Increased Rapid Antigen Test use at community testing centres

There are 18,833 community cases of COVID-19 to report today which is a decrease in daily cases from recent days where we reported cases above 20,000.

COVID-19 restrictions begin to ease, people are eager to take off.“I haven’t been on an actual trip for a long time, so I’m really excited, actually,” said McKenna Nameth, heading out of Canada.“We’re at the point where we need a vacation, it’s been a hard time,” said Regan Campbell. Travel bookings up as Albertans take advantage of loosening border measures At the end of February, Canada dropped the PCR testing requirement for fully-vaccinated travellers entering the country.

COVID-19 testing requirements for fully-vaccinated people that want to cross the border from the U.S. to Canada.Jim Diodati told Global News he’s a signatory to an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, asking for an end to testing guidelines.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced Tuesday a list of resources for veterans who may be feeling emotional distress or reminded of their own deployment experiences, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine."I know that many of you, like me, have been deeply affected by the war in Ukraine," Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough said in a press release.

Los Angeles County residents will no longer be required to wear masks at restaurants, bars, gyms, shops, and other businesses starting today, the Associated Press reports, while the National Football League (NFL) has dropped all COVID-19 measures.

There have been more than 900,000 coronavirus cases in Greater Manchester since the start of the pandemic, latest figures reveal.

The estimated effectiveness of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine against infection in US adolescents was 91%, with 93% protection against symptomatic illness and 85% against asymptomatic disease amid the Delta SARS-CoV-2 surge in Connecticut, finds a study published yesterday in JAMA Network Open.The retrospective case-control study, by Yale School of Medicine

Essential visiting only has been reintroduced at a Scots hospital due to rising coronavirus cases.

WASHINGTON - Trucker convoys from across the U.S. are expected to arrive in the D.C.

Tim Hortons Brier have yet to make the trip to Lethbridge, Alta., after testing positive for COVID-19 on their pre-departure PCR tests, Curling Canada said Friday in a statement.Each competitor plays on a different team, the federation said, without identifying any of the athletes. The players remain in isolation in their respective hometowns.Round-robin play was scheduled to begin Friday night at the Enmax Centre.

NEW JERSEY - Outraged by the invasion of Ukraine, lawmakers in New Jersey's largest city lashed out at one of the closest symbols of Russia they could find — a pair of Lukoil gas stations.The Newark City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to ask the city’s business administrator to suspend the service stations' operating licenses, citing Lukoil's base in Moscow.In doing so, however, they may have predominantly been hurting Americans.The stations are franchises owned by locals, not Russians. They employ mostly New Jersey residents.

FILE A pump nozzle labeled "Super 95" is stuck in the tank opening of a vehicle at a gas station. (Photo by Sven Hoppe/picture alliance via Getty Images) WASHINGTON - Gas prices in the U.S.

COVID on Friday, with 262 in intensive care units as figures continue to trend downwards.This is down by 13 hospitalizations and a decrease of five in ICUs since the previous day. Last Friday, there were 1,003 hospitalizations with 297 in ICU.The province recently began distinguishing between those who were admitted to hospital directly because of COVID, and those who were admitted for other reasons but tested positive for the virus.Of the 821 people in hospital with COVID-19, 44 per cent of them were admitted because of the virus, while 56 per cent were admitted for other reasons but tested positive for COVID-19.Of the 262 people in ICUs with the virus, 80 per cent were admitted because of COVID, while 20 per cent were admitted for other reasons.

WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden has been pushing for more U.S. factory jobs — and he'll be joined Friday by the CEO of technology company Siemens USA to announce a $54 million investment in producing equipment for the electrical infrastructure.The investment will lead to 300 additional jobs at locations that include California and Texas, according to senior Biden administration officials who insisted on anonymity to preview the event on the White House campus.

WASHINGTON - U.S. employers added a robust 678,000 jobs in February, another gain that underscored the economy’s solid health as the omicron wave fades and more Americans venture out to spend at restaurants, shops and hotels despite surging inflation.The Labor Department’s report Friday also showed that the unemployment rate dropped from 4% to 3.8%, extending a sharp drop in joblessness as the economy has rebounded from the pandemic recession.The latest jobs data follows recent reports that have shown an economy maintaining strength as new COVID infections have plummeted since late January.

Airbnb is responding to Russia's invasion of Ukraine by suspending all operations in Russia and Belarus.The decision was tweeted by Chief Executive Officer Brian Chesky late Thursday.On Monday, the company announced its nonprofit arm Airbnb.org would offer free, temporary housing for up to 100,000 refugees fleeing Ukraine.Chesky and Joe Gebbia, chairman of Airbnb.org, sent letters to leaders of Poland, Romania, Germany and Hungary offering help to house the refugees, according to Reuters.Except for Germany, the countries share borders with Ukraine.FILE - In this photo illustration the American online marketplace and hospitality service Airbnb logo seen displayed on a smartphone with an economic stock exchange index graph in the background.

next COVID wave is a "valuable input", Centre said, “But, it is yet to be examined whether this particular report has any scientific worth." The Centre further asserted that ‘it is completely prepared for the unpredictable virus’. Last week, an IIT Kanpur team of scientists suggested that India is likely to witness the 4th COVID wave in June. This is the same team that had correctly predicted that the third COVID wave would hit the country in February.  

