>> no one dressed up as a right now on "america this morning," the next big step in the fight against covid. the new time line for when kids as young as 5 could get vaccinated. also, president biden's message to companies about vaccine redict which anyone planning to travel over the holidays needs to hear. submarine collision mystery. a u.s. nuclear sub damaged after an underwater crash in the south china sea. crew members injured. what we're learning this morning. a multimillion dollar health care fraud bust. former star athletes accused of scamming the nba's insurance plan claiming they had root canals and other medical procedures that never happened. how prosecutors say they got away with it until now. plus, how brian laundrie's

father is helping to search for his son as we learn new details > the new sech on diet soda and its effect on womenget fan getting tel to the seahawks seahawk to the tennis star who had his sneakers stolen. it's friday, october 8th. good friday morning, everyone. i'm andrew dymburt. >> and i'm faith abubey. mona is off. we begin with a major step forward in fighting the coronavirus. >> pfizer is now officially asking the fda to authorize its vaccine for kids 5 to 11, and we have new details on the next steps including what it could mean for the holiday season. and speaking of the holiday season, a new prediction is out this morning on holiday travel. airlines say business is about to take off. >> abc's elizabeth schulze is here with the latest. elizabeth, good morning. >> reporter: andrew, good morning to you. well, if pfizer gets this

approval, more than 28 million kids could soon get vaccinated. a long awaited step towards getting millions of younger american children vaccinated. pfizer says it's now requesting fda emergency authorization of its covid vaccine for 5 to 11-year-olds calling the shots safe and effective during clinical trials. >> protection in our pediatric populations is part of the key to finally putting an end to this pandemic. >> reporter: the fda will meet october 26th to review pfizer's data. then the cdc must sign off. the shot would be one-third of the dose kids ages 12 and over receive, and like adults children would need two shots about a month apart. that means kids ages 5 to 11 likely won't be fully vaccinated until after thanksgiving. 9-year-old luke moore got his shots as part of pfizer's trial. >> i feel good about it. i really want everybody vaccinated so at school people

could have their mask off. >> reporter: the white house says 78% of adults have now gotten at least one shot of a covid vaccine. president biden is pushing more companies to impose vaccine mandates. >> look, i know vaccination requirements are tough medicine. unpopular with some, politics for others, but they're life saving. >> reporter: the push to boost vaccinations comes ahead of what's expected to be a busy holiday travel season. united airlines says it plans to fly 3,500 domestic flights in december every single day. that's almost as many flights that were in the air back in 2019, and united adds flight searches are up 16% compared to before the pandemic. the cdc is also reminding americans to get their flu shots saying it could help reduce strain on already overwhelmed hospitals. andrew. >> elizabeth, thank you. the navy is investigating an underwater collision involving a

nuclear-powered submarine in the south china sea. they say the "uss connecticut" struck an unidentified object which could happen when the sonar is turned off. some crew membered were injured, most suffered bumps and bruises. the vessel will undergo a a damage assessment in guam to determine what the submarine hit. senate democrats voted to raise the debt ceiling to avoid a federal default for now. 11 republicans cleared the way by voting to advance the bill to increase the nation's borrowing limit by $480 billion through december. the house is expected to follow next week. some republicans accuse senate minority leader mitch mcconnell of backing down, but mcconnell says democrats still have to pass a long-term bill on their own. and new fallout from the abortion battle in texas. even though a federal judge has ordered the state to stop enforcing that strict new abortion law, some clinics are waiting on the sidelines before they resume the procedures. the judge's decision on thursday suspended the texas law which allowed private

citizens to sue anyone for helping a woman gain access to an abortion if she's more than six weeks pregnant. the case will likely end up before the u.s. supreme court and with more conservatives on the bench, legal experts say this could mark the end of abortion rights being federally protected. >> at least if the supreme court's composition doesn't change, it seems to me that roe was the law of the land is likely to remain in effect as only for at most the next couple of years, but i think it's probably not long for this world. >> well, there are some clinics in texas that are saying they're hesitant to resume abortion procedures and will wait for the legal process to play out. we're learning more about a major health care insurance fraud bust involving 18 former pro basketball players. the high-profile athletes are charged with running a scheme to get big money for medical procedures that never happened. this morning, officials calling foul on more than a dozen former nba players busted in a multimillion dollar insurance scam. >> each defendant fraudulently

