Health

Maine residents have been complaining on social media that the national pharmacy chain is cancelling COVID-19 vaccine appointments. A Walgreens spokesperson said last week some locations are adjusting hours due to staffing.

All three hospitalization metrics for COVID-19 have hit new highs.

Maine is reporting 876 new cases of the coronavirus on Saturday, as the delta variant continues to drive a record-breaking surge and health officials watch out for the new omicron variant.

The University of Maine's mobile COVID-19 testing lab, run by a company called Shield T3 Health, says it can process 10,000 PCR tests per day on the Orono campus and quickly detect known COVID variants, including Delta and Omicron.

In response to complaints about the cancellations, the pharmacy chain says it's adjusting hours in some stores due to staffing needs and is working to reschedule appointments as quickly as possible.

The delta variant is continuing to drive the surge of cases in Maine. It's straining hospitals that have faced record high numbers of coronavirus patients over the last couple weeks.

Policyholders accuse Genworth of mismanagement and of padding executives' pockets at the expense of its customers, and they say they were promised that their premiums and coverage would remain stable.

Maine CDC Director Nirav Shah says that the new omicron variant has not been yet been detected here and the delta variant continues to drive the fall surge.

Dr. Nirav Shah says many people are wondering how well current vaccines will protect against omicron. Getting the answer will take time, he says, but "If you're vaccinated, your immune system is not a blank slate anymore. Just as the virus can adapt, so can your immune system."

334 people are hospitalized with COVID-19, the Maine CDC reported on Wednesday. It's another pandemic record - the second day in a row, and the third time in less than a week that hospitalization numbers have hit new highs.