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court decided to dismiss all the petitions filed seeking to quash the Cabinet’s decision to transfer 40% of the government-owned shares of the Kerawalapitiya Yugadanavi Power Plant to U.S. Company New Fortress Energy.The Supreme Court had made the decision to dismiss all the petitions without taking them up for examination as well.The petitions were dismissed by a five-judge bench led by Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya and comprising Justices Buwaneka Aluvihare, Priyantha Jayawardena, Vijith Malalgoda, LTB Dehideniya.Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya had noted that the five-judge bench had no intention to examine these applications, and the decision to dismiss them was made after considering all the facts that were presented in favor and against the applications.Venerable Elle Gunawansa Thero, His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, General-Secretary of the Samagi Jana Balavegaya Ranjith Madduma Bandara, Sunil Handunnetti and Wasantha Samarasinghe from the JPV, Trade Unions, and multiple other groups filed the five petitions with the Supreme Court.Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, the Cabinet of Ministers, West Coast Power Pvt.

COLOMBO (News 1st); Former Sri Lankan Minister Udaya Gammanpila on Friday (3) announced that the battle to free Sri Lanka from the US has begun.Speaking to reporters for the first time since he was stripped of his ministerial position by the President on Thursday (3), Gammanpila said that the country is moving towards an abyss as the economy is managed by a person who has no understanding of economics.Udaya Gammanpila and Wimal Weerwansa were removed from their ministerial portfolios with effect from Thursday (3) evening, said the President’s Media Division.Gammanpila said calls were made to solve the crisis from within and outside of the cabinet of ministers, however, as those calls fell on deaf ears, the launch of a resolution ‘Taking The Nation On The Correct Path’ to solve the economic crisis suffered by Sri Lanka, was implemented.He said rather the looking at this resolution as a solution to the crisis, the administration decided to move out both him and Wimal Weerawansa.Gammanpila said while in government there were restrictions when it came to criticizing the government, however, today he has the freedom to reveal those who are responsible for the destruction caused to the economy.He also went on to note that ‘The Ugly American’, 1958 political novel by Eugene Burdick and William Lederer that depicts the failures of the U.S.

CHICAGO - A lawsuit was filed against the City of Chicago and Mayor Lori Lightfoot Wednesday, claiming she used obscene language and defamed a former Chicago Park District lawyer who was involved in the Christopher Columbus statue controversy in 2021.George Smyrniotis, who served as First Deputy General Counsel for the district, alleged that Lightfoot berated him over a Zoom call, damaging his reputation and leading to the loss of his job as well as causing him emotional distress.The Columbus statue was removed from Arrigo Park in Little Italy in the summer of 2020 after it had become the target of protests and unrest after the murder of George Floyd.DOWNLOAD THE FOX 32 NEWS APPOn behalf of the Chicago Park District, Smyrniotis penned a letter of agreement with the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans (JCCIA), allowing them to briefly display the statue at the 2021 Christopher Columbus Day parade.Lightfoot allegedly took umbrage to the agreement, telling an Italian-American leader she would pull the permit for the parade if the statue made an appearance, according to the lawsuit.An Italian American group is suing the city of Chicago to restore the Christopher Columbus statue that was removed during protests last year.She then berated Smyrniotis and his General Counsel Timothy King in a Zoom call on the night of the parade, the lawsuit claims."You d****, what the f*** were you thinking? You make some kind of secret agreement with Italians, what you are doing, you are out there measuring your d**** with the Italians seeing whose got the biggest d***, you are out there stroking your d**** over the Columbus statue, I am trying to keep Chicago Police officers from being shot and you are trying to get them shot.

PHILADELPHIA - Several Ukrainian communities around Philadelphia have organized relief efforts to help their homeland that continues to valiantly defend itself against an invasion from Russia. The Ukrainian Educational and Cultural Center is collecting thousands of boxes of supplies, community leaders are coming together to help, and businesses are holding fundraisers.Craft Hall in Old City held a fundraiser Thursday where every dollar donated was doubled for Voices of Children.Adam Hornik, Craft Hall Owner, partnered with Ukrainian-born DJ Irene Whoo for the event."This organization provides them both psychological and financial and logistical support to help them deal with this tragedy that they are going through," Hornik said.Whoo accompanied the fundraising effort by playing traditional Ukrainian music that she fell in love with as a youth. "We grew up listening to traditional dance, fun, Ukrainian music," Whoo said. "Lots of instruments lots of horns, violins.  It’s drinking music, my people they are rambunctious and fun and happy."Her family fled Ukraine in the early 90’s during the Russian Occupation. The daily rhythms of life that play in her head have been overshadowed by the sounds of war that are breaking her heart."I really just wanted to put something together for everyone to not even talk about anything but positive things," Whoo said. "Hugging each other, be happy, dance."Local pastry chefs are coming together to 'Bake for Ukraine' and there's ways that you can help their cause!Volunteers at the Ukrainian Educational and Cultural Center in Jenkintown worked tirelessly to process, package, and ship thousands of boxes of donations to support families in Ukraine.

