Breaking News

Coronavirus

Ohio reports more deaths than births; experts cite pandemic

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — For the first time in state history, Ohio recorded more deaths than births last year, a development experts say was expedited by COVID-19. The Columbus Dispatch reported Monday that roughly 143,661 Ohioans died last year while 129,313 were born, according to data from the Ohio Department of Health. So far in 2021, Ohio has logged 107,462 deaths and 100,781 births. The newspaper reported that in the 112 years since statewide record keeping began in 1909, data it compiled along with the Ohio History Connection shows deaths never previously surpassed births ...

Pfizer says COVID-19 vaccine more than 90% effective in kids

Kid-size doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine appear safe and nearly 91% effective at preventing symptomatic infections in 5- to 11-year-olds, according to study details released Friday as the U.S. considers opening vaccinations to that age group. The shots could begin in early November, with the first children in line fully protected by Christmas, if regulators give the go-ahead. That would represent a major expansion of the nation’s vaccine drive, encompassing roughly 28 million elementary school-age youngsters. Details of Pfizer’s study were posted online. The Food and Drug ...

Where are the workers? Cutoff of jobless aid spurs no influx

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Earlier this year, an insistent cry arose from business leaders and Republican governors: Cut off a $300-a-week federal supplement for unemployed Americans. Many people, they argued, would then come off the sidelines and take the millions of jobs that employers were desperate to fill. Yet three months after half the states began ending that federal payment, there’s been no significant influx of job seekers. In states that cut off the $300 check, the workforce — the number of people who either have a job or are looking for one — has risen no more than it ...

COVID-19 vaccine: CDC panel discusses booster rollout

WASHINGTON (AP) — Influential government advisers are deciding Thursday how best to expand the nation’s COVID-19 booster campaign, including whether and when it’s OK to “mix and match” brands for the extra dose. The advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are ...

Businesses nervously await fine print of vaccination-or-test rule

WASHINGTON (AP) — More than six weeks after promising a new vaccination-or-testing rule covering the millions of Americans at companies with 100 or more workers, President Joe Biden’s most aggressive move yet to combat the COVID-19 pandemic is almost ready to see the light of day. An obscure White House office is expected to give the green light any day to the rule’s fine print detailing how and when companies will have to require their employees to be vaccinated or undergo weekly testing. The full enforcement deadline, which could carry penalties of about $14,000 per ...

Mexico City pandemic alert now at lowest level

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s capital returned to the lowest level on its COVID-19 pandemic warning system Monday for the first time since June. In practice, the shift from the yellow to green category changes meant only small changes to daily life. Mask wearing is still common in streets ...