COVID

Health & Safety

Vaccination Rates Rose In August As COVID Cases Surged Due To The Delta Variant

7:12pm August 31, 2021

by Joe Neel

About 14 million U.S. residents got their first dose of a COVID-19 shot in August, which is about 4 million more than in July. Officials credit vaccine mandates by governments, schools and businesses.

Testing your antibody levels to get a sense of your COVID-19 protection may be tempting, especially as you wait for a booster shot. But scientists say these widely available tests can't tell you the full story, at least not yet.

Health & Safety

Antibody Tests Should Not Be Your Go-To For Checking COVID Immunity

1:59pm August 28, 2021

by Will Stone

Worries about waning immunity and talk of COVID booster shots has some Americans checking their antibody levels to see if they're protected. But scientists warn blood tests don't tell the full story.

A new U.S. intelligence report could not conclude whether the SARS-CoV-2 virus escaped from a lab in Wuhan, China or spilled over from an infected animal. Without more information about the early days of the outbreak, a more definitive explanation is unli

A U.S. Intelligence Report Fails To Pinpoint COVID's Origins

7:51pm August 27, 2021

by Will Stone

After a 90-day review, U.S investigators did not turn up any clear answer on whether the coronavirus hopped from an animal to a human — or somehow escaped from a lab.

Johnson gives River a bottle in her home in Discovery Bay. Family members spent isolation together there this summer, after getting sick with COVID-19. Everyone has since recovered.

Health & Safety

Breakthrough COVID Infections Add Even More Chaos To School's Start In 2021

8:58pm August 23, 2021

by Lesley McClurg

Some kids are getting sick or passing the coronavirus to vaccinated family and friends. It's all unnerving to many parents. "It felt like a terrible head cold," one dad says. "My brain was foggy."

Scientists have studied the blood of people who were part of a large trial for the Moderna vaccine to measures antibodies that can help predict levels of immunity after getting a COVID-19 shot.

New Evidence Points To Antibodies As A Reliable Indicator Of Vaccine Protection

8:31am August 23, 2021

by Joe Palca

After vaccination, antibody levels can help predict how much protection a COVID-19 shot offers, scientists are learning. The finding could speed up the development of future vaccines.

Nurses feed newborn babies rescued and brought to Ataturk National Children's Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan, on May 15, 2020, after their mothers were killed in an attack on a maternity ward operated by Doctors Without Borders. The health-care nonprofit

Afghanistan's Health Care Is In 'Limbo' Following Taliban Takeover, Says MSF Rep

5:51pm August 19, 2021

by Mary Louise Kelly

Filipe Ribeiro of Doctors Without Borders Afghanistan talks to NPR about the future of the country's health care system under Taliban rule.

Only kids 12 and older are eligible — so far — to get vaccinated against COVID-19 in the U.S. But the shots could be available for younger children as soon as this fall, say researchers studying the vaccine in that age group.

Health & Safety

A Shot Against COVID For Kids Under 12 — Your Questions Answered

4:27pm August 18, 2021

A COVID-19 vaccine for children younger than 12 is not yet available, but research is well underway and the first shot for some kids in this age group is expected in the fall, doctors say.

Human Interest

Being A Musician In The Middle Of A Global Pandemic

8:17am August 15, 2021

by Rose Brookshire

Queue Listen Now

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is one of a few GOP governors who say migrants are the source of rising COVID-19 rates.

National

Some Republicans Blame Migrants For COVID-19 Surges. Doctors Say They're Scapegoating

3:00pm August 10, 2021

by Joel Rose

Some Republicans are blaming the latest surge in COVID-19 cases on migrants crossing the southern border. But many doctors disagree, saying the politicians are just looking to divert attention.

Kindergartner Allyson Zavala joined with other students and school superintendent Austin Buetner for a class selfie in April inside teacher Alicia Pizzi's classroom at Maurice Sendak Elementary School in North Hollywood, Calif.

How To Keep Your Child Safe From The Delta Variant

8:46am August 10, 2021

by Pien Huang

Some public health experts are also parents of little kids, and have to strategize to keep those too young to be vaccinated safe from getting or spreading the delta variant. Here are their tips.