returned from Nigeria. The two individuals who tested positive for the variant in India also recently traveled, although India’s Health Ministry did not disclose which country the individuals recently visited.

Health officials in Minnesota confirmed a case of the omicron variant on Thursday, the second known case in the U.S., CNBC reported. The first documented case in the country was reported in California on Wednesday. The Minnesota man infected with the variant is fully vaccinated and recently attended the Anime NYC 2021 convention in New York City on the weekend before Thanksgiving, CNBC said. White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said earlier this week that there are still uncertainties about the omicron variant, but the mutations with the variant “suggest that it might be more transmissible and that it might elude some of the protection of vaccines.”

The number of new daily COVID-19 cases reported in New York crossed 10,000 on Wednesday, the highest number since February, leading Gov. Kathy Hochul to deploy the National Guard, NBC 4 New York reported. Hochul deployed 60 National Guard teams to long-term care facilities that are in need of extra resources. "As the weather gets colder and friends and family gather indoors for the holiday season, the risk of a winter spike in COVID-19 cases rises," Hochul said, adding that 20% of New Yorkers statewide are not vaccinated. "We have the tools to fight this virus -- get vaccinated if you haven't and get the booster if you're vaccinated. Wear a mask, wash your hands and keep you and your loved ones safe." In response to the threat of a new surge, Hochul implemented a state of emergency last weekend, which expedites access to federal resources and prepares hospitals for a surge in cases.

The pharmaceutical company, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) said a drug it is developing alongside the biotechnology firm Vir is effective against the new omicron variant of the coronavirus based on recent laboratory analysis, Reuters reported. GSK said in a statement that tests demonstrated that the drug, known as sotrovimab, worked against viruses that were bio-engineered in a way to hold a number of similar mutations to the omicron variant. “Sotrovimab was deliberately designed with a mutating virus in mind,” Vir CEO George Scangos said. 

New infections across the U.S. increased to the highest levels since before Thanksgiving, with around 85,600 people testing positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, according to data gathered by Johns Hopkins University. Over the past week, 7% of people tested for the virus tested positive, the highest positivity ratio in over two months. The number of Americans receiving a booster shot is also on the rise. Nearly 42 million people have received an additional dose of a coronavirus vaccine, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Wednesday.

The Biden administration is set to launch its winter coronavirus plan on Thursday, which includes more testing and urges Americans to get booster shots but avoids new lockdowns, The Associated Press reported. With the emergence of the omicron variant and the continued spread of the delta variant, some nations have closed their borders and reimposed lockdowns. On Wednesday, Biden said that the U.S. would not follow, only recommending that Americans mask up indoors. The winter plan includes making private insurers cover the cost of at-home COVID-19 tests and increasing testing requirements for travelers entering the United States. It also strongly pushes Americans to get their booster shots, which the White House believes can help fight new variants like omicron. “There’s a national campaign to get the 100 million eligible Americans who have not yet gotten their booster a booster,” White House COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients said.

The New York City’s jail system may be facing a hurdle as hundreds of its correction officers may face suspension for failing to meet a Tuesday night deadline to get vaccinated against COVID-19, The Associated Press reported. Only 77% of the city’s Department of Correction’s uniformed staff has received at least one vaccine dose as of 5 p.m. Monday, the department reported, meaning hundreds did not meet the deadline. Corrections Department Commissioner Vincent Schiraldi told the AP Wednesday morning that about 700 jail workers who’ve applied for religious or medical exceptions can continue working while their cases are reviewed. According to City Hall officials, 570 workers could be put on leave without pay for failing to comply with the mandate. The exact number will not be known until those correctional officers show up for their scheduled shifts without proof of vaccination, the AP reported. 

Up to 6,000 intensive care beds in Germany could be occupied by Christmas, the country’s association for intensive care medicine (DIVI) said Wednesday, according to Reuters. “It is an ominous situation,” DIVI President Gernot Marx said. “We would be well advised to react immediately. We must get ahead of the situation.”

German officials reported 67,186 new cases on Wednesday, the highest daily figure since Feb. 18, Reuters said, and the current wave of infections is forecast to peak in the days leading up to Christmas. Currently, about 4,600 intensive care beds are occupied. The previous high was 5,745 from Jan. 3. 

