WASHINGTON, DC — President Joe Biden is kicking off a more urgent campaign for Americans to get Covid-19 booster shots. Biden on Thursday unveiled a winter plan to combat the coronavirus and its Omicron variant with enhanced availability of shots and vaccines but without major new restrictions. Biden will require private insurers to cover the
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SANTA FE, New Mexico — An updated New Mexico public health order will require booster shots for some vaccinated workers in the state, ABC affiliate KOAT reported Thursday. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s office indicated that the updated order would require boosters for those who work in high-risk environments including those who work in health care
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By MICHELLE L. PRICE and BOBBY CAINA CALVAN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The omicron variant of COVID-19 has been discovered in at least five states, showing yet again how mutations of the virus can circumnavigate the globe with speed and ease. Just a day after the first known U.S. case was found in
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LAS CRUCES, New Mexico — A Walmart store in Las Cruces is temporarily closing down after a Covid-19 outbreak. A Walmart spokesperson said the store at 1550 S. Valley Drive would close as of 2 p.m. Wednesday and reopen at 6 a.m. on Friday. Walmart indicated that during the closure the store would be professionally sanitized and cleaned. The
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SAN FRANCISCO, California — The first case of the omicron variant in the U.S. has been identified in California, the California and San Francisco Departments of Public Health said. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control said the person traveled from South Africa on Nov. 22. The individual tested positive on Nov. 29, Dr. Anthony Fauci
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EL PASO, Texas — A prominent local doctor says short staffing at El Paso hospitals is contributing to overcrowding and delays as the city is in the midst of another Covid-19 spike. El Paso has the highest covid hospitalization rate in the state at 17.13 percent, according to the state health department website. Right now,
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LAS CRUCES, New Mexico – Las Cruces patients suffering from Covid-19 don’t have to drive to El Paso for monoclonal antibody infusion treatment. “We’re pretty busy every day,” said Andrew Cummins, a spokesman for Memorial Medical Center. The Food and Drug Administration granted an emergency use authorization for several monoclonal antibody therapies for patients affected
Continue Reading WASHINGTON, DC — The Biden administration has suffered three major court losses since Monday morning, with orders freezing key federal government Covid-19 vaccine rules in certain parts of the country and, in one case, nationwide. The latest blow came from a federal judge in Louisiana, whose order Tuesday afternoon halted across the country the administration’s mandate requiring
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By MATTHEW PERRONE AP Health Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. health advisers have endorsed an antiviral drug from Merck to treat COVID-19. It sets the stage for an expected authorization of the first pill that Americans could take at home for the coronavirus. The Food and Drug Administration panel voted that the drug’s benefits in
Continue Reading MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican officials have reversed their previous position against giving coronavirus booster shots and are studying a plan to administer third doses to people over 60. The announcement Tuesday comes as Mexico nears 450,000 deaths from COVID-19. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said plans are still being drawn up, but said, “It
Continue Reading EL PASO, Texas — The Hospitals Of Providence is not the only health provider offering monoclonal antibody infusions for patients suffering Covid-19 symptoms in El Paso. That’s contrary to what city leaders were told by city staff last week. According to a spokesperson with BorderRAC, it turns out you can get an infusion at several
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EL PASO, Texas — As cases begin to rise among school aged children in El Paso, the Texas ban on mask mandates has been momentarily restored by the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Prior to this, schools with children with disabilities were able to enforce a mask mandate, although no schools within the El
Continue Reading WASHINGTON, DC — Pfizer is going to ask the Food and Drug Administration in the coming days to authorize Covid-19 booster shots for 16- and 17-year-olds, a source familiar with the discussions confirmed to ABC News. This would expand booster access from everyone over 18 to everyone over 16. Pfizer vaccines were authorized for adolescents
Continue Reading WASHINGTON, DC — President Joe Biden on Monday said the new Omicron coronavirus variant is “a cause for concern, not a cause for panic,” as federal health officials brace for the first cases of the new variant to be detected in the US. “Sooner or later we’re going to see cases of this new variant here in the
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EL PASO, Texas — There were nine El Pasoans who died from Covid-19 over the past week, with seven of the fatalities involving those who weren’t vaccinated, the El Department of Public Health announced Monday. Officials said all of the latest victims had underlying health conditions and there were two breakthrough deaths; the youngest of
Continue Reading EL PASO, Texas — Guidance on whether or not to receive an additional dose of the covid vaccine has been changing over the last several months, which can be confusing for some. Now that additional doses are available for everyone over the age of 18, it’s important to distinguish the difference between getting a third
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By RAF CASERT and CALVIN WOODWARD Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The world is racing to contain a new coronavirus variant that is potentially more dangerous than the one that has fueled waves of infection on nearly every continent. A World Health Organization panel on Friday named the variant “omicron” and classified it as a
Continue Reading CNN’s David McKenzie reports on the UK adding six African countries to the “red list” over a new variant South African scientists believe could evade immunity and be more transmissible than previous variants.
