COVID-19

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SNL Scales Back Tonight&#39;s Show
Tonight's SNL
Drops Audience
Dec 18, 2021 4:30 PM CST

Tonight's SNL Drops Audience

Omicron is behind decision to scale back show

(Newser) - Hours before showtime, Saturday Night Live announced that its final show of the year will have no audience in its New York studio and a reduced cast and crew. A statement posted on social media attributed the decision to the surge in COVID-19 cases caused by the omicron variant, per...

With 10% of Players on COVID List, NHL Makes Changes
Next, NHL Tightens
COVID Protocols
Dec 18, 2021 1:45 PM CST

Next, NHL Tightens COVID Protocols

The league has 10% of its players out of action

(Newser) - The NHL reintroduced stricter COVID-19 protocols Saturday that include daily testing and other steps in a bid to limit a growing outbreak among players and team personnel. The enhanced protocols will be put into effect immediately and last through Jan. 1, with an evaluation of their impact to take place...

House Panel: Trump Tried to Undermine COVID Response

Congressional subcommittee interviewed former officials over several months

(Newser) - A report from Congress released Friday says officials in the Trump administration deliberately undermined the public health response and messaging around the coronavirus pandemics, CNN reports. The findings are a result of months of interviews with former officials, and some of the information has been released before. But there’s...

NFL Reschedules 3 Games Over COVID Outbreaks

NHL and NBA also getting hit

(Newser) - Sports fans of any league: If you planned to watch some games this weekend, better check the schedules often, because COVID outbreaks are taking a toll:
  • NFL: The NFL is shifting three games that were scheduled for this weekend. The Browns-Raiders game is moving from Saturday to Monday, while the
...

CDC Gives Thumbs-Up to 'Test-to-Stay' COVID Policy

Practice allows close contacts of infected students to go to school if they themselves test negative

(Newser) - US health officials are endorsing "test-to-stay" policies that allow close contacts of students infected with the coronavirus to remain in classrooms if they test negative. The CDC decided to more firmly embrace the approach, already used by many school districts, after research of such policies in the Chicago and...

Better Omicron News Emerges in South Africa

Hospitalizations are down significantly when compared to the delta wave

(Newser) - Stories raising the alarm about the fast-spreading omicron variant aren't hard to find. For example, Britain estimates that 200,000 people are becoming infected with it each day at this point, notes the New York Times . And the same trend appears inevitable in the US. "No part of...

Omicron Called 'Biggest Threat' to World Health

Biden warns of 'winter of illness and death' for the unvaccinated

(Newser) - The omicron COVID variant is now the "biggest threat to global public health," health ministers from Group of Seven countries agreed at a meeting Thursday. A statement issued by the UK, which currently holds the G7 presidency, described developments as "very worrying" and said it is "...

Fla. Man Wearing Thong on Face Gets Booted From Flight

Adam Jenne compares actions on 'absurd' mask rules to those of Rosa Parks; United disagrees

(Newser) - As far as masks-on-planes incidents go, it's a new one: A Cape Coral, Florida, man has been banned for the time being from United Airlines after he tried to fly from South Florida to Washington, DC, wearing a red thong on his face instead of an approved mask. WFTX...

Study Suggests Omicron Multiplies 70 Times Faster

Even if variant is less deadly, researchers say toll could be high because it will spread so widely

(Newser) - Researchers may have a clue to why the omicron variant is spreading so quickly, and what its advantage could be over the original and delta strains. Omicron multiplies in a person's bronchial tubes 70 times faster than the other two varieties, a study by the University of Hong Kong...

Outbreaks Affect Leagues, and Outcome of Games


NFL Changes
COVID Protocols
updated
Dec 16, 2021 4:15 PM CST

NFL Changes COVID Protocols

Mask mandate is back after bad week for infections

(Newser) - Update: The NFL is adjusting its COVID-19 protocols in the face of increasing infections. Some of the changes could provide relief to teams that are shorthanded after outbreaks this week, ESPN reports. The policies, negotiated by the league and the players association, call for returning to a mask mandate in...

