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Covid-19

Wisconsin COVID patients packing hospitals, no omicron yet

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Patients with COVID-19, most of them unvaccinated, are packing Wisconsin hospitals at levels not seen for a year, a worrying development even before the new omicron variant has been detected in the state, health care leaders said Thursday. Amid concerns about the new and little-understood omicron variant, Wisconsin health officials urged people to get vaccinated and take other steps to slow the spread. The delta variant of the virus still dominates in Wisconsin and the rest of the U.S. People who are not vaccinated are nearly 11 times more likely to be ...

US reports its 1st case of omicron variant

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The U.S. recorded its first confirmed case of the omicron variant Wednesday — in a vaccinated traveler who returned to California after a trip to South Africa — as scientists around the world race to establish whether the new, mutant version of the coronavirus is ...

COVID deaths in Dickinson, Iron counties

State figures Wednesday showed another death blamed on COVID-19 in both Dickinson and Iron counties, along with 55 and 24 new confirmed positives, respectively, in the past two days. Across the border, Wisconsin’s COVID-19 website indicated 73 new confirmed virus cases in Marinette County since Monday. Figures on the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services coronavirus website Wednesday indicated 458 new confirmed COVID-19 positives in the Upper Peninsula in the two-day period: 78 in Marquette County, 72 in Houghton County, 57 in Delta County, 55 in Dickinson County, 44 in ...

Whitmer urges virus tests for students

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration said Tuesday it wants lawmakers to quickly allocate $300 million in federal pandemic rescue funding to support COVID-19 testing at schools amid a fourth surge of infections in Michigan. The money was included in the relief law ...

Panel backs Merck pill

WASHINGTON (AP) — A panel of U.S. health advisers on Tuesday narrowly backed a closely watched COVID-19 pill from Merck, setting the stage for a likely authorization of the first drug that Americans could take at home to treat the coronavirus. The Food and Drug Administration panel voted 13-10 that the antiviral drug’s benefits outweigh its risks, including potential birth defects if used during pregnancy. “I see this as an incredibly difficult decision with many more questions than answers,” said panel chair Dr. Lindsey Baden of Harvard Medical School, who voted in favor of ...

State virus hospitalizations reach record

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan’s number of hospitalized adults with confirmed COVID-19 cases reached a new pandemic high Monday, nearing 4,200 as the state continued to confront surging infections. The total of 4,185 cases surpassed the previous record of 4,158, which was set seven months ago when fewer residents were vaccinated. More than one-fifth of COVID patients in Michigan hospitals were in intensive care. Only Minnesota had a higher seven-day rate of new infections than Michigan, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. About 20% of tests statewide were ...