Live updates: US Congress’ doctor urges ‘maximal telework’

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WASHINGTON — Congress’ apical doc urged lawmakers connected Monday to determination to a “maximal telework posture,” citing surging numbers of COVID-19 cases astatine the Capitol that helium said are mostly breakthrough infections of radical already vaccinated.

The seven-day mean complaint of corruption astatine the Capitol’s investigating halfway has risen from little than 1% to much than 13%, Brian P. Monahan, the attending physician, wrote successful a missive to legislature leaders obtained by The Associated Press.

Monahan said determination has been “an unprecedented fig of cases successful the Capitol assemblage affecting hundreds of individuals.” In what helium said was constricted sampling arsenic of Dec. 15, astir 61% of the cases were the new, highly contagious omicron variant portion 38% were the delta variant.

Providing nary figure, helium said “most” of the cases are breakthroughs.

While specified cases person not led to immoderate deaths oregon hospitalizations among vaccinated lawmakers oregon legislature staff, Monahan said adjacent mild infections tin pb to six to 12 months of “long COVID.” A “reasonable estimate” is that 6% to 10% of cases could extremity up that way, helium added.

Monahan urged legislature offices to “reduce in-person meetings and in-office activities to the maximum grade possible.”

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HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY ABOUT THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC:

— How volition pandemic end? Omicron clouds forecasts for endgame

— Fauci says CDC whitethorn adhd trial request for infected radical ending isolation

— Pentagon main Austin says helium has tested affirmative for COVID

— British authorities rushing tests to schools

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Follow AP’s pandemic sum astatine https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic

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HERE’S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING TODAY:

MISSION, Kan. — One of Kansas’ largest hospitals is straining to dainty an influx of COVID-19 patients adjacent arsenic the surging microorganism sidelines hundreds of doctors and nurses.

At the University of Kansas Hospital, much than 500 employees retired of a unit of much than 13,000 are sick oregon awaiting trial results, said Dr. Steve Stites, main aesculapian serviceman astatine University of Kansas Health System successful Kansas City, Kansas, during a media telephone Monday.

The illnesses travel arsenic the infirmary is treating 108 COVID-19 patients, up from 40 connected Dec. 1.

“We’ve had to standard backmost connected immoderate elective surgeries and clinics and things similar that and each hospitals successful our country are having to instrumentality akin measures due to the fact that you’ve got to support your unit safe. You whitethorn not person rather capable radical to beryllium capable to bash each the work,” Stites said.

He said vaccination would person prevented each but a fistful of the COVID-19 patients from being hospitalized, freeing up beds for different patients.

“I deliberation what we person to retrieve is that COVID-19, erstwhile you’re unvaccinated, conscionable doesn’t impact the unvaccinated,” Stites said. “It affects everyone due to the fact that it takes the hospitalizations and it fills up the infirmary truthful overmuch and unit get truthful sick that it means we don’t person capable radical present to instrumentality attraction of everybody, which means we person to standard things back. And that’s the level we’re each at.”

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NEW ORLEANS — A caller vaccine and investigating request is kicking successful for children from the ages of 5 to 11 successful New Orleans to conflict the coronavirus.

Local media study that children successful those property groups indispensable present beryllium vaccinated oregon amusement impervious of a caller antagonistic coronavirus trial to sojourn definite locations successful the metropolis specified arsenic restaurants.

The caller mandate comes arsenic coronavirus cases person skyrocketed crossed the country, driven by the highly contagious omicron variant.

The mandate was announced successful December by Mayor LaToya Cantrell. It already applies to adults and children 12 and up.

Starting connected Feb. 1 the coronavirus vaccine volition besides beryllium included successful the database of required vaccines for children to be school, though determination is an enactment for families to opt retired of the requirement.

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PARIS — France’s little location of parliament is voting Monday connected a authorities program to necessitate afloat vaccination to participate restaurants, tourer sites, sports facilities and different venues.

Critics, chiefly from the acold close and acold left, denounced it arsenic discriminatory, and lambasted the authorities for repeated missteps passim the pandemic. They besides argued it would beryllium ineffective amid grounds infections crossed France driven by the omicron variant.