Kroger Cuts a Key Benefit for Unvaccinated Workers

They'll no longer receive COVID sick pay

(Newser) - To boost employee vaccination rates earlier this year, Kroger used the carrot—a $100 bonus for every fully vaccinated worker. Now, it's going for the stick. The grocery giant says it will end some benefits for unvaccinated employees and bring in insurance surcharges as of Jan. 1, the New ...

Royal Family: Sorry for Princess's Birthday Bash

Dutch heir Amalia welcomed 21 guests for celebration amid rising COVID-19 cases

(Newser) - The Dutch royal family says it regrets hosting an 18th birthday party for future queen Princess Amalia amid rising cases of COVID-19. Prime Minister Mark Rutte says 21 people attended Saturday's party in the gardens of the Huis ten Bosch royal palace in the Hague, where canopies were erected...

Apple Delays Office Return for 5th Time. This Time It's Indefinite

Employees, originally told to plan for February return, will also get $1K bonus, per CEO Tim Cook

(Newser) - First the date for Apple employees to return to the office was set for last June . That ended up getting shifted to September, and then three more times after that, with the latest target mapped out for Feb. 1. Now, once more thanks to COVID, yet another postponement, and this...

France Bans Travel to UK Without 'Compelling' Reason

British government has warned of 'tidal wave' of omicron cases

(Newser) - As European governments scramble to deal with the spread of the omicron variant, France has placed tough restrictions on travel to and from the UK, which currently has a far higher number of omicron cases. In a statement, the French government said it had reintroduced a requirement to have a...

You'll Soon Need Not Just a Vaccine but a Booster to Get In Here

Employees will be subject to the same requirement at Met Opera

(Newser) - The Metropolitan Opera is requiring audience and employees to receive COVID-19 booster shots for entry starting Jan. 17, the AP reports. “With the news of the rapid spread of the Omicron COVID-19 variant,” the Met said in an email to the company on Wednesday, “it is clear...

German Anti-Vaxxers Accused of Assassination Plot

Crossbows were seized in predawn raids

(Newser) - "We won't put up with a tiny minority of uninhibited extremists trying to impose its will on the whole of our society," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz warned Wednesday, hours after police raided the homes of anti-vaccination activists suspected of plotting to assassinate a state governor. Prosecutors said...

Cornell Takes 'Dispiriting' Steps After Finding Omicron Cases

UK expects 'quite staggering' case numbers

(Newser) - Cornell University says it is taking steps to protect students and the wider community after a COVID surge that appears to include a "very high percentage" of cases of the omicron variant. The main campus in Ithaca, NY, is being shut down, final exams have been shifted online, and...

Cops: Vigilantes Abduct Principal Over COVID Measures

Greek principal was driven to police station, where his alleged attackers were then detained

(Newser) - Police in northern Greece have jailed several people who allegedly handcuffed a principal, forced him into a car, then drove him to a police station, demanding he be arrested for enforcing COVID-19 restrictions. Instead, members of the group known as Guardians of the Constitution, who argue the restrictions violate constitutional...

Being Concerned About COVID Got Me Fired by Dave Ramsey: Suit

Employee says financial guru's company did not like him wearing mask, asking to work remote

(Newser) - Brad Amos asked to work from home at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and was denied that request by his supervisors at Dave Ramsey's Tennessee-based company. He then chose to distance himself from colleagues and wear a mask at work, and says he was mocked, demoted, and ultimately...

Epidemiologist: US COVID Toll Is a 'Terrible Tragedy'

'Almost all the people dying are now dying preventable deaths,' he says as toll tops 800K

(Newser) - The US passed the staggering figure of 800,000 confirmed COVID deaths Tuesday, according to Johns Hopkins University. The total, which the AP notes is equal to the populations of Atlanta and St. Louis combined, is by far the highest in the world, though almost 20 countries have a higher...

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