Global Health

As late as March 17, people eat at a restaurant along Ocean Drive in Miami Beach, Fla., several days after President Trump declared a national emergency.

U.S. Could Have Saved 36,000 Lives If Social Distancing Started 1 Week Earlier: Study

1:31pm May 21, 2020

by Bill Chappell

The analysis from Columbia University focused on the period from March 15 to May 3, when states and counties implemented "measures enforcing social distancing and restricting individual contact."

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Elham Mansori, Florence Poya, Nahida Khajazadeh and Somaya Farooqi, members of the Afghan Dreamers, are building a mechanized version of the hand-operated ventilator.

All-Girl Robotics Team In Afghanistan Works On Low-Cost Ventilator ... With Car Parts

10:46am May 21, 2020

Automated ventilators are expensive. Hand-operated ventilators require a lot of labor. So these teens are on a quest to create a mechanized bag-valve-mask that'll do the job.

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A portion of the letter that President Trump addressed to World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, posted late Monday night on Twitter in the midst of WHO's annual assembly.

Fact-checking And Assessing Trump's Letter Of Rebuke To WHO

8:20pm May 20, 2020

by Pien Huang

In his letter threatening to withdraw the U.S. from the World Health Organization and halt all funding, Trump made a number of charges about WHO's handling of the coronavirus crisis.

What It Would Take To Develop A Coronavirus Vaccine

5:09pm May 20, 2020

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Prashant Yadav, senior fellow at the Center for Global Development, about why vaccines require global cooperation and how the U.S. is approaching the challenge.

An engineer works in April on an experimental COVID-19 vaccine at Sinovac Biotech's facilities in Beijing. Sinovac Biotech is conducting one of four clinical trials that have been authorized in China.

Amid High Stakes, China Is Fast-Tracking COVID-19 Vaccine Efforts

4:07pm May 20, 2020

by John Ruwitch

Experts say the Communist Party sees more at stake than public health. One of the biggest concerns is the economy. China is also looking to defuse criticism over its early handling of the outbreak.

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Capt. Tom Moore, 100, is being awarded a knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II after raising more than $39 million in charity for medical workers. Moore walked 100 laps in his garden to earn donations.

Tom Moore, U.K.'s 100-Year-Old Hero, Is Awarded Knighthood For Fundraising Walks

11:59am May 20, 2020

by Bill Chappell

"I hope she's not very heavy-handed with the sword, because by then I might be rather a poor old weak soul," the World War II veteran said of a possible knighthood ceremony with Queen Elizabeth II.

WHO Spokeswoman On Trump's Threat To Permanently Cut Funding

5:31am May 20, 2020

NPR's Steve Inskeep talks to the World Health Organization's Dr. Margaret Harris on President Trump's threat to permanently cut U.S. funding to the U.N. agency amid its slow coronavirus response.

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President Trump says the WHO has been too quick to praise China for its handling of the COVID-19 outbreak and too silent on the country's treatment of medical professionals who tried to sound the alarm.

Trump Says Funding Cuts Will Be Permanent If WHO Doesn't Commit To 'Major' Changes

4:27pm May 19, 2020

by Bill Chappell

"The World Health Organization has repeatedly made claims about the coronavirus that were either grossly inaccurate or misleading," President Trump says.

Health & Safety

Members Of WHO Vote On The Need To Investigate Global Coronavirus Response

3:45pm May 19, 2020

by Jason Beaubien

The World Health Organization's annual meeting has ended in Geneva on Tuesday. Member states have voted on the need for an independent investigation into the global response to the pandemic.

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China Leads The Worldwide Race To Develop A COVID-19 Vaccine

3:45pm May 19, 2020

by John Ruwitch

China is leading the global race in the development of a COVID-19 vaccine. Half of the vaccines that have already gone into clinical trials were discovered by Chinese companies.

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