A new analysis published in the Journal of Medical Economics examined the health records of 1.3 million people between Dec. 10, 2020, and July 8, 2021, to see who was at the highest risk of breakthrough infections. According to the data, only 0.08% of people who were fully vaccinated reported a breakthrough COVID-19 infection, UPI reported. More importantly, immunocompromised individuals made up nearly 60% of all hospitalizations and 100% of death due to breakthrough infections. “This is a strong reminder that there are vulnerable people all around us who have compromised immune systems, suboptimal responses to the vaccines and higher chances of getting this terrible disease,” Dr. Dorry Segev told UPI.

As the world reacts to the spreading omicron variant, Japan has asked international airlines to stop making reservations for all arriving flights through the end of the year, The Associated Press reported. People who have already made flight reservations to Japan should not be affected but should monitor the status of their flight in the event that it is canceled. This move is an effort to tighten its borders to limit the potential for the variant to arrive from overseas. However, Japan has already confirmed two cases of the variant, including one individual who recently flew to Japan from Peru, the AP said. The other 114 people that were on the same flight have tested negative but are in isolation.

The first U.S. case of the newly discovered omicron variant of the coronavirus has been confirmed in California, The Associated Press reported. Cases of the new variant, which was first discovered in Southern Africa, have been identified worldwide in about two dozen other nations. The Biden administration had already restricted travel from several countries in that part of the continent, the AP said. Officials say there is still much to be learned about the variant, including how contagious it is compared to other strains and whether it can withstand the effects of a vaccine. In a press briefing on Wednesday afternoon, California Gov. Gavin Newsom gave a few details about the first known omicron case in the U.S. Newsom said the individual is between the ages of 18 and 49, lives in San Francisco and was fully vaccinated. The individual had recently traveled to South Africa and returned to San Francisco on Nov. 22. The individual is reportedly experiencing mild symptoms and is self-quarantining. For more of Newsom's remarks on the news, watch the video below.

Scientists have warned for months that the coronavirus will continue to mutate and thrive as long as substantial pockets of the world remain unvaccinated, something the emergence of omicron has made clear, The Associated Press reported. The more the disease spreads among the unvaccinated, the more time it has to mutate and become more dangerous. “The virus is a ruthless opportunist, and the inequity that has characterized the global response has now come home to roost,” said Dr. Richard Hatchett, CEO of CEPI, one of the groups behind the U.N.-backed COVAX shot-sharing initiative. In Africa, where the omicron variant was first detected, less than 7% of the population is fully vaccinated. The COVAX program, designed to help deliver shots to poorer countries, has fallen woefully short of its goals – it will fail to distribute 2 billion doses by the end of 2021 and may miss its reduced goal of 1.4 billion doses. “The COVAX team may be delivering as fast as they can, but they can’t deliver vaccines they haven’t got,” said Anna Marriott, health policy manager for Oxfam, who criticized countries for failing to donate the vaccines they have pledged. Just 12% of promised vaccine donations have been delivered.

Rhode Island Gov. Daniel McKee announced plans to release an app that allows residents to easily prove coronavirus vaccination status. The app is currently in development and will allow Rhode Island residents quick access to their status right from their phone, according to The Associated Press. McKee has said the program will be voluntary, but it will be a “convenience item to anybody in the state of Rhode Island that wants to use it, whether it’s in their travels or wherever they might want to show that they’ve been vaccinated.” The app is expected to release later this month and will be called 401 health, according to executive director of the state Department of Health''s COVID-19 response effort, Tom McCarthy. State health Director Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott continues to reiterate the coronavirus vaccination continues to be a critical part in fighting new cases. 

Vaccination numbers in Singapore have been updated by the health ministry of the city-state, revealing 96 percent of the eligible population is fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. This number is up 2 percent from the last update. Overall, 86 percent of the total population is vaccinated from the coronavirus in the country. Unvaccinated people in Singapore are barred from entering shopping malls starting in October. Tougher restrictions are expected starting in 2022, including only allowing vaccinated individuals to enter workplaces, according to Reuters. Booster shots have been administered to 26 percent of the population so far. More booster shots are being urged as concerns rise from the omicron variant. Singapore has not detected any cases of the variant yet. 

