HEALTH

A U.S. judge in Texas has issued a nationwide injunction barring the federal government from enforcing President Joe Biden’s requirement that federal workers without qualifying medical or religious exemptions be vaccinated for COVID-19.

Government and business leaders have urged global cooperation on climate change, the coronavirus pandemic and the economic recovery at the World Economic Forum’s virtual gathering this week.

Three new U.S. studies offer more evidence that the COVID-19 vaccines are standing up to the omicron variant, at least among people who have gotten booster shots.

The omicron surge this winter has swamped U.S. hospitals with record numbers of patients with COVID-19.

In Costa Rica, election officials are encouraging those infected with the coronavirus to skip voting in upcoming national elections.

Daily new coronavirus infections in Russia have reached an all-time high and authorities are blaming the highly contagious omicron variant, which they expect to soon dominate the country’s outbreak.

Australia has reported its deadliest day of the pandemic with 80 coronavirus fatalities, as an outbreak of the omicron variant continues to take a toll.

Nepal’s capital has shut schools, ordered citizens to carry vaccination cards in public, banned religious festivals and instructed hotel guests to be tested every three days as it battles its biggest COVID-19 outbreak.

California would allow children age 12 and up to be vaccinated without their parents’ consent, the youngest age of any state, under a state senator's proposal.

Thousands of anti-abortion protesters are rallying in the nation’s capital Friday with a growing sense of momentum about the prospects this year of a sweeping rollback of abortion rights.

Restaurants and bars will close early in Tokyo and a dozen other areas across Japan beginning Friday as the country widens COVID-19 restrictions due to the omicron variant, which has caused cases to surge to new highs in metropolitan areas.

A new study finds that young children might be able to overcome their peanut allergies if treated early enough.

A federal appeals court has found that two California counties violated the Constitution’s right to bear arms when they shut down gun and ammunition stores in 2020 as nonessential businesses during the coronavirus pandemic.

Of all the questions that can be asked to measure one’s physical strength, this one might be the most common: “How much can you bench?”

“Superbugs” have joined the ranks of the world’s leading infectious disease killers.

France’s government spokesman says more than 1 million adults have got their first vaccine shot over the past month.

The top U.S. public health agency has long been criticized as too slow to collect and act on new information.

Portugal’s government is under fire over its preparations for people infected with COVID-19 to vote in an upcoming snap election.

U_S_ officials say the CIA believes it's unlikely that Russia or another foreign adversary is using microwaves or other forms of directed energy to attack hundreds of American diplomats and intelligence officers who attribute their brain injuries and other symptoms to what's come to be known as “Havana syndrome.”.

Indonesia’s leader says the country holding the presidency of the Group of 20 biggest economies wants to strengthen global partnership to aid the economic recovery from COVID-19.

A U.N.-backed group says it has signed agreements with more than two dozen generic drug makers to produce versions of Merck’s coronavirus pill to supply 105 developing countries.

A lawmaker from Britain’s governing Conservatives has accused the government of blackmailing opponents of Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Thailand will ease entry requirements for vaccinated visitors from all countries next month as concerns about the omicron variant of the coronavirus decline.

U.S. researchers are reporting the latest in a surprising string of experiments in the quest to save human lives with organs from genetically modified pigs.

Three Australian Federal Court judges have revealed their reasons for backing a government order to deport tennis star Novak Djokovic, explaining they did not consider the “merits or wisdom of the decision.”.

Germany’s health minister expects the number of coronavirus infections in the country to keep rising for several weeks reaching hundreds of thousands of cases a day.

Austria’s parliament has voted to introduce a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for adults from Feb. 1, the first of its kind in Europe.

Some European countries such as Spain are making tentative plans for when they might start treating COVID-19 as an “endemic” disease, but the World Health Organization and other officials have warned that the world is nowhere close to declaring the pandemic over.

New Zealand is among the few remaining countries to have avoided any outbreaks of the omicron variant.

Disability rights activists and advocates for Britney Spears are backing a California proposal to provide more protections for those under court-ordered conservatorships, while promoting less-restrictive alternatives.

The wife of a former Vermont legislator and House majority leader says he has died with the help of a law he himself helped pass that allows the terminally ill to end their own lives.

New Mexico is asking National Guard troops and state bureaucrats to volunteer to serve as substitute teachers as preschools and K-12 public schools struggle to keep classrooms open amid surging COVID-19 infections.

