Advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration today endorsed a proposal to make big changes in the nation's approach to vaccinating people against COVID-19.

The country’s COVID-19 vaccine strategy could be getting an overhaul. An FDA panel met Thursday and recommended a proposal that would make getting a COVID-19 shot an annual event.

The new approach would simplify vaccination guidance so that, every fall, people would get a new shot, updated to try to match whatever variant is dominant.

At-home rapid tests have become a staple of COVID-19 precautions, but some experts worry that people are relying too much on these tests and that's creating a false sense of security.

And what about a cold or RSV? With all the illness spreading, it's virus soup out there these days. Some people feel so sick they're wondering if they're fighting more than one germ at once.

It would make more sense to screen a plane's wastewater to look for new variants than to screen individual passenger volunteers, some researchers say. Others say any information is helpful.

Health experts say that so far, it appears a new variant of COVID-19, XBB.1.5 is more contagious than recent strains, but does not appear to be making people more ill.

RSV and the flu appear to be receding in the U.S., but COVID is on the rise, new data suggests, driven by holiday gatherings and an even more transmissible omicron subvariant that has become dominant.

In announcing the step, the CDC pointed to the surge in COVID-19 cases in China. The measure will go into effect on Jan. 5 for all passengers over the age of 2.

Public health officials want more Americans to get the latest COVID vaccine booster. Only 35% of people over 65 have gotten the shot, though 75% of COVID deaths are among people in this age group.