Delta Air Lines said Monday that new pandemic-related cleaning requirements at a Shanghai airport were behind the turning back of a recent flight from Seattle in midair, a move that had prompted a protest from the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco.

An emailed statement said the new mandates at Shanghai Pudong International Airport “require significantly extended ground time and are not operationally viable for Delta.”

It wasn't clear what the rules are and what prompted the change, but it comes as China tightens its already strict COVID-19 travel restrictions in the face of a growing outbreak in the city of Xi'an and ahead of the Winter Olympics in Beijing in six weeks.

Xi'an, which is about 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) southwest of Beijing, reported more than 300 new cases over the weekend, a sharp rise from previous days. The city of 13 million people has been locked down, with only one person per household allowed out every two days to shop for necessities.

The Delta flight that turned back to Seattle last week left passengers with expired COVID-19 test results and U.S. visas, according to Chinese media reports.

Two Taiwan-based airlines, China Airlines and EVA Air, have both cut down on the number of flights heading to Shanghai Pudong International Airport in recent days, citing new disinfection procedures that will take longer to complete, according to Taiwan's semi-official Central News Agency.

EVA is suspending flights from two cities to Shanghai until Feb. 3. China Airlines is suspending flights from one city to Shanghai until the end of January, and reducing the number of flights on another route.

The consulate in San Francisco did not name Delta but said in a short statement Sunday that many flights from the U.S. to China had been delayed or canceled in recent days including a flight that turned back more than halfway to its destination.

The consulate “had made a stern representation to the airline,” the statement said.

Delta: Flight to Shanghai Turned Back Because of COVID Rules

OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma could be years away from paying billions of dollars to address the U.S. opioid crisis after a judge blew up a deal that gave provided legal immunity to the Sackler family that owned the company, people close to the negotiations said. 

  In a surprise ruling on Thursday, U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon in Manhattan found that a bankruptcy judge overstepped his authority by approving the plan that gave the Sacklers immunity in return for $4.5 billion for those harmed by Purdue. 

  The deal had been hammered out over two years by U.S. states, local governments and others who had filed thousands of lawsuits accusing Purdue and the Sacklers of aggressively marketing OxyContin while downplaying its addiction and overdose risks. 

  The company and family members have denied the allegations. 

  Purdue said it will appeal McMahon's ruling, which it said would not impact its operations but will delay or even end the ability of states and others to receive billions of dollars. 

  Representatives for the Sackler family did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

  Eight hold-out states and the U.S. Department of Justice's bankruptcy watchdog had challenged the plan in part because of the legal protections it granted the Sacklers. The appeal process won't end with McMahon, who encouraged the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to review her decision. 

  The family has come under scrutiny for withdrawing $10 billion from Purdue between 2008 and 2017. 

  The Sacklers have said almost half the money went to paying taxes, but opponents of the plan allege the withdrawals strengthened the family's hand in bankruptcy negotiations and gave them leverage to demand legal immunity. 

  Purdue has been estimated to be worth around $2 billion without the Sackler contribution, making their participation critical. 

  Those involved in the case doubt a new deal could be agreed before the appeals court weighs in, a process that could take up to 18 months given the importance of the issue of so-called nondebtor releases in corporate bankruptcy cases. 

Purdue Restructuring on Hold After Judge Overturns Settlement

The federal government is considering relaxing its guidance for people with Covid-19 to isolate for 10 days after developing symptoms—particularly for healthcare workers with asymptomatic cases—Dr. Anthony Fauci said Monday, as the U.S. faces a likely huge influx in mild breakthrough cases from the highly transmissible omicron coronavirus variant.

Fauci told CNN that while there are “no decisions yet,” changing the guidance is an “important consideration that is being discussed right now.”

Fauci was asked about the isolation period after Dr. Anish K. Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, suggested on Twitter the 10-day period may be “excessive” for people who have received booster shots and only have mild breakthrough cases—though he noted “more data” on exactly when people stop being contagious “would be nice.”

Fauci said changing the guidance was being discussed particularly “in the context of healthcare workers,” given their ongoing labor shortage.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not yet responded to a request for comment, but a spokesperson previously told the Atlantic that “any changes to shortening isolation or quarantine guidance will be made based on science and research.”

“Rather than keeping [healthcare workers] out for seven to 10 days, if they are without symptoms, put a N95 mask on them, make sure they have the proper PPE, and they may be able to get back to work sooner than the full length of the quarantine period,” Fauci suggested.

