While COVID-19 can never be eradicated, there is a strong chance that this health emergency can end in 2022. During a panel conference, one speaker shows optimism for 2022 to mark a turning point in the pandemic. In order for this to be done, the longstanding inequities like fair access to healthcare need to be addressed. When the virus shifts from a pandemic to an endemic, there are still problems that will need to be addressed. A consensus on whether there should be a fourth dose or not has not been reached. That information is still under review. To learn more, click here.

Getting the COVID-19 vaccine does not impact chances of conceiving. However, getting the virus can reduce male fertility. Researchers at the Boston University School of Public Health were unable to find a link between failure to conceive in men or women that Pfizer, Moderna, or the Johnson and Johnson vaccines. Doing research has proven that the fertility rates who received one dose were nearly identical to the unvaccinated female participants. Men that tested positive for COVID had reduced fertility compared to men who never tested positive. The findings in research about the link between fertility and the virus should be reassuring to those that believe vaccination affects fertility. Anecdotal reports that claim women’s periods are affected by the vaccine have been debunked by research ...

As COVID numbers begin to dwindle, New York begins to consider relaxing pandemic restrictions. The governor announced that a mere 3,883 people within the state were hospitalized in one day, which is a new low. When compared to the positivity rate a year ago, the rate has fallen by 20.5%. While the decline in numbers is a good sign, this is not the time to let up. New Yorkers are still urged to get vaccinated if they are five years and older. To learn more, click here.

As of January 17, 2022 there were more than ten times the infections during the peak of the delta wave in April 2021. This unprecedented level of infection leads experts to believe that more than 50% of the world will have been infected with omicron by March, 2022. IHME models suggest that increasing mask use, expanding vaccination coverage, and delivering third doses of the vaccine will have a very limited impact on the course of the omicron wave. Although this virus shows no signs of disappearing, it is expected that there will be a period of weeks or months where the world will experience low levels of virus transmission. To learn more, click here.