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An influential board of infectious disease physicians recommended Wednesday that hospitals and other health care facilities stop routinely screening asymptomatic patients for Covid-19, saying the potential risks of screenings now outweigh the benefits. (Mast, 12/21)

A major professional organization for healthcare epidemiologists announced Wednesday that it no longer recommends universal COVID-19 screening for asymptomatic patients entering the hospital due to care delays and testing’s “unclear benefit” when layered upon a healthcare facility’s other infection prevention measures. (Muoio, 12/21)

Dr. Roy Gulick, the chief of infectious diseases at Weill Cornell Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian, said typical symptoms of the omicron subvariants include: Sore throat. Hoarse voice. Cough. Fatigue. Nasal congestion. Runny nose. Headache. Muscle aches. (Edwards, Kopf, Miller and Lewis, 12/21)

The three main viruses in circulation this winter — influenza, COVID-19 and RSV — are placing Ohio hospitals under significant strain, the state’s top health official said Wednesday. And it’s possible that hospitals may see even more patients after the holidays, as germs spread and sicken people at gatherings, said Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, the director of the Ohio Department of Health, in a media briefing. (Washington, 12/21)

The spike of influenza and RSV in Houston has given way to a “mini-surge” of COVID-19, and experts predict that infections will continue to rise after a busy two weeks of travel and gatherings for the holidays. (MacDonald, 12/21)

Contra Costa County is telling residents to refrain from calling 911 unless they have a real emergency, as health care providers and emergency ambulance services “are especially impacted because of COVID, flu and other respiratory viruses.” (Beamish, 12/21)

KHN: ‘Caged … For No Fault Of Your Own’: Detainees Dread Covid While Awaiting Immigration Hearings 

In October, Yibran Ramirez-Cecena didn’t alert the staff at Stewart Detention Center to his cough and runny nose. Ramirez-Cecena, who had been detained at the immigration detention facility in southwestern Georgia since May, hid his symptoms, afraid he would be put in solitary confinement if he tested positive for covid-19. “Honestly, I didn’t want to go spend 10 days by myself in a room — they call it the hole,” Ramirez-Cecena said. He is being held at the center as he waits to learn whether he will be deported to Mexico or can remain in the United States, where he has lived for more than two decades. (Rayasam, 12/22)