1 million. That’s how many Covid-19 cases the U.S. could potentially record per day due to the highly transmissible omicron variant without proper mitigation measures, National Institutes of Health director Francis Collins warned on NPR on Sunday. The variant is now linked to 73% of new Covid-19 cases in the U.S.—up from just 3% the week before—and studies suggest initial Covid-19 vaccine

doses are much less effective at preventing infection. Booster shots appear to provide greater protection, though breakthrough cases are still possible, and vaccines do appear to remain highly protective against severe disease and death.

The Centers for Disease Control recommends people who have tested positive for Covid-19 should isolate themselves from others for 10 days after symptoms develop, with the day they develop symptoms counting as day zero and the day after that as day one of the isolation period. Those who never develop symptoms should isolate for 10 days after testing positive for Covid-19, but the 10 days would start over if they develop symptoms within that period. As more vaccinated people get breakthrough cases and data suggests they may shed the virus and stop being contagious faster, that guidance has come under more scrutiny. Public health experts have suggested vaccinated people could potentially be let out of isolation once they start testing negative for Covid-19, which may be as soon as five days after developing symptoms. Fully vaccinated people “are probably not a risk to anybody anymore” once they “repeatedly” test negative, University of Saskatchewan virologist Angela Rasmussen told the Atlantic, though experts acknowledge more evidence is needed before that can conclusively be determined.

Vaccinated People With Covid May Soon Not Have To Isolate For 10 Days — If They’re Asymptomatic — Fauci Suggests

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. Navy warship has paused its deployment to South America because of a coronavirus outbreak, the Navy said Friday.

The USS Milwaukee, a litorral combat ship, is staying in port at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, where it had stopped for a scheduled port visit. It began its deployment from Mayport, Fla., on December 14 and was heading into the U.S. Southern Command region.

The Navy said in a statement that the ship’s crew is “100% immunized” and that all of those who tested positive for COVID-19 have been isolated on the ship away from other crew members. The number of crew testing positive was not disclosed. The ship has a crew of a little more than 100.

The Navy said that “a portion” of those infected are having mild symptoms, and that the specific variant is not yet known. COVID-19 cases have surged across the country as a result of the highly contageous omicron variant.

“The ship is following an aggressive mitigation strategy in accordance with Navy and CDC guidelines,” the Navy said.

The first major military outbreak of the virus was early last year on a Navy warship, the USS Theodore Roosevelt, an aircraft carrier that was operating in the Pacific. The Roosevelt was sidelined in Guam for nearly two months, and more than 1,000 of the 4,800 crew members tested positive. One sailor died, and the entire crew went through weeks of quarantine in a rotation that kept enough sailors on the ship to keep it safe and running.

According to the latest data released by the Navy, more than 98% of all active duty sailors have been fully vaccinated.

Fully Vaccinated US Navy warship sidelined with COVID-19 outbreak

While the world was fighting an increase in Covid cases, Northern Ireland had another increase to worry about — UFO sightings.

Northern Ireland’s police department reported that they received reports of eight 'weird' sightings in the country in past year. This year has seen an increase in such sightings from 2020 when there were six such reports and from 2019 when there were four recorded complaints.

On January 17, in the Downpatrick area, locals reported sighting a spaceship and flashing lights. After that, in May the local police was called for one spotting of white lights after a helicopter in the Maghaberry area, and a disc-type structure in the sky in the Slemish area of County Antrim.

After that, police saw 'strange images' on CCTV of a house in the Newtownabbey area. The department also reported a sighting of a dome-shaped objected with eight bright lights from the Saintfield area.

In the second half of the year, locals called the police about 'aliens in bedroom', but no further reporting was revealed in international news. In October, however, the police department detained a local who had claimed to have been abducted by aliens.

Last month, locals reported spotting 'unusual bright lights in the sky', which could have been something else, but were reported as 'strange sightings'.

A spokesperson from the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) clarified that no investigation had been launched or carried out in relation to any of these reported sightings. PSNI maintains a database about unidentified flying objects (UFOs), aerial phenomena, unidentified aerial phenomena, lights in the sky, and aliens and extraterrestrial.

Experts also believe that people spending too much time at home, owing to Covid lockdowns, may have contributed to the increased number of reports. "It's difficult to say what lies behind the small increase in sightings." Nick Pope, who used to investigate reports of UFO sightings for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said. "COVID-19 and lockdowns may have played a role, with people having more time on their hands during the pandemic, and perhaps spotting things that previously may have gone unnoticed.

"Another possibility is that people are following the situation in the United States, where Congress is taking the issue seriously and the Pentagon has launched a new UFO initiative," he added. "This may make people more likely to report something unusual that they’ve seen because it sends the message that the authorities take the matter seriously."