The authorities says the vaccine walk is the champion mode to support hospitals from a surge successful critically sick patients, without resorting to an economically crippling lockdown. Health Minister Olivier Veran told the enclosure that the draught instrumentality wasn’t intended to restrict idiosyncratic liberties, and helium noted that astir microorganism patients successful French ICUs are unvaccinated.

Lawmakers person projected hundreds of amendments to the bill, which goes aboriginal this week to the Senate. President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist enactment has a bulk successful the little house, which has the last accidental connected the bill. The authorities wants it to participate unit Jan. 15.

Under the government’s draft, the vaccine walk would besides beryllium required connected home flights and inter-regional trains and buses, cinemas and theaters.

Currently unvaccinated radical tin get the “health pass” required to participate specified sites if they trial antagonistic for the microorganism oregon precocious recovered. More than 90% of French adults are vaccinated, but respective cardinal person not been inoculated.

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TORONTO — All schools successful Canada’s astir populous state volition beryllium unopen down and determination to online learning due to the fact that of a grounds fig of coronavirus infections fueled by the ultra-contagious omicron variant, Ontario’s premier announced Monday.

Premier Doug Ford besides announced the closure of indoor dining. Gyms and cinemas volition besides close. Ontario is seeing grounds caller infections and determination are concerns astir infirmary capacity.

“I cognize online learning is not ideal,” Ford said. “The information is omicron spreads similar wildfire.”

The reopening of schools has been delayed until astatine slightest Jan. 17. Just past week, the authorities announced schools would unfastened connected Wednesday.

Schools unopen down for in-person learning past April due to the fact that of grounds cases driven by the delta variant but had since resumed. Hospitals person besides been told to intermission each non-urgent surgeries and procedures successful bid to sphere captious care.

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LISBON, Portugal — A elder Portuguese wellness authoritative says astir 90% of COVID-19 patients successful intensive attraction person not been vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Deputy Health Minister António Lacerda Sales said Portugal’s precocious vaccination rate, which has covered astir 87% of the population, has enabled it to debar the worst consequences of COVID-19 contempt a caller surge successful infections owed to the omicron variant.

He said that compared with a twelvemonth ago, Portugal is signaling less than a 3rd of the patients successful hospital, less than a 4th successful ICUs and less than one-fifth of deaths.

He said Monday the authorities is not readying to postpone the scheduled instrumentality of schoolchildren to classes adjacent Monday.

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ROME — At slightest 100 passengers aboard a cruise vessel successful the Mediterranean person tested affirmative for COVID-19, according to Italian quality reports.

Italian authorities TV’s RaiNews24 said that the passengers investigating affirmative numbered 150 aboard the MSC Grandiosa, which docked connected Monday successful Genoa, and that astir of them of were Italian.

Genoa regular Il Secolo XIX reported that astir 40 of those who tested affirmative got disconnected the cruise liner successful Genoa, portion others would beryllium disembarked successful Civitavecchia, a larboard that serves Rome, oregon successful Palermo, Sicily.

The cruise institution didn’t instantly reply to a petition for comment.

The paper said determination were astir immoderate 4,000 passengers successful each aboard the ship, which reached Genoa aft sailing from Marseille, France.

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SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea says it has confirmed its archetypal decease related to the caller omicron variant.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said connected Monday that the deceased was successful their 90s and surviving astatine a nursing location successful the confederate metropolis of Gwangju. It says the idiosyncratic received a 2nd dose of COVID-19 vaccine successful October.

A full of 21 radical successful the installation person tested affirmative for COVID-19 — 3 of them with the omicron variant — since the archetypal lawsuit was reported determination connected Dec. 24.

The bureau says the diligent was posthumously recovered to person contracted the omicron variant. Health authorities were examining whether different idiosyncratic who died astatine the Gwangju installation had besides been infected with the variant.

South Korea has truthful acold confirmed 1,318 cases of the omicron variant. Experts accidental it volition apt soon regenerate the delta variant to go ascendant successful South Korea.

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ROME — The Italian authorities has acceptable prices for the much protective Ffp2 masks astatine 75 euro cents apiece present that they are required to entree nationalist transport, museums, cinemas and galore different indoor activities.

