Four years after the COVID-19 pandemic closed schools and upended child care, the CDC says parents can start treating the virus like other respiratory illnesses.Gone are mandated isolation periods and masking. But will schools and child care centers agree?

Federal officials reduce childhood vaccines from 17 to 11, sparking concern over increased infection risk.

Yesterday, in introducing drastic cuts to the nation’s childhood immunization schedule, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said “shared clinical decision-making” would be used for pediatric vaccines against rotavirus, COVID-19, influenza, hepatitis A and B, and meningococcal disease.

Doctors are calling this one of the toughest flu seasons in years and stress that this is not a year to skip the vaccine. READ MORE: <a href="