very good thursday morning to you. i'm jim sciutto. we are following breaking news this morning and it's some good news, a second pill to treat covid-19, a pill the food and drug administration announcing they gave merck's antiviral pill the green light just one day after the pfizer pill was given the okay as well. all of this as new studies are showing that the omicron variant may be less likely to send you to the hospital, also less likely to cause severe illness than previous strains of the virus. that's good news. despite that, it is still spreading fast across the country. as expected, omicron has been detected in all 50 u.s. states and accounts for at least 90% of new infections here. it happened very quickly. last night president biden responded to questions as to whether he was prepared enough for this new wave. >> if you go to the pharmacy, we hear this over and over again, empty shelves, no test kits. is that a failure? >> no, i don't think it's a failure. i think it's -- you could argue that we should have known a year ago, six months ago, two months ago, a month ago. >> it is good to hear about omicron, particularly as the holidays start. let's begin with cnn's senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen. start with the treatments now. we have two pills, the latest one a moderna pill, to treat folks who are infected. do we know how effective it is and how soon someone would have to take it? >> reporter: we do know, jim. so, this new pill from merck is quite effective, and in the clinical trials people got it within five days. so it has to be done very quickly, just like the pfizer pill that you and i talked about in the last hour. so what's amazing is that there's two pills. there were no pills before. if you had early covid, you couldn't just call your doctor and go to the pharmacy and pick up a prescription. with these pills in time you will be able to. let's look at the clinical trial results that merck got with this pill. they took hundreds of patients, split them in half, half got a pla placebo, everyone had covid. at the end of the month, 68 people who got a placebo, a drug that does nothing, ended up in the hospital and nine of them died. the one who is got the pill, 48 ended up in the hospital and one of them died. a team of fda advisers, they barely passed this bill at 13-10. a lot was because of concerns with pregnant women because the way the drugs work. there are concerns about safety for an unborn fetus. that was the vote for the fda advisory committee. they wanted to see more data, but we'll see that the fda has given it a green light. another caveat, this has to be shipped out quickly. we don't know how quickly the government can get it out. you have to take this pill within days of having covid. that means you need to have a positive covid test. you were talking about how difficult it can be to find testing. hopefully that will improve so this bill will be more useful. jim? >> as you said of course, i would -- it's merck's pill. i said moderna. we have data from the uk and south africa where omicron hit earlier, and it's showing a lower risk of hospitalization from those infected with omicron. it's a relief to hear, frankly. tell us how far and broad this data is. >> it is encouraging. it doesn't mean we're out of the woods, but definitely we old rather see this than the opposite. let's look at what they found in south africa. they looked at hospitalization risks in october and november with omicron, 2.5% of the people who got it ended up in the hospital. with delta, 12.8% ended up being admitted to the hospital. that's obviously a big difference. if we look at the study in scotland, they found a two-thirds reduction in hospitalization risk with omicron and importantly found that a booster was linked to a 57% reduction in risk of symptomatic infections. in other words, get vaccinated if you haven't already. that will help you against omicron. the differences are like night and day. and if you're more than six months past your second vaccination, go get yourself a booster. jim? >> it's been consistent from the doctors -- get vaccinated and get the booster. >> reporter: right. >> elizabeth cohen, thanks very much. >> thanks. i want to speak now to the director of the illinois department of health. i wonder if you could begin on for you, at this the front line level of treating the covid outbreak, what difference dawes it make to have these antiviral pills, two of them, to help treat the infected? >> we know that this is another game changer after a number-one game changer, which are the vaccines and boosting. so we know that people are getting infected at high rates with this more transmissible variant. our numbers are sky rocketing here in illinois as they are across the country. and being able to have something that is oral, so easy, easier than giving an i.v. infusion that you can get before you get to the hospital nap will help decompress the hospitals and save lives. >> so you're seeing this data as well i know about several international studies from countries that have been hit by omicron before us, and it's showing that, yes, it spreads quickly but doesn't cause as severe illness and therefore doesn't send as many people to the hospital. i don't want to minimize where you are because i know that at the icu level you're still flooded, but are you encouraged by the data? >> i will take any bit of good news there is at this time of the year, but remembering