Government officials in Brazil are considering new measures to control the spread of the coronavirus after a third case of the new omicron variant was confirmed in the country on Wednesday, The Associated Press reported. The latest case involved a passenger flying from Ethiopia into Sao Paulo on Nov. 27. According to the AP, the passenger, a 29-year-old man, is fully vaccinated and is said to be in good health. Brazil’s government is currently debating whether to require vaccine certificates from arriving passengers. More than 610,000 deaths have been blamed on the coronavirus in the country.

The CEOs of major U.S. companies expressed optimism in their most recent economic outlook, citing the release of enormous pent-up consumer demand, CNBC reported. But there was one hitch -- the survey of executives was taken before the emergence of the new omicron variant. In the survey conducted last month, the Business Roundtable lobbying group measured executives’ plans for the next six months, in which they expected to see growth in hiring, sales and capital investment. “This quarter’s survey reflects the encouraging signs we’re seeing with the economic rebound as consumers begin to resume travel and spending,” group Chairman Doug McMillon, the CEO of Walmart, said in a statement to CNBC. “Continued progress in defeating the pandemic, including new variants, will be necessary to sustain strong growth into the second half of 2022.” The World Health Organization labeled omicron a “variant of concern” on Nov. 26.

After a couple was caught trying to escape COVID-19 quarantine in the Netherlands, they are now being held in isolation in a hospital. The couple, a Spanish man and a Portuguese woman, tried escaping the quarantine after they both tested positive for the virus, Reuters reported. "They have now been transferred to a hospital elsewhere in the Netherlands to ensure they are in isolation. They are now in so-called forced isolation," said Petra Faber, spokesperson for the Haarlemmermeer municipality.

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James was not able to play in Tuesday night’s game after entering the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols, CNN reported. It is uncertain if James was infected or if he was a close contact with someone who tested positive for the virus. James was initially hesitant to get vaccinated, but he eventually decided to get vaccinated in September, CNN said. The Lakers still pulled off a win on Tuesday night despite James not being in the lineup, beating the Sacramento Kings 117-92.

The Biden administration plans to further tighten COVID travel restrictions for those flying into the United States amid growing concern over the new omicron variant, The Washington Post is reporting. The biggest move would require a negative COVID-19 test 24 hours before boarding a plane to the U.S., regardless of vaccination status or country of origin. Officials are also considering a seven-day self-quarantine even if tests come back negative, and retesting several days after arrival - for everyone, including U.S. citizens entering the country. President Joe Biden is expected to announce definitive rules on Thursday, as part of a wider COVID strategy plan, Bloomberg reported. Those who fail to abide by the protocols might be subject to fines and penalties, according to the Post. 

More than 1.5 million Americans received vaccination shots on Tuesday across the U.S., according to Johns Hopkins University figures, bringing the total number of Americans who are fully vaccinated above 197 million. Meanwhile, new cases remained high, with more than 115,000 infections counted on Tuesday as the positivity rate surged above 6% again, and more than 1,500 fatalities were reported sending the national death toll from the coronavirus above 780,000. As the race to vaccinate Americans becomes more urgent with the emergence of the omicron variant, Hawaii and California on Tuesday far and away led the nation in the number of shots administered. For more data surrounding the vaccination effort and the spread of the virus, watch the video below.

A record number of adults in Michigan are hospitalized with the coronavirus, The Detroit News reported. More than 80% of hospital inpatient beds and 84% of ICU beds in the state are full, 4,181 patients have confirmed cases of the coronavirus. Michigan is seeing a renewed wave of the coronavirus, with a positivity ratio of 18.7%, the highest since the early weeks of the pandemic. Nine hospitals in the state are at 100% capacity.

“We're in high capacity right now. The patients who come into the hospital with COVID are almost always not vaccinated,” said Dr. Dennis Cunningham, a hospital director at the Detroit-based Henry Ford Health System. “There are a small number of people who are vaccinated and come in the hospital, but they have immune systems that don't work really well either because they're the elderly or underlying medical problems like cancer or an organ transplant.”

During a meeting between outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel and incoming Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Scholz signaled his support for introducing mandatory coronavirus vaccinations, Politico reported. The policy would need to be approved by the German legislature and would be introduced at the start of February. Germany has seen a rise in cases, though Reuters reported there are signs the numbers of new cases may be leveling off, and its vaccination campaign lags behind other EU nations like Portugal, Spain and Italy. The leaders of several German states have publicly stated they favor mandatory vaccination, including Bavaria’s Markus Söder, who called mandatory vaccination “the only chance” to end the pandemic.

