vaccination

As the omicron variant completes its sweep across the U.S., states with scarce supplies of monoclonal antibody therapies continue to use two treatments that federal health officials warn no longer work against the highly contagious version of the virus that causes COVID-19.

Vaccination against COVID-19 would be either outlawed or encouraged under competing bills heard by a Senate committee Thursday. The Senate Health and Human Services Committee held a public hearing on a bill that would prohibit K-12 schools or day care centers from requiring children to get the COVID-19 vaccine. It also took up a bill that would require health insurance…

Rhode Island is expanding its coronavirus testing and vaccination capacity as record numbers of new cases continue to strain the state, Gov. Daniel McKee said Thursday. To get more people vaccinated, and to give residents a chance to get their booster shots, the state will reopen a mass vaccination site at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence by mid-January,…

All UMass students, faculty and staff will need to get a COVID vaccine booster shot soon, the university system announced Tuesday.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is implementing proof of vaccination protocols. Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker is activating the National Guard, issuing an indoor mask advisory and ordering all hospitals to postpone nonessential elective procedures. President Joe Biden is mailing out free at-home testing kits to Americans. And the omicron variant is now the dominant strain in Massachusetts. Top Boston doctors unpack...

Ninety-seven percent of vaccinated people in Massachusetts who became sick with COVID-19 in breakthrough cases did not become severely ill, according to a new review by state health officials. Furthermore, deaths of vaccinated people were rare in Massachusetts breakthrough cases, especially among young people, officials from the Department of Public Health said Monday. The state has seen no one under…

Nine-year-old Reagan Landers and dozens of others 5- to 11-year-old students at Worcester Public Schools were pulled out of class on Monday so they could get their first dose of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine. It’s all part of Worcester’s plan to hold 50 in-school vaccine clinics over the next two weeks. “It means that now, if we go into our...

When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention quietly updated its COVID-19 vaccine guidance for immunocompromised people earlier this week, it created some confusion around a fourth dose of the vaccine. In the weekly series, “COVID Q&A,” NBC10 Boston asked three top Boston doctors on Tuesday to clear up the confusion and offer their thoughts on COVID vaccines for the immunocompromised. Large swaths...

Children as young as 5 can now get Pfizer’s kid-size COVID-19 shot, but Moderna’s may take a bit longer amid concerns about myocarditis, a rare but serious side effect. The inflammatory heart condition already worried advisers to federal agencies in the process of approving the Pfizer vaccine in younger children and teenagers. Ultimately, health officials have come to the...

Now that the CDC approved COVID vaccines for kids 5-11, a lower dose of Pfizer’s two-shot series can be given as soon as Wednesday. In Massachusetts, they will be given out at pharmacies, doctors offices and schools. In fact, some already have doses now.

As federal health officials move toward approving COVID-19 vaccinations for younger children, parents find themselves having to conduct their own risk-benefit analysis. A key Food and Drug Administration advisory committee on Tuesday recommended a lower dose of Pfizer and BioNTech‘s COVID-19 vaccine for 5- to 11-year-olds, bringing the U.S. one step closer to expanding vaccinations for millions more children. Some committee members...

In a public service announcement released Wednesday, Pope Francis encouraged people to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, calling it an “act of love” to protect those most vulnerable during the pandemic.

Pope Francis has joined the global effort to encourage COVID-19 vaccinations by taking part in a video public service announcement.

The number of Covid-19 cases in the U.S. rose 10 percent this week, the CDC said on Thursday, due to the “hypertransmissible Delta variant” and lagging vaccination rates.

With more than 60% of residents now fully vaccinated, all four primary COVID-19 metrics are at their lowest levels on record here as Massachusetts approaches the end of the 16th month of the coronavirus pandemic. Over the weekend, the Department of Public Health reported a cumulative 87 new cases of COVID-19, announced three recent COVID-19 deaths, and counted 46,777 people…

With mask orders ending and COVID restrictions lifting for fully vaccinated people, many are wondering what is and isn’t allowed when it comes to requesting proof of vaccination. Some are questioning if requiring proof of vaccination violates HIPAA, or the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. HIPAA is a federal law that created “national standards to protect sensitive...

The walk-up appointments will be added to sites like the Hynes Convention Center and the Natick Mall.

New Hampshire became the first state in the northeast to drop its mask mandate last week. Many individual cities and towns and businesses are still requiring masks, but it’s no longer mandatory across the state. Massachusetts has had its own mask mandate in place since November of 2020, requiring everyone over the age of 5 to wear a mask in…

The Johnson & Johnson vaccine has been put on pause due to blood clot concerns in women. What does that mean for everyone looking to get vaccinated right now?