Axios

Rep. Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) apologized Tuesday evening to Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, for telling her to "kiss my a--" after she asked him to wear a face mask, CNN reported.

What they're saying: “My words were not acceptable,” Rogers told CNN.

Beth Cameron, the National Security Council's senior director for global health security and biodefense, will be leaving her position this spring, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Cameron joined the Biden administration to help re-establish the Directorate for Global Health Security and Biodefense, which former Trump national security adviser John Bolton had folded into another office as part of an effort to streamline the NSC.

Vermont state lawmakers on Tuesday voted to advance an amendment that would guarantee the right to get an abortion under the state's constitution.

Why it matters: The amendment will become a ballot measure for state voters to decide whether it actually gets added to the Vermont Constitution. If they support the proposal, it would be the first time that reproductive rights are ingrained in a state constitution.

Pfizer registered $36.8 billion of sales in 2021 from the COVID-19 vaccine it makes with BioNTech.

Why it matters: This vaccine is now officially the top-selling pharmaceutical product ever in a single year, by a huge margin.

Getting more sleep could help you consume fewer calories, a study published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine found.

The details: The randomized clinical trial led by researchers at the University of Chicago studied 80 overweight adults between the ages of 21 and 40 who habitually slept less than six and a half hours a night.

Interested in participating in a clinical study? Make sure your medical providers don’t bill you for simply learning what’s involved.

The big picture: Clinical trials aren't free for patients, but experts interviewed for this story agreed that a hospital shouldn't charge people just for getting information about them.

The U.S. opioid crisis is one of the "most-pressing national security" challenges the country faces, a government commission said in a report released Tuesday.

What they're saying: The trafficking of synthetic drugs into the U.S. is "not just a public health emergency but a national emergency that threatens both the national security and economic wellbeing of the country," the Commission on Combating Synthetic Opioid Trafficking said.

One in three Americans expects to catch COVID within the next month — and only one in 10 thinks it will be eradicated by this time next year — according to the latest installment of the Axios/Ipsos Coronavirus Index.

The big picture: The new data shows Americans are coming to terms with living with COVID. But it also reveals an utter lack of consensus on how to live with it.

The Virginia Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a lawsuit from Chesapeake parents against Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) for his order making mask-wearing optional in schools.

Why it matters: Judges wrote that they couldn't issue writs of mandamus and prohibit the Chesapeake School Board from making masks optional, because such relief cannot be issued in the case. But they made clear they aren't ruling on the legality of the case, potentially leaving the door open for future litigation.

Delaware Gov. John Carney (D) announced Monday that the state's mask mandates for indoor public settings and schools will end over the next two months.

Driving the news: The mask mandate for indoor settings is set to lift Feb. 11, while masking requirements for K-12 schools and childcare facilities will end on March 31.

Team USA men's figure skater Vincent Zhou will withdraw from the Winter Olympics individual competition after testing positive for COVID-19, the athlete said in an emotional Instagram post Monday.

What he's saying: "This is not the end. This is a setup for a bigger comeback," he said. "While it was always my dream to medal on an Olympic stage, which I did accomplish before this happened, the overarching dream was just to skate."

Some pharmacies are getting paid as little as $1 to dispense the COVID antiviral pills made by Pfizer and Merck.

Why it matters: Most pharmacies want to offer the drugs, especially the one from Pfizer that drastically cuts the odds of hospitalization and death. But low payments could hurt Americans' ability to access the pills in some areas if pharmacies decide they can't afford to stock them.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) announced Monday that the state will lift its mask mandate for students and school employees next month.

Why it matters: It is the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic that New Jersey has rolled back its school mask mandate, signaling a shift in how the state may view the virus.

Federal health regulators will soon face their next controversial vaccine decision: whether to authorize Pfizer's vaccine for children younger than 5, despite ongoing questions around dosing and effectiveness.

Why it matters: Once again, the pandemic is forcing health officials to choose between unconventional vaccine approval methods and the human costs of abiding by more traditional — yet time-consuming — regulatory processes.

Australia will reopen its borders from Feb. 21 to foreign travelers who have received two COVID-19 vaccine doses, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced Monday.

Why it matters: Australia's borders have been shut to most non-residents since March 2020. Its tough pandemic policies made headlines last month when world men's tennis no. 1 Novak Djokovic was deported from the country for being unvaccinated.

Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson declared a state of emergency Sunday in response to 10 days of massive demonstrations in Canada's capital protesting pandemic restrictions, which have since spread to other provinces.

Driving the news: "Declaring a state of emergency reflects the serious danger and threat to the safety and security of residents posed by the ongoing demonstrations and highlights the need for support from other jurisdictions and levels of government," per a statement from the mayor's office.