Vaccination

Data from thousands of U.S. skilled nursing facilities show that a COVID-19 booster shot is more protective against omicron than an initial series alone, investigators say.

Older adults with a COVID-19 diagnosis are 15% more likely to develop shingles than their peers who have never been diagnosed with the disease, a study supported by vaccine-maker GlaxoSmithKline has found.

COVID-19 incidence and hospitalization rates are consistently higher for unvaccinated persons, and lowest for those fully vaccinated with a booster, according to research published Monday by the CDC.

A vaccine requirement for staff at all U.S. nursing homes and other federally funded healthcare facilities can proceed, the Supreme Court said in a 5-4 decision Thursday afternoon.

Investigators drew on data from 1.2 million U.S. patients who completed a primary vaccination series by October 2021. Severe COVID-19 outcomes, including respiratory failure, ICU admission, or death, were...

The decision is part of an effort to increase the number of booster shot recipients and build up Americans’ immunity in response to skyrocketing COVID-19 cases, officials said.

Researchers brought us to us directly this week: The longer that nursing home staff members keep COVID-19 vaccination numbers low, the more people they’re going to see unnecessarily die because of it.

People who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 are just as infectious as their unvaccinated counterparts, albeit for a shorter period of time, finds an unusual new household study from the United Kingdom. 

Industry advocates are welcoming the decision to include residents of long-term care settings and healthcare workers in a new federal recommendation to offer COVID-19 booster shots to at-risk adults.

A CDC Project Firstline webinar will answer clinicians’ questions on the updates, which include alternative approaches to outbreak response; expanded screening test recommendations for healthcare...