COVID-19 weekly news: August 9-13 2021

Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast: How Mayo hopes to slam the door when COVID-19 comes knocking
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought public awareness to vaccines and how vaccines work. A vaccine is any agent that causes the immune system to remember a specific disease-causing entity, thereby preventing future infections. In the case of COVID-19, that's a coronavirus.

What you need to know about COVID-19 tests
The delta variant is now believed to be responsible for more than 80% of the new COVID-19 infections diagnosed in the U.S. But to be diagnosed with COVID-19, you must first be tested.

Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast: It’s like a Code Red hospital alert
An overwhelming surge of COVID-19 cases is underway in the U.S. The delta variant continues to spread, the lambda variant is showing up, and some people are refusing to be vaccinated for COVID-19 or wear face masks.

Benefits of kids wearing masks in school
Children are heading back to the classroom and many parents have questions about their kids wearing face masks to protect them from COVID-19. Are they safe? How do masks help my child? Is my child really at risk of getting COVID-19?

Mayo Clinic to reinstitute visitor guidelines in Rochester
Due to the continued spread of the highly contagious delta variant, Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. will reinstitute visitor policy restrictions in inpatient and outpatient settings, beginning Monday, Aug. 16.

Mayo Clinic preparing for COVID-19 vaccine boosters when approved
Are you wondering about booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccine? You are not alone.

Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast: Kicking your COVID-19 bad habits
For more than a year, COVID-19 has forced people to depart from their normal routines. Physical isolation, working from home, and added stress and anxiety about a deadly coronavirus have led some people to develop bad habits that have consequences on both physical and mental health.