A new omicron subvariant, HV.1, now accounts for more than a quarter of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., CDC data shows. Meanwhile, uptake of the new vaccine has been slow and new hospital admissions continue to decline. 

While some health experts suggest that the next pandemic could be between five and 10 years away, what that pandemic could be caused by and if the U.S. will be ready for it are separate questions. 

The FDA issued an alert Oct. 27 warning consumers to stop using 26 over-the-counter eye drop products because of the potential risk of eye infection that could lead to partial vision loss or blindness. 

A new COVID-19 variant, HV.1, is now dominant in the U.S., accounting for more than 25% of cases, according to the latest CDC data. 

CDC Director Mandy Cohen, MD, signed off on new committee recommendations for two vaccines: mpox and meningitis.

A quarter of the nation's CDC-sponsored wastewater testing sites are shut down indefinitely as the agency looks to replace the firm it has worked with on wastewater surveillance since 2020, sparking concerns among public health officials that the nation will have little insight into COVID-19's spread as colder months arrive, Politico reported Oct. 26. 

A CDC vaccine advisory group recommended the two-dose mpox vaccine for people 18 and older who are at higher risk, according to an Oct. 25 report from the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy.

The CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices formally recommended Pfizer's meningitis vaccine Oct. 25, five days after the FDA granted it full approval.

Concerns are growing among U.S. health experts about rising cases of dengue fever, an infection caused by mosquito bites that could become endemic to some states within the next decade. 

More than 220,000 children were diagnosed with arthritis between 2017 and 2021, a CDC report published in July estimates. The majority of diagnoses were adolescents between 12 and 18 years old. 

The nation's new COVID-19 vaccine rollout has been off to a slow start, with about 12 million Americans receiving the shots since mid-September, according to an Oct. 24 report from Politico.

Officials at Henry Ford Medical Center Fairlane in Dearborn, Mich., thought they may have had faulty testing swabs for strep throat when rates were so high, but the swabs are accurate, radio station WWJ reported Oct. 23. 

In the 38 years Anthony Fauci, MD, spent as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, he was often asked what his worst nightmare was. His answer remained consistent: The emergence of a new viral pathogen capable of spreading quickly and causing significant morbidity and mortality.

Although both COVID-19 cases and flu are now both low nationwide, health officials are still encouraging individuals to get vaccinated before the end of October. 

Health officials confirmed dengue virus in a California resident with no history of international travel, marking an "extremely rare case of local transmission" in the U.S., the Pasadena Public Health Department said Oct. 20. 

Leishmania mexican, a flesh-eating parasite that also causes fever, weight loss, and an enlarged spleen and liver is now endemic to Southern parts of the U.S., CDC experts told CBS News Oct. 19.

A new biomedical research hub is coming to New York City, with the ultimate goal of bioengineering immune cells capable of stopping a disease in its tracks. 

As of Oct. 19, flu activity in the U.S. is down 66 percent compared to last year, marking a more gradual start to flu season that is closer to the pre-pandemic norm, according to new data from Walgreens' Flu Index.

The spread of mosquito-transmitted viruses is accelerating in the Southern U.S., stirring concerns about the potential return of yellow fever, two infectious disease experts wrote in an Oct. 14 article for The New England Journal of Medicine.

Remnants of the virus that causes COVID-19 may linger in the gut, ultimately causing a reduction in circulating levels of serotonin. This may explain a number of long COVID-19 symptoms, such as brain fog and memory problems, according to new research from scientists at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.