However, he also added that he believes the sightings are highly underreported due to the stigma around it, and "if the MoD restart investigations and ask the public to report anything unusual, I’m sure they'll receive lots of reports."

Aliens in bedroom? Northern Ireland reports increase in UFO sightings

Recent research demonstrates that existing COVID-19 vaccines offer less defense against the surging omicron variant and that booster shots increase that protection. A Lancet study in early December found that the Moderna booster protected best -- raising antibodies 32 times in those previously vaccinated with Oxford/AstraZeneca -- though it also had the most adverse effects.

However, a report from the UK on Friday indicates that booster effectiveness starts to decrease notably after 10 weeks. And as countries like Germany and South Korea have shortened the wait time for booster shots, US experts are considering a similar approach.

In a briefing released Friday, the UK Health Security Agency announced that the Oxford/AstraZeneca, Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines all protect against omicron less than they did against delta and that protection from boosters wanes in time. Booster effectiveness generally decreased to between about 60% and 70% protection at two to four weeks after the shot, down to between about 35% and 45% at 10 weeks, depending on the combination of vaccines administered.

The UK report also adds weight to the hope that omicron infections are less severe than with the delta variant, noting that the risk of hospitalization from omicron is about three-fifths of that from delta. 

On ABC's This Week on Sunday, Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, discussed the possibility of shortening the wait time for boosters. He noted, "The data suggests both from Moderna and Pfizer vaccines that shortening it to as little as three months, but probably more in the sort of four to five months range, because we do see a waning of the immunity of the antibodies by four to five months."

In a report published Wednesday on the preprint site Medrxiv, scientists at Copenhagen's Statens Serum Institut examined health records of 3 million Danes taken between Nov. 20 and Dec. 12. They found vaccine effectiveness among seniors 60 and older who had received a booster dose 14 to 44 days earlier averaged 54.6%, according to Reuters. (That's comparable to the rate found shortly after receiving one shot of the Pfizer vaccine, which quickly wanes.) 

Their research hasn't been peer-reviewed yet, but it follows preliminary data from last week indicating Moderna's half-dose COVID booster shot can raise antibody levels against omicron 37-fold. Moderna President Stephen Hoge said during a conference call that the lab results were "reassuring" and put booster recipients "comfortably" above the level of a breakthrough risk.

Moderna also indicated a potential double dose of the booster, 100 micrograms versus 50 micrograms, would increase omicron-neutralizing antibodies "approximately 83-fold higher than pre-boost levels."

Omicron has quickly become the dominant strain in the US, accounting for nearly 75% of new COVID-19 cases. While it appears able to evade some of the defenses offered by two doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, boosters offer some protection against infection and are highly effective in preventing serious illness. President Biden recently announced new plans -- including "free" at-home COVID-19 test kits and stricter rules for international travelers -- to protect Americans from the surging omicron variant.

The CDC urges anyone 18 years or older to get a booster six months after their second dose of Moderna or Pfizer (and anyone 16 or 17 years old to get a booster six months after their second dose of Pfizer). On Dec. 16, a CDC advisory committee recommended Moderna's Spikevax and Pfizer-BioNTECH's Comirnaty, both mRNA vaccines, over Johnson & Johnson's one-jab carrier, or virus vector, vaccine.

According to Our World in Data, the US averaged about 838,000 booster shots per day for the week ending Dec. 21. More than 64 million Americans have been boosted since Aug. 13. The increased focus on boosters comes as the omicron variant forces the CDC, health officials and organizations to reconsider what it means to be "fully vaccinated." 

So far, the vaccines have proven highly effective in preventing serious reactions and death from COVID-19. People who are unvaccinated are 10 times more likely to be hospitalized if infected. With the federal vaccine mandate expected to start next month, the Biden administration expects even more Americans to get the jab. The government has also ordered 13 million courses of antiviral drugs in anticipation of higher caseloads this winter.

Here's what you need to know about the Moderna booster, including doses, side effects and how to get a free ride. to your vaccination appointment. For even more details, here's the latest on COVID-19 vaccines for kids, how you can soon get a free COVID-19 test kit and what to know about breakthrough infections. 

Now playing: COVID-19 boosters and the delta variant: What you need...

How effective is the Moderna booster against the omicron variant?


On Monday, Moderna's Hoge said early lab research shows the pharmaceutical company's COVID-19 vaccine booster provides "good protection against the omicron variant" by raising antibody levels approximately 37 fold. For comparison, Pfizer said earlier this month its booster raises antibody levels 25 fold, creating "robust protection" and offering "a sufficient level of protection" against omicron.