sought reimbursement ranging from approximately $65,000 to as much as $420,000. >> reporter: prosecutors say at least 18 players including former celtic terrence williams pocketed up to $2.5 million of insurance payouts after fabricating appointments and procedures by choir tractors, dentists and other doctors. among those charged, greg smith. >> great pass to smith for two. >> reporter: he allegedly claimed $48,000 for a root canal at a beverly hills dentist's office in 2018, but he was actually playing basketball in taiwan that day. meanwhile, glen davis, anthony wroten and anthony allen allegedly claim they had six root canals each on the same day in 2016. 16 were arrested and charged tursday for false claims totaling $3.9 million. former nets player sebastian telfair leaving court wearing an ankle monitor after pleading not

guilty, but the u.s. attorney says it was terrence williams who was the mastermind receiving nearly $250,000 in kickbacks from the other players involved. >> first williams obtained fraudulent medical and dental invoices. second, he sent those invoices to his co-conspirators, other former nba players. third, the co-conspirators submitted the fraudulent claims to the plan. >> other than sebastian telfair, no other men have entered a plea or commented. the nba mean while calls the allegations disheartening. the operator of the german cargo ship says the vessel is no longer being investigated in connection with the southern california oil spill. authorities boarded the "rotterdam express" looking into whether its anchor may have damaged a pipeline causing that spill, but the ship never actually passed over that pipeline. prosecutors in orange county now opened a criminal investigation into the company that runs the pipeline. a scathing report from the u.s. senate found former president trump asked the justice department nine times to

overturn the results of the 2020 election. the report details a pressure campaign that included a three-hour meeting in the oval office in january. officials told lawmakers trump tried to replace acting attorney general jeffrey rosen because rosen refused to say the election was corrupt. trump backed down after several administration officials threatened to quit. meanwhile, trump is reportedly telling his former aides to defy subpoenas from the house committee investigating january's attack on the capitol. lawmakers have asked former chief of staff mark meadows, ex-adviser steve bannon and others for documents. trump plans to invoke executive privilege. the nobel peace prize is being awarded this morning and the winners are two journalists from the philippines and russia. they're both being honored for helping safeguard freedom of speech including running the only opposition newspaper in russia. the judges saying democracy is under threat around the world making the work of these journalists even more important.

at least four deaths are now blamed on flash flooding in alabama, and they include a 4-year-old girl. more than a foot of rain fell in some areas of the state turning streets into rivers and washing away cars. more than 100 people had to be rescued. let's take a look at your friday forecast. heavy rain is expected across the great lakes and the ohio valley and flash flood watches are in effect for parts of georgia. storms are also stretching from northern california to montana and some of that rain in the west will turn into snow. winter weather advisories have been issued for parts of california and utah where 6 to 12 inches of snow is possible. and checking today's high temperatures, 70s and dry in the northeast. mid-90s in parts of texas and oklahoma. 60s in southern california. coming up, one of the most popular celebrity chefs makes a big announcement. but first the search right

now for a 3-year-old boy missing in texas. and the punishment this morning for this woman who approached a grizzly bear in yellowstone national park.

an illinois woman will spend four days in jail for defying rules at yellowstone national a grizzly bear and three cubs to do, what else, take pictures. the woman was vilified on social media after video of the incident went viral. now to the urgent search for a 3-year-old boy in texas last seen chasing a dog. well police overnight said there is no evidence of foul play. here's abc's megan tevrizian. >> reporter: this morning, a desperate plea from a texas mother whose 3-year-old son seemingly vanished.

[ speaking foreign language ] christopher ramirez was seen wednesday afternoon. authorities believe he followed a dog into the woods and never came back. >> there is no evidence of foul play. there is no evidence that he left on his own, so we've got one fact, the fact that he's missing. >> reporter: overnight a massive search around the 4 1/2-mile wooded area near houston. law enforcement combing every inch with dogs and manpower, even draining one large body of water and deploying divers to search smaller ones. >> this is still a rescue. it is not a recovery. some people asked me that a while ago. to be crystal clear, we're still looking for that young man just conducting the process of elimination. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: deputies translating for the mother explaining the time line when she realized her son was