To limit a potential new wave of the coronavirus driven by the omicron variant, the United Kingdom’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization (JCVI) is advising that everyone over the age of 18 be offered a booster shot, the BBC reported. The JCVI also recommended that kids ages 12 to 15 be offered a second dose 3 months after their first and that the immunocompromised be offered a fourth vaccine dose. "With any vaccine during a pandemic, we get the greatest benefit for individuals and society if the vaccine is deployed before the wave starts. We want to provide boosters early enough... before any possible wave,” said Prof. Wei Shem Lim, chair of the JCVI. There have been 11 confirmed omicron cases in the United Kingdom.

Travel has neared record levels in the last couple of weeks with holiday travel in full swing. But, a major hit to the global aviation business in the near future is feared due to the Omicron coronavirus variant. Emirates airline President Tim Clark said the variant could cause "significant traumas" in the industry. Emirates is currently handling the variant with knowledge that it could be effectively dealt with from vaccines, according to Reuters. Clark also said the next few weeks will be critical for the industry while scientists assess the variants risks. "I would say probably by the end of December, we'll have a much clearer position. But in that time, December is a very important month for the air travel business," Clark told Reuters Next. The World Health Organization warned the variant is likely to spread internationally. The variant has been attributed to posing a very high risk of infection surges with "severe consequences" in some places.

A record number of adults in Michigan are hospitalized with the coronavirus, The Detroit News reported. More than 80% of hospital impatient beds and 84% of ICU beds in the state are full, 4,181 patients have confirmed cases of the coronavirus. Michigan is seeing a renewed wave of the coronavirus, with a positivity ratio of 18.7%, the highest since the early weeks of the pandemic. Nine hospitals in the state are at 100% capacity.

“We’re in high capacity right now. The patients who come into the hospital with COVID are almost always not vaccinated,” said Dr. Dennis Cunningham, a hospital director at the Detroit-based Henry Ford Health System. “There are a small number of people who are vaccinated and come in the hospital, but they have immune systems that don’t work really well either because they’re the elderly or underlying medical problems like cancer or an organ transplant.”

Over 200 cases of the omicron coronavirus variant have been confirmed around the world. Over a dozen countries have reported at least one case, according to ABC News. A tracker run by Newsnodes and BNO News revealed South Africa having the largest case count by far, with 114. The omicron variant was first identified in South Africa. Botswana is currently second in cases, with 14. Other countries reporting multiple cases include Portugal with 13; the United Kingdom with 11; Australia, Germany, Canada and Hong Kong with five; Italy with 4; Israel with 2; and Denmark with 2. The United States has no reported cases of the omicron variant.

Merck’s antiviral pill molnupiravir won the narrow backing of an FDA advisory committee on Tuesday. The advisory panel voted 13-10 in favor of authorizing the pill for use on most people who become infected with COVID-19, The Associated Press reported. The treatment would be the first oral home drug available to treat the coronavirus. The panel emphasized that the drug should not be used to treat anyone who is pregnant as there is a serious risk of birth defects, according to the AP. Also, trials excluded vaccinated people who experienced breakthrough cases, so the majority of the panel said it should not be used to treat those who have received the shot.

At the moment, the only FDA-authorized treatments for non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients are monoclonal antibodies, which require intravenous infusion, something which is typically done in a clinical setting and not at home. Merck’s drug, while cheap and easier to both take and distribute, is not as effective against hospitalization and death, only reducing it by about 30%. Still, the drug potentially marks a new stage of the pandemic, with Pfizer’s oral pill likely to be authorized soon as well. "This [could be] huge for the world, in terms of what we can do to slow down, and hopefully stop, the transmission of this virus," said Dr. Phyllis Tien, an infectious disease specialist at the University of California, San Francisco, told NPR. A decision is expected from the FDA before the end of the year, the AP reported.

