Public Health

The FDA is considering a new COVID-19 vaccination strategy that would mirror the process for creating and administering annual flu shots, federal documents show.

COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths fell nationwide this week, even as the highly transmissible omicron subvariant XBB.1.5 grew to account for about half of all U.S. infections, according to the CDC's COVID-19 data tracker weekly review published Jan. 20. 

No state or region in the U.S. saw "very high" levels of flu activity for the week ending Jan. 14, the CDC's latest FluView report shows. Not since October has no state reported very high flu activity. 

Patients who present in the emergency room with signs of a possible transient ischemic attack require in-depth evaluation even if symptoms are no longer present, according to new guidelines issued by the American Heart Association.

A unique strain of gonorrhea identified in two residents in Massachusetts showed little or no response to five classes of antibiotics, health officials said Jan. 19.

COVID-19 hospitalizations are declining nationwide even as the highly transmissible omicron subvariant XBB.1.5 gains prevalence. 

Holiday disruptions are likely behind discrepancies in COVID-19 data that have emerged in the last few weeks, according to health experts. The nation's daily average for hospitalizations has fallen by about 15 percent over the last two weeks, data from…

In the first two years of the pandemic, St. Louis Children's Hospital saw the average number of children and teens needing treatment for gunshot wounds increase by 50 percent, St. Louis Public Radio reported Jan. 18. 

HHS does not have a strong framework in place to adequately monitor research involving potential pandemic pathogens, the U.S. Government Accountability Office said in a Jan. 18 report. 

Hybrid immunity, the combination of COVID-19 recovery and immunization, provides up to 12 months of protection against severe reinfection or hospitalization, according to a study published in The Lancet on Jan. 18.