Nurse!

Coronavirus be damned -- 22,000 people will get to sit and watch Super Bowl LV in Tampa Bay next month ... with 7,500 of those scheduled to be vaccinated health care workers.

The NFL made the announcement Friday ... saying they consulted with officials and experts throughout the country to ensure they can keep that many people safe despite the pandemic.

The Shield also laid out the safety guidelines fans must follow if they do get a seat at Raymond James Stadium ... saying masks, social distancing and "podded seating" will all be requirements.

NFL officials also say there will be "touchless in-stadium experiences at concessions, restrooms, and security checkpoints" to further help reduce the spread of COVID-19.

As for the health care workers part of it all ... the NFL is doing some REALLY awesome things there -- giving out 7,500 free tickets for those who have put their lives on the line for others in the pandemic.

In fact, league commish Roger Goodell surprised a group of nurses and front line hospital workers with invitations on a crashed video call Friday that was seriously awesome.

"We owe them our ongoing gratitude," Goodell said. "We hope in a small way that this initiative will inspire our country and recognize these true American heroes."

The league says most of the health care workers who have been invited to the big Feb. 7 game will come from the Tampa and central Florida area.

FYI -- the NFL says it played host to more than 1.2 million fans at its 116 games this season.

Shout out to our pal, JT The Brick, for first suggesting the idea to gift Super Bowl tickets to health care workers.

Brett Favre is issuing a stern warning to Patrick Mahomes ... telling TMZ Sports the quarterback NEEDS to listen to the doctors when it comes to handling his concussion.

The NFL's most legendary ironman explained ... "I played 321 straight games, it kind of goes against everything I stood for when I played. But, you got to be smart. You've got to be smart."

Favre says he's legitimately worried about the Chiefs star's long-term health ... telling us if Mahomes rushes back to the field after suffering that head injury against the Browns on Sunday, it could have dire consequences.

"When you're in the moment, and you're young, you're bulletproof, man," Favre says. "But, I'm 51 years old and I'm wondering what tomorrow will bring because of concussions more than anything."

Mahomes and the Chiefs play the Bills on Sunday ... and many in Kansas City and around the league are hoping the QB can clear concussion protocol and play in the huge matchup.

But, Favre is stressing the need for Patrick to be honest with doctors and coaches about his symptoms ... and to take it all very seriously.

Of course, caring for head injuries is a cause very near to Brett's heart ... he's expressed concern he might have CTE due to all the hits he's suffered.

Liv Tyler has had a terrifying 2021, which began with a COVID diagnosis that left her in physical and emotional turmoil.

Liv said she found out on New Year's Eve she tested positive for the virus ... "Suddenly on The morn of the last day of 2020 ... boom it took me down. It comes on fast, like a locomotive, Owchie." She goes on ... "With it Feelings of fear, shame and guilt swirling through you, who could you have gotten it from and who could you have infected ... Terrifying. Luckily the rest of my family and bubble were negative."

And, then there are the symptoms ... "It F's with your body and mind equally. Everyday different. Being isolated in a room alone for 10 days is trippy to say the least."

The 'Lord of the Rings' star, who has 3 kids, says, "I missed My babies beyond but they visited my window and called up to me and I watch them play outside. Such a gift. They sent little messages and drawings under my door. Reminders of what's on the other side. What to get better for."

What's interesting -- and scary -- Liv took all sorts of precautions. In fact, she bowed out of returning to film "9-1-1: Lone Star" last year because she was so concerned about COVID.

Liv has now been reunited with 4-year-old Lula Rose, 5-year-old Sailor Gene, and 16-year-old Milo William, posting a pic of her embracing the 2 youngins, with the caption, "Reunited with my loves ... what a wild 2 weeks."

Dr. Dre will finally get to sleep in his own bed tonight -- he's been discharged from the hospital after suffering a brain aneurysm, but doctors are still watching him closely.

Sources close to Dre tell TMZ ... he went home Friday and while he's on the road to recovery, he still needs attention. We're told there are medical professionals at his home who will monitor him 24/7 for the next few weeks to make sure he's okay.

Our sources tell us Dre was in ICU at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. until Wednesday, when he was then moved to a private room at the hospital. Although he's been released, we're told doctors still don't know what triggered the brain bleed -- and that's part of the reason for the at-home care.

We broke the story ... Dre suffered an aneurysm at his Pacific Palisades home on Jan. 4 and was rushed by ambulance to Cedars.

Our sources told us Dre's doctors cautiously informed his family a "bad outcome" did not appear to be on the horizon.

"Saved by the Bell" star Dustin Diamond's suspicion is now a scary reality -- he has stage 4 cancer, and has already started treatment to fight it.