The increasing number of cases and hospitalisations is a reminder of the importance getting vaccinated and boosted.

California boys who were reported missing in 2020 have been charged with killing the children, although their bodies have not been found, authorities said Wednesday.Trezell West and Jacqueline West were arrested Tuesday night on murder and other charges in an indictment returned by a grand jury, Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer told a news conference in Bakersfield.Orrin West, 4, and his brother Orson, 3, were reported missing from their family’s backyard in the desert town of California City on Dec. 21, 2020.

PHILADELPHIA - The Philadelphia Auto Show returns this weekend and prospective car buyers have never had so many options to choose from, but inflated gas prices worsened by the war in Ukraine seem to have pushed electric and hybrid vehicles to the forefront.According to AAA Mid-Atlantic, the national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline is $3.57, up five cents from last week. Drivers were paying $2.67 a gallon on average a year ago at this time.The auto show, which runs from Mar.

Mike Bradley is among 15 Canadian mayors calling for the federal government to scrap all COVID-19 testing requirements for land border travellers who are double- or triple-vaccinated.In an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the border city mayors, including Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati and Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens, ask for an end to the testing guidelines, which they say are out of line with public health mandates and unjustified by current science.The letter, also cc’d to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, public safety minister Marco Mendocino, and health minister Jean-Yves Duclos, cites the “heavy price” pandemic travel measures have had on border communities, including through the lengthy closure of the land border to all but essential travel. Feds scrapping pre-arrival COVID PCR test requirement for fully vaccinated travellers The letter comes days after the federal government lifted its pre-arrival PCR test requirements for double- and triple-vaccinated travellers.As of Monday, a negative rapid antigen or PCR test result will be accepted to meet entry requirements, provided the tests are administered by a lab or health care entity.

Americans living in rural areas are less likely to be vaccinated against COVID-19 than their urban counterparts, and the gap between the two groups did not close during the Delta and Omicron surges, according to research published today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).

In the latest global COVID-19 developments, some recent hot spots reported new daily record cases, as US officials announced the transfer of some technology to an international effort to speed and share new pandemic tools.

COVID-19-related deaths was reported by the Saskatchewan government Thursday.In the seven days ending Feb. 26, the deaths of 44 people with COVID-19 were reported in Saskatchewan, up from 37 in the previous reporting period.More than half the deaths — 24 — were reported in people aged 80 and older.One-quarter of the new deaths — 11 — were in the north-central zone and nine were reported in the Regina region.

AMES, Iowa - Going for a long jog or taking a brisk walk could increase the benefits of the COVID-19 shot, a new study finds.The findings, published in Brain, Behavior and Immunity, demonstrate that 90 minutes of exercise after immunization of the vaccine increases antibody response several weeks later across several models.According to the study’s researchers, a total of 68 people were included in the final analysis, which analyzed the effects of exercise on different influenza vaccines or the COVID-19 vaccine. In addition, 75 mice were included in experiments to determine the minutes of exercise required to increase antibody response to the influenza vaccine.In the experiments involving the COVID-19 vaccine, participants were randomly assigned to 90 minutes of outdoor exercise — brisk walking or jogging depending on the fitness level of the person.

PHILADELPHIA - The ocean is now rising much faster and in the next 30 years, the ocean will rise about a foot, according to a recently released report from NOAA. For scale, it took the last 100 years for the ocean to rise a foot. The rising ocean is already costing New Jersey millions, as FOX29’s Chris O’Connell recently explained. It turns out the ocean is rising more along New Jersey and Delaware than the rest of the United States for a unique reason: the Earth’s icy past.Thousands of years ago, ice covered Canada, New England, and even northern PA and northern NJ. The weight of all that ice pushed down the ground in those regions. Once the ice melted, the ground there started rising back up.  As this happens, nearby spots, like the Mid-Atlantic states, sink.

A new poll suggests almost two-thirds of Canadians believe the Russian invasion of Ukraine has the potential to develop into a world war.

