COVID map shows 4 states with higher positive cases Test results for a region covering Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska, saw a jump in COVID-19 cases. Newsweek

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Region Seven—an administrative area consisting of Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska—is once again at the top of this chart as it has the highest proportion of COVID-19 diagnoses following testing. That region saw the most cases out of the entire U.S. in last week's figures, too.

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Sore throat, then congestion: Common Covid symptoms follow a pattern now, doctors say Doctors who treat Covid describe the ways the illness has gotten milder and shifted over time to mostly affect the upper respiratory tract. NBC News

Doctors say they're finding it increasingly difficult to distinguish Covid from allergies or the common cold, even as hospitalizations tick up.

New COP28 draft text does not mention phase out of fossil fuels The U.N.'s climate body on Monday published its latest draft text of the deal it hopes to reach at the COP28 summit in Dubai, which includes a range of actions countries could take to reduce emissions. Alison Withers,Kate Abnett Reuters

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How uninsured adults can still get vaccinated against COVID To address disproportionately low levels of COVID vaccine protection among adults who are uninsured or underinsured, the CDC in September launched the Bridge Access Program, a $1 billion effort to deliver free COVID vaccine doses to a group of people who have historically fallen through the cracks in the nation’s health care system. PBS NewsHour

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Across the country, the Bridge Access Program has been deployed through a network of retail pharmacies, like CVS and Walgreens, community health clinics and local and state health departments.

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It’s not too late to get vaccinated, as the holidays – and respiratory virus season – ramp up | CNN Now is the time to get vaccinated to stay safe and healthy amid holiday gatherings and rising levels of respiratory viruses, including the flu, Covid-19 and RSV, experts say. Deidre McPhillips CNN

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COVID-19 hospitalizations are increasing in US, rates are highest among oldest and youngest Americans COVID hospitalizations have been on the rise for nearly a month with rates highest among the oldest and youngest Americans, CDC data shows. ABC News ABC News

US COVID activity jumps as JN.1 expands, brisk flu and RSV levels continue | CIDRAP (umn.edu)

Air pollution from coal-fired plants is much more deadly than originally thought, study finds | CNN No pollution is good for anyone’s health, but a new study found that scientists may have significantly underestimated just how deadly pollution from coal-fired plants can be. It also shows how tighter regulations can work. CNN

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COP28: The climate crisis is also a health crisis Health has made it onto the agenda of a UN climate conference, and health advocates at COP28 in Dubai on Sunday said the topic was long overdue for discussion as climate inaction is costing lives and impacting health every single day. UN News

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Climate change is directly contributing to humanitarian emergencies spared by heatwaves, wildfires, floods, tropical storms and hurricanes. Those and similar climate shocks are only increasing in scale, frequency and intensity.

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Over 40 million health professionals demand bold health and climate action at COP28 On the first-ever Health Day at a COP, more than 40 million health professionals from around the globe joined the call to action by the World Health Organization (WHO) and civil society organizations, to prioritize health in climate negotiations at COP28.

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Five grassroots climate justice movements COP28 could learn from From Pakistan to Paraguay, these campaigns are trying to bring out changes in communities at front line of the crisis Sarah Shamim Al Jazeera

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Still, the annual UN summits have often been described as talk shops that do little to fundamentally improve the planet’s chances of surviving warming temperatures, or to ensure climate justice.

The surprising environmental cost of rapid testing, mosquito nets, and other lifesaving health products What happens when products that contribute to climate change also save lives — millions of them? Annalisa Merelli STAT

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Altogether, these products — including mosquito nets, rapid testing, pills, and injectables — contribute nearly 3.5 megatons of greenhouse gases (GHG) per year, more than the total emissions of the city of Geneva. Reducing their use isn’t an option. But the report points to strategies that could lead to 70% reduction in emissions by 2030, many of which could be implemented at no additional costs. 

The threat of respiratory illnesses is underway, CDC director says, and hospitalizations are on the rise | CNN Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, updated a congressional subcommittee Thursday about cases of respiratory illness in the US due to three viruses: flu, the coronavirus and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. Brenda Goodman, Deidre McPhillips CNN

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Vaccinated People Are 4 Times Less Likely to Get Long COVID | TIME

Vaccines Slash Long COVID Risk According to a new study. TIME

People vaccinated before their first case of COVID-19 are diagnosed with Long COVID almost four times less than unvaccinated people, suggests a large new study published Nov. 22 in the BMJ.