Coronavirus Watch: Has the COVID vaccine reached annual flu shot status?

With omicron-specific boosters becoming available this week, health officials say the shot may be the first of what will become an annual shot for Americans, just like the flu vaccine.

Barring any “new variant curveballs,” White House COVID-19 coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha said the latest vaccine rollout is a step toward a single annual COVID shot that can provide protection against serious illness all year, calling the booster an "important milestone."

Read more from Adrianna Rodriguez here.

It's Thursday, and this is Coronavirus Watch from the Paste BN Network. Here's more news to know:

• An estimated 10.5 million children worldwide were either orphaned or lost a parent or caregiver due to COVID-19, according to a JAMA pediatrics study published Tuesday.  
• New York state dropped its mask mandate on public transportation Wednesday, switching guidance to "encouraging" but not requiring masks on buses and trains.
• The WHO announced Wednesday that the number of new COVID cases fell everywhere in the world last week by around 12%, according to the agency's weekly review of pandemic numbers.

See our COVID-19 resource guide here. See total reported cases and deaths here. On vaccinations: About 79% of people in the U.S. have received at least one vaccine shot, and about 67% are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

– Cady Stanton, Paste BN breaking news reporter, @cady_stanton