Russia has been accused of using thermobaric vacuum bombs during its invasion of Ukraine, according to Ukrainian officials."They used the vacuum bomb today," Ukraine's ambassador to the United States Oksana Markarova told reporters after meeting with U.S. lawmakers Monday. "...The devastation that Russia is trying to inflict on Ukraine is large."Thermobaric explosives, also called fuel-air explosives (FAE), use oxygen around them to generate a high-temperature blast.

COVID-19 as hospital numbers dipped on Thursday.Pandemic-related hospitalizations dropped to 1,364, a decrease of 17 in the last day. This comes after 98 patients were admitted and 115 were released.The latest roundup also accounted for 76 intensive care unit cases.

COVID on Thursday, with 267 in intensive care units as figures continue to trend downwards.This is down by 13 hospitalizations and a decrease of six in ICUs since the previous day.Last Thursday, there were 1,066 hospitalizations with 302 in ICU.Data for distinguishing between those admitted to hospital directly because of COVID, and those who were admitted for other reasons but tested positive for the virus, was not available on Thursday.Meanwhile, Ontario also reported 2,262 new lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases on Thursday, though that is an underestimate of the true widespread transmission of the virus due to testing restrictions. The provincial case total now stands at 1,107,408.Of the 2,262 new cases recorded, the data showed 259 were unvaccinated people, 66 were partially vaccinated people, 1,762 were fully vaccinated people.

FILE - A 2022 Ford Mustang Mach-E electric sports utility vehicle (SUV) on a demonstration course at AutoMobility LA ahead of the Los Angeles Auto Show in Los Angeles, California, on Nov. 18, 2021.

The Department of Health has reported 4,042 PCR-confirmed cases of Covid-19.

An eight-year-old schoolboy died three days after testing positive for Covid-19 and being sent home for feeling ill.

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FILE - The American Flag is held on the field as the American national anthem is performed before the 2022 NFL Pro Bowl at Allegiant Stadium on Feb. 6, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol says it believes Donald Trump committed criminal acts, including conspiracy to defraud the United States, in his attempts to block the certification of the 2020 election he lost.Lawyers for the select committee made the claims in a court filing late Wednesday challenging conservative lawyer John Eastman’s refusal to turn over documents the panel has requested, which relate to his role in trying to persuade then-vice president Mike Pence to reject electors from states won by President Joe Biden.Eastman, who has said he was acting as a lawyer and advisor for Trump’s re-election campaign, cited attorney-client privilege in a reason for not turning over the documents.

Ordinary Russians faced the prospect of higher prices and crimped foreign travel as Western sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine sent the ruble plummeting, leading uneasy depositors to line up at banks and ATMs on Monday in a country that has seen more than one currency disaster in the post-Soviet era.

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JetBlue pilot was removed from the cockpit of a Florida-bound plane before departure from New York on Wednesday after Transportation Security Administration agents said they noticed that he appeared impaired.The JetBlue plane was about to depart from Buffalo Niagara International Airport on Wednesday when Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority police removed James Clifton, 52, from the flight after TSA agents alerted them of the possibly impaired pilot, according to The Buffalo News.TSA agents said they noticed that Clifton could have been impaired while he was passing a security checkpoint at the airport.NFTA police gave Clifton a breathalyzer test, and he was recorded with a blood-alcohol level of 0.17%, which is over four times Federal Aviation Administration standards for pilots, according to the report.The flight's scheduled destination was Fort Lauderdale, Fla., according to the report.Following the breathalyzer test, Clifton was taken into police custody before being released to JetBlue security.MORE NEWS: 'It's a nightmare!': Bride's flight to destination wedding canceledClifton could face federal charges after the incident, the NFTA told The Buffalo News.A JetBlue spokesperson told FOX Business that the crew member involved in the incident "has been removed from his duties.""The safety of JetBlue’s customers and crewmembers is our first priority.  We adhere to all DOT rules and requirements concerning alcohol at all times and have a very strict zero tolerance internal alcohol policy. We are aware of the incident that occurred this morning in Buffalo and are cooperating fully with law enforcement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko hold a press conference following their talks at the Kremlin in Moscow on September 9, 2021. WASHINGTON - The White House released a fresh round of sanctions on Russia Wednesday as well as its ally, Belarus, for supporting Putin's invasion of Ukraine. Export restrictions on technology and software that are currently in place for Russia will be extended to Belarus, in a move that will "significantly degrade both countries’ ability to sustain their military aggression and project power," the White House said. Russian forces started invading Ukraine from the north through Belarus last week.

PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 02: James Harden #1 of the Philadelphia 76ers looks on against the New York Knicks in the second half at the Wells Fargo Center on March 2, 2022 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 76ers defeated the Knicks 123-108.

President Donald Trump greets the crowd at the "Stop The Steal" Rally on January 06, 2021 in Washington, DC. WASHINGTON (AP) - The House Committee investigating the U.S.

Further increases in cases and hospitalisations are a reminder of the things we can do to slow the spread of Omicron.