Coronavirus

Health officials say people in the St. Louis region should expect to live with the threat of the coronavirus. To help, the St. Louis and St. Louis County health departments have released “Living With COVID-19," a plan for people, businesses and government agencies.

A national shortage of 80,000 truck drivers is spurring worry about the country's reliance on long-haul shipping.

Under the bill, facilities can still limit things like visitor movements and the number of visitors per patient, but cannot require patients be vaccinated against any disease to receive treatment or visitors. Experts warn it could cause a conflict between state and federal requirements.

Missouri officials this week announced an end to the coronavirus pandemic emergency, saying the state was moving on from the crisis. But public health officials say it may be too early to declare victory over the pandemic.

Over 2,300 households have been evicted in St. Louis and St. Louis County since the beginning of the pandemic. Some people have received rental aid from federal programs, but city and county officials say if not for eviction moratoriums and rental assistance programs, more people would have lost their homes.

The BA.2 subvariant is about 30% more transmissible than the original omicron variant and is fueling a surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in Europe.

Missourians are encouraged to use tests obtained through the state before processing ends after March 31.

The Department of Missouri Corrections will lift its coronavirus pandemic visitor restrictions on April 1. Visitors can see loved ones in state prisons without wearing a mask or taking a health screening test prior to entry.