“COVID is very real, it’s merciless, and unless you are fully vaccinated, your defenses against it are pretty low,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, the commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health. 

The decision to keep the initial definition, established more than a year ago when the vaccines first rolled out, means that federal vaccination mandates for travel or employment won’t require a booster dose.

The Chicago Teachers Union announced late Tuesday that its rank-and-file members voted in favor of a measure to halt in-person work and transition to remote work Wednesday as it continues negotiating a deal with the city and school district over additional health and safety measures.

Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said it’s rare for children to contract COVID-19 and hospitalizations are similar to that of the flu. “We don’t upend school, we don’t stop for influenza,” she said.

While some people seem to just stay young longer, others age prematurely. Your chronological age of course can’t be changed, but research suggests the biological processes that drive aging may in fact be malleable.

The Chicago Teachers Union is set to vote Tuesday evening on a labor action that would see its 25,000 members work fully remotely beginning Wednesday. If that measure is approved, CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said he’ll have no choice but to cancel classes.

A couple of factors are at play, starting with the emergence of the highly contagious omicron variant. Omicron is more likely to infect people, even if it doesn’t make them very sick, and its surge coincided with the holiday travel season in many places.

The president emphasized that vaccines, booster shots and therapeutic drugs have mitigated the danger for the overwhelming majority of Americans who are fully vaccinated.

Dr. David Slade, associate medical director of infection prevention control at Loyola Medicine, discusses the latest research on the COVID-19 omicron variant, FDA’s authorization of boosters for teens and more.

A public health order requiring proof of vaccination against COVID-19 took effect Monday in Chicago. Let’s walk through who needs to show what, and where.

“I fear the climb will continue” with the surge accelerated by post-holiday gathering infections, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Monday.

Overwhelmed by an influx of patients suffering from COVID-19, hospital administrators offered guidance on when people should head to the emergency room.

Boosters already are recommended for everyone 16 and older, and federal regulators on Monday decided they’re also warranted for 12- to 15-year-olds once enough time has passed since their last dose.

“I am so pissed off that we have to continuously fight for the basic necessities, the basic mitigations … this makes no sense,” CTU Vice President Stacy Davis Gates said Monday.

The Food and Drug Administration last week said preliminary research indicates at-home rapid tests detect omicron, but may have reduced sensitivity. The agency noted it’s still studying how the tests perform with the variant, which was first detected in late November.

Harvard is moving classes online for the first three weeks of the new year, with a return to campus scheduled for late January, “conditions permitting.” The University of Chicago is delaying the beginning of its new term and holding the first two weeks online.