COVID

Why You Should Still Wear A Mask And Avoid Crowds After Getting The COVID-19 Vaccine

8:36pm January 12, 2021

by Joanne Silberner

It takes time after vaccination for immunity to the virus to build up, and no vaccine is 100% effective. Plus, scientists don't yet know if the vaccine stops viral spread. Here's what's known so far.

Sarah Lind, a nurse with Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corp., Southwest Alaska's tribal health care provider, vaccinates James Evan in December. They're standing on the tarmac in the village of Napakiak, where Evan works for YKHC at the clinic.

'We Don't Feel Forgotten At All': Alaska Fires Up COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout

1:10pm January 11, 2021

by Nat Herz

In Alaska, the coronavirus vaccine is heading to tiny villages on small planes and snow machines. The massive undertaking echoes previous efforts to get vaccines to remote corners of the state.

Gene Bracegirdle is relieved to get his first dose of the vaccine recently in rural Colorado.

National

COVID-19 Vaccinations Are Off To A Slow Start — But Not In Some Rural Areas

1:57pm January 08, 2021

by Kirk Siegler

Some rural areas, where health care is usually harder to get, appear to be leading the nation in delivery of the COVID-19 vaccine. But health leaders are cautioning there are caveats.

In New York City, homicides were up nearly 40% over the previous year by Dec. 20, 2020. Mayor Bill de Blasio said the numbers should worry New Yorkers.

National

Massive 1-Year Rise In Homicide Rates Collided With The Pandemic In 2020

5:00am January 06, 2021

by Cheryl Corley

Experts say crime across the U.S. in 2020 was like no other year as COVID-19 ravaged the country and protests flared. It was a seesaw of dips for some crimes and spikes for others, such as homicide.

Queue Listen Now

Carlos Reyes, a certified nursing assistant in Massachusetts, says the nursing homes where he works told him he could not get vaccinated because he is a contract worker. He has since tested positive for the coronavirus.

National

Some Health Care Workers Say They Are 'Forgotten' In COVID-19 Vaccination Plans

2:01pm January 05, 2021

by Gabrielle Emanuel

Clinicians in private practice, those who work for staffing agencies and others who are not directly employed by hospitals or long-term care facilities say they have been overlooked in the rollout.

Queue Listen Now

Have You Been Evicted During The Pandemic, Or Afraid Of Losing Your Home?

12:09pm January 05, 2021

by Chris Arnold

NPR wants to hear from you if you have lost income and couldn't pay rent to your landlord or needed a mortgage forbearance.

James Harden of the Houston Rockets was fined $50,000 for violating the NBA's health and safety protocols. He's seen on the court during a preseason game against the San Antonio Spurs on Dec. 17.

How The Rockets-Thunder Delay Could Foreshadow Challenges To This NBA Season

3:42pm December 24, 2020

by Brakkton Booker

The NBA postponed the Wednesday game after three Rockets players had positive or inconclusive coronavirus tests and four others were in quarantine. It left the team without enough players to play.

do's and don'ts of caring for older people in the pandemic

11 Original NPR Comics That Brought Joy, Hope And Help During The Pandemic

3:16pm December 23, 2020

by Malaka Gharib

In 2020, NPR created and published more than a dozen comics for the pandemic — everything from how to explain it to kids to how to help the older people in your life.

Physicians and nurses wear personal protective equipment while they attend to a COVID-19 patient in the ICU at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center in Tarzana, Calif. on December 18, 2020.

As COVID-19 Cases Soar, Overwhelmed California Hospitals Worry About Rationing Care

4:11pm December 20, 2020

by Kat Lonsdorf

As intensive care units hit capacity, hospitals across the state are being forced to consider that they may not be able to provide critical care for everyone who needs it.

Housing activists protest evictions in Massachusetts, which recently allowed its sweeping statewide eviction ban to expire. That leaves residents with only a much weaker eviction protection order from the Centers for Disease Control and prevention.

Why The CDC Eviction Ban Isn't Really A Ban: 'I Have Nowhere To Go'

3:12pm December 20, 2020

by Chris Arnold

Families are getting put out on the street despite an eviction protection order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Advocates say the order needs to be extended and strengthened.