ROCHELLE WALENSKY

The White House announced that the masks will come from the government's Strategic National Stockpile.

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

The masks will start to become available late next week, and the program will be fully up and running by early February, according to the official.

masks mandates continue to get mixed reception across nation

The White House says the federal website where Americans can request free COVID-19 tests will begin accepting orders on Wednesday.

Early studies say throat swabs may effectively detect Covid's omicron variant. Dr. Anthony Fauci and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration say more research is needed.

ABC News is under fire for how it edited an interview that CDC Director Rochelle Walensky gave to “Good Morning America.”.

Delta Air Lines is reporting a $408 million loss for the final quarter of 2021, dragged down by a COVID-19 surge that rocked the airline in December, and the carrier expects to suffer one more quarterly loss before travel picks up in the spring and summer.

Officials across the U.S. are again weighing how and whether to impose mask mandates as...

Officials across the U.S. are again weighing how and whether to impose mask mandates as COVID-19 infections soar and the American public grows weary of pandemic-related restrictions.

Senator Roger Marshall questioned Fauci about his salary, which, like all government employees, is public information.

The Biden administration is increasing federal support for COVID-19 testing for schools in a bid to keep them open amid the omicron surge.

The increase in patients and a shortage of health care workers are causing a strain on facilities, officials said.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, used an appearance before a Senate committee on Tuesday to counter misinformation about coronavirus deaths.

Greg Nash/Pool via GettyDr. Anthony Fauci slammed Sen. Rand Paul on Tuesday for encouraging threats on his life by mounting vociferous public attacks “with not a shred of evidence,” telling the Kentucky Republican that he was “incorrect in almost everything you say.”Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was testifying at a hearing held by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions, when Paul, an ophthalmologist by training, used his al

The rise of omicron has fed the longstanding efforts to pretend vaccines don't reduce the spread. Here's what the data show.

The top health leaders in the U.S. will testify before the Senate on Tuesday about the federal response to the omicron Covid variant, as new infections and hospitalizations reach pandemic highs. The Senate health committee will hear testimony from White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, and acting Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock. Dawn O'Connell, assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the Department of Health and Human Services, is also testifying. The hearing comes as the CDC faces criticism for its public messaging on the pandemic, particularly its quarantine guidance. The CDC cut the isolation period to five days for people who have Covid, but it did not recommend people get tested before leaving isolation.

Frustrated and exhausted, many Americans say they tune out muddled guidance.

During an appearance on Fox News Sunday, CDC director Rochelle Walensky faltered in explaining how many of the 836,000 U.S. patients whose deaths were attributed to Covid in the last two years had underlying medical conditions.

We need to learn to live with COVID. Over the next decade or so, says one expert, "every single person on Earth has a date with this virus."

The rate of hospitalization for kids under five — who are not yet eligible for the vaccine — is the highest since the pandemic began.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention held only two telebriefings in 2021. That lack of transparency has prompted criticism — and a pledge from director Dr. Rochelle Walensky to be more open.

Hospitalizations of U.S. children under 5 with COVID-19 have soared to unprecedented levels, a worrisome trend in youngsters too young to be vaccinated.

The move follows the FDA's authorization earlier this week and an hours-long meeting of the CDC's outside advisers.

The CDC endorsement Wednesday means about 5 million of the younger teens who had their last shot in the spring are eligible for a booster right away.

If the CDC approves the advisory panel's recommendation, boosters for adolescents age 12-17 could be available as early as this week. The shots should be given five months after initial immunization.

The recommendation comes amid an increase in pediatric hospitalizations.

The co-creator of the AstraZeneca vaccine warns that "we can't vaccinate the planet every four to six months." More COVID updates.

An influential government advisory panel is recommending COVID-19 boosters for younger teens.

U.S. health officials said Wednesday they are not changing the qualifications for being...

U.S. health officials say they are not changing the definition of being “fully vaccinated” against COVID-19.

The updated guidance comes after the CDC faced criticism last week for shortening its recommended isolation period without asking for people to get tested.

The U.S. hit a new record high for infections in a single day on Monday, with 1,082,549 new cases recorded. Hospitalizations are also on the rise, but not at the same rate.