missing. >> the question was, how long before she noticed that the child was not there. she estimates it was probably two minutes. >> reporter: about 150 people are out searching for christopher including volunteers and members of eight fire departments. faith, andrew. >> megan, thank you. meanwhile, the hunt for brian laundrie resumes today at a nature preserve in florida. laundrie's father is now helping in the search by pointing authorities to his son's favorite hiking trails. laundrie remains a person of interest in the death of his fiancee, gabby petito. police tell cnn they never spoke with laundrie before he went missing even though they were keeping an eye on him with some surveillance. so it turns out drinking so-called diet soda may actually increase food cravings, especially among women and people with obesity. that's according to new research which blames an artificial sweetener and researchers say even though sugar sweetened drinks have more calories, they do not stimulate your appetite the same way diet drinks do.

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broke down. his current deal expires at the end of the year. actor woody harrelson will not face charges for punching a man at the watergate hotel in washington. harrelson was with his daughter at the bar when the man, who witnesses say was drunk, took pictures of them. harrelson asked the man to delete those photos. that's when the man lunged at harrelson and the actor defended himself. the other man could face charges. we turn now to the california man lucky to be alive, after his terrifying encount we are a great white shark. this morning, a surfer is sharing his survivor story after a shark attacked him off the california coast. >> i punched the thing. you can see just from grazing its teeth, i cut my hand. >> reporter: eric says he was on his surf board in the bay area sunday when he fete a bite on his leg. >> i felt this heavy thin pull on me. it was like a clamp around my leg. and we went under water together

in slow motion. and i reached down to grab what it was. >> reporter: he fought back, punching the shark in the nose, slicing his hand on its teeth. >> i gave it all i had. >> reporter: then with blood pouring from his leg, he paddled back to shore, where other surfers made a tourniquet. >> it did a lot of he will top save his leg. >> reporter: they tested the dna of the fight from his surf board confirming it was a great board. he says he hopes to surf again one day, but after surgery on his leg, it won't be soon. >> i still want to be part of the lifestyle. i'm just so thankful they were there, and still in dischief that i'm alive because of it. >> doctors say his wounds were so serious, that he could take up to a year to recover. u.s. marshals cleared a los angeles dodgers fan who resembles one of the nation's

most wanted fugitives. he was seen on tv in 2016, similar to that of john ruffo. marshals took his fingerprints yesterday and termed he is not ruffo. and thursday night football, russell wilson disloc and the seahawks mascot, a real hawk, landed on a fan in the crowd. luckily nobody was hurt, except for maybe seahawks fans because they lost the game to the rams, 26-17. >> ouch, ouch, ouch! coming up, the tennis star who finally got his shoes back. also ahead, a man who is going to make us all feel very people everywhere living with type 2 diabetes are waking up to what's possible with rybelsus®. ♪ you are my sunshine ♪ ♪ my only sunshine... ♪ rybelsus® works differently than any other diabetes pill

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and we begin with the peak of joy for a russian climber. >> he just scaled one of the world's tallest mountains. he is the first person to do it with no legs. the double amputee climbed nepal's mt. manaslu using his hands to pull himself up all 26,000 feet. >> remarkable. he lost his legs during an accident, but he still lives life to the fullest. all right, next mystery solved for tennis star andy murray after his shoes were stolen with his wedding ring attached to them. >> yeah. murray was airing out his sweaty sneakers under his car outside a california hotel but forgot his ring was tied to the laces, and when he came back, the shoes were gone. >> so he went on social media asking for help saying he was in hot water with his wife. yeah, you think? luckily after a call to hotel security, he was reunited with the ring, but he says the shoes still stink. >> all right, next a bumbling bank robber, and you can add this to the dumb criminal file. >> because police say a man

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solutions. this is abc7 news. >> a big fight something multiple people to move the hospital and what san jose police are saying. >> and a path towards lifting the mask mandate in the bay area. >> a live look at two spots expected to be packed with crowds this weekend. two major events will draw people from all over the weekend. good morning abc7. you are watching abc7 mornings -- good morning to you are watching abc7 mornings. >> i am so excited about this morning. mike, yesterday, we saw the blue angels practicing. mike: heard them. [laughter] did you enjoy it? >> yeah, it was really cool. mike: one of the benefits of living in or close to the city. i do not get to see them, but hope to this weekend. feels like we are back to normal. giants back in the playoffs, fleet week, and the weather will be pristine. >> yes! [laughter]