A photo showing the Merck & Co. oral drug molnupiravir, which the pharmaceutical company said in trial cut the risk of hospitalization and death from COVID-19 in half. (Copyright © 2009-2021 Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, N.J., U.S.A. All rights reserved)

(Copyright © 2009-2021 Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, N.J., U.S.A. All rights reserved))

The new omicron variant may have just popped onto the world’s radar last week, but officials in the Netherlands say the variant was present in the country much earlier than previously thought. According to the BBC, the variant was identified in two separate tests between Nov. 19 and 23. Dutch officials previously believed that omicron arrived in the country after two flights from South Africa landed in Amsterdam on Sunday, but the two new samples show that variant was already present.“In a special PCR test, the samples showed an abnormality in the spike protein,” the National Institute for Public Health (RIVM) which announced the earlier cases, said on Tuesday, the BBC reported, before later adding that “this means that the people were very probably infected independently from each other, from different sources and in different locations.”

The Dallas Cowboys will not only be playing on a wacky schedule with another Thursday game this week, but they will also be playing without a number of key contributors due to positive COVID-19 tests, according to The Associated Press. A total of eight players and coaches will be sidelined for Thursday’s game against the New Orleans Saints, a figure that was on the rise on Tuesday after rookie cornerback Nahshon Wright tested positive, the AP reported. Six of the team members are coaches, including head coach Mike McCarthy. Wide receiver Amari Cooper is cleared to return after missing the last two games following a positive test, but McCarthy said the unvaccinated wide receiver still isn’t feeling well and hasn’t practiced

After consulting scientific and legal experts, the Austrian government announced that it will press forward with its plans to make vaccination mandatory in the country starting February, The Guardian reported. Austria is currently in the midst of a 20-day lockdown, a measure taken after cases surged in the country for the fourth time since the start of the pandemic. “We didn’t want a vaccine mandate, let me make that explicit,” said Karoline Edtstadler, the minister for EU and constitutional affairs. “But 20 months on from the start of the pandemic we are in a situation that is dramatic if you look at intensive care units at hospitals,” she said, adding that a mandate is the only thing preventing future waves of the virus. Those who refuse to be vaccinated will get two warnings, followed by fines of 3,600 euros, which can be issued twice.

On Tuesday, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals announced that its antibody treatment and other similar drugs may be less effective against the omicron variant, Reuters reported. After the announcement, shares of the company went down 2.8%. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals says that the company is currently studying the potential effectiveness decrease using the actual omicron variant sequence. "There may be reduced neutralization activity of both vaccine-induced and monoclonal antibody conveyed immunity,” the company said. The World Health Organization has said it may take weeks to determine omicron’s characteristics: its severity, its transmissibility and its ability to escape protection against vaccine-induced or infection-induced immunity.

After reporting its first 2 cases of the omicron variant on Sunday, Canada has tallied 3 more for a total of 5 cases in the country, Reuters reported. Ottawa reported 2 more cases late Monday to increase the nation’s total. Quebec, which also recorded a case on Monday, has asked 115 travelers who entered the country from southern Africa to isolate and get tested for COVID-19. Recently, Quebec has seen a rise in cases, largely in the unvaccinated, according to Quebec Health Minister Christian Dube. "The next few weeks will be critical," Dube said, advising Quebecois to reconsider holiday travel and attending large gatherings.

On Tuesday, Japan reported its first case of the omicron variant in a Namibian diplomat who arrived from his country on Sunday, The Associated Press reported. The patient, a 30-year-old man, tested positive upon arriving at Japan’s Narita airport and was then isolated. The diplomat was originally asymptomatic but is now presenting with a fever, said Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto. Additionally, the diplomat was fully vaccinated, receiving his second Moderna shot in July. The diplomat’s 70 other plane passengers have been identified as close contacts, though all of them have so far tested negative and are isolating under the eye of Japanese health authorities. On Monday, Japan announced that starting Tuesday it will ban all foreign visitors to the country through the end of the year as a precaution against the omicron variant.

On Tuesday, Greece announced that it will make COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory for those over the age of 60, Reuters reported. The move comes as new cases of the coronavirus continue to surge in the country and challenge its healthcare system. Starting Jan. 16, those who fail to comply with the mandate will be fined 100 euros. The mandate is the first of its kind in the European Union – it is the only mandate thus far that targets an age group rather than groups of workers. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis defended the decision as a means to protect the more than half a million elderly Greeks who are not yet vaccinated. "It's the price to pay for health," he said.

Global markets globally were jolted by a dire warning from Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel over the likely effectiveness of the current slate of COVID-19 vaccines against the omicron variant, Reuters reported. In an interview with The Financial Times, Bancel expressed serious doubt that the vaccines would be as effective against omicron. "There is no world, I think, where [the effectiveness] is the same level," Bancel said. "I think it's going to be a material drop. I just don't know how much because we need to wait for the data. But all the scientists I've talked to . . . are like 'this is not going to be good'." European stock markets tumbled at the news, dropped 1.4% early in trading.

