Breaking News

COVID-19

Centre County’s COVID-19 testing site on the move again

BELLEFONTE — The AMI testing site will be on the move — again. It’s headed back to the Centre County Recycling and Refuse Authority on Transfer Road in State College. The move will take place on Jan. 4, 2022. The Department of Health recently announced that it will continue its COVID-19 testing site for the general public in Centre County. The COVID-19 testing site is available through a partnership with AMI Expeditionary Healthcare (AMI). The testing site is closed today through Sunday, Dec. 26. It will re-open on Monday, Dec. 27. It will remain open through Wednesday, Dec. ...

Case drop may show South Africa’s omicron peak has passed

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South Africa’s noticeable drop in new COVID-19 cases in recent days may signal that the country’s dramatic omicron-driven surge has passed its peak, medical experts say. Daily virus case counts are notoriously unreliable, as they can be affected by uneven testing, reporting delays and other fluctuations. But they are offering one tantalizing hint — far from conclusive yet — that omicron infections may recede quickly after a ferocious spike. South Africa has been at the forefront of the omicron wave and the world is watching for any signs of how it may ...

What to do if you test positive for COVID-19

NEW YORK (AP) — You’ve tested positive for COVID-19. Now what? The short answer for those in the U.S.: Stay home and avoid others. Tell the people you’ve been in close contact with that you tested positive. And if you have trouble breathing or develop other serious symptoms, see a doctor immediately. COVID-19 diagnoses have been soaring since the recent arrival of the omicron variant. That means Americans should prepare for the possibility that they or someone they plan to see will suddenly be diagnosed with an infection. ISOLATION The Centers for Disease Control and ...

Biden pivots to home tests to confront omicron surge

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fighting the omicron variant surging through the country, President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that the government would provide 500 million free rapid tests, increase support for hospitals under strain and redouble vaccination and boosting efforts. At the White House on ...

Parents, schools face another reckoning over COVID-19 cases

NEW YORK (AP) — Kathryn Malara, a Brooklyn teacher, lingered on a street Tuesday, filled with dread about going to her job. “I’m sitting in my car terrified to walk into school,” she wrote on Twitter just before taking a deep breath and heading to her classroom. “Cases exploding. People I really care about are sick & frightened.” The quick spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus has stirred another angst-ridden reckoning about whether in-person schooling is worth the risk. Malara and other teachers worry about endangering their health by entering crowded schools. ...

De Blasio says ‘No more shutdowns’ as NYC faces virus spike

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said he’s committed to keeping the city open as it grapples with a huge spike in coronavirus cases. The Democrat said Tuesday that New York can’t see schools and businesses close again like they did when COVID-19 first hit the city in 2020. De Blasio has faced questions over the past week about whether he would reinstate closures as the omicron variant surges in the city. “Adamantly I feel this: No more shutdowns. We’ve been through them,” de Blasio said at a virtual news conference Tuesday. “They were devastating. We ...