2022 came and went. But COVID-19 lingered. Monkeypox made an appearance. The economy had us thinking about the future. And Twitter drama had us hanging by a thread. It's been a long 12 months. Here are some of the biggest health and economics stories from this year: COVID…the pandemic that was — and isn't over. Since 2020, the US has lost more than 1 million people to the virus. Now, many Americans are making their own risk calculations — amid Omicron and all of its subvariants. Today, everyone who wants a vaccine (or booster or updated booster) can get one. That includes kids 6 months and up. Uncle Sam ended its free tests program. Then brought it back. The CDC eased up on quarantine guidance. And President Biden wants to put this all behind us. Meanwhile, experts say our new normal could include an annual booster shot.
Monkeypox…also known as mpox: another global health emergency. The virus spread across the world, killing more than 59 people and impacting thousands more — disproportionately affecting the LGBTQIA+ community. But after a weeks-long delay, vaccines came through. Cases have stabilized. And many are wondering 'are we in the clear?'
All the other viruses...like RSV. The surge in cases put pressure on children's hospitals and parents. An early flu season didn't help either. Especially since the flu joined forces with COVID and RSV to form a "tripledemic." Meanwhile, polio also set off alarm bells in New York after officials confirmed one case of paralysis. And then there were the ones that people kept close tabs on like Ebola and Marburg.
The economy…had us keeping close tabs on our bank accounts. Inflation hit its highest level in 40 years — pushing gas, food, and housing prices to record highs. A pandemic will do that. The war in Ukraine didn't help. And supply and worker shortages made things worse. The Fed looked at high prices and said 'time to raise interest rates.' And all of this is bringing up recession fears. America's GDP shrunk at least twice but then went back up. The World Bank started throwing around the word 'stagflation.' The Euro and US dollar met as equals for the first time in 20 years. The stock market dipped into bear territory. Crypto had its own winter with FTX spiraling — a dumpster fire no one could look away from.
RTOs, OOOs, and CEOs...Many people returned to the office — whether part- or full-time. But some employees were more interested in quiet quitting. Elon Musk dragged Twitter down the aisle...and now he's running it like a popularity contest. Speaking of tech, the industry is going through it. Meta, Amazon, and Snapchat handed out pink slips amid a drop in revenue. And everyone went on strike: from teachers, nurses, and UC workers to employees at Trader Joe's, Apple, Starbucks, Amazon, Google, and Delta. 5G had a non-5G speed rollout. Juul went up in smoke and then 'poof' — came back. CNN+ came and went faster than a breaking news alert. HBO Max and Discovery+ are joining forces. Bob Iger is back. And everyone's favorite budget airline also tried to get into the merger Spirit.
Things that made us feel like Bill Nye…like the James Webb Space Telescope. And a potential milestone in nuclear fusion, which could pave the way for net-zero energy. There's also good news in the fight against cancer, with progress on personalized vaccines and base editing. Alopecia has a new drug. Malaria has a new treatment. Shrooms may have a new purpose. And scientists are still going full scientist mode with everything from synthetic embryos to human brain cells in rats to bringing pig organs back to life. Meanwhile, a Google engineer swears AI can catch feels, too. And GPT gave everyone something to Chat about.
We don't know about you, but there was a lot to cover in '22. Grab your Negroni Sbagliato — with Prosecco in it — and join us tomorrow for the biggest pop culture and entertainment stories. | 
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