Health Wire

When should you get tested for COVID-19 or influenza?

December 28, 2021, 6:09am Health

COVID-19 positivity rates in some areas of the U.S. are as high 25 to 30 percent. Now influenza rates also are starting to rise. Experts at Mayo Clinic anticipate flu activity will continue to increase over the coming weeks and months until the spring. While flu cases are still relatively… Read story

A woman wears a face covering as she passes a Christmas lights, in London, Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2021. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday that his government reserves the "possibility of taking further action" to protect public health as Omicron spreads across the country.

Omicron less likely to put you in hospital

December 28, 2021, 6:08am Health

Two new British studies provide some early hints that the omicron variant of the coronavirus may be milder than the delta version. Read story

Flu making comeback in U.S. after unusual year off

December 27, 2021, 4:50pm Health

The U.S. flu season has arrived on schedule after taking a year off, with flu hospitalizations rising and two child deaths reported. Read story

FILE - A middle school principal walks the empty halls of his school as he speaks with one of his teachers to get an update on her COVID-19 symptoms, Friday, Aug., 20, 2021, in Wrightsville, Ga. On Monday, Dec. 27, 2021, U.S. health officials cut isolation restrictions for Americans who catch the coronavirus from 10 to five days, and also shortened the time that close contacts need to quarantine. (AP Photo/Stephen B.

CDC recommends shorter COVID isolation, quarantine for all

December 27, 2021, 1:57pm Health

U.S. health officials on Monday cut isolation restrictions for Americans who catch the coronavirus from 10 to five days, and similarly shortened the time that close contacts need to quarantine. Read story

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, wears a face mask as he arrives for the the White House COVID-19 Response Team's regular call with the National Governors Association in the South Court Auditorium in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House Campus, Monday, Dec. 27, 2021, in Washington. Fauci says the U.S. should consider a vaccination mandate for domestic air travel as coronavirus infections surge. To date the Biden administration has balked at the idea, anticipating legal entanglements.

Fauci: U.S. should consider vaccine mandate for U.S. air travel

December 27, 2021, 12:37pm Health

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, said Monday the nation should consider a vaccination mandate for domestic air travel, signaling a potential embrace of an idea the Biden administration has previously eschewed, as COVID-19 cases spike. Read story

Omicron spreads global gloom over New Year’s celebrations

A woman wearing a face mask to guard against COVID-19 carries bags of shopping along Oxford Street in London, Monday, Dec. 27, 2021. In Britain, where the omicron variant has been dominant for days, government requirements have been largely voluntary and milder than those on the continent, but the Conservative government said it could impose new restrictions after Christmas.

December 27, 2021, 8:55am Health

As omicron spreads ever more gloom around the globe ahead of New Year's Eve, governments are moving at different speeds to contain the scourge, with some reimposing restrictions immediately and others hesitating to spoil the party again. Read story

Washington hospitals are struggling to keep ahead of nursing shortages

Registered Nurse Westin Prouty, center, and a medical team finish turning over a COVID-19 patient onto their stomach to help with breathing, inside the intensive care unit at Central Washington Hospital on Tuesday, Sept. 21, 2021. Proning, or turning a patient on their stomach for better breathing, takes a team of people. With staffing shortages, the hospital has trained staff in other departments to come help with this strenuous and time-consuming process.

December 27, 2021, 6:02am Health

At a Washington State Hospital Association media briefing in November, Nicole Eddins, senior director of ancillary services at Mason Health in Shelton, reported staff at her hospital were working on their days off, enduring 16- to 18-hour shifts and “stretched incredibly thin.” Read story