According to the actor's rep ... Diamond has cancer throughout his body, he's currently getting his first round of chemotherapy. We're told he first discovered a lump in his throat, which led to the diagnosis.

The rep says Dustin is also experiencing pain from having shingles.

We broke the story ... Diamond, best known as Screech from the '90s sitcom, was hospitalized this past weekend in Florida after feeling pain all over his body and a general sense of unease.

The L.A. County Dept. of Public Health is allowing clinics to throw unused vaccines in the trash rather than inoculate thousands of residents who are desperate to get the shot, and it has enraged at least one county leader who is on a mission to reverse this insane policy.

L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn is reacting to a story TMZ broke last week, where a clinic administering the vaccine to health care workers ended the day with 150 unused vials of the COVID vaccine that were about to spoil ... because a huge number of people who signed up were no shows.

The clinic -- the Men's Health Foundation in Inglewood -- contacted people who were not on the priority list but desperately wanted the vaccine, and these folks got the remaining doses. Incredibly, that runs afoul of the County Health Dept's guidelines, which say ONLY people on the priority list should be vaccinated, EVEN IF THE VACCINES WOULD OTHERWISE END UP IN THE TRASH.

We worked this story for 4 days, and went back and forth with the Health Department, which never gave us an answer to our question -- ISN'T IT BETTER TO VACCINATE NON-PRIORITY RESIDENTS THAN THROW THE PRECIOUS VACCINES IN THE GARBAGE? We never got an official answer to that question, but sources who were on a call with the Health Dept. tell us they decided they would not take punitive action against clinics that replicated what the Men's Health Foundation did. But, that's a terrible solution.

Here's the problem ... the policy still says non-priority people cannot get the vaccine now, so clinics are essentially being told it's still wrong to vaccinate non-priority residents, even if the vaccines would otherwise go to waste. What's even worse, the County Health Dept. has NEVER EVEN STATED PUBLICLY THEY WOULD NOT TAKE ACTION AGAINST THESE CLINICS, so the fear is that vaccines are getting thrown in the garbage.

Supervisor Hahn is outraged, and wants the Health Dept. to get with the program and clarify this insane regulation ... IMMEDIATELY.

Fact is, the Department, led by Barbara Ferrer, has been utterly unprepared for the vaccine rollout, and folks inside her Dept. are enraged. There was no real plan for vaccinations, despite the fact everyone knew for months the vaccines were on the horizon.

To get real ... it defies common sense to throw these life-saving vaccines out rather than create a waiting list for ANYONE when there are unused vials that are no longer frozen and about to spoil.

This is probably an issue all over the country, and it must be addressed now ... as in NOW.

***WARNING: THESE IMAGES ARE VERY, VERY GROSS!!!***

A bodybuilder in the UK says he nearly lost both of his legs after he violently fell down his staircase about a month ago ... but, fortunately, he says his Amazon Alexa saved him.

The story is absolutely terrifying ... Dante McNulty -- a 40-year-old diehard gym-goer -- says he got up in the middle of the night to let his dog out when he slipped and fell down his stairs.

McNulty says the crash left him unconscious in a kneeling position for hours ... and with his entire 230-pound frame crushing his legs for that long, he suffered serious damage.

McNulty says blood flow was blocked to his lower legs ... resulting in acute compartment syndrome, which can sometimes be so severe, it can cause the loss of limbs.

"I just remember I couldn’t feel my legs," McNulty said of the incident. "I couldn’t walk or move, I felt paralyzed. Below my knees was cold, they didn’t seem swollen but I had a lot of veins pop just under my kneecap."

McNulty, though, says he was able to yell for his Alexa to call for help ... and he was able to get emergency medical care right away.

According to a GoFundMe set up for the bodybuilder, McNulty underwent immediate surgery ... with doctors cutting open his calves to the bone with the hopes of relieving swelling.

"He was put into an induced coma and on a ventilator, alongside dialysis and blood transfusions," McNulty's family said in a statement on the GoFundMe.

Thankfully, after several more surgeries and days recovering, McNulty's family says he was just recently discharged from the hospital and is attempting to re-learn how to walk.

"It really is unbelievable," McNulty said of the whole incident. "Thank God my WiFi was working that day."

Several NFL stars had big bones to pick with Nick Saban on Monday night ... with Patrick Mahomes, Jalen Ramsey and others blasting the coach and the Tide for playing injured star Jaylen Waddle.

The future NFL wideout broke his ankle against Tennessee back on Oct. 24 ... and had to have major surgery to repair the damage.

But, Waddle still suited up for the Tide's championship game with Ohio State ... and it became clear right away, the dude was nowhere close to 100 percent.