a population of -- in our state of almost 13 million people, there are still plenty of people that, if they were infected, even a smaller percentage, that's still enough to overwhelm all of our hospitals. so we want to keep people from going in there. >> let me ask you about the administration's response so far, not about the politics, about what tools have been put into your hands to prepare for something like this. one of the key criticisms as you know is the availability of tests. you're seeing long lines in places like new york and elsewhere. the administration has a plan, but it's really not going the kick in until next month, right, after the holidays and perhaps maybe the worst of some of omicron? in your view, in terms of the support you need, did the white house not react quickly enough? >> no. you know, this came on very quickly with the omicron and how quickly it spreads. we have a great testing infrastructure here in illinois, and i hope that many other states have built that infrastructure. so we're seeing record numbers of people testing. we have community-based testing sites that are available throughout the state from local health departments to state-run sites. and i am glad to see that people having the home-based tests fly off the shelf. you understand the poimportancef the testing. >> you know the guidance remains the same -- get vaccinated, get boosted. those are everyone's best protections including wearing a mask in close spaces, et cetera. are you seeing any movement among the folks that still resist all that, the folks that are vaccine hesitant, resistant, folk who is don't believe this is real? are you seeing the data reality puncturing that bubble or not? >> yeah. i think we are. i mean, it's incremental, but every extra jab counts. and we are seeing that even in the 65-plus population, which was highly vaccinated to start, there's still, you know, a percentage that haven't. in illinois we're getting at least 1,500 a day that are going to get that first shot. so people are making the decision. it's slow, but every shot counts and we're encouraging people to still make that choice. >> good to hear about that progress. doctor, thank for your help and we wish you the best of luck and a happy holidays, if you can get a break in there. >> thanks so much, jim. same to you. in new york, nearly 29,000 new infections were reported just yesterday, another record for state, even more than the depths of the pandemic early on. most of those cases, not surprisingly, in new york city, a big, concentrated population. shimon prokupecz is at a city-run testing facility in times square. shimon, we've talked with you this week and see the lines. is anything easing up a little bit, particularly as centers like that one you're at get set up? >> reporter: i'm going to show you, jim, where we are in times square. this is a city-run site. i would's really not. some of these people have been in line for about two hours, over two hours in some cases, and it's cold here today. so, you can imagine they're getting creative with hand and feet warmers. the line stretches north to about -- this is 48th street, and then it wraps around the corner. like i said, people have been standing here for well over two hours. it's been open since about 9:00 a.m. so the lines are still going. as you said, the state is seeing a high level, a staggering number of cases, 29,000, half of those, more than half of those here in new york city. so what the city is doing obviously is they're opening more sites. the other thing they're doing is at-home test kits. they are available. i walked into this test site and they handled me this at-home test kit. it gives you about two tests. they're very hard to get in stores. the city is giving them out for free at this site and at other sites across the city. if you are not being seen here today, if they are not giving you the test, the rapid test or the pcr test, they will handle this to you and you can do it at home. many people traveling, going to see family, wanting that better test, that pcr test and wanting a rap i would test. that's why we're seeing this line and linings like this all across the city. the other thing to point out, times square, questions about whether or not they're going to allow crowds and where that stands. we're waiting to hear from the mayor on that. he seemed optimistic yesterday. he celtics he'll give an answer before christmas. >> the test you're holding, better than nothing. shimon prokupecz, thanks very much. >> yep. still to come, the supreme court will take up challenges next month to president biden's vaccine mandates for health care workers and private businesses. how it could rule on the white house's legal authority to require vaccines. plus, the january 6th committee wants to speak to congressman jim jordan about his conversations with former president trump in the very midst of the violent attack on the capitol. will he agree? and public outcry after a colorado truck driver is sentenced to 110 years after a fatal crash. why the governor's office is reviewing that case. hey tristan! ♪ ♪ hey lexus... play holiday music! ♪ ♪ we've been waiting all year to come together... have a happy and safe holiday season from lexus. ♪ all the gifts you really, really, really, can't wait to unwrap. ♪ joy. fully. ♪ [sfx: radio being tuned] welcome to allstate. ♪ [band plays] ♪ a place where everyone lives life well-protected. ♪ and even when things go a