The move to shorten the Pfizer booster interval comes as the U.S. shatters daily case records. The recommended interval for those who received Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccines has not changed.

In the midst of record COVID case numbers in the U.S., biostatistician Natalie Dean walks us through how to assess the metrics.

Some school systems around the U.S. have extended their holiday break or switched back to online instruction because of the explosion in COVID-19 cases.

The CDC must also weigh in before the third shots can be rolled out for younger age groups.

The CDC must now decide whether to recommend boosters for the age group.

The CDC must also weigh in before the third shots can be rolled out for younger age groups.

The CDC must also weigh in before the third shots can be rolled out for younger age groups.

The U.S. is expanding COVID-19 boosters as it confronts the omicron surge.

New Covid infections have hit a pandemic high in the U.S. as the highly contagious omicron variant has supplanted delta as the dominant strain.

"I think we're going to be hearing more about that in the next day or so from the CDC," Fauci said.

"Record numbers testing positive for a sore throat isn't a crisis. And people in the hospital for car accidents testing positive isn't a surge," Rubio said.

The rapid increase in COVID cases reflects 'the exceptionally transmissible' quality of the Omicron variant, CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky says.

Many states are breaking their single-day case records. On Wednesday, more than 431,000 new cases were reported, the CDC said.

Skyrocketing COVID-19 case rates have caused officials In New York City and elsewhere to scale back their New Year's Eve celebrations. Around the country, people are facing tough decisions.

The seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases topped 280,000 this week as the omicron variant spreads rapidly across the country, according to Johns Hopkins University's tracker.

Some workers are concerned about new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that shortens the isolation period for COVID-19 cases.

U.S. Covid cases are at a record seven-day average of more than 265,000 per day as of Tuesday as the delta and omicron variants circulate simultaneously.

Rochelle Walensky told CNN that the CDC's isolation guidance was previously "conservative" and the changes were made in the context of surging cases.

The guidelines say people who test positive for COVID-19, but have no symptoms, can leave isolation after five days without testing again.

Cutting the isolation for positive cases to five days could lead to more infections if people don't take masking seriously. A testing requirement, would have made the policy safer, experts say.

U.S. health officials’ decision to shorten the recommended COVID-19 isolation and quarantine period from 10 days to five is drawing criticism from some medical experts and could create confusion among many Americans.

Despite the Omicron variant sweeping across the nation, Kerrville has still not seen its first case of that COVID-19 variant, according to Lisa Winters, community health coordinator for PRMC.

People who test positive need to isolate themselves for 5 days if they don't show symptoms. The change reflects "what we know about the spread of the virus" and vaccine protection, the CDC chief says.

The agency says science shows the majority of transmission "occurs early in the course of illness."

U.S. health officials reduced COVID isolation recommendations from 10 to five days, and shortened the time that close contacts need to quarantine.

U.S. health officials are cutting isolation restrictions for asymptomatic Americans who test positive for the coronavirus and shortening the time that close contacts have to quarantine.

U.S. health officials on Monday cut isolation restrictions for Americans who catch the coronavirus from 10 to five days, and similarly shortened the time that close contacts need to quarantine. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials said the guidance is in keeping with growing evidence that people with the coronavirus are most infectious in the two days before and three days after symptoms develop. CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said the country is about to see a lot of omicron cases.

Children younger than 5 can’t get COVID-19 vaccines in the U.S. yet, but there are steps you can take to protect them from infection over the holidays.

Federal officials say the change was motivated by the rapid spread of the Omicron variant and a staffing crunch at hospitals nationwide.

U.S. officials are loosening rules that call on health care workers to stay out of work for 10 days if they test positive for COVID-19.

The CDC currently recommends a 10-day quarantine after testing positive for Covid.

President Joe Biden promised to distribute hundreds of millions of free COVID-19 tests and to open more testing sites, but the stepped-up efforts will not come in time for the holidays.

CBS News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook joined "CBS Mornings" to answer viewers' questions about the latest phase of the pandemic and how Americans can stay safe this holiday season.