After catching a pass on the first drive of the game, he had a noticeable limp ... and seconds later, stars throughout the NFL wondered out loud why the hell he was playing.

"Who advised 17 for Bama to play?" Ramsey said in a tweet. "Whoever it is definitely doesn’t have his best interest at heart. As a competitor, I understand why he would want to play, but no way he should be out there with the future he has ahead. I hope he can stay safe."

Added Mahomes, "Respect the heart! But you can’t let that man be out there!"

Even Tennessee Titans star A.J. Brown chimed in, writing on his social media page, "Waddle please sit down."

Waddle is expected to be a possible top-15 pick in April's NFL draft -- which caused star Colts linebacker Darius Leonard to also fire away at 'Bama, writing, "Cmon nick don’t let Waddle do this, he’s hurt and shouldn’t be out there! Cmon bro! Sometimes you gotta protect players from themselves!"

For Waddle and 'Bama's part, the school said the wideout was cleared by doctors to return to football activities with the team last week.

Nurses on the front lines of the country's COVID-19 epicenter are getting some mental relief in a unique way ... puppies are live streaming inside a Los Angeles hospital.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ ... a hospital on Los Angeles' Westside recently installed a puppy cam in the nurses' station, beaming in live video of adorable pooches to help boost morale.

Our sources say the puppy assist is the brainchild of the hospital's chief nursing officer, who wanted to help nurses feeling stressed out by the pandemic, which is overwhelming L.A. hospitals.

Not surprisingly, puppy cam is a huge hit ... we're told folks working at the hospital absolutely love seeing the dogs, and even taking a small moment in a hectic day to watch the pups is helping decrease stress levels.

L.A. hospitals are scrambling to find beds for COVID patients as the virus continues to surge, so the nurses really need the morale boost.

For the first time in more than 8,000 episodes, someone other than Alex Trebek is hosting "Jeopardy!" ... so the new guy made sure to pay a fitting tribute to the late TV legend.

Ken Jennings kicked off his stint as interim host of the famous game show by honoring the man who made it famous ... saying Alex was pretty much perfect at what he did for more than 36 years.

Jennings pointed to Trebek's intelligence, charm and grace as reasons why he will never be replaced ... but told the audience the best way to honor him is "by playing the game he loved."

Jennings will be hosting throughout January to help the show out while it looks for a permanent replacement. Ken's obviously known as the greatest "Jeopardy!" contestant of all time, but when it comes to his hosting chops ... he's previously made it clear, "There will only ever be one Alex Trebek."

"Jeopardy!" paid its final respects to the beloved host last week with a 90-second video tribute thanking him for his 37 seasons of service, since he began the gig in 1984. The highlight montage played during the airing of the last episode Trebek taped.

In Trebek's heartbreaking final sign-off, he thanked viewers for watching and said he'd see them again next week. Sadly, Alex died 10 days later without filming another episode.

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman has tested positive for COVID-19, and she's squarely blaming fellow lawmakers who refused to wear masks while they were sheltering in place during the Capitol attack.

The Congresswoman from New Jersey announced her diagnosis Monday ... linking the positive test to last week's events that forced her to take refuge with other lawmakers in the Capitol Building. She tweeted, "Following the events of Wednesday, including sheltering with several colleagues who refused to wear masks, I decided to take a Covid test."

The 75-year-old lawmaker added, "I received a positive test result for COVID-19, and am home resting at this time. While I am experiencing mild, cold-like symptoms, I remain in good spirits and will continue to work on behalf of my constituents.”

The lawmaker is now isolating and awaiting the results of PCR testing. Interestingly, Coleman is among a score of lawmakers who have already received the first dose of Pfizer's COVID vaccine.

Remember, members of congress had to shelter together in an undisclosed location after President Trump's supporters stormed the Capitol in the failed coup. There's video showing several Republican members refusing to wear masks being passed around by Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester.

The news comes one day after the attending physician of the U.S. Congress said members and their staff may have been exposed as a result of the riots.

Dr. Brian Monahan sent a memo to all members of Congress to inform them that sheltering with other members in a room for a long period of time may have exposed them to the virus.

Dr. Dre is still in intensive care, one week after he was rushed to the hospital after suffering a brain aneurysm, and doctors are still trying to figure out what happened.

Sources connected to Dre with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Dre's where he's been since last Monday -- in ICU at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. Our sources say doctors continue to do a battery of tests to get to the root problem. Doctors also want him in ICU in case, God forbid, he suffers another aneurysm ... if that happens, time would be of the essence.

We don't know if Dre has gone into surgery, but that's usually the case to stop bleeding.

As for his current state ... the music legend is resting comfortably, and perhaps even more encouraging, our sources say docs have cautiously informed his family that a "bad outcome" doesn't appear to be on the horizon.

