covid-19 pandemic

A West Haven man has been sentenced to eight years in prison for his role in the theft of COVID-19 relief funds, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. John Trasacco, 50, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and fraud charges in December after his trial began a month earlier. According to evidence presented in trial, Trasacco conspired with Michael DiMassa by...

Some good news for those essential workers that have applied and qualified for hero pay. The office of the state comptroller announced that qualified applicants will begin seeing their payments starting in early February. The Hero Pay program was designed to compensate essential workers with $1,000 for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. “We can never fully repay essential workers…

A report from Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee also says U.S. intelligence agencies have failed to fix shortcomings and aren’t prepared for the next pandemic.

On Thursday, the Connecticut State Department of Education released new results from the 2021-22 Next Generation Accountability System. “This system helps us to measure school and district success towards the goal of providing every student the quality education that prepares every child for school and life success,” CSDE Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker said.   The system tracks academic achievement, chronic absenteeism,…

A West Haven man has been found guilty of conspiracy and fraud charges for his role in the theft of COVID-19 relief funds. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said 50-year-old John Trasacco’s trial began on Nov. 21 and the guilty verdict was announced Friday. According to evidence presented in trial, Trasacco conspired with Michael DiMassa by submitting fraudulent invoices to...

Teachers are in danger of burning out – that is not a new problem in our state. In fact, it’s been an ongoing issue since even before the pandemic. A new survey shows just how dire the situation is becoming. NBC Connecticut’s Mike Hydeck spoke with Kate Dias, the president of the state’s largest teachers’ union, about it. Mike...

Old Saybrook town officials are encouraging residents who’ve been impacted by COVID-19 to apply for a grant of up to $1,500. The Old Saybrook CARES Committee is now accepting applications for town residents who struggled, or are struggling, because of the pandemic. The grant specifically applies to people who have been laid off or were unemployed because of COVID-19. If…

New national test results show that the pandemic spared no part of the country as it caused historic learning setbacks for America’s children.

The head of the nation’s top public health agency is shaking up the organization with the goal of making it more nimble.

On Thursday, the CDC released adjusted guidelines for the public, dropping some social distancing and quarantine recommendations but still encouraging masking and testing if exposed to COVID-19.

Though a soft launch happened days ago, the state says it plans to officially launch the pandemic “Hero Pay” program in the coming days.

Sometimes dubbed “hero pay,” the funds will be distributed to critical workers such as grocery store employees and non-government medical staff who were on the job between March 10, 2020 and May 7, 2022 and unable to work from home.

The head of the U.N. body promoting development is warning that the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and the war in Ukraine have led to “an unprecedented reversal” of decades of progress in combatting global poverty and hunger and ensuring education for children everywhere.

Micronesia has likely become the final nation in the world with a population of more than 100,000 to experience an outbreak of COVID-19.

The Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts hosted “Celebrate Love: A (Re)Wedding” on Sunday in the pavilion outside the center.

A $34 million state fund created by Connecticut lawmakers last year to provide financial help to qualified essential workers has remained mostly untouched, Comptroller Natalie Braswell said Thursday. The program aims to help those who lost wages and faced out-of-pocket medical expenses and burial costs due to COVID-19. To date, only about $300,000 has been paid to eligible recipients, prompting…

The Pfizer pill, Paxlovid, is intended for people with COVID-19 who are more likely to become seriously ill. Previously only doctors could prescribe the drug

Connecticut’s seven-day rolling COVID-19 positivity rate on Thursday is below 9%. State data shows that the positivity rate currently stands at 8.81%. Gov. Ned Lamont office said there were 3,219 positive tests out of 36,518 in the last week and the number of people hospitalized is 282. The number of patients decreased by 29 since last week. There’s now 10,999…