bit wrong, we've got your back. here, things work the way you wish they would. and better protection costs a whole lot less. you're in good hands with allstate. click or call for a lower auto rate today. michelob ultra organic seltzer. two flavors bursting onto the scene. they'll make quite a splash. now in watermelon strawberry. and black cherry. as real as it tastes. johnson & johnson is the world's largest healthcare company. building a future where cancers can be cured. strokes can be reversed. joints can be 3-d printed. and there isn't one definition of what well feels like. there are millions. we're using our world to make your world a world of well. this is your home. this is your family room slash gym. the guest bedroom slash music studio. the daybed slash dog bed. the living room slash yoga shanti slash regional office slash classroom. and this is the basement slash panic room. maybe what your family needs is a vacation home slash vacation home. find yours on the vrbo app. ♪ nurse mariyam sabo knows a moment this pure... ...demands a lotion this pure. new gold bond pure moisture lotion. 24-hour hydration. no parabens, dyes, or fragrances. gold bond. champion your skin. the house select committee investigating january 6th wants to speak to republican congressman jim jordan. the panel asked him to meet voluntarily and provide information on his communications with former president trump in the very midst of the deadly capitol attack. jordan has been identified as one of the previously unnamed lawmakers who texted then white house chief of staff mark meadows in and around the insurrection. jordan says he has concerns about the committee and somehow accused them of altering documents. >> we're going to review the letter, but to be honest, i have concerns about any committee that will take a document and alter it and present it to the american people completely misleading them like they did last week. it turns out it looks like it wasn't just one document they did with this, it was other text messages as well. i got real concerns with that. >> cnn chief congressional correspondent manu raju joins us live on capitol hill. what's he talking about there? >> reporter: well, he's contending that the text messages at issue he says perhaps they were taken out of context. but the question, those are text messages he exchanged with mark meadows on january 6th. there are sill some questions about his conversations with donald trump as well. that's what the committee wants to get to the bottom of. the question, of course, will be will jim jordan cooperate. he did not say whether or not he would accept this request, not a subpoena yet, but a request to talk to this committee. you see other trump allies like scott perry, the republican congressman, reject the panel's efforts to get him to testify. the question would be if jordan also rejects this request, how far will the committee go? will they issue a subpoena? how will he respond to such an effort to compel him to testify? and if that leads to another standout, how far will the committee go and pursuing contempt charges against a sitting congressman, something that could be very difficult to charge in court. nevertheless, jordan for some time has maintained that he has nothing to hide. i've spoke on the him about this multiple times including in july when i asked him about the committee potentially calling him as a witness, and he said he'd be willing to talk. >> you had conversations about january 6th. >> i speak to the president all the time. >> they asked you -- >> they called me. i got nothing to hide. >> reporter: he said they called me, i've got nothing to hide. now, the question will be what will happen now. another issue involving jim jordan is that he is set to become the chairman of the house judiciary if the republicans take the house majority next year, a likely scenario at this point. if he becomes judiciary chairman, he'll no doubt issue system after subpoena for investigations he wants to pursue. the precedent could be interesting. this process will play auto over some time. how far are will the committee go and how far jordan will go, big questions in the year ahead. >> the texts he's claiming were taken out of context, these are texts that discussed ways to reject the electoral counts from states that trump lost, correct? >> reporter: yeah, exactly. we need to hear the full conversation from jordan himself about why he believes this was taken out of context. but that's his contention. >> manu raju on the hill. thanks very much. president biden is calling for accountability for the january 6th insurrection. in a new interview with abc news, he also answered a question about whether he would be up for a rematch with donald trump in 2024. have a listen to his answer. >> but, look, i'm a great representer of fate. fate has intervened in my life many, many times. if i'm in the health i'm in now, if i'm in good health, and, in fact, i would run again. >> if that means a rematch against donald trump? >> don't try to tempt me now. sure. why would i not run against donald trump? that would increase the prospect of running. >> joining me now to discuss cnn political analyst saddiqui and the managing editor of axios. margaret, let me ask you this. there's so much talk about challengers both to biden within the democratic party, what does kamala harris do, et cetera, and on the republican side as well. the fact is biden is president. trump is still