Health Care
FDA panel recommends OK for Pfizer’s vaccine for kids 5 to 11
WASHINGTON — A federal vaccine advisory panel on Tuesday recommended authorizing Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11, a decision that means as soon as next week everyone in the U.S. over age 5 is expected to be eligible for a shot. The vote by the Food & Drug Administration panel, with 17 […]
COVID-19 vaccines for kids ages 5 to 11 could be ready as soon as next week
WASHINGTON — The next wave of the massive COVID-19 vaccination campaign could begin as soon as next week, after federal regulators decide if elementary school students across the U.S. should begin rolling up their tiny sleeves. That multistep approval process kicks off Tuesday, when the Food & Drug Administration’s panel of vaccine experts will vote on […]
COVID-19 boosters from Moderna, J&J OK’d along with ‘mix and match’ shots
WASHINGTON — The Moderna booster shot for the COVID-19 vaccine is now available to adults in Louisiana, the Louisiana Health Department announced Friday, after federal health officials gave the green light Thursday follow-up doses of the shots made by Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. Anyone who received the one-shot J&J vaccine is now eligible for a […]
Kids age 5 to 11 next in line for COVID-19 vaccines as White House rolls out plans
WASHINGTON — Smaller needles. Redesigned shipments to ease the storage needs in pediatricians’ offices. And enough vials of the COVID-19 vaccine to inoculate the 28 million U.S. children between ages 5 and 11. Those are among the plans announced by the White House on Wednesday as federal and state officials prepare for a regulatory decision […]
Louisiana osteopathic medical school settles with students over COVID-19 vaccine mandate
A northeast Louisiana osteopathic medical college and three of its students who did not want to be vaccinated against COVID-19 have reached a settlement that ensures the students won’t be kept out of classes they need to graduate, according to settlement documents filed in federal court Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Terry A. Doughty signed off […]
We need you, face to face, please get vaccinated
“She talked almost non-stop for nearly three hours,” said the grandmother who spent an afternoon on the deck talking with her teen granddaughter whose most enthusiastic conversation a year ago was a mumbled “I guess.” “This is so great,” “Oh, I’ve missed this,” and “I have needed this for a long time” were just a […]
Booster shot of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine recommended by FDA pane
WASHINGTON — A federal vaccine advisory panel on Friday endorsed a second dose of Johnson & Johnson’s one-shot COVID-19 vaccine, meaning millions more Americans are expected to soon join the line for booster shots. Anyone who received a J&J shot at least two months ago will be eligible for an additional dose, under the committee’s […]
FDA panel recommends booster shot of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine
WASHINGTON — Millions of Americans who received Moderna’s two-shot COVID-19 vaccine are expected to be eligible soon for booster shots, after a federal advisory panel on Thursday recommended a third dose for older and higher-risk adults as well as certain workers. The unanimous recommendation from the Food and Drug Administration vaccine panel came a few […]
Mississippi court case could trigger abortion ban in Louisiana and across the U.S.
WASHINGTON — A six-week abortion ban in Texas enacted in September forced those seeking abortion services in the Lone Star State to look across state lines for care. But the timing couldn’t have been worse for Texans living near the state’s eastern border. The law took effect as neighboring Louisiana was reeling from the destruction […]
Think a mild case of COVID-19 is no big deal? Think again.
More than 44.5 million Americans have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. Of them, over 715,000 have died. But what about the millions who lived? Have they fully recovered? According to new research, perhaps not. We often talk about the symptoms of a disease as the immediate impacts such as a […]
Here’s some guidance about COVID-19 booster shots
WASHINGTON — Booster shots are rolling out to some Americans who received the two-shot vaccine made by Pfizer—after a contentious and confusing federal approval process that isn’t over yet. Determining who exactly should be rolling up their sleeves for an additional dose was tricky. The Biden administration had leapfrogged federal regulatory panels in announcing plans […]
Who’s responsible for Louisiana’s nursing home evacuation plans? State officials won’t say
Louisiana state government does little to screen the nursing home natural disaster evacuation plans required by law or to ensure that nursing homes carry out those plans as written, according to several state government officials and records released by the Louisiana Department of Health this month. The health department reviews the nursing home evacuation plans, […]