COVID-19 updates: Classes in Chicago canceled for 4th day
Chicago Public Schools has been in talks with teachers over COVID-19 safety.
As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 5.4 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 837,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
About 62.5% of the population in the United States is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Mayo Clinic lays off 1% of staff for vaccine noncompliance
Mayo Clinic said it will lay off about 1% of its staff for failing to get at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine by a company deadline.
"While Mayo Clinic is saddened to lose valuable employees, we need to take all steps necessary to keep our patients, workforce, visitors and communities safe. If individuals released from employment choose to get vaccinated at a later date, the opportunity exists for them to apply and return to Mayo Clinic for future job openings," Mayo Clinic said in a statement to ABC.
Last October, Mayo Clinic had set a Jan. 3 deadline for all employees to get at least their first vaccine dose or face dismissal.
The health care organization said the number of staffers being let go was "comparable to what other health care organizations have experienced in implementing similar vaccine requirement programs."
Mayo Clinic employs about 73,000 people, according to its website.
FDA: Do not swab your throat with at-home COVID-19 tests
The FDA is warning people not to swab their throats as part of an at-home COVID-19 test.
In a statement obtained by ABC News, the FDA said that is not how the tests were designed and it could pose a safety concern.
"The FDA advises that COVID-19 tests should be used as authorized, including following their instructions for use regarding obtaining the sample for testing," the statement said.
Social media posts promoting at-home COVID-19 rapid test swabbing techniques claim that throat swabs collect a better sample. However, this hasn't been proven for currently authorized tests.
- ABC News' Sony Salzman
Biden doubles Pfizer antiviral pill purchase
President Joe Biden announced Tuesday afternoon that he was doubling the federal government's purchases of Pfizer's COVID-19 antiviral pill, from 10 million to 20 million treatment courses.
"They’re a gamechanger and have the potential to dramatically alter the impact of COVID-19, the impact it's had on this country and our people,” Biden said.
He also warned that those who remain unvaccinated "will die" during the ongoing omicron surge.
“So there's no excuse, no excuse, for anyone being unvaccinated,” Biden said.
-ABC News' Ben Gittleson
US now averaging nearly 500,000 daily cases, data shows
Data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from the weekend shows that the U.S. is now averaging nearly half a million new cases a day.
About a year ago, the U.S. was reporting an average of about 216,000 new cases a day. However, compared to last winter, hospital admissions and daily deaths are notably lower.
Over the last week, the U.S. reported more than 3.4 million new cases -- roughly averaging out to nearly six Americans testing positive every second.
-ABC News' Arielle Mitropoulos
1st NBA player to have COVID-19 tests positive again
NBA star Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 Thursday, his second time infected.
According to his team, the Utah Jazz, Gobert took two rapid tests on Wednesday, both of which came back negative, but a PCR test that was analyzed overnight came back positive.
He revealed at press conference in September 2020 that he is fully vaccinated.
In a press conference from March 2020, which went viral, Gobert joked about growing concerns regarding COVID-19 by touching every single microphone as he made his way out of the room.
Days later, he developed flu-like symptoms while in Oklahoma for a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder and tested positive.
The Jazz and the NBA learned of his positive test moments before the game was set to start. The game was canceled and, hours later, the NBA suspended the 2019-20 season.
Gobert has been ruled out for Friday's game against the Toronto Raptors. It's unclear how long he will be out, but players who are placed on the virus-related protocols list are typically out for at least a week.