the overwhelming choice of most republicans. is a biden/trump rematch frankly the most like lil scenario in 2024? >> i mean, jim, pending other developments that haven't happened yet, you have to default to yes there. but i think it's interesting that biden decided to answer that question himself rather than leave this to staff. and i think the reasons why are also interesting to think about and to examine. one, you've seen all the speculation about is pete buttigieg in a better position than kamala harris, the vice president and president haven't talked about 2024. the president is trying to avoid that. the other thing that's true is at the start of the biden presidency, we were hearing from trump aides and supporters that whether biden ran again or not could be a decisive factor for trump because biden would be the hardest to beat. i think, you know, we'll know as we see what the economy does, what covid does. that may not be donald trump's central concern or factor anymore. >> watching those approval ratings i'm sure. sabrina saddiqui, build back better already a challenge or pieces of build back better. but bide en in his interview yesterday on the issue of voting rights says he sip ports a carveout to pass it with just 50 votes. as you know, joe manchin not on board for that, at least not publicly. where does that stand as a realistic option for democrats on voting rights? >> i think the reality is that a filibuster is the only way that democrats would be able to advance legislation on voting rights because there simply are not 60 votes there in the senate, and any efforts to reach some kind of compromise have so far failed. there's been increasing pressure on the biden administration as well as congressional democrats to get something done here, especially as you've seen republican-led state ace cross the country pass laws to restrict ballot access, and many of those laws disproportionately impact minorities and other voters who are more likely to support democrats in elections. we recall that president biden at a cnn town hall in october first signaled he was open to altering the filibuster perhaps on voting rights and other issues. since then, we haven't heard much about it. especially as you get into a midterm election year where it's harolder in general to pass legislation, that's going to be a big question, is with the prospect of this being as it is for the past year with both majorities in congress for the democrats, will they do away with the fill buster to get more of president biden's agenda passed? >> margaret, there's been a lot of discussion act joe manchin's future in the democratic party and perhaps trolling or teasing by mitch mcconnell saying we'd love to have him in the republican party. but ron brownstein said the moment manchin leaves the democrats he's no longer the swing vote. he's one of many. i wonder if you, in terms of reality checking this, see him going to the republican party or even going to be an independent in the caucuses with democrats as a realistic possibility. >> jim, i think this is mostly trolling from everything we hear from senator manchin's closest supporters and what he said publicly. they don't expect him to leetch the democratic party. they certainly don't expect him t to be a republican. we've heard if he left at any point he could adopt the sanders' model with a different ideology, but why would you do that? mcconnell would be crazy not to try because why not cree yas v year to date chaos in divisions and why not put a feeler out there in case manchin gets sick and walks away. but we are hearing he intends to remain and stake out the role he has. >> sabrina, it's been interesting to watch the administration's response to the omicron variant, because very quickly biden and others said we are not locking down. you know, go celebrate the holidays, make sure you're vaccinated, but celebrate the holidays. you're reading the politics of today, but we're seeing that omicron may not be as serious as other variants. i wonder if you're hearing -- again, it's early, but if you're hearing folks in the white house who feel they dodged a bullet here. >> i think what i've been hearing when i speak to aides in the white house about the omicron variant is very much that they want to everyone size that this pandemic is not a new phase. this is not the same place we were in last year when there wasn't access to vaccines, and they really want to of course emphasize the importance of people getting vaccinated and boosters and most importantly to stress that these vaccines work. and so far the preliminary evidence suggests that boosters especially are effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalization, and death when it comes to the omicron variant. that's why i think you have seen the shift in tone from president biden as well as other top health officials where they're saying there's no need to lock down or close nonessential businesses. they're not exclusively calling for state and local officials to reinstate mask mandates and they're frankly not discouraging people who are fully vaccinated to go on with their daily act activities, because you don't want to create a sense of panic, and there is a reality now that there will be other variants, other strains, and it's less about locking down and more about learning how to live with the virus. that's the message we're hearing, taking all the protections we have at our disposal. >> public health officials too. i hope you both have a little bit of time off for the holidays. thanks for joining us. >> thanks. happy holidays. it is beginning to look a lot like 2019 at the airport. we got new it istsa numbers. what if i sleep hot? 