Two Supreme Court justices say a media report they were at odds over the wearing of masks during the surge in coronavirus cases is false.

A new study that compares coronavirus protection from prior infection and vaccination concludes getting the shots is still the safest way to prevent COVID-19.

The global initiative intended to share coronavirus vaccines equally between rich and poor countries is asking for $5.2 billion in funds to be able to keep buying doses.

For the first time, people across the U.S. can log on to a government website and order free, at-home COVID-19 tests.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has told a gathering of America’s mayors the Biden administration’s coronavirus relief bill is “like a vaccine” preventing catastrophic economic damage.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson says face masks will no longer be mandatory in public places and schools in England and COVID-19 passports will be dropped for large events, as infections level off in large parts of the country.

Poland’s doctors and medical workers fear the country's health care system may not be able to cope with the latest surge of COVID-19 infections.

Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw orchestra has played second fiddle to a pair of hairdressers.

Some Paris Fashion Week menswear shows have began for the fall-winter season as French virus restrictions have relegated many others to an online-only presence.

The leader of Hungary’s political opposition has announced he has tested positive for COVID-19 amid a surge in cases fueled by the highly transmissible omicron variant.

The World Health Organization says the number of new coronavirus cases globally rose by 20% last week to more than 18 million, marking a slowdown in the surge caused by the omicron variant.

Slovakia has limited access to what the government considers the most risky events and public gatherings as the country gets ready for the highly infectious omicron coronavirus variant.

The Biden administration will begin making 400 million N95 masks available for free to U.S. residents starting next week.

European Council President Charles Michel has become the second top-level European Union official who has had to pull out of the bloc's parliament session because he had a high-risk COVID-19 contact.

With just over two weeks before the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics, residents of the Chinese capital are disappointed at not being able to attend events because of coronavirus restrictions.

German news agency dpa has reported that police are investigating thousands of cases of suspected forgery of coronavirus vaccine certificates.

Pfizer's chief executive, Albert Bourla, has been awarded the prestigious Genesis Prize for his efforts in leading the development of a COVID-19 vaccine.

Tokyo and a dozen other areas in Japan will face new coronavirus restrictions effective Friday, with local leaders shortening hours for restaurants, as omicron cases hit a record high in the capital.

Several viewers got in touch to say they thought they had seen a lump under Shirley Ballas's arm.

The field’s future lies in reclaiming parts of its past that it willingly abandoned.

Gardaí are investigating reports of abusive calls to Ireland's chief medical officer and his deputy.

The mice aren’t just causing chaos in homes, farms and hospitals.

Intelligence agencies have long pored over what little information escapes North Korea for hints of life inside the Hermit Kingdom.

While public opinion of the medical care system has improved, a survey found opinion of local health departments and federal agencies has declined.

Should I take a vaccine selfie? Can I ask someone else if they've been vaccinated? How do I talk to family members about the shots? Vaccines bring new etiquette questions.

CDC pleads with Americans to take precautions amid rise in COVID cases Health officials are pleading with Americans to follow protective measures as coronavirus cases rise across the nation. As Mola Lenghi shows us, new infections are up 10% and hospitalizations are trending in the wrong direction. Then, Dr. Uzma Syed, an infectious disease specialist, joins CBSN's Elaine Quijano with more.

Health officials warn of potential spring break COVID surge as Americans travel Health officials are warning of a potential surge of COVID-19 cases around spring break. The warning comes as more than a million Americans traveled through U.S. airports on Monday. CBS News reporter Alex Tin joins CBSN's "Red & Blue" anchor Elaine Quijano with more on the variant that's expected to become dominant by April, as well as the latest on a new vaccine trial involving children as young as 6 months old.

Health experts fear COVID-19 surge as states lift restrictions Health officials are urging Texas residents to keep wearing masks and social distance even as restrictions are lifted. Janet Shamlian has more.

Sweeping COVID restriction rollbacks worry health experts Health officials are urging caution as states begin some of the biggest rollbacks in restrictions since the pandemic began. Nikki Battiste reports.

U.S. confirms first case of U.K. COVID-19 variant as cases and deaths rise Health officials in Colorado have identified the first case of a new coronavirus variant first detected in the U.K. CBS News correspondent Meg Oliver reports on the surge in infections already happening across the country, and Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider, internal medicine physician at California Pacific Medical Center, joined CBSN to discuss what we know about the new variant and the challenges hospitals are facing.