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EL PASO, Texas — An ABC-7 investigation found there are rising numbers of Covid-19 infections among adults in senior living facilities across El Paso, and City/County Health Authority Dr. Hector Ocaranza confirmed ABC-7’s findings. ABC-7 learned through exhaustive digging using open records requests that some senior living facilities and nursing homes had one or two
Continue Reading EL PASO, Texas– With rising Covid-19 numbers the Hospitals of Providence looks to expand the monoclonal antibody infusion treatment to be available seven days a week, according to a spokesperson for the hospital. The issue came up at city council meeting Monday, after District 1 Rep. Peter Svarzbein spoke on behalf of a constituent who had
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EL PASO, Texas — Covid cases are rising in the Borderland at a time when thousands will be traveling for Thanksgiving. Health experts are urging you to get tested before you meet up with your loved ones, at-home tests could give you some peace of mind. You can find these test kits at local pharmacies
Continue Reading EL PASO, Texas — There were ten El Pasoans who died from Covid-19 over the past week, with eight of the fatalities involving those who were un-vaccinated, the El Department of Public Health announced Monday. Officials said all of the latest victims had underlying health conditions and there were two breakthrough deaths; the youngest of
Continue Reading By Jacqueline Howard and Dakin Andone, CNN If you and your family members are fully vaccinated against Covid-19, it’s OK for you to ditch the masks this holiday season when you’re around each other, Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN Sunday. “That’s what I’m going to do with my family,” Fauci, the director of the National
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EL PASO, Texas — Roughly 600 additional Covid-19 cases reported on Wednesday represented the highest number of cases reported in one day since January. Then, Thursday’s caseload brought an additional 510 cases, ballooning the total number of active cases to 5,355. El Paso has not had 5,000 or more active cases since March of this
Continue Reading WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. is opening Covid-19 vaccine boosters to all adults 18 and older, and is particularly encouraging them for anyone 50 and older. The decision Friday afternoon by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky seeks to simplify what has been a confusing list of who’s eligible. Earlier
Continue Reading By Oren Liebermann and Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN With less than one month until the Army’s deadline to vaccinate its active-duty force, the service will begin barring soldiers who refuse to be vaccinated against Covid-19 without an exemption from reenlistment, promotions, and other “favorable personnel actions.” In a memo dated November 16, Army Secretary Christine Wormuth
Continue Reading By LAURAN NEERGAARD, MATTHEW PERRONE and MIKE STOBBE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. is opening COVID-19 vaccine boosters to all adults, and urging them for anyone 50 and older. The decision Friday seeks to simplify what has been a confusing list of who’s eligible. Now for anyone 18 or older, the only requirement
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EL PASO, Texas – Three City of El Paso Parks and Recreation Department employees have tested positive for Covid-19, while another four are showing symptoms and awaiting testing. These employees work at The Beast Recreation Center and Natatorium, located 13501 Jason Crandall in far east El Paso. As a safety precaution, city officials said The
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EL PASO, Texas — A local doctor says the weakening of the coronavirus vaccine over time is causing more breakthrough cases in El Paso County as the hospitalization rate has become one of the highest in the state. El Paso County has the highest vaccination rate among the most heavily populated counties in Texas. Below is
Continue Reading Boosters and antivirals: An announcement on each could come down this week.
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