Studies of omicron variant infections in the US appear to support the concern about weakened protection for those who are fully vaccinated with two doses of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines or one of Johnson & Johnson's, but did not get a booster yet. Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, CDC director, said Dec. 10 that 80% of the first confirmed US cases with the mutated strain had been in patients who were fully vaccinated. 

Is Moderna working on additional COVID vaccine boosters?


On Monday, Moderna president Stephen Hoge said the company's current 50-microgram COVID booster gives "quite respectable" protection. The company is continuing to study an omicron-specific vaccine and a multivalent one that could protect against other variants, including the alpha and delta strains, in case either is needed. 

The company said it is also studying a 100-microgram version of its current vaccine booster, which appears to raise antibody protection 83 fold. Hoge said Moderna could have new versions of its vaccine ready early in 2022 but is not planning to ask the CDC and FDA to amend its booster authorization for the 100-microgram trial version of its booster.

Will we need an annual COVID booster shot?


With vaccines appearing to offer waning protection and a continuing evolution of COVID variants, Hoge said we will most likely need seasonal boosters, much like we do with the flu, at least to protect those at high risk of infection. The new research from UKHSA strongly indicates reduced protection from vaccine boosters after 10 weeks.

The CDC updated its guidance to indicate that, starting in 2022, some immunocompromised people will be able to get a fourth COVID-19 booster shot.

When is it time to get a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot?

If you got Moderna or Pfizer jab, you're eligible for a booster six months after the date of the second shot listed on your vaccination card. Two months after the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is the time for a booster (more below).

The CDC and other health authorities are now urging people to get boosters as soon as they're eligible, to keep the immune response against omicron, delta and other coronavirus variants of concern as strong as possible. 

On Dec. 2, President Biden outlined a plan for Medicare to contact the 64 million people it serves and for AARP to reach out to its 38 million members about getting a booster shot. Pharmacies like Walgreens, CVS and Rite Aid are contacting customers who got a vaccine at their stores when it's time to schedule a booster.

Should people who are pregnant get a booster shot?

The COVID-19 booster recommendations apply to all people 18 years and older, including those who are pregnant. The CDC urges pregnant people to get a COVID-19 vaccine, a booster is half a full vaccine dose.

"People who are pregnant or recently pregnant are more likely to get severely ill with COVID-19 compared with people who are not pregnant," the CDC says on its website.

While there is no evidence that getting vaccinated decreases fertility in women or men, a recent study also linked COVID-19 infection in pregnant people to a higher risk of stillbirth. 

Is the Moderna booster shot a third dose of the vaccine?

Booster shots of COVID-19 vaccines are currently half doses of the same vaccine used in the first two full shots. The goal is to top up the formula and reinforce the body's immune response against the virus and its variants. While the first two shots of the Moderna vaccine were each 100 micrograms, the booster is a 50-microgram dose.

Moderna is also working on a combination shot that contains this year's flu vaccine and its COVID-19 booster vaccine, but that's not available right now.

Moderna COVID booster: How well does it work against omicron?

Director and producer Jean-Marc Vallée, who won an Emmy for directing the hit HBO series “Big Little Lies” and whose 2013 drama “Dallas Buyers Club” earned multiple Oscar nominations, has died. He was 58.

His representative Bumble Ward said Sunday that Vallée died suddenly in his cabin outside Quebec City, Canada, over the weekend.

Vallée was acclaimed for his naturalistic approach to filmmaking, directing stars including Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Amy Adams and Jake Gyllenhaal over the past decade.

He directed Emily Blunt in 2009′s “The Young Victoria” and became a sought-after name in Hollywood after “Dallas Buyers Club,” featuring Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, earned six Academy Awards nominations, including best picture.

He often shot with natural light and hand-held cameras and gave actors freedom to improvise the script and move around within a scene’s location. The crew roamed up and down the Pacific Coast Trail to shoot Witherspoon in 2014′s “Wild.”

“They can move anywhere they want,” the Canadian filmmaker said of his actors in a 2014 interview with The Associated Press. “It’s giving the importance to storytelling, emotion, characters. I try not to interfere too much. I don’t need to cut performances. Often, the cinematographer and I were like, ‘This location sucks. It’s not very nice. But, hey, that’s life.’”

He re-teamed with Witherspoon to direct the first season of “Big Little Lies” in 2017, and directed Adams in 2018′s “Sharp Objects,” also for HBO. Vallée won DGA awards for both.