“In my view, health and safety is a mandatory subject of bargaining which may not be disregarded by the provisions of 4.5, especially in light of the fact that it is unlikely in my view that the General Assembly, when contemplating 4.5, envisioned the situation we now find ourselves in,” Sered said. “It is undisputed that the Chicago Board of Education has announced a date certain to bring children and teachers back to in-person learning without bargaining that decision with the CTU. Further, as we are literally dealing with life and death issues, I find this to be irreparable harm.”

"This is the worst outbreak that we've had of a respiratory-borne illness that we've had in 102 years. You can't run away from the data. It's incomprehensible to me how people are not seeing that," Fauci said during a livestream interview. He said the U.S. needs uniform public health measures to suppress the virus' spread instead of a piecemeal approach taken by different states and counties. Meanwhile, other states have taken a less-severe approach to their growing coronavirus outbreaks in an effort to keep businesses open.

“We have seen the positive effects on Lake County’s health when being diligent in mask wearing, but it does take all of us participating to see the positive effects again,” Purdue University Northwest Nursing Professor Jodi Allen said. “I am hopeful that the mask mandate will improve our county’s influenza numbers at the start of the flu season this year which will be immensely helpful to our area’s health care system as we continue to deal with Covid cases.”

FILE - In this Oct.23, 2019 file photo, tourists wait to see Leonardo da Vinci's painting Mona Lisa, at the Louvre museum, in Paris. Iconic sites that are among some of France's biggest tourist draws won't reopen when the country lifts most of its coronavirus restrictions next week. Neither the Louvre Museum, the Eiffel Tower nor the Versailles Palace will be reopening next week when France lifts many of its remaining coronavirus lockdown restrictions. None of France's three most iconic tourist sites will reopen when the country lifts most of its remaining coronavirus lockdown restrictions next week. About 20%-30% of the museums rooms might be closed but of course the Mona Lisa will be open," Sacristin said.

MADRID Spanish soccer matches could have the look of a video game when the competition resumes next month. The league is contemplating adding virtual crowds to the television broadcast of matches that will be played in empty stadiums because of the coronavirus pandemic. Tebas said the Bundesliga, which resumed recently in Germany, was successful using virtual sound during its matches, and the Spanish league wants to go a step further by using the virtual fans. The biggest challenge for the virtual crowd the Spanish league wants to use is to make sure it will work properly when superimposed during the live event. Tebas said the league is expected to finish on July 19, with the next season starting on Sept. 12.

Civil protection workers move boxes of ventilators at the customs post in the Bosnia capital Sarajevo, Thursday, April 30, 2020. (AP Photo)SARAJEVO Bosnian authorities have detained two high-ranking state officials and the owner of a private company which imported 100 ventilators from China that were found to be useless for COVID-19 patients. The three are being investigated for money laundering, fraud, embezzlement of state funds and other crimes, the prosecutors were quoted as saying. The company owner has rejected accusations that he imported the ventilators at highly inflated prices. Bosnia, which went through a bloody civil war in the 1990s, is composed of the Muslim-Croat federation and a Serb entity.

RALEIGH, N.C. North Carolina's top health official asked Friday for more details on how GOP leaders will protect attendees of a Republican National Convention this summer during the COVID-19 pandemic. President Donald Trump has threatened to move his formal renomination elsewhere if he does not soon get guarantees of being able to hold a large-scale event. The GOP's letter Thursday did not mention such a request, but Cohen said it had been discussed by phone. The state continues to support the hosting of the Republican National Convention in Charlotte if it can be done safelty, Cohen wrote to Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel and convention CEO Marcia Lee Kelly. Cooper is seeking reelection this fall in a state Trump won in 2016.

(Olivier Hoslet, Pool Photo via AP)BRUSSELS The European Union criticized China on Friday for asserting more control over Hong Kong and suggested the move would have an impact on China-EU relations, but the 27-nation bloc ruled out taking any action against its major trading partner. We express our grave concern at the steps taken by China," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said after chairing a video meeting of the foreign ministers. This risks to seriously undermine the one country, two systems principle and the high degree of autonomy of the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong." The national security law approved in Beijing could severely restrict opposition political activity and civil society in Hong Kong, where the pro-democracy opposition sees the move as an assault on the territorys autonomy. The U.K. government warned that it would extend the visas and possibly provide a path to citizenship for some British passport holders from Hong Kong.