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(cheers) xfinity brought us together, after all! power your whole home this holiday with wifi speeds faster than a gig. click, call, or visit a store today. sing 2 the tsa expects today to be one of the busiest days yet at airports across the country, rivaling numbers we have not seen since before the pandemic. pete muntean joins us live from reagan national airport where i'm sure it's busy. what do the numbers tell us? >> reporter: yeah, things are getting busier by the moment. we are seeing numbers higher than what we saw back in 2019 before the pandemic. the tsa just screened 2.08 million people at airports across the country since yesterday. compare that to the same day back in 2019 when 1.94 million people were screened. the context is really important. where this day falls on the calendar, the same day back in 2019, that was christmas day when passenger loads would be a bit lighter, although we have seen a week-long streak of numbers near or above 2 million passengers a day. you know, the tsa tells us today is going to be one of the busiest days as you mentioned. also another busy day, january 3rd, when everybody begins coming home all at once. and passengers tell us they are pretty confident even in spite of the omicron variant. here's what they're telling us. >> you can only do what you can do for yourself, you know. what everybody else is doing, you have no control over so that's the scary part. but just, you know, want to go have fun and be safe and mask up and, you know, try to, you know, raise awareness while we're there if you see somebody doing something they shouldn't be doing. but other than that, i feel pretty comfortable. >> reporter: here's the big number, jim. the tsa projects 20 million people in total will fly between today and january 3rd. airlines continue to insist that flying is safe because the heavily filtered air on board and the federal transportation-wide mask mandate in place until march of 2022. now there's another prim between the tsa and the faa. if you don't follow the rule, you could lose your precheck status forever. step out of line, you lose it. >> that's like losing a kidney. pete muntean, thanks so much. the supreme court will take up cases challenging the biden administration's vaccine mandates in the new year. the high court is scheduled to hear arguments in that case january 7th. white house says it is confident in the legal authority of the mandates for large employers and certain health care workers. a supreme court analyst joins me now. joan, you know this court well. in many cases it's had an expansive view of presidential authority, conservative members. where do they stand on this? >> reporter: good morning, jim. this is an uphill battle for biden administration. the occupational safety and health administration's new requirement is that for employers of 100 or more employees, you have to either have them vaccinated or have regular testing. now, you know, osha says this comes out of its authority over protecting workers against infectious diseases. this is a measured, reasonable response to this emergency pandemic situation we have. lower appeals court, the 6th circuit, endorsed it, saying it was tailored to the response right now and falls squarely within osha power. jim, the challengers are making an argument that plays right to where this court has been in the recent past, saying if this kind of sweeping requirement is going to go in across the country to 84 million workers, it should be the business of congress, not to a federal agency. the challengers are saying they're worried about employees quitting rather than getting vaccinated. it's going to be disruptive. and we saw just in the summer when the justices handled the cdc requirement on eviction moratorium where it ruled against that measure saying no matter what the situation is, these are measures that agencies shouldn't be doing. it's for congress to decide. and we'll see on january 7th the tone of the justices' arguments in that regard. >> we know you'll be following. joan biskupic, thanks so much. >> reporter: thanks, jim. a former truck driver gets 110 years in prison for a deadly accident. look at those pictures there. now a colorado district attorney is asking the court to reconsider. [school bus passing by] [kids laughing] [bikes passing] [fire truck siren] [first responder] onstar, we see them. [onstar advisor] okay. mother and child in vehicle. mother is unable to exit the vehicle. injuries are unknown. [first responder] thank you, onstar. [driver] my son, is he okay? [first responder] your son's fine. [driver] thank you. there was something in the road... [first responder] it's okay. you're safe now. ("this little light of mine") - [narrator] in the world's poorest places, they're shunned, outcast, living in pain. you can reach out and change the life of a suffering child right now. a surgery that takes as little as 45 minutes and your act of love can change a child's life forever. please call or visit operationsmile.org now. thousands of children are waiting. jo more than 4 million people have signed a petition to grant clemency for a truck driver who was sentenced to 110 years in prison for his involvement