COVID isn’t over. Congressional funding for testing in Florida shouldn’t be either | Opinion Funding for free COVID testing for low-income and uninsured Floridians through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has officially lapsed. For many communities in our state, a lack of access to free testing means they are at risk. Miami Herald

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COVID testing is necessary in the continued fight against the virus and was key to ensuring Florida’s economy could remain open. Access to testing allowed local governments to track the virus, and effectively and efficiently treat patients....

N.Korea reports unknown fever cases near China border, denies COVID North Korea's state media said on Thursday that a fever outbreak of unknown origin has emerged in a region bordering China, but it was not the novel coronavirus over which the country declared victory this month. Hyonhee Shin Reuters

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California's public bus and urban transit workers have caught COVID at a rate more than 5 times higher than all other industries, CDC report says The CDC said California public bus and urban transit workers have contracted COVID at more than 5 times the rate of other industries. YahooNews

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Essential worker" status has come with heightened risk during the pandemic — and possibly no higher than that faced by public transportation workers.

What Fauci's exit tells us about the ongoing fight against Covid There was a time when Anthony Fauci thought he would retire when the Covid-19 pandemic was over. That, he admits now, may never happen. But this December, he announced this week, will have to be good enough. Sarah Owermohle STAT

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Fauci said that his chief objective after he steps down is addressing the splintering national sentiment towards vaccination and the federal response.

Japan to waive pre-departure COVID tests for vaccinated travellers Japan will waive pre-departure COVID-19 tests for vaccinated travellers to the country, but daily caps on entrants will remain in place, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Wednesday. Reuters Reuters

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New data shows long Covid is keeping as many as 4 million people out of work Since the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic through today, news about labor shortages and missing workers has dominated headlines. The question everyone still seems to be asking is: Why?  In January … Carie Muscatello Brookings

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Ebola vaccinations in east Congo to start on Thursday after new case An Ebola vaccination campaign will start in the Congolose city of Beni on Thursday after a new case of the virus was confirmed this week, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday. Reuters Reuters

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China broadens visa availability as pandemic concerns ease BEIJING (AP) — China is easing its tight restrictions on visas after it largely suspended issuing them to foreign students and others more than two years ago at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. AP NEWS

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China still requires those arriving from abroad be quarantined at a hotel or private home and proof of a negative test is required for entry to many public and commercial spaces.

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New York counties gear up to fight a polio outbreak among the unvaccinated Polio is spreading in a few New York counties with low vaccination rates. Experts warn that other places in the U.S. could face the same challenge. NPR.org

Polio is the disease most people thought we had put behind us here in the United States. But earlier this summer, an individual in Rockland County, N.Y., contracted the virus likely from exposure in this country, and ended up paralyzed.

WHO: COVID deaths down by 15%, cases fall nearly everywhere GENEVA (AP) — The number of coronavirus deaths reported worldwide fell by 15% in the past week while new infections dropped by 9%, the World Health Organization said Wednesday. In its latest weekly assessment of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.N. AP NEWS

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Study: Pfizer COVID pill showed no benefit in younger adults WASHINGTON (AP) — Pfizer's COVID-19 pill appears to provide little or no benefit for younger adults, while still reducing the risk of hospitalization and death for high-risk seniors, according to a large study published Wednesday. AP NEWS

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The researchers found that Paxlovid reduced hospitalizations among people 65 and older by roughly 75% when given shortly after infection. That’s consistent with earlier results used to authorize the drug in the U.S. and other nations.