There are still few places where our homeless can go," Salvation Army Major David Yardley said at the group's downtown center. Blistering temperatures can endanger health, and can lead to heat exhaustion, heat stroke and even death. The daily high temperatures in Phoenix were forecast to hit 110 degrees (43C) or very close to it during the extreme heat warning in effect through Sunday, National Weather Service forecasters said. The cooling stations in metro Phoenix open when the weather service declares extreme heat warnings They were also open for a string of days during an extreme heat warning in late April. In metro Las Vegas, where an excessive heat warning is in effect until Friday evening, four heat relief stations were open.

The Falcon 9, with the Crew Dragon spacecraft on top of the rocket, is scheduled to liftoff from Launch Pad 39-A Saturday. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. SpaceX pressed ahead with its second attempt to launch astronauts for NASA a historic first for a private company but more stormy weather threatened more delays. Elon Musks company came within 17 minutes Wednesday of launching a pair of NASA astronauts for the first time in nearly a decade from the U.S., before the threat of lightning forced a delay. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said managers were debating whether to bump the next launch attempt from Saturday to Sunday to take advantage of a slightly improved forecast at Kennedy Space Center. The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex reopened Thursday, after a 2 1/2-month shutdown, and within a few hours, all 4,000 tickets were snapped up for Saturdays launch attempt.

This microscope image made available by the National Cancer Institute Center for Cancer Research in 2015 shows human colon cancer cells with the nuclei stained red. Carroll jumped at the chance to help test a newer drug taken as a daily pill, AstraZenecas Tagrisso. A big drawback: It and other newer drugs are extremely expensive $150,000 or more a year. PROSTATE CANCERMen with advanced prostate cancer often are treated with medicines to suppress male hormones that can help the cancer grow. After a year, 55% on Keytruda were alive without worsening cancer versus 37% on chemo.

The Food and Drug Administration said late Thursday that several batches of the drug metformin tested positive for unsafe levels of a chemical called N-Nitrosodimethylamine. Metformin tablets are a staple of diabetes care, reducing excess sugar in the blood. People with Type 2 diabetes use metformin alone or with other drugs to help control their blood sugar levels. Patients should continue taking metformin drugs until their doctor can prescribe a replacement, the FDA said in a statement, noting the risks of discontinuing. Drugmaker Apotex Corp. recalled its extended-release metformin distributed in the U.S. earlier this week after the FDA found contamination in one lot.

Missouri Administrative Hearing Commissioner Sreenivasa Rao Dandamudis decision means Missouri will not become the first state without a functioning abortion clinic since 1974, the year after the Supreme Courts Roe v. Wade decision. Therefore, Planned Parenthood is entitled to renewal of its abortion facility license, Dandamudi wrote. A spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood said the organization will have comment later Friday. William Koebel, director of the section of the health department responsible for abortion clinic licensing, testified that the clinic failed to provide a "complication report." That led the health department to launch an investigation of other instances where women underwent multiple procedures to complete an abortion, Koebel said.

The Fed's Main Street Lending is geared toward medium-sized companies that are too large for the government's small business lending program and too small to sell bonds or stock to the public. Powell noted that the complexity of the program goes far beyond the Fed's usual lending efforts, which typically involve buying bonds. It is far and away the biggest challenge of the 11 facilities we have set up, Powell said. It has also announced 11 separate lending programs that are intended to support borrowing by businesses, banks and households. Still, Powell has previously said the unemployment rate is likely to peak at between 20% and 25% in May or June.

SAN ANTONIO Help may be on the way for those battling opioid addictions in our community and across Texas. On Thursday, the Texas Attorney General and attorneys representing various Texas counties in a nationwide lawsuit against opioid distributors and manufacturers hashed out how the imminent settlement funds would be split up in the state. Both myself and the folks at the Texas Attorney General's Office expect that this will become a model for other states to use across the United States, he said. The opioids council would be made up of three members appointed by the governor and three members appointed by the Texas attorney general. Watts said companies are ready to settle the lawsuits, and the execution of this distribution plan will mean those funds get to the community quickly.

