Merck & Co.'s COVID-19 therapy pill reduced hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the coronavirus, and it would soon ask health officials in the U.S. and around the world to authorize its use, the company said. Newsday's Cecilia Dowd reports.


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Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order on Friday that allows pharmacists to administer COVID-19 vaccines.

Hochul: Pharmacists are able to administer COVID-19 vaccines

Joseph Garcia's children were allegedly both excluded from Plainedge schools because the district says they do not have the correct vaccination documents. However, he says he has proof that his children were vaccinated. 

Father says he got kids' blood tested

Inside a Long Island maternity ward during the coronavirus pandemic.

Inside a Long Island maternity ward during the coronavirus

Despite admitting to filling out thousands of fake COVID-19 vaccination forms, former Amityville nurse practitioner Julie DeVuono did not report administering a childhood vaccine in New York for 17 years, records show.

New questions about nurse's fraudulent COVID vaccines

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Whatever mistakes he may have made during the pandemic, he's not a villain.

Vendetta against Fauci is a disgrace

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Christian McKenzie faced up to 30 years in prison for his role in a fraud scheme orchestrated by his cousin, a former NYPD detective.

LI man sentenced to 2½ years in prison for scheme to steal $3M in COVID relief

This is the largest civil penalty imposed for vaccination fraud in the Department of Health's 125-year history, officials said.

Former LI nurse practitioner gets historic $544G penalty for falsifying pediatric vaccination records

A judge has tossed a suit brought by private citizens under the False Claims Act that alleged NYRA stole $10 million in pandemic relief.

PPP fraud lawsuit against racing association dismissed

Now, the United States is in another spreading crisis with deadly consequences.

Empty assurances echo from 2020

After contracting COVID-19 in December 2021, a Roslyn woman was allowed to work remotely but in-person work would be phased in.

LI worker with long COVID awarded $1M after work-from-home denial

Officials urged all New Yorkers to get vaccinated against influenza.

LI, NYS flu rates fall but vaccine still vital, officials say

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Four years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, deaths and hospitalizations have fallen sharply. Mask-wearing is uncommon. Uptake of the updated vaccine is low. However, experts don't know how many millions of Americans with long COVID will continue to endure the long-term effects. NewsdayTV's Steve Langford reports. 

'Early days ... were traumatic for all of us' 

Several LI businesses are accused of stealing nearly $50 million in loans and grants meant to help small businesses during the pandemic. NewsdayTV's Steve Langford reports. 

'If you do this, we are looking — we are going to find you' 

A lot has changed in the three years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. For those who lost loved ones and for those who have lingering effects from the virus, life seems to have stood still. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn reports.

COVID on LI: Three years later 

Memorial Presbyterian Church in Roosevelt had to adapt to the decrease in in-person membership due to the pandemic. Nearly three years later, the church still offers virtual services. 

'Maybe the church didn't need to be in the four walls'

Long Island parents who have children with underlying conditions speak about the pandemic and "tripledemic" and how it affects them. 

Doctors warn about 'tripledemic' for children with underlying conditions

Timothy Heaton, a former Suffolk County correction officer who spent more than five months hospitalized battling COVID-19, was given his retirement shield by Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Toulon Jr. 

A second chance at the rest of his life

State health and education officials are urging people to wear masks indoors as COVID-19, flu and RSV infections increase on Long Island. Newsday TVs Steve Langford reports. 

LIers speak out on masking recommendation

Opera Night Long Island, an open-mic event that brings together talented singers with different repertoire and styles, has returned to St. Paul's United Methodist Church in Northport after a pandemic hiatus. Singers hail the event as a way to help keep music alive for the community.

LI opera lovers keep music alive at open mic night in Northport

The executive director of the Southampton Animal Shelter of Hampton Bays, Pat Deshong, discusses the effects of the COVID boom in pet adoptions years later, and how it is now impacting that animal shelter and others.

COVID boom in pet adoptions

Patrice Piretti, 63, from Huntington Station, worked as a nurse and then a nurse leader at two Northwell Health hospitals, but then had to leave her job because Long COVID prevented her from working successfully. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn reports.

The new normal means figuring out life with Long COVID

On Wednesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced masks are no longer required on the Long Island Rail Road and other transit systems in New York.

Riders can take off masks if they want

Summer is winding down and kids are preparing to return to school. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn reports.

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