There were more than 12 million new weekly cases and just under 33,000 deaths, a 23% decline in mortality, according to the U.N. health agency’s report on the pandemic issued late Tuesday.
COVID-19 Testing


In the U.N. health agency’s weekly report on the pandemic issued late Tuesday, WHO said there were more than 11 million new COVID-19 infections last week — about an 8% rise — and 43,000 new deaths. The number of COVID-19 deaths globally has been dropping for the past three weeks.

According to a November study, researchers estimate that anywhere from 700,000 to 1.6 million people in the U.S., are currently experiencing chronic smell loss or distortion because of COVID-19. For several Chicago-area residents, the loss persists.

The study, published Monday in the journal “Nature,” is believed to be the largest of its kind. It found that the brains of those who had COVID-19 had a greater loss of grey matter and abnormalities in the brain tissue compared with those who didn’t have COVID-19.

The milestone is the latest tragic reminder of the unrelenting nature of the pandemic even as people are shedding masks, travel is resuming and businesses are reopening. The death toll, compiled by Johns Hopkins University, stood at 5,996,882 as of Sunday morning and was expected to pass the 6 million mark later in the day.

Cook County is now at the lowest level of COVID-19 risk, under new guidance set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The unique saliva test was developed by University of Illinois scientists and SHIELD officials say it has become an essential tool in halting the spread of COVID-19.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said during a White House briefing that the government is contemplating a change to its mask guidance in the coming weeks.

Up to 7 million immune-compromised Americans have been left behind in the nation’s wobbly efforts to get back to normal. Not only do these fragile patients remain at high risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19, they can harbor lengthy infections that can help spark still more variants.

“A swift return to in-person instruction gives faculty and students the best opportunity to teach and learn — and thrive amid their school community,” CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said Monday.

CPS has been criticized in recent days for not telling students and families that it changed the way positive cases among students and staff are reported on its online dashboard.

As dentists across Illinois experience staffing shortages and an increased demand for dental appointments, they are asking state officials to consider teledentistry and other services to help fill the demand.

In the first half of January, an estimated 8.8 million U.S. workers were reported to have stayed home either because they were sick with COVID-19 or were caring for someone who was sick. The news comes as some workers are running out of employer-provided sick days, or don’t have enough earned sick days to begin with.

Attorneys from the attorney general’s consumer fraud division are probing allegations that those who sought a COVID-19 test at pop-up sites run by the Center for Covid Control did not get their results as promised.

City and state officials are advising people to be on the lookout for untrustworthy COVID-19 testing sites. What you should know before walking into a pop-up testing site.

Speaking at the White House Thursday, President Joe Biden acknowledged that, “I know we’re all frustrated as we enter this new year” as virus cases reach new heights. But he insisted that it remains “a pandemic of the unvaccinated.”