coronavirus outbreak

The city of New Haven joins two other major cities in Connecticut now requiring employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19. “We think this will be a significant step forward to encouraging more municipal employees to get vaccinated and to keep our residents safe,” said Mayor Justin Elicker. The city’s new vaccination order covers all city employees, part-time workers, interns,...

Employees of the Massachusetts veterans’ home at the center of a devastating COVID-19 outbreak in the spring of 2020 have sued several members of the facility’s former leadership team, alleging they were forced to care for sick and dying veterans, sometimes after testing positive themselves, in “inhumane conditions.” The federal class-action suit filed last week says administrators at the Holyoke Soldiers’...

A maximum security prison in Massachusetts is battling a coronavirus outbreak among inmates, the state Department of Correction said. The agency said Wednesday that 29 inmates at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley have tested positive for COVID-19 this month. In addition, one inmate at the Massachusetts Alcohol and Substance Abuse Center in Plymouth has tested positive. One prisoner is…

Tokyo organizers said Tuesday that 18 more Olympics-accredited people, including four athletes, had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Yale University is requiring all students, faculty and staff wear masks indoors regardless of vaccination status. The requirement states that all individuals must wear masks inside campus spaces except when alone, such as in a private office or seated in a partitioned cubicle, officials said. University officials made the decision after the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued…

The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic & Paralympic Games reported Monday an additional 16 Olympics-related cases of the coronavirus, bringing the total number of confirmed positives at the Games to 148.

Gov. Ned Lamont said Connecticut is following CDC guidance in ending the indoor mask mandate for people who are fully vaccinated starting May 19. The decision comes after the CDC announced Thursday that fully vaccinated people can stop wearing masks in most indoor settings. The state of Connecticut is getting ready to lift most remaining COVID-related restrictions that have been…

Massachusetts will soon launch an employer vaccination program, enabling businesses to request mobile vaccine clinics on site or book their employees at mass vaccination sites. The announcement, made Wednesday at a press conference held at Moderna Inc.’s manufacturing facility in Norwood, is a reversal of a stance Gov. Charlie Baker has held for the last several months. The administration...

A Stamford man was arrested on federal bank fraud and wire fraud offenses after receiving nearly $2.9 million in COVID-19 relief funds. The U.S. Department of Justice said 45-year-old Moustapha Disakhate was arrested Friday on a federal criminal complaint with offenses related to his receipt of the millions of dollars in COVID-19 relief funds guaranteed by the U.S. Small...

The state’s COVID-19 positivity rate is down to 1.78% and 12 more deaths have been reported since Wednesday. Connecticut’s death toll is now 8,039. Earlier this week, the state hit the 8,000 mark in terms of virus-related deaths. The governor said the 7-day average is 2.5%, which is the lowest its been in about a month and a half. Hospitalizations…

Gov. Ned Lamont announced that all restrictions for Connecticut businesses will be phased out by May 19. The governor said all outdoor restrictions will be lifted starting May 1. Restaurants will be allowed to serve alcohol without food and there will no longer be a table size limit. The curfew for businesses will be pushed back to 12 a.m. starting…

Bristol Health is teaming up with ESPN to hold a new drive-thru COVID-19 vaccine clinic. The clinic will be held at ESPN’s North Campus in Bristol starting Monday. The new partnership between Bristol Health, the Bristol-Burlington Health District and ESPN is forming in an effort to vaccinate more people, according to Bristol Health. Both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines...

Connecticut’s COVID-19 positivity rate increased to 4.45% and 14 more deaths have been reported, according to state officials. Hospitalizations are down by 21, bringing the total below 500 to 492. The state’s coronavirus death toll now stands at 7,900. During a news conference Thursday, Governor Ned Lamont said Connecticut ranks as number 35 in coronavirus deaths per capita across the…

For the second year in a row, Passover and Easter celebrations are looking different this year due to COVID 19, but unlike last year when many spring services went all virtual, places of worship are now at 50 percent capacity. With vaccines here, more families are also gathering, unlike last year. “As someone who has been vaccinated I can tell…

Gov. Ned Lamont is accelerating the time frame for people to sign up for coronavirus vaccines in Connecticut and said he tentatively plans for the vaccine to expand to anyone 16 years old and up by April 5. Following is the new time frame: March 19: Scheduling opens to all individuals between 45 to 54 April 5 (tentative): Scheduling opens…

President Joe Biden and health experts are expressing concern after Texas and Mississippi officials announced plans to ease virus restrictions, including ending mask mandates. The Biden administration warned against virus fatigue and encouraged Americans to continue to wear a mask and practice social distancing despite many states easing restrictions.

On Tuesday, President Joe Biden announced the United States will have enough coronavirus vaccine doses to inoculate the nation’s entire adult population by May. To help with the effort, drugmaker Merck will produce rival Johnson & Johnson’s newly approved one-shot vaccine.

President Joe Biden said Tuesday that the U.S. expects to take delivery of enough coronavirus vaccines for all adult Americans by the end of May, two months earlier than anticipated, as his administration announced that drugmaker Merck & Co. will help produce rival Johnson & Johnson’s newly approved shot.

Over the weekend, Johnson & Johnson’s coronavirus vaccine became the third to receive emergency use authorization from the United States’ Food and Drug Administration. Unlike the two-dose Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, it works with just one shot.

People 55 and over and educators can now start making appointments to get the COVID-19 vaccine in Connecticut. Eligible educators and childcare providers include pre-K through grade 12 teachers, paraprofessionals, custodial staff, food service providers, school bus drivers and childcare providers as well as in-school administrative staff. This does not include individuals who are not required to work on-site in…