public health

Anti-vaccine activists protested at the Massachusetts State House in August against Governor Charlie Baker's mandate that all students enrolled in child care, pre-school, K-12, and post-secondary institutions must receive the flu vaccine this year.

Health & Safety

Facebook Bans Ads Discouraging Vaccines, In Latest Misinformation Crackdown

7:24pm October 13, 2020

by Shannon Bond

The move is a reversal of Facebook's longstanding reluctance to block problematic content. Critics say public health misinformation has flourished on the social network.

An illegal roadside graveyard in northeastern Namibia. People in the townships surrounding Rundu, a town on the border to Angola, are too poor to afford a funeral plot at the municipal graveyard — and resorted to burying their dead next to a dusty grave

Why The Pandemic Could Change The Way We Record Deaths

4:00pm September 25, 2020

by Pranav Baskar

Before COVID-19 came along, the world wasn't so great at counting deaths and understanding why people die. But the virus has propelled countries to ramp up their efforts.

Health & Safety

Some College-Related COVID-19 Cases Not Included In County Totals

5:35pm September 23, 2020

by April Laissle

Forsyth County Health Department officials say despite university efforts to track COVID-19, some numbers tied to colleges may not be included in county case totals.

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez holds a letter from a Navajo family while distributing food, water and other supplies on May 27, on the Navajo Nation Reservation in New Mexico.

To Limit COVID-19, Navajo Leader Says: 'Listen To Your Public Health Professionals'

5:23pm September 15, 2020

by Sacha Pfeiffer

The Navajo Nation has seen a turning point in its battle against the virus. Cases are down dramatically. Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez says that's because citizens heed public health advice.

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has asked states to prepare for distribution of a coronavirus vaccine.

States Prepare For Potential Fall Vaccine Distribution Under Pressure From CDC

9:47pm September 04, 2020

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

"We've got to take a deep breath," says one health official about the rapid timeline pushed by the CDC. "It is very clear that we need to lean forward to prepare to deliver the vaccine."

Jewish children in the Warsaw ghetto around 1940. Food was in short supply.

Health & Safety

The Warsaw Ghetto Can Teach The World How To Beat Back An Outbreak

10:22pm September 02, 2020

by Fran Kritz

A study seeks to learn how hundreds of thousands of Jews, crammed in the ghetto by the