More than 208,000 new coronavirus cases were reported on Monday as states report numbers from over the Thanksgiving holiday, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University. In addition to the new cases, just under 2,000 new coronavirus deaths were tallied, along with over 4.6 million vaccine doses administered. The United States continues to lead the world in reporting new cases, followed by Germany and the United Kingdom, which reported just under 51,000 and over 48,000 new cases, respectively.

Philadelphia 76ers star center and power forward Joel Embiid returned to the court on Saturday after missing nine games, telling reporters in a post-game interview that he wasn’t sure he’d beat the disease, CNN reported. Embiid said that he had trouble breathing and headaches that hurt him more than migraines. "I really thought I wasn't going to make it. It was that bad. So, I'm just thankful to be sitting here. I struggled with it, but I'm just glad I got over it and I'm just here." Embiid finished his first game back with 42 points and 14 rebounds. "Honestly, I did not think I was going to play tonight after the workout last night," Embiid said. "Really couldn't go up and down more than three times. I guess, to me it's a miracle I even played this many minutes." CNN was unable to independently confirm Embiid’s vaccination status.

Merriam-Webster has named “vaccine” the 2021 word of the year. Searches for the word went up 601% over 2020, which is when the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine began being administered in the U.S. When compared to 2019, searches for “vaccine” increased 1,048%. “This was a word that was extremely high in our data every single day in 2021,” Peter Sokolowski, Merriam-Webster’s editor-at-large, told The Associated Press. “It really represents two different stories. One is the science story, which is this remarkable speed with which the vaccines were developed. But there’s also the debates regarding policy, politics and political affiliation.”

Patients infected with the omicron variant of COVID-19 are showing different symptoms to patients infected with the delta variant, according to Bloomberg. Those infected with omicron have been experiencing fatigue, head and body aches, and on occasion sore throats and a cough, Angelique Coetzee, chairwoman of the South African Medical Association, said. In comparison, those infected with delta mainly experienced elevated pulse rates, low oxygen levels and a loss of taste and smell. Coetzee first noticed patients experiencing the symptoms associated with omicron cases on Nov. 18. She alerted the Ministerial Advisory Council, and lab testing confirmed that there was a new variant the following week. “I said these different symptoms can’t be delta, they are very similar to beta or it must be a new strain,” she said. “I don’t think it will blow over but I think it will be a mild disease hopefully. For now we are confident we can handle it.”

Japan has banned the entry of all foreign visitors to the country for at least one month as it attempts to prevent the omicron variant from spreading within its borders, Kyodo News reported. The ban had only just been eased, with some students and businesspeople having been allowed to enter the country starting Nov. 8. Returning Japanese citizens and foreign residents will need to isolate for 14 days regardless of their vaccination status. Those arriving from 14 countries, including Britain, Germany and South Africa, will need to spend the first 10 days of their isolation in government facilities. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said closing the border is a "temporary measure until information about the Omicron variant becomes clear," adding that "when dealing with an unknown risk, it's best to take every precaution."

Moderna could release a reformulated version of the COVID-19 vaccine specifically designed to fight the omicron variant by early 2022. According to CNBC, it is not yet clear if a reformulated version of the vaccine will be needed to ward off the variant, but Moderna’s Chief Medical Officer Paul Burton said one could be ready by early next year. “We should know about the ability of the current vaccine to provide protection in the next couple of weeks, but the remarkable thing about the MRNA vaccines, Moderna platform is that we can move very fast,” Burton said. “If we have to make a brand new vaccine I think that’s going to be early 2022 before that’s really going to be available in large quantities.”

Sweden has joined a growing list of countries reporting cases of the omicron variant, reporting its first case on Monday, Reuters reported. The infected individual had traveled to the country from South Africa a little over a week ago. Many European nations have reported omicron cases, including, but not limited to, the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Belgium, Italy and Germany, according to data from CNN. The United States has not yet confirmed any omicron cases, though health experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci believe that it is inevitable that the variant will spread in the United States. There are many questions surrounding the variant, with some experts fearing it may both be more transmissible and immune-resistant.