pandemic

With the surge in COVID-19 and the omicron variant, many Americans are on the hunt for an at-home COVID test. Given the aftermath of the holidays, drugstore shelves are bare in many places, and states that have offered free over-the-counter tests have run out. With surges rolling across the country, prompting more hospital overcrowding, many […]

One of the most popular holiday songs of all time, Jingle Bells, will no longer be sung at Council Rock Elementary School in Brighton due to its controversial past. This story was first reported in the Rochester Beacon, where the school’s principal Matt Tappon confirmed the song, and several others, have been replaced with different […]

In the rise of the omicron variant, New York Governor Kathy Hochul is easing up on the quarantine rules for essential workers. According to Governor Hochul, most of the state’s essential workers can return to work just five days after a positive coronavirus test. Workers will only be able to do this if they’re fully […]

After discovering that the new COVID-19 variant, omicron, was discovered in Monroe County, more data has been released. Between December 1st and December 15th, 125 lab samples of COVID-19 were tested and it found 17 cases of the Omicron variant, according to UR Medicine. 12 of the cases are found in Monroe County, one was […]

A new way to help combat COVID-19 has been created and it comes in a form of a pill. Yesterday, the FDA authorized the first pill in the U.S. to treat the effects of COVID-19 from home. According to reported studies, the Pfizer-made anti-viral pills are 89% effective at preventing serious illness or hospitalization when […]

After warnings of the new COVID-19 variant, omicron has now been detected in Monroe County. The county made their announcement about the variant being detected, stating; “These results underscore the need for residents to keep following common-sense guidelines throughout the holiday season to protect themselves and their loved ones.” Monroe County is encouraging people to […]

Given the current COVID climate in the state of New York and Monroe County, Rochester City School District students are being told to bring home their learning devices for winter break in case the district has to shift to remote learning. If this case becomes reality, according to the RCSD Twitter account, families will be […]

According to the U.S. Secret Service, nearly $100 billion has been stolen from COVID-19 relief programs set up to help businesses and people who lost their jobs due to the pandemic. The estimate is based on Secret Service cases and data from the Labor Department and the Small Business Administration. The Secret Service didn’t include COVID-19 […]

During a briefing yesterday, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the state broke a record with 23,391 new COVID-19 cases over the past weekend. This data is four times the number of cases we saw last week. In her briefing, Governor Hochul stated that other countries that have experienced a surge of omicron cases saw case […]

At the beginning of the new year, President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate for companies with 100 or more employees will begin. According to the data, the new mandate is estimated to affect over 100 million Americans and businesses, including some right here in Rochester. Yesterday, Wegmans, along with health and city officials, got together to […]