Persistent Variant News Today

Americans over 65 remain the demographic most likely to have received the original series of vaccinations. But fewer are getting the follow-up shots, surveys indicate.

Mouse experiments at Boston University have spotlighted an ambiguous U.S. policy for research on potentially dangerous pathogens.

For more than two years, Covid disrupted social rituals and rites of passage. Now a recent study suggests we have become less extroverted, creative, agreeable and conscientious. The declines in some traits were sharper among young people.

Only about 15 million doses of the new shots have been administered so far, and many Americans appear to be unaware of or simply uninterested in them.

The findings strengthened calls from scientists for more expansive care options for long Covid patients.

And everything else you’ve been wondering about this annual vaccine.

The increases in homicides were particularly stark among Black and Hispanic men, while suicides involving firearms rose among all adults.

The wealthy California county just north of San Francisco has one of the nation’s highest Covid-19 vaccination rates after years of being known for parents who opposed shots for childhood diseases.

Increased shedding after illness is not unusual. The good news is that it’s most likely temporary.

The latest shots, which target Omicron and its subvariants, could offer protection against a winter surge in cases. But many people are unsure if they’re eligible.