‘Dallas Buyers Club’ director Jean-Marc Vallée dead at 58

A bond is a fixed-income security. Bonds allow governments and companies to sell some of their debt to investors. Bonds that offer a fixed interest rate are exposed to interest rate risk. If you buy bonds, it's best to know how interest rates could affect your investment.

Inflation is the rising level of prices for goods and services. It can have two negative impacts on those who invest in bonds. One is obvious, while the other is more subtle. To invest wisely, you should learn about both.

In short, inflation makes interest rates go up. This, in turn, makes bond values go down, but the full picture is more complex.

Bond interest rates are also called "bond coupons." A bond with a fixed coupon rate will hold the same interest rate, no matter what happens in the market.

Inflation is the rise of prices for goods and services across all sectors in an economy. The effect of inflation is to decrease the value of money. When inflation rises, you are able to buy less with your money.1

Inflation is measured using the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The CPI tracks the change over time in the price of goods and services.2

The Federal Reserve (the Fed) is the United States' central bank. It sets the country's monetary policy and manages inflation. When inflation rises, the Fed may choose to raise short-term interest rates. The goal is to reduce the demand for credit and help prevent the economy from overheating.3

When the Fed raises short-term rates—or when it is expected to do so in the future—intermediate and longer-term rates also tend to go up. Since bond prices and yields move in opposite directions, rising yields mean falling prices. That means a lower value for your fixed-income investment.

The second impact of inflation is less obvious. But, it can take a major bite out of your portfolio returns. This effect is the difference between the “nominal” return and the "real" return. The nominal return is what a bond or bond fund provides on paper. The real return is adjusted for inflation.

To understand this concept, think of a shopping cart of food that you buy at the supermarket. If the items in the cart cost $100 this year, inflation of 3% means that the same group of items cost $103 a year later.

Suppose that during that same year, you have a short-term bond fund with a yield of 1%. Over the year, the value of a $100 investment rises to $101 before taxes. On paper, you made 1%, but in real-world money, they actually lost $2 worth of purchasing power. The “real” return was –2%.

The average rate of inflation in the United States since 1913 has been 3.2%. It is skewed somewhat by the high-inflation periods of World War I, World War II, and the 1970s, but it still means that investors needed to earn an average annual return of 3.2% just to stay even with inflation.4 However, with the pandemic's impact, the annual inflation rate for the United States jumped to 5.4% for the 12 months ended June 2021. That rate has not occurred since 1932.

Keep in mind that inflation compounds each year, just like investment returns. But with inflation, the result is negative. From 1982 through the present, inflation has risen nearly 100% on a cumulative basis due to this compounding effect. As a result, you would have needed to see the value of your investments double during that time, just to keep up with inflation.

In some cases, investors are willing to trade a negative real return in exchange for safety. You may decide that preserving your principal is more important.

If safety isn’t your top priority, be mindful of the impact of inflation. If your goal is to build a nest egg for the future, a bond or bond fund that pays 2% won't be enough. (Remember, your total return should be over 3.2%.)

Instead, consider a diversified approach. Add medium- to higher-risk investments such as investment-grade corporate bonds, high-yield bonds, and equities.

Many mutual fund companies offer real return funds that are designed to stay ahead of gradual inflation. One drawback to these bond funds is that their costs tend to be high. Both Vanguard and Fidelity offer products with lower fees than the industry average.

Inflation will always be a silent thief eating away at the value of your long-term investments. With some planning, you will be able to stay a step ahead of it.

To hedge, or protect, yourself against inflation, choose investment vehicles that are likely to outpace inflation. For example, Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) are a type of bond that adjusts the principal value of the bond based on inflation. Stocks typically keep pace with inflation, but they're also more volatile. Real estate is another investment that typically keeps pace with inflation. A good financial advisor can help you develop a strategy that meets your needs.


Savings bonds typically have an interest rate that's in line with other safe savings vehicles like bank savings accounts. That means the interest rate is relatively low, but so is the default risk. They're a good investment if your goal is preserving your principal. Other options like CDs or fixed-interest annuities can also meet that goal, however, and they may pay a higher interest rate. If your goal is growth, other investment vehicles may be a better fit.

Stay Informed

Delta: Flight to Shanghai Turned Back Because of COVID Rules

Purdue Restructuring on Hold After Judge Overturns Settlement

Vaccinated People With Covid May Soon Not Have To Isolate For 10 Days — If They’re Asymptomatic — Fauci Suggests

Fully Vaccinated US Navy warship sidelined with COVID-19 outbreak

Aliens in bedroom? Northern Ireland reports increase in UFO sightings

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Moderna COVID booster: How well does it work against omicron?

‘Dallas Buyers Club’ director Jean-Marc Vallée dead at 58

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