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FILE - A student arrives as the sun rises during the first day of school on Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021 at Freeman Elementary School in Flint, Mich. New autism numbers released Thursday, Dec. 2 suggest more U.S. children are being diagnosed with the developmental condition and at younger ages.

Data: 1 in 44 kids affected by autism in U.S.

FILE - A student arrives as the sun rises during the first day of school on Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021 at Freeman Elementary School in Flint, Mich. New autism numbers released Thursday, Dec. 2 suggest more U.S. children are being diagnosed with the developmental condition and at younger ages.

December 3, 2021, 6:05am Health

New autism numbers released Thursday suggest more U.S. children are being diagnosed with the developmental condition and at younger ages. Read story

FILE - Licensed practical nurse Yokasta Castro, of Warwick, R.I., draws a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine into a syringe at a mass vaccination clinic, May 19, 2021, at Gillette Stadium, in Foxborough, Mass. While all eyes are on the new and little-understood omicron variant, the delta form of the coronavirus isn't finished wreaking havoc in the U.S. There is much that is unknown about omicron, including whether it is more contagious than previous versions, makes people sicker or more easily thwarts the vaccine or breaks through the immunity that people get from a bout of COVID-19.

As omicron looms, U.S. is still battling the delta wave

FILE - Licensed practical nurse Yokasta Castro, of Warwick, R.I., draws a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine into a syringe at a mass vaccination clinic, May 19, 2021, at Gillette Stadium, in Foxborough, Mass. While all eyes are on the new and little-understood omicron variant, the delta form of the coronavirus isn't finished wreaking havoc in the U.S. There is much that is unknown about omicron, including whether it is more contagious than previous versions, makes people sicker or more easily thwarts the vaccine or breaks through the immunity that people get from a bout of COVID-19.

December 2, 2021, 1:15pm Health

While all eyes are on the new and little-understood omicron variant, the delta form of the coronavirus isn't finished wreaking havoc in the U.S., sending record numbers of patients to the hospital in the Midwest and New England. Read story

FILE - In this Jan. 8, 2021, file photo, a pharmacist prepares a syringe of the Pfizer vaccine for COVID-19, at Queen Anne Healthcare, a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility in Seattle. With booster doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine now authorized in the U.S., government advisers reconvened on Thursday, Sept. 23, to tackle the most contentious question yet: Exactly who should roll up their sleeves right away? (AP Photo/Ted S.

Health officials search for omicron variant in Washington, say it’s ‘not a time to panic’

FILE - In this Jan. 8, 2021, file photo, a pharmacist prepares a syringe of the Pfizer vaccine for COVID-19, at Queen Anne Healthcare, a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility in Seattle. With booster doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine now authorized in the U.S., government advisers reconvened on Thursday, Sept. 23, to tackle the most contentious question yet: Exactly who should roll up their sleeves right away? (AP Photo/Ted S.

December 2, 2021, 8:59am Health Free

As state researchers continue to search for the omicron variant of the coronavirus, prioritizing testing travelers, Washington health leaders are reminding the public not to panic. Read story

FILE - A man takes part in a demonstration against the country's coronavirus restrictions in Vienna, Austria, Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021. The coronavirus's omicron variant kept a jittery world off-kilter Wednesday Dec.

Omicron and delta spell return of unpopular restrictions

FILE - A man takes part in a demonstration against the country's coronavirus restrictions in Vienna, Austria, Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021. The coronavirus's omicron variant kept a jittery world off-kilter Wednesday Dec.

December 2, 2021, 7:59am Health Free

Greeks who are over age 60 and refuse coronavirus vaccinations could be hit with monthly fines of more than one-quarter of their pensions — a get-tough policy that the country's politicians say will cost votes but save lives. Read story

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy listens as President Joe Biden speaks about the COVID-19 variant named omicron, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Monday, Nov. 29, 2021, in Washington.

Official: 1st U.S. case of COVID-19 omicron variant identified in California

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy listens as President Joe Biden speaks about the COVID-19 variant named omicron, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Monday, Nov. 29, 2021, in Washington.

