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Coronavirus

Panel weighs safety, effectiveness of Merck’s COVID-19 pill

WASHINGTON (AP) — Government health advisers on Tuesday weighed the benefits and risks of a closely watched drug from Merck that could soon become the first U.S.-authorized pill for patients to take at home to treat COVID-19. The Food and Drug Administration asked its outside experts whether the agency should authorize the pill, weighing new information that it is less effective than first reported and may cause birth defects. A vote was expected Tuesday afternoon. The panel’s recommendations aren’t binding but often guide FDA decisions. The meeting comes as U.S. infections are ...

Thanksgiving, Black Friday traffic up from 2020 level

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Roadways were hectic during the Thanksgiving and Black Friday weekend, with traffic volume resembling the years before the COVID-19 pandemic. “We handled 13 crashes in that timeframe,” Sgt. Brian McFarland of the Ohio State Highway Patrol St. Clairsville post said. ...

Merriam-Webster chooses vaccine as word of year

NEW YORK (AP) — With an expanded definition to reflect the times, Merriam-Webster has declared an omnipresent truth as its 2021 word of the year: vaccine. “This was a word that was extremely high in our data every single day in 2021,” Peter Sokolowski, Merriam-Webster’s editor-at-large, told The Associated Press ahead of Monday’s announcement. “It really represents two different stories. One is the science story, which is this remarkable speed with which the vaccines were developed. But there’s also the debates regarding policy, politics and political affiliation. ...

Italy targets unvaccinated with restrictions as cases rise

ROME (AP) — The Italian government on Wednesday decided to exclude unvaccinated people from certain leisure activities in a bid to contain rising coronavirus infections and stave off financially crippling lockdowns just as the economy is starting to grow again. Starting Dec. 6, only people with proof of vaccination or of having recovered from COVID-19 can eat at indoor restaurants, and go to the movies or sporting events, excluding the ability to access such venues with just a negative test. A new government decree also made vaccinations mandatory for law enforcement, military and ...

Vaccines making Thanksgiving easier, but hot spots of illness still remain

The U.S. is facing its second Thanksgiving of the pandemic in better shape than the first time around, thanks to the vaccine, though some regions are seeing surges of COVID-19 cases that could get worse as families travel the country for gatherings that were impossible a year ago. Nearly 200 million Americans are fully vaccinated. That leaves tens of millions who have yet to get a shot in the arm, some of them out of defiance. Hospitals in the cold Upper Midwest, especially Michigan and Minnesota, are filled with COVID-19 patients who are mostly unvaccinated. Michigan hospitals ...

Yes, there are turkeys for Thanksgiving — for a price

Turkeys may not be able to fly very far. But their prices can soar — along with the costs of other holiday staples like cranberry sauce and pie filling. The Thanksgiving table hasn’t been spared the price inflation that is rampant elsewhere in the economy because of strong consumer ...