Well be announcing what were doing tomorrow with respect to China and we are not happy with China," Trump told reporters at an unrelated event Thursday, referring mainly to COVID-19. Pompeo's determination opened the door to possible sanctions and the loss of special perks Hong Kong has received from the United States. The officials could not say how many people could ultimately be expelled, although they said it would be only a fraction of the Chinese students in the country. Overall, there were 369,548 students from China, accounting for 33.7% of international students who contributed nearly $15 billion to the U.S. economy in 2018. But the timing of a potential announcement could come at a time of increasingly heated rhetoric about the imposition of national security laws on Hong Hong in violation of the Sino-British accord.

South Africa has backlog of nearly 100,000 unprocessed tests. ___JOHANNESBURG South Africa says it has a backlog of nearly 100,000 unprocessed tests for the new coronavirus. The ministry says one of the latest people to die in South Africa was an employee with the National Health Laboratory Services. Indonesia had recorded more than 24,500 COVID-19 cases as of Thursday with nearly 1,500 deaths, the most fatalities in Southeast Asia. Thailand has had just single-digit increases in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases for most of May.

France is reopening its restaurants, bars and cafes starting next week as the country eases most restrictions amid the coronavirus crisis. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)PARIS Frances national health agency reported a sudden jump in new virus infections -- just an hour after the prime minister announced a sweeping national reopening plan. Its good news, but not good enough for everything to return to normal.Statistics released Friday showed 96 virus clusters have emerged around France since the government started easing confinement measures May 11. Overall COVID-19 is receding in France, with the number of virus patients in intensive care dropping every day since April 8 and now at 1,429. It is now testing more than 200,000 people a week, according to the health agency.

The government continues to ease the lockdown which was set to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus in the country. Duterte made the televised announcement hours after the Department of Health reported a single-day spike of 539 infections, more than 60% of them in the congested capital. The Health Ministry's new figures on Friday show India now has 165,799 cases with 4,706 deaths, which both now exceed China. The figures announced by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention brought national totals to 11,402 infections and 269 deaths. China on Friday again reported no new daily increase in cases of coronavirus and no new deaths.

She is one of Californias two elected members of the Republican National Committee, and shes a co-chair of Women for Trump that is part of the presidents reelection campaign. She chaired the city's Republican Party before winning election as vice chair of the state GOP in 2013. The governor's policies and the policies of counties are falling more heavily on Democrats than Republicans because there are more Democrats than Republicans in the state, Dhillon said. Dhillon represented the California Republican Party in a successful challenge last year to a law aimed at requiring Trump to release his tax returns to be on the California ballot. In fact its reinforcing the bad image of the Republican Party," he said of Dhillon's recent lawsuits.

In this May 27, 2020, photo, health care worker Tonya Wilkes adjusts her mask while working at a Lowndes County coronavirus testing site in Hayneville, Ala. (AP Photo/Jay Reeves)HAYNEVILLE, Ala. Sparsely populated Lowndes County, deep in Alabama's old plantation country, has the sad distinction of having both the states highest rate of COVID-19 cases and its worst unemployment rate. Lowndes and nearby poor, mostly black counties in rural Alabama are facing an increase in confirmed infections. I worry about Lowndes County, said Thomas. Dr. Scott Harris, the state health officer, said the state saw its highest number of new cases since the pandemic began in recent days.

The latest job-loss figures from the U.S. Labor Department bring to 41 million the running total of Americans who have filed for unemployment benefits since the coronavirus shutdowns took hold in mid-March. In New Zealand, health authorities have not found any new virus cases for a week. That increased the overall death toll to more than 1,300 and the number of cases to over 64,000. And first-time applications for unemployment benefits have fallen for eight straight weeks, as states gradually let stores, restaurants and other businesses reopen and the auto industry starts up factories again. Worldwide, the virus has infected more than 5.8 million people and killed about 360,000, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

A family watches a movie from the back of their car at a drive-in movie theater where drivers must leave one space empty between them amid the new coronavirus pandemic in Brasilia, Brazil, Saturday, May 23, 2020. The drive-in is 47 years old and one of the only such open-air facilities in operation in Brazil. Every car must respect the distance, leaving a free parking space between you, he tells each of them. It offers three shows per day, with a movie for children at 6 p.m. followed by two features for adults. The drive-in is 47 years old and one of the only such open-air facilities in operation in Brazil.