December 1, 2021, 1:55pm Health Free

The U.S. recorded its first confirmed case of the omicron variant Wednesday — in a vaccinated traveler who returned to California after a trip to South Africa — as scientists around the world race to establish whether the new, mutant version of the coronavirus is more dangerous than previous ones. Read story

FILE - A worker disinfects chairs at a new vaccination center in Lisbon, Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021. A pandemic-weary world faces weeks of confusing uncertainty as countries restrict travel and take other steps to halt the newest potentially risky coronavirus mutant before anyone knows just how dangerous omicron really is.

Mysteries of omicron variant could take weeks to untangle

FILE - A worker disinfects chairs at a new vaccination center in Lisbon, Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021. A pandemic-weary world faces weeks of confusing uncertainty as countries restrict travel and take other steps to halt the newest potentially risky coronavirus mutant before anyone knows just how dangerous omicron really is.

December 1, 2021, 1:54pm Health

A pandemic-weary world faces weeks of confusing uncertainty as countries restrict travel and take other steps to halt the newest potentially risky coronavirus mutant before anyone knows just how dangerous omicron really is. Read story

FILE - Vials of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine sit in a cooler before being thawed at a pop-up COVID-19 vaccination site in the Bronx borough of New York on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021. On Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021, Pfizer asked U.S. regulators to allow boosters of its COVID-19 vaccine for anyone 18 or older, a step that comes amid concern about increased spread of the coronavirus with holiday travel and gatherings.

Washington health officials urge not to wait for ‘perfect booster’ as Omicron threat looms

FILE - Vials of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine sit in a cooler before being thawed at a pop-up COVID-19 vaccination site in the Bronx borough of New York on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021. On Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021, Pfizer asked U.S. regulators to allow boosters of its COVID-19 vaccine for anyone 18 or older, a step that comes amid concern about increased spread of the coronavirus with holiday travel and gatherings.

December 1, 2021, 1:51pm Health Free

As state Department of Health officials were giving their regular COVID briefing on Wednesday, news broke that the first case of the Omicron variant had been detected in California. Read story

People queue for Pfizer COVID-19 vaccinations in the Wizink Center in Madrid, Spain, Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2021. Health authorities in the Spanish capital have confirmed a second case of the omicron coronavirus variant in a 61-year-old woman who had returned from a trip to South Africa on Monday.

Omicron keeps world jittery as more information drips out

People queue for Pfizer COVID-19 vaccinations in the Wizink Center in Madrid, Spain, Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2021. Health authorities in the Spanish capital have confirmed a second case of the omicron coronavirus variant in a 61-year-old woman who had returned from a trip to South Africa on Monday.

December 1, 2021, 7:41am Health Free

The omicron variant kept a jittery world off-kilter Wednesday as Japan further tightened travel restrictions, infections linked to the new version of the coronavirus popped up in more places and new evidence made clear the mutant strain was circulating weeks earlier than thought. Read story

COVID vaccine verification digital record offered in Washington

November 30, 2021, 3:38pm Editor's Choice Free

Washington has started offering residents a digital record of their coronavirus vaccinations that can be used to access businesses and other places where vaccine proof is required. Read story

People wear face mask to protect against the coronavirus at the public transport station Friedrichstrasse in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021. According to local authorities wearing face masks mandatory in public transport and passengers need to be vaccinated, recovered or tested negative of the coronavirus.

Omicron variant may have reached Europe earlier than thought

People wear face mask to protect against the coronavirus at the public transport station Friedrichstrasse in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021. According to local authorities wearing face masks mandatory in public transport and passengers need to be vaccinated, recovered or tested negative of the coronavirus.

November 30, 2021, 8:31am Health Free

New findings about the coronavirus’s omicron variant made it clear Tuesday that the emerging threat slipped into countries before their defenses were up, as two distant nations announced their first cases and a third reported its presence before South African officials sounded the alarm. Read story