TMZ broke the story ... Dre suffered the aneurysm at his Pacific Palisades home Monday and was rushed by ambulance to Cedars.

The coronavirus vaccine is going to people who are NOT currently on the priority list, but various health experts say ... it's actually a very good thing.

The best way to explain is by example. The Men's Health Clinic in Inglewood, CA is inoculating people who are first on the L.A. County priority list -- health care workers. The clinic has been taking appointments, but there's been a problem. A large number of people with appointments have ended up being no shows. The clinic had vaccines for these folks that were hours away from spoiling. So, their solution ... a waiting list for people who might not be health care workers but were eager to get vaccinated.

A clinic staffer tells TMZ, last Tuesday, for example, they ended the day with 150 unused vials that were about to spoil. Rather than throw them in the garbage, the staff stayed until 11 PM ... vaccinating people on the list and some who just showed up.

One of the people in line ... reality star Lisa Vanderpump and her husband, Ken Todd. Ken got vaccinated -- Lisa did not -- because his doctor told him to go to the clinic since he's 75 with 2 underlying health conditions. He waited and got vaccinated.

Now here's the problem ... the CDC, which should be providing guidance to the counties, has done a poor job, so each county is left to its own devices. We contacted 2 dozen places where the vaccine is being administered and the policies are all over the place. L.A. County has guidelines and so does the State of California, and they are confusing.

We've learned there was a meeting Friday where L.A. County Health officials talked about this very problem and agreed that it is better to put the vaccine in people's arms instead of the trash. We're told they're working on developing a clear vaccine distribution protocol STAT.

They would take nonpunitive action against any clinic that chooses vaccination over waste.

As for how to sign up, there's no clear policy. The staffer at the Men's Health Clinic in Inglewood told us there's a waiting list that, as of Tuesday, was 730 people strong. We could not find that list.

By the way ... the staffer at the clinic said anyone who got their first vaccination at the clinic could get the second one as well.

Great news from NHL superstar Henrik Lundqvist -- the future Hall of Famer says his recent open heart surgery was a success!!

As we previously reported, the 38-year-old Washington Capitals goalie opted out of the upcoming NHL season last month ... citing an existing heart condition that would prevent him from taking the ice.

Lundqvist underwent a 5-hour procedure earlier this week -- an aortic valve, aortic root, and ascending aortic replacement ... and gave an update on his recovery Friday.

"Day 3. Surgery went really well," Lundqvist said on Twitter. "About 5 hours to get it all taken care of. Really appreciate the great staff here at the Cleveland Clinic."

Lundqvist also shared a cute drawing from his 5-year-old, Juli, with her artistic interpretation of the event.

"Last few days has been pretty crazy but feel like I’m in really good hands. Every day is a step in the right direction."

It's a huge step in the right direction for Lundqvist ... although it has not been announced whether he will be able to return to hockey.

Some alleged criminals apparently saw Dr. Dre was in the hospital because they tried breaking into his home ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ.

Our sources say 4 men were on Dre's Pacific Palisades property Wednesday around 2 AM. Security spotted them as they were casing the house. Before they could get to the main structure, security confronted them and quickly called police. The men fled, but cops arrived almost immediately and chased the 4 would-be burglars, catching and arresting them.

Law enforcement believes the men saw our story -- that Dre was in the hospital after suffering a brain aneurysm -- and saw a window of opportunity.

The 4 men were arrested for attempted burglary and are currently in custody.

As we first reported, Dre suffered the aneurysm Monday and was rushed by ambulance to the hospital where he remains in the ICU. Doctors are trying to determine what is causing the bleeding. He's in stable condition and is lucid.

Dre sent a message Tuesday night saying he's doing well and thanked everyone for the prayers and well wishes.

Huge breakthrough for Tommy Lasorda -- the Los Angeles Dodgers legend has returned home after spending more than a month in the hospital battling heart issues.

As we previously reported, the 93-year-old former skipper was admitted to a Southern California facility in "serious condition" in mid-November. He required sedation and was put on a ventilator.

Worth noting -- we're told the issues were NOT COVID-19 related.

Lasorda spent 2 weeks in the Intensive Care Unit before beginning rehab at the hospital in Orange County ... and began making strides in recovery.

Now, TMZ Sports has confirmed Lasorda has finally made it back home.

The Baseball Hall of Famer is one of the greatest MLB managers of all-time ... leading L.A. to World Series titles in 1981 and 1988.

He also won Manager of the Year twice -- in 1983 and 1988.

Before that, he was a pitcher for the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1954-55 ... so yeah, the guy bleeds Dodger Blue.