AUSTIN, Texas Joe Biden will close out Texas Democrats' virtual convention next month that was moved online over fears of the coronavirus. The announcement Thursday rounds out an unusual slate of big names that Texas Democrats have rounded up for their state convention. A major target for them is the Texas House, where Democrats need to flip just nine seats to reclaim a majority for the first time in nearly 20 years. The Texas Democratic Party convention begins Monday. Biden is also speaking via video at other state Democratic conventions.

Like dozens of other veteran spellers in their final year of eligibility, Anson Cook had big plans for this year's Scripps National Spelling Bee, which was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. The SpellPundit bee, with spellers competing from their homes over Zoom, concludes Thursday night, the same time the Scripps winner would have been decided. The champion receives $2,500, a pittance compared to the National Spelling Bees first prize of $50,000, but worth a middle-schoolers time and effort all the same. Most of the spellers who would have been favorites at the national bee quickly signed up, including the top three still-eligible finishers from last year. Yes, eight: Last year's Scripps bee ended in an eight-way tie when organizers ran out of words difficult enough to challenge the best spellers.

This photo shows a sign at the headquarters for Washington state's Employment Security Department Tuesday, May 26, 2020, at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Washington state's rush to get unemployment benefits to residents who lost jobs due to the coronavirus outbreak left it vulnerable to criminals who made off with hundreds of millions of dollars in fraudulent claims. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)OLYMPIA, Wash. Washington has recovered $300 million paid to criminals who used stolen personal information to file fraudulent unemployment benefit claims amid the COVID-19 crisis, state officials said Thursday. This is a national attack by sophisticated criminals and isnt just happening to Washington state, LeVine said. Nearly 1.5 million claims for benefits with some of that number reflecting people who filed multiple claims were filed for the week of May 17-23, and more than $494.5 million was paid last week to 424,995 individual claims. Washingtons stay-at-home order has been in place since March 23 and the states unemployment rate jumped to a record 15.4% last month.

When could a COVID-19 vaccine be ready? But scientists have never created a vaccine so quickly, and theres no guarantee any under development will ultimately work. The most promising vaccine candidates are expected to move into larger tests this summer. How quickly those studies can determine whether the vaccines are safe and effective depends in part on how widely the coronavirus is still spreading. The studies will need to enroll 20,000 people or more for each vaccine candidate, with half of them getting the real vaccine and the rest getting a dummy shot.

Health officials warned that the resurgence is getting harder to track and social distancing and other steps need to be taken. India, home to more than 1.3 billion people, reported more than 6,500 new infections Thursday as cases continued to rapidly rise. South Korean health officials warned the resurgence is getting harder to track and social distancing and other steps need to be taken. New Zealand has reported no new cases for six days and has just eight active cases remaining. Early on, President Donald Trump downplayed the severity of the virus, likening it to the flu, and predicted the U.S. wouldnt reach 100,000 deaths.

Is a trampoline a good purchase to make, to help occupy kids time? However, there are also some rewards to a trampoline that can make entertaining kids a lot easier. So, lets jump (pun intended) into the pros and cons of owning a trampoline, and how to mitigate any concerns. Besides, just jumping by itself is more than enough to burn off energy and fulfill the purpose of getting a trampoline. Have you bought or thought about buying a trampoline during the pandemic?

Igor Loparic prepares packages of aid for people in need for help in Pula, Croatia, Tuesday, May 26, 2020. Enter Igor Loparic, and Our Dream Their Smile -- a charity Loparic established a decade ago, and has refocused to help people living on the Adriatic Sea cope with the pandemic. Many have turned to Loparics group for help with food, other necessities or legal advice. It is important to approach everyone individually and it is important that no one feels bad about getting help." Jetis Bajrami, a community representative and former national boxing team member, says Loparics charity has made a difference.

Published: May 28, 2020, 8:13 am Updated: May 28, 2020, 9:30 amCVS Health will try delivering prescriptions with self-driving vehicles in a test that begins next month. Customers will have to confirm their identity in order to unlock their delivery after the Nuro vehicle arrives. And drugstores like Woonsocket, Rhode Island-based CVS Health Corp. and competitor Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. have been expanding home delivery services for a few years now. Some hospitals in North Carolina have been testing drone delivery of medical samples and supplies. CVS and UPS announced in late April that they will start delivering prescriptions by drone to a big retirement community in Florida.