in a deadly crash. according to the arrest affidavit, 26-year-old rogel aguilero me der roese was driving 85 miles per hour in a tractor-trailer when he says his brakes failed. that led to a fire and a 28-car pileup that killed four people. he was convicted as homicide. now colorado's district attorney is asking the court to reconsider his sentence. it's interesting for the d.a., right, to recommend a lower sentence here. what do we expect to happen? >> reporter: that's right, jim. the status hearing has been set for monday. the district filed a second motion to expedite this process so it could be heard by the same judge who presided over the case. this wouldn't overturn the conviction, but the district attorney said in a statement, quote, it simply allows the court greater flexibility than at the initial sentencing. at issue are these colorado minimum sentencing laws that says they have to be served consecutively. the sentence is twice as long as some murder convicts. almost immediately the sentence drew scrutiny, include prg the judge himself who roit rs reporters said if i had the discretion, it would not be my sen e tns. the attorney representing medeiros says the laws need to change. take a listen. >> our system at this facility has created a situation where a judge, at their own discretion, who doesn't want to issue a sentence, has said that. we hope to achieve reforms. that's what this is all about. we have to reform the system that has created a situation where we are creating more victims of our justice system. we have to do that now. >> reporter: there was a small protest this week over the sentence. more than 4.7 million signaturing asking colorado governor jared polis to reduce the sentence. kim kardashian got involved saying the law should be changed. the governor's office is telling cnn it is reviewing me der roese' clemency requests. >> lucy, thanks very much. it has been a heck of a year when it comes to sports from no fans at the tokyo olympics to athletes taking a stand for mental health. the top ten sports stories of the year next. we've been waiting all year to come together. ♪ happy holidays from lexus. get $1500 lease cash toward a 2022 rx 350. ♪ ♪“i got you babe” by etta james♪ ♪ get groceries, gifts, & more fast and easy. so last minute guests are the only thing you'll be waiting on. ♪ joy. fully. ♪ firefighter maggie gronewald knows how to handle dry weather... ...and dry, cracked skin. new gold bond advanced healing ointment. restore healthy skin, with no sticky feeling. gold bond. champion your skin. feel stuck with student loan debt? ♪ move your student loan debt to sofi. earn a $1,000 bonus when you refi— and feel what it's like to get your money right. ♪ ♪ ♪ why go back to reality. when you could go back to the pool? the last day of vacation is still vacation with guaranteed 4pm checkout at over 1,200 fine hotels & resorts properties. one of the many reasons you're with amex platinum. ♪ i see trees of green ♪ ♪ red roses too ♪ ♪ i see them bloom for me and you ♪ (music) ♪ so i think to myself ♪ ♪ oh what a wonderful world ♪ covid could have a big impact on the college football playoffs. new protocols say if any of the four teams can't play because of an outbreak on their team, they'll have to forfeit. the other team will automatically move on. wow. fallout from the pandemic just one of the major held lines in the sports world this year. andy scholes takes a look back at the top ten of 2021. number ten in 2021, age is just a number. 50-year-old phil mickelson becoming the oldest golfer to win a major, his second pga championship 16 years after his first. his sixth major title, sixth since 2013. >> it's very possible this is the last tournament i ever win but no reason i or anybody else can't do it at a later age. it just takes a little more work. >> number nine, tom brady meanwhile looks like he may never age. >> 43-year-old tom brady wins an historic seventh title in his first season with a new team. >> brady leading the buccaneers to a convincing win over the chiefs. the bucs the first team ever to win a super bowl in their home stadium. brady and the team celebrating with a boat parade that saw him completing yet another one. >> oh, wow! >> 2021 was the year of the bucs. milwaukee also pclaiming their first nba title since 1971. >> major league baseball is moving its all-star game out of georgia because of the state's new law that critics say suppresses voting. >> in april, major league baseball pulled the all-star game from atlanta. in october, atlanta hosted the world series and pulled off one of the most unexpected runs in baseball history, beating the astros to win their first world series tight until 26 years. the team's unlikely championship coming in the same year as they lost hank aaron, who passed away at 86 years old. number seven -- >> ncaa march madness, the biggest tournament in college basketball for women. this is our weight room. let me show you all the men's weight room. >> reporter: the ncaa admitted failing to provide services for women last march and vowed to do better. march madness was back in 2021, but it wasn't the same with limited fans. the men's tournament in indiana, the women's in texas. i'm not a racist. i can't tell you how sick i am. >> breaking overnight, jon gruden stepping down as head coach of the nfl's las vegas raiders hours after "the new york times" reported on homophobic, misogynistic, and racist remarks he made in emails