Omicron has raced ahead of other variants and is now the dominant version of the coronavirus in the U.S. Federal health officials said Monday that omicron accounted for an estimated 73% of new infections last week.

U.S. health officials are endorsing “test-to-stay” policies that allow close contacts of students infected with the coronavirus to remain in classrooms if they test negative.

The new omicron coronavirus mutant speeding around the world may bring another wave of chaos, as it threatens to further stretch hospital workers already struggling with a surge of delta cases and upend holiday plans for the second year in a row.

The U.S. is expanding COVID-19 boosters, opening a third dose of Pfizer's vaccine to people as young as age 16.

The chief of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says more than 40 people in the country have been found to be infected with the omicron variant so far and more than three-quarters of them had been vaccinated.

The Biden administration is moving to toughen testing requirements for international travelers to the U.S., for both vaccinated and unvaccinated people, amid the spread of the new omicron variant of the coronavirus.

Dr. Anthony Fauci is blasting Sen. Ted Cruz for suggesting that Fauci be investigated for statements he made about COVID-19.

The U.S. is in better shape approaching its second Thanksgiving of the pandemic, thanks to the vaccine.

The U.S. is opening COVID-19 vaccine boosters to all adults, and urging them for anyone 50 and older.

A federal advisory committee has recommended that all U.S. adults younger than 60 be vaccinated against hepatitis B.

Schoolchildren take the spotlight this week as the U.S. enters a new phase in COVID-19 vaccination aimed at curbing deaths, hospitalizations and more than a year of disrupted education.

The approval marks a long-awaited milestone in the nearly two-year fight against the deadly virus that experts say has likely already infected nearly half the population in that age group.

US health officials have given the final OK to Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for children as young as 5.

The White House says the Biden administration is already assembling and shipping millions of doses of the COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11.

Catch up on family-friendly Things To Do for Halloween, this week's student spotlight, Kids Wanna Know and Kaiti's Science Lab segments in the free KSAT Kids newsletter.

Witches and warlocks, ghosts and ghouls can breathe a little easier this Halloween: Coronavirus cases in the U.S. are generally on the decline, and trick-or-treaters can feel safer collecting candy.

Federal health officials say millions more Americans can get a COVID-19 booster and choose a different vaccine for that next shot.

Halloween may feel normal this year despite the pandemic as federal health officials say it’s safe to trick-or-treat.

With many Americans who got Pfizer vaccinations already rolling up their sleeves for a booster shot, millions of others who received the Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccine wait anxiously to learn when it’s their turn.

The number of first-dose COVID-19 vaccinations is falling in the U.S., despite the spread of vaccine requirements across the country.

A second hospital in Alaska is beginning to ration health care as the state deals with a spike in coronavirus cases.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul says she is prepared to call in medically trained National Guard members and retirees to address potential staffing shortages.

President Joe Biden is urging Americans who now are eligible for a Pfizer COVID-19 booster to go get one, and says he'll get his own soon.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has endorsed COVID-19 booster shots for millions of older or otherwise vulnerable Americans.

An international group of scientists is arguing the average person doesn't need a COVID-19 booster yet — an opinion that highlights the intense scientific divide over the question.

New U.S. studies show COVID-19 vaccines remain highly effective against hospitalizations and death.

President Joe Biden’s plans to start delivery of booster shots by Sept. 20 for most Americans who received COVID-19 vaccines are facing new complications that could delay the availability for those who received the Moderna vaccine.

New Zealand has reported its first coronavirus death in more than six months, while the number of new cases continued to trend downward.

U.S. states with high COVID-19 vaccination rates are protecting children from hospitalization, according to an analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This summer’s coronavirus surge has been labeled a “pandemic of the unvaccinated” by government officials from President Joe Biden on down.

Officials are offering new hope for the safety of U.S. schoolchildren threatened by COVID-19.

U.S. health regulators have authorized an extra dose of the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines in people with weakened immune systems to better protect them from the virus.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging all pregnant women to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Arizona reported more than 2,000 additional COVID-19 cases for the fourth straight day as the number of virus-related hospitalizations continued to rise.