Hearses Lining Up in China; Google to Decipher Docs’ Writing; Stressed-Out Americans

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U.S. life expectancy fell for the second year in a row in 2021, a 0.6-year decrease from 2020, according to a new CDC report, reaching its lowest level since 1996.

The head of the World Health Organization said the organization is “very concerned” about rising reports of severe cases of COVID-19 across China. (ABC News)

Meanwhile, witnesses observed dozens of hearses queued outside a Beijing crematorium Wednesday, even as China reported no new deaths in its growing COVID-19 outbreak. (Reuters)

And while nasal COVID vaccines are being used in China, the question is whether they will actually slow down the disease. (The Atlantic)

In Iran, a physician was sentenced to death for participating in an anti-government protest. (NPR)

HHS is making additional supply of oseltamivir (Tamiflu) available through the strategic national stockpile.

Google is developing a tool to translate physicians’ handwriting. (Insider)

A case of mistaken identity resulted in a California woman being billed by a Florida hospital for shoulder replacement surgery she never underwent. (NPR)

A federal law requiring that sesame be listed as an allergen on food labels has had unintended consequences. (AP)

Peter Marks, head of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said the agency hopes to eventually get to the point where COVID-19 vaccinations more closely mirror the flu shot model. (Endpoints News)

Continued inflammation and persistent immune response after SARS-CoV-2 infection may explain why people lose their sense of smell for months. (Science Translational Medicine)

The FDA approved tocilizumab (Actemra) to treat hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19, Roche said.

Roughly 26% of Americans expect to experience more stress in the New Year, according to an American Psychiatric Association survey. (NBC News)

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services issued a warning against a holiday tradition of serving raw, lean ground beef on rye cocktail bread with sliced onions, salt, and pepper. (CBS News)

A U.S. district judge in Texas set aside part of the Title X program that allowed teenagers to confidentially access birth control. (The Hill)

With fewer than half of residents receiving the latest booster shot, nursing homes face a potential spike in COVID-19 deaths this winter. (Washington Post)

Even before COVID, rural clinics were struggling, but thanks to loans, pandemic aid, and hard work, a Mississippi clinic endured. (NPR)

A former Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor may have attempted to influence an investigation into complaints of gender bias and sexual harassment at his lab, according to a leaked report. (STAT)

A kidney transplant re-united two high school classmates who lived 2,000 miles apart. (USA Today)