over a seven-year period. >> the emails discovered during a probe into workplace misconduct within the washington football organization. after resigning, gruden filing a lawsuit against the nfl accusing the league of selectively leaking his emails to ruin his repu reputation. five, vaccines. >> aaron rodgers defending his controversial comments where he raised doubts about the covid vaccine after he tested positive for covid. he also addressed when he lied and claimed he was immunized. >> i misled people about my status, and i take full responsibility. >> he missed one game for the packers battling covid. golf legend tiger woods hospitalized after a very serious rollover car crash. >> golf legend tiger woods is in the hospital right now after having to be cut out of his vehicle. >> i'm lucky to be alive but also still have the limb. those are two crucial things. >> nearly ten months after the crash, tigere hosted his golf tournament in the bahamas and continued to make progress. in december, he surprised in competing in a tournament with his son charlie. three, despite the pandemic and calls to cancel the games, the tokyo 2020 olympics taking place without spectators in most venues. it was another historic games for team usa. >> the most deck rated u.s. track and field olympian ever, allyson felix secured that title at the summer games. a historic moment for usa. >> katie ledecky is basking in the glory of having made olympic history, like, again and again and again. two, a big theme in 2021 was athletes continuing to campaign for mental health awareness. >> sorry. >> you're super good. >> okay. i think we're just going to take a quick break. we'll be back in one moment. >> osaka revealing that press conferences give her anxioety ad she dealt with depression since winning her first title. she pulled out of wimbledon and the u.s. open to work on her mental health. and number one, major breaking news out of the olympics. we just learned that simone biles has pulled out of the team competition. >> at the end of the day, we're not just entertainment. we're humans. there are things going on behind the scenes we try to jumble as well. >> she showed the world even if you're superwoman, it's okay to not feel okay. she'll go down as one of the greatest olympians ever. >> while she would return to competition and take the bronze medal on the balance beam. what a year and it went fast. thanks for joining us today. we hope you're having a good holiday. i'm jim sciutto. "at this hour" with kate bolduan starts after a short break. this is your home. this is your family room slash gym. the guest bedroom slash music studio. the daybed slash dog bed. the living room slash yoga shanti slash regional office slash classroom. and this is the basement slash panic room. maybe what your family needs is a vacation home slash vacation home. find yours on the vrbo app. ♪ what do we want for dinner? burger... i want a sugar cookie... wait... i want a bucket of chicken... i want... ♪ it's the easiest because it's the cheesiest. kraft. for the win win. it's our holiday savings event on the sleep number 360 smart bed. what if i sleep hot? ...or cold? no problem, the sleep number 360 smart bed is temperature balancing so you both sleep just right. and it senses your movements and automatically adjusts to keep you both effortlessly comfortable. so, you can really promise better sleep? yes! you'll know exactly how well you slept, night after night. we take care of the science. all you have to do is sleep. and now, save up to $500 on select sleep number 360 smart beds. plus, 0% interest for 48 months. only for a limited time. to learn more, go to sleepnumber.com and that's just basic wavy guy maintenance, right? next up, carvana. oh, boy. carvana just doesn't seem to understand how the test drive works. they give their customers seven days. and if they don't like it, they give 'em their money back. wait, they take the car back? that's crazy! what if it was driven by like a zookeeper? or a mud wrestler? or a guy who's on the outs with the missus and he just needs a place to sleep for seven days? yeah. (vo) buy your car online. love it or return it. with carvana. at fidelity, your dedicated advisor will help you create a comprehensive wealth plan for your full financial picture. with the right balance of risk and reward. so you can enjoy more of...this. this is the planning effect. small businesses like yours make gift-giving possible. now, comcast business has an exclusive gift for you. introducing the gift of savings sale. for a limited time, ask how to get a great deal for your business. and get up to a $500 prepaid card with select bundles when you switch to the network that can deliver gig speeds to the most businesses. or get started with internet and voice for $64.99 per month with a 2-year price guarantee. give your business the gift of savings today. comcast business. powering possibilities. i'm kate bolduan. signs of hope -- new evidence omicron poses a lower risk of serious illness and the fda authorizes a second pill to treat the virus just as cases are surging, nearing the highest levels we've ever seen. open or shut -- schools wrestling with whether to stay open or keep students home again, while restaurantsings are dealing with a surge that could force them to close their doors forever. and from christmas cheer to new year's worry, a new look at what ending the enhanced child tax credit could mean and make -- mean for m