HARTFORD, Conn. A Connecticut policy that allows transgender athletes to compete in girls sports violates the civil rights of female athletes, the U.S. Education Department's Office for Civil Rights has ruled. The office said in a 45-page letter that it may seek to withhold federal funding over the policy, which allows transgender athletes to participate as the gender with which they identify. It said the policy is a violation of Title IX, the federal civil rights law that guarantees equal education opportunities for women, including in athletics. They were also seeking to erase all records set by the transgender athletes. Several other states have polices barring the participation of transgender athletes and Idaho recently became the first state to pass a law banning transgender women from competing in womens sports.

(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)Wading into a politically charged issue, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday preached the importance of wearing masks in public as the nation's economy reopens from the cataclysmic" damage inflicted by the coronavirus pandemic. During a tour of hospitals this week in his home state of Kentucky, the Republican leader has stressed wearing masks in public and following social distancing guidelines. There should be no stigma attached to wearing a mask," McConnell said during an appearance in Owensboro. President Donald Trump has refused to wear face coverings, and polls find that conservative Americans are more likely to forgo them. The events were his first public appearances in the Bluegrass State since mid-March due to the pandemic.

(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool)WASHINGTON Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie said Thursday that his department has all but stopped use of an unproven malaria drug on veterans with COVID-19. Major veterans organizations had called on the VA to explain its use of hydroxychloroquine after an analysis of VA hospital data was published month showing hundreds of veterans who took the drug saw no benefit for COVID-19. They remained at higher levels before tapering off in late April amid backlash over results of the VA hospital analysis and as remdesivir emerged as a form of treatment. The Food and Drug Administration has warned against the drug and said hydroxychloroquine should only be used for the coronavirus in formal studies. The VA has said it prescribed the drug only when medically appropriate, after full discussion between doctor and patient about the risks.

Washington's Alex Ovechkin and Boston's David Pastrnak share the Maurice Rocket Richard Trophy the league announced Thursday, May 28, 2020. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson, File)Since the NHL is planning to go straight to the playoffs, it's handing out a handful of trophies for the regular season cut short by the coronavirus pandemic. Not long after unveiling a 24-team right to the playoffs format, the league on Thursday announced the winners of its regular-season awards. Although Ovechkin was stopped short of a ninth 50-goal season, his ninth goal-scoring title extends his NHL record. The benefit and the curse of a bye, I suppose.___For more AP NHL coverage: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

(AP Photo/Paul Sancya)DETROIT A Michigan court on Thursday ordered a barber to close his shop and stop defying the state's coronavirus restrictions, though he vowed to keep cutting hair. The Michigan appeals court overturned a decision by a Shiawassee County judge and ordered him to sign an injunction sought by state regulators. Gretchen Whitmer has kept barbershops and hair salons closed for weeks, citing a high risk of virus transmission as stylists cut hair and people wait for their turn. Separate from the court case, he's had his shop and barber's licenses suspended. Texas hair salon owner Shelley Luther, who was briefly jailed for opening her shop, appeared at a rally outside Manke's business.

(AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)MOSCOW Health officials in Moscow updated their figures on coronavirus deaths Thursday, seeking to dispel doubts about Russia's comparatively low COVID-19 death toll. On top of 636 deaths in April directly caused by COVID-19 reported earlier, the Moscow Health Department added the deaths of 756 people who tested positive for the virus but died of other causes. The health department also factored in 169 deaths of people who tested negative but autopsies showed likely succumbed to the virus. Earlier this month, the Moscow Health Department acknowledged that the 639 coronavirus deaths it reported for April represented about 40% of the people who died in the city after testing positive for the virus. If only the deaths directly caused by the coronavirus are taken into account, Moscow's virus mortality index last month would stand at 1.4%, the health department said.

(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)CVS Health will try delivering prescriptions with self-driving vehicles in a test that begins next month. Customers will have to confirm their identity in order to unlock their delivery after the vehicle arrives. Nuro has previously started partnerships to test the delivery of pizzas for Dominos or groceries for Kroger, also in the Houston area. Woonsocket, Rhode Island-based CVS Health Corp. said that for the Houston test, customers can chose the Nuro delivery option when they fill their prescriptions online. Earlier this year, federal regulators gave Nuro temporary approval to run autonomous delivery vehicles on public roads for the first time without human occupants.