coronavirus variants

Two new COVID-19 variants that quietly emerged on the scene over the last few weeks — ones that Dr. Anthony Fauci has described as “pretty troublesome” — are becoming increasingly prevalent in the New York area and stoking fresh concerns as the nation braces for yet another potential winter surge, the latest CDC data shows. You may not have heard…

The New York City Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan encouraged people to continue getting vaccinated to keep numbers down, Erica Byfield reports.

Newly updated COVID vaccine booster shots designed to target omicron’s wildly contagious BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants are now available in New York, but initial eligibility is limited to those covered by guidance from the CDC, the governor’s office announced Wednesday. First up are people 12 years and older who are at least two months past their previous booster or...

The White House says getting a COVID shot will become a yearly tradition, much like the flu shot. Brian Thompson reports.

The CDC voted Thursday to recommend updated versions of both the Pfizer and Moderna coronavirus vaccine boosters, paving way for a widespread rollout as early as next week.

Over two years into the coronavirus pandemic, millions of patients around the globe are suffering from the lingering symptoms of long COVID, while doctors still search to find answers for treatment. Long COVID, known as post-acute sequelae of COVID-19, is a wide range of complications after a patient has recovered from an initial infection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The average…

Over two years into the coronavirus pandemic, millions of patients around the globe are suffering from the lingering symptoms of long COVID, while doctors still search to find answers for treatment. NBC New York’s Linda Gaudino reports.

The highly infectious omicron variant is rapidly increasing prevalence across the U.S. but even more so in New York and New Jersey, where genomic sequencing is detecting it at a rate of about 13% versus 3% nationally, the head of the CDC says. Delta, which early evidence indicates appears to lead to more severe cases than the new variant that…

A mask mandate for shops and other indoor spaces in New York state took effect as state officials confront a surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. NBC New York’s Ida Siegal reports.

The company said it will seek Canadian approval “imminently” and has also begun the process to file with regulators in the U.S., U.K. and other countries. Could such a vaccine bring Kyrie Irving back to the Nets?

New York City’s COVID vaccine mandate is expanding to the entire private sector in a matter of weeks, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday. Amid many questions, this one stands out for many.

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced major new expansions to the vaccine mandate, on Monday. Andrew Siff reports.

Three new cases of the omicron variant have been detected in New York City, bringing the number of cases in the Big Apple to seven on top of the previously confirmed case out on Long Island. The three additional cases announced by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Saturday morning join New Jersey’s first case confirmed one day prior, bringing the...

Gov. Phil Murphy confirmed the first known case of the omicron variant in New Jersey, detected in a female traveler from Georgia.

More states are detecting cases of the omicron variant, including New Jersey, who confirmed its first case on Friday. NBC’s Kathy Park reports.

New Jersey health officials confirmed the state’s first case of the omicron variant late Friday in a fully vaccinated traveler, Gov. Phil Murphy announced. The Garden State appears to be the tenth in the country to detect the new variant, and it comes on the heels of five cases discovered in New York City and Long Island. Tri-state governors...

Some New Yorkers are rushing to get their COVID boosters as five cases of the omicron COVID variant are now in New York. NBC New York’s Greg Cergol reports.

The new variant’s emergence comes at a time when core COVID rates across New York are rising. Daily case totals Thursday and Friday both topped 11,200, the highest single-day numbers since late January, and hospitalizations are up 64.5% this month alone.

Gov. Kathy Hochul said four of the five cases are in the city, and all five are downstate. NBC New York’s Gilma Avalos reports.

New York has confirmed five omicron variant cases, including in New York City — just mere hours after the U.S. confirmed that its second overall omicron variant case in a Minnesota resident who recently traveled to New York City for a two-day convention at the Javits Center in Manhattan.