Mike Stobbe

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, left, listens as Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Robert Califf testifies virtually during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing to examine an update on the ongoing Federal response to COVID-19, Thursday, June 16, 2022, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

August 18, 2022, 6:15 am

Admitting botched pandemic response, CDC head orders major agency overhaul

Dr. Rochelle Walensky says public health body ‘fell short’ in dealing with coronavirus, proposes restructuring plan aimed at making CDC more nimble and improving communication

By Mike Stobbe

This 2014 illustration made available by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention depicts a polio virus particle.(Sarah Poser, Meredith Boyter Newlove/CDC via AP, File)

August 12, 2022, 8:43 pm

Polio detected in NYC sewage, suggesting virus circulating among unvaccinated

Discovery comes weeks after Orthodox Jewish man suffers paralysis due to infection in nearby Rockland County; health officials renew pleas for public to vaccinate their children

By Karen Matthews and Mike Stobbe

A boy receives a dose of China's Sinovac COVID-19 coronavirus vaccine at a community vaccination center in Hong Kong on Feb. 25, 2022. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

June 15, 2022, 11:03 pm

FDA advisers approve COVID-19 vaccines for kids under 5

Reviewers say Moderna and Pfizer shots appear safe and effective for children as young as 6 months old, with side effects minor and less common than in adults

By Mike Stobbe and Lindsey Tanner

This October 2021, photo provided by Pfizer shows kid-size doses of its COVID-19 vaccine in Puurs, Belgium. (Pfizer via AP, File)

June 13, 2022, 5:06 am

US regulators: Pfizer’s COVID vaccine appears effective for kids under 5

FDA says children who received the kid-sized shots developed strong immune response to fight off coronavirus; decision on approval likely soon

By MATTHEW PERRONE and Mike Stobbe

A healthcare worker receives a Pfizer COVID-19 booster shot at Jackson Memorial Hospital, Oct. 5, 2021, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

January 22, 2022, 8:53 am

3rd booster shots effective against severe illness from Omicron, CDC studies show

Research finds third dose at least 90% effective at preventing hospitalizations for COVID-19, during both the Delta and Omicron waves

By Mike Stobbe

Registered nurse Morgan Flynn works inside a patient's room in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, in Lebanon, New Hampshire, January 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

January 7, 2022, 7:50 pm

In US, hospitalizations skyrocket among kids too young for COVID vaccines

‘Pediatric hospitalizations are at their highest rate compared to any prior point in the pandemic,’ says CDC chief, but notes they are still lower than for other age groups

By Lindsey Tanner and Mike Stobbe

A middle school principal walks the empty halls of his school as he speaks with one of his teachers to get an update on her COVID-19 symptoms, Friday, Aug., 20, 2021, in Wrightsville, Ga. (AP Photo/Stephen B. Morton, File)

December 28, 2021, 1:55 am

US officials slash COVID isolation, quarantine recommendations

Decision driven by a surge in Omicron cases and growing evidence that people are most infectious in two days before and three days after symptoms develop

By Mike Stobbe

Travelers wait for a shuttle but to arrive at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, Monday, Dec. 20, 2021. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

December 21, 2021, 1:24 am

Sweeping across America, Omicron now accounts for 73% of all new cases

CDC data shows some 650,000 Omicron cases across US in last week, a six-fold increase in the variant’s share of infections to become dominant strain

By Mike Stobbe

Licensed practical nurse Yokasta Castro, of Warwick, R.I., draws a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine into a syringe at a mass vaccination clinic on May 19, 2021, at Gillette Stadium, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP/Steven Senne)

November 20, 2021, 2:25 am

With green-light from CDC, US expands COVID booster shots to all adults

US follows Israel’s lead and places emphasis on those aged 50 and above, urging older populations to get extra shot; expansion makes tens of millions more Americans eligible

By LAURAN NEERGAARD, MATTHEW PERRONE and Mike Stobbe

A pharmacist prepares a syringe of the Pfizer vaccine for COVID-19, at Queen Anne Healthcare, a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility in Seattle, January 8, 2021. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

September 24, 2021, 8:04 am

CDC endorses COVID booster shots for older Americans, those at high-risk

US health agency’s director includes recommendation rejected by experts, for those under 65 in jobs with higher risk of exposure to get an extra vaccine dose

By LAURAN NEERGAARD and Mike Stobbe

A syringe is prepared with the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a clinic at the Reading Area Community College in Reading, Pennsylvania, September 14, 2021. (AP/ Matt Rourke)

September 23, 2021, 3:05 am

FDA backs Pfizer COVID-19 boosters for seniors, high-risk

Ruling represents a drastically scaled back version of the Biden administration’s sweeping plan to give third doses to nearly all American adults

By MATTHEW PERRONE, LAURAN NEERGAARD and Mike Stobbe

A healthcare worker fills a syringe with the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, July 22, 2021. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

August 18, 2021, 7:36 pm

US to roll out COVID booster shots for all, citing waning protection

Authorities plan to begin administering 3rd doses to Americans in September, saying it’s ‘very clear’ vaccines are less effective at preventing infection over time

By Mike Stobbe and MATTHEW PERRONE

In this March 29, 2021 file photo, a worker readies syringes with the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine in Metairie, LA. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

August 6, 2021, 11:28 pm

US CDC study shows vaccine gives COVID-19 survivors big immune boost

Unvaccinated survivors more than twice as likely to get reinfected, research indicates, dispelling belief that recovered are largely immune, particularly with new variants

By LAURAN NEERGAARD and Mike Stobbe

In this July 19, 2021, file photo, shoppers wear masks inside of The Cool store in the Fairfax district of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

July 28, 2021, 1:26 am

Vaccinated people will have to wear masks indoors in high-risk areas of US

Citing new information on delta variant’s ability to spread even among fully vaccinated, CDC also recommends all children and teachers wear masks in schools

By Mike Stobbe

Socially distanced and with protective partitions students work on an art project during class at the Sinaloa Middle School in Novato, California on March 2, 2021 (AP Photo/Haven Daily)

July 10, 2021, 2:05 pm

Vaccinated teachers and students in the US don’t need masks, CDC says

Changes come amid a national vaccination campaign in which children as young as 12 are eligible to get shots, as well as a general decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths

By Mike Stobbe and Collin Binkley