City of Hope, a prominent not-for-profit cancer researcher and treatment provider, said Wednesday it plans to buy Cancer Treatment Centers of America.

The deal, expected to close early next year pending regulatory approval, would create a large network of inpatient and outpatient oncology care that would serve an estimated 115,000 patients annually. The definitive agreement holds that Duarte, California-based City of Hope would pay $390 million for CTCA, based in Boca Raton, Florida.

“In Cancer Treatment Centers of America, we found an organization that shares with us that nonnegotiable value of putting patients first, the urgency of eliminating cancer and the commitment to delivering high-quality care,” City of Hope CEO Robert Stone said in an interview.

The transaction would unite two cancer specialists with decidedly different backgrounds. City of Hope is among 71 National Cancer Institute-designed cancer centers in the country. It’s a distinction the federal agency grants to providers

As the omicron coronavirus variant spreads in southern Africa and pops up in countries all around the world, scientists are anxiously watching a battle play out that could determine the future of the pandemic. Can the latest competitor to the world-dominating delta overthrow it?

Some scientists, poring over data from South Africa and the United Kingdom, suggest omicron could emerge the victor.

“It’s still early days, but increasingly, data is starting to trickle in, suggesting that omicron is likely to outcompete delta in many, if not all, places,” said Dr. Jacob Lemieux, who monitors variants for a research collaboration led by Harvard Medical School.

But others said Monday it’s too soon to know how likely it is that omicron will spread more efficiently than delta, or, if it does, how fast it might take over.

“Especially here in the U.S., where we’re seeing significant surges in delta, whether omicron’s going

Starting Dec. 27, New Yorkers age 12 and older will be required to show proof of two vaccine doses, instead of one, except for those who have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

“We in New York City have decided to use a preemptive strike to really do something bold to stop the further growth of COVID and the dangers it’s causing to all of us,” de Blasio said.

De Blasio’s announcement for private-sector employees includes new expansions to the city’s “Key to NYC” vaccination proof requirements.

The private-sector mandate is the latest vaccine mandate ordered by de Blasio this year that ties proof of vaccination status to employment. De Blasio issued an executive order on Oct. 27 that required all city workers to receive at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. He previously issued vaccine requirements aimed squarely at Department of Education employees.

The Dec. 27 private-sector