The bureau of Italy’s microorganism czar announced Monday that a woody had been reached with cardinal Italian pharmaceutical and cause store associations. Italian-made Ffp2 masks mostly tally upwards of 2 euros apiece oregon more.

The authorities past period imposed an outdoor disguise mandate wide and the request that Ffp2 masks beryllium worn successful definite indoor activities successful a bid to stem the latest surge successful cases.

Italy, wherever the European outbreak erupted successful February 2020, had a captious shortage of surgical and much protective masks successful the archetypal question of the pandemic. After supplies increased, the authorities fixed the terms for surgical masks astatine 50 cents apiece successful April 2020.

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MILWAUKEE — Wisconsin’s largest schoolhouse district, Milwaukee Public Schools, volition power to online teaching for astatine slightest a week due to the fact that of an summation successful unit investigating affirmative for COVID-19.

The territory said successful a connection connected Monday that its extremity is to instrumentality to in-person learning connected Jan. 10.

Students and unit who privation to beryllium tested for COVID-19 tin bash truthful astatine six schools. The territory says that erstwhile in-person learning resumes, investigating volition beryllium disposable for students and unit astatine each school.

More than 75,000 students be Milwaukee nationalist schools.

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PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Wintry upwind combined with the pandemic to frustrate aerial travelers whose instrumentality flights location from the holidays were canceled oregon delayed successful the archetypal days of the caller year.

More than 2,500 U.S. flights and much than 4,100 worldwide were grounded Sunday, according to tracking work FlightAware.

That followed Saturday’s wide cancelations of much than 2,700 U.S. flights, and much than 4,700 worldwide. Saturday’s single-day U.S. toll was the highest since conscionable earlier Christmas, erstwhile airlines began blaming staffing shortages connected expanding COVID-19 infections among crews.

A wintertime tempest that deed the Midwest connected Saturday made Chicago the worst spot successful the state for travelers passim the play arsenic the region’s airports continued to retrieve Sunday morning. About a 4th of each flights astatine O’Hare Airport were canceled Sunday.

American Airlines said astir of Sunday’s canceled flights had been canceled up of clip to debar last-minute disruptions astatine the airport.

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WASHINGTON — As the omicron variant surges crossed the United States, apical national wellness officials are looking to adhd a antagonistic trial on with its five-day isolation restrictions for asymptomatic Americans who drawback the coronavirus, the White House’s apical aesculapian advisor said Sunday.

Dr. Anthony Fauci said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is present considering including the antagonistic trial arsenic portion of its guidance aft getting important “pushback” connected its updated recommendations past week.

Under that Dec. 27 guidance, isolation restrictions for radical infected with COVID-19 were shortened from 10 days to 5 days if they are nary longer feeling symptoms oregon moving a fever. After that period, they are asked to walk the pursuing 5 days wearing a disguise erstwhile astir others.

The guidelines person since received disapproval from galore wellness professionals for not specifying a antagonistic antigen trial arsenic a request for leaving isolation.

“There has been immoderate interest astir wherefore we don’t inquire radical astatine that five-day play to get tested,” Fauci said. “Looking astatine it again, determination whitethorn beryllium an enactment successful that, that investigating could beryllium a portion of that. And I deliberation we’re going to beryllium proceeding much astir that successful the adjacent time oregon truthful from the CDC.”

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JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minster Naftali Bennett says authorities person decided to grow the country’s 2nd booster run to radical implicit the property of 60 arsenic it copes with the omicron variant.

Israel past week approved the booster for a constricted colonisation of radical with underlying illnesses.

Speaking connected nationalist TV, Bennett said Sunday that giving older Israelis an further booster changeable — their 4th vaccination wide — volition supply a “new layer” of protection.

Earlier Sunday, Bennett warned that Israel volition soon spot tens of thousands of cases a time arsenic the variant continues to spread. Bennett spoke astatine the commencement of the play Cabinet gathering successful Jerusalem. He said contempt rolling retired much than 4.2 cardinal coronavirus booster shots to the country’s colonisation of 9.3 cardinal since July, “the tempest is coming to america these precise days.”

Daily cases successful Israel person riom astir 700 to the much than 4,000 reported connected Sunday.

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