Everyone in NYC seems to be getting sick

Plus, a look back at our investigative series Imminent Danger. [View this email in a browser.]( Our Gift to You! Get this T-shirt when you [donate & help fund]( our non-profit newsroom. [Donate Now]( [Today's newsletter curated by Emily Nadal]( Please enjoy a “lite” version of Early Addition this week as we all recover from the holidays and prepare for a new year. We’ll be back to normal on Jan. 2, 2024! Here's a look at today's stories: - The bad news for December 2023: the JN.1 COVID-19 strain is driving a new surge. The good news: You can still get free tests and there are plenty of locations for vaccines. [Find out how.]( - In the new year, state lawmakers will once again tackle the thorny question of whether New York City’s mayor can maintain control of the public school system. [Read more about the debate.]( - Everyone is releasing their end-of-year lists this time of year. The MTA just dropped its own featuring the most popular subway stations in 2023. [See which stops and stations topped the list.]( - In Bushwick, young people find community in a knitting circle. After decades online, and a pandemic shutdown, many 20-somethings say they just want to meet up in person. [Read more about the knitting group.]( - The NYPD is searching for suspects who stole $177K in cash and property from a Queens apartment earlier this month. [Read more about the alleged theft.]( - Mayor Adams placed new requirements for buses of migrants arriving in New York City, mandating a 32-hour advance notice for any charter buses transporting migrants into the city. [Read more about the executive order.]( - The union representing about 20,000 New York City cleaning and custodial workers said it was ready to strike if it couldn't secure higher pay and pension improvements by New Year’s Eve. [See their demands.]( [Imminent Danger: An investigative series and podcast]( By Ave Carillo and Christopher Werth We’re writing to ask a favor. Over the past year, we’ve worked on a multi-part investigative series called [Imminent Danger: One Doctor and a Trail of Injured Women](. It examines an OB-GYN named Thomas J. Byrne, whose New York medical license was revoked in the 1990s over what state officials called gross negligence and gross incompetence, among other charges. Three babies died under his care, according to a state investigation. Two others were severely injured. Now, Byrne is back practicing in New York after the state restored his license, despite an ongoing track record of malpractice lawsuits and disciplinary measures by hospitals in other states. Until recently, he was at Harlem Hospital, where he was named in two malpractice lawsuits. In one, a 34-year-old mother died shortly after giving birth. In another, a baby was lacerated during a cesarean section. We spent months working with reporter Karen Shakerdge, meticulously poring over public documents to find out why New York decided to restore his license and to look more broadly at how doctors are vetted here and in other states to ensure patient safety. As you might imagine, this reporting work takes time and resources. Stories like our Imminent Danger series are part of our promise to listeners and readers to dig into issues that affect New Yorkers. Your support helps us continue to do this kind of work. [Donate here.]( ICYMI: A few of our most read stories in 2023 [second image]( [A $48 billion debt is crushing the MTA. Paying it off could disrupt the future of NYC transit.]( From June: The MTA first took out $2.5 billion in debt in 1981 to fix the crumbling subway system. Since then, the agency has come to rely more and more on debt. The MTA now owes $48 billion, and will pay more than $3 billion to lenders this year. [Holdout tenant in $1,500 West Village apartment fears demolition of historic townhouse]( From Febuary: Landlord Lionel Nazarian was ordered to demolish a neighboring landmarked building after construction workers botched renovations. [We Rely On Your Support]( [NYC doesn’t have a comprehensive plan. So Brooklyn made one.]( From October: Brooklyn would get more trees and CitiBikes, allow more multi-family housing, and get a new interborough public transit line under a comprehensive plan the borough president hopes will guide the future. [New record set for fastest trip through entirety of NYC subway]( From May: Kate Jones, a New Yorker now living in Switzerland, traveled through all 472 stations in 22 hours, 14 minutes and 10 seconds. [Instagram]( [Instagram]( [Facebook]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Twitter]( [New York Public Radio] [WNYC]( | [WQXR]( | [NJPR]( | [GOTHAMIST]( [WNYC STUDIOS]( | [THE GREENE SPACE]( Copyright © New York Public Radio. All rights reserved. 160 Varick Street, New York, NY 10013 [TERMS OF USE]( You can update your [PREFERENCES]( or [UNSUBSCRIBE]( from this list.