Covid-19

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is not sold on the idea of using Ivermectin as a form of treatment for COVID-19 but he believes disapproval of former President Donald Trump has kept researchers from testing the drug as a possible treatment for the novel virus.

As reports began circulating about individuals using the drug to treat COVID, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) released guidance this week warning against Ivermectin for human consumption.

With his eye reportedly on the White House in 2024, Politico is reporting that the popularity of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) is plummeting with voters in his own state and that his Florida re-election in 2022 is no longer a sure thing.

According to the report, DeSantis' handling of the resurgent COVID pandemic is crippling his political future as the death toll soars and he refused to back down on slow-walking measures to stop its spread.

President Joe Biden said Friday that China was withholding "critical information" on the origins of Covid-19 after the US intelligence community said it did not believe the virus was a bioweapon -- but remained split on whether it escaped from a lab.

The United States, however, does not believe Chinese officials had foreknowledge of the virus before the initial outbreak of the pandemic that has now claimed 4.5 million lives, according to the unclassified summary of an eagerly awaited intelligence report.

One of the Republicans seeking the GOP's 2022 gubernatorial nomination in Nevada spread implausible conspiracy theories about coronavirus vaccines during an appearance on the Nevada Newsmakers show with Ray Hagar.

North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee said he has no plan to get vaccinated.

On Friday, in a speech at the Texas Youth Summit, Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) offered a bizarre speech in which he attacked COVID-19 mask rules and tried to imagine what would have happened if a similar pandemic had occurred under President Bill Clinton.

"I'm telling you, can you imagine if Bill Clinton in 1993 or 4, had said, you're going to have to shut down businesses, you may go broke, but, you know, we got a pandemic coming and we need to just shut down businesses," said Gohmert. "I don't think they would have shut down. But we have been trained to give up our rights, and say, well, the government says you gotta do this. And I'm not advocating for breaking the law, I'm sure that my Democratic friends would be after me very quickly."

Even as some Texas schools hadn't yet started the school year, the number of positive COVID-19 student cases statewide reported last week surpassed the peak seen any time last year, state data released Friday shows.

Between Aug. 16 and Aug. 22, there were 14,033 positive cases reported among students across the state, 34% more than the week with the most student cases reported last school year, the Department of State Health Services data shows. Last week's totals also represent a 182% increase from the week ending Aug. 15, though fewer students were in school then.

With Hurricane Ida predicted to make landfall in Louisiana, there are fears about the stability of the healthcare system on the Gulf Coast, which has been battered by the coronavirus pandemic.

Ida is projected to hit Louisiana as "an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane" on the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the Associated Press reported Friday.

Republican Gov. Brian Kemp's ban on mask mandates has cost the University of Georgia a psychology professor who came out of retirement to teach during the coronavirus pandemic.

During Irwin Bernstein's upper division psychology seminar, a student who did not attend the first class showed up maskless at the second class. She was given a mask, but would not wear it over her nose, UGA independent student newspaper Red and Black reported Friday.

The novel coronavirus surge in Florida shows little sign of slowing down, and hospitals are continuing to struggle to keep up with the massive influx of patients.

The Orlando Sentinel reports that 14 portable morgues are being driven into central Florida as hospitals have run out of room to store dead bodies.

The spokesperson for a leading evangelical organization was fired after recommending vaccines in an op-ed published by USA TODAY and an appearance on MSNBC's "Morning Joe."

"Daniel Darling, senior vice president of communications for the National Religious Broadcasters, was fired Friday (Aug. 27) after refusing to recant his pro-vaccine statements, the Religion News Service (RNS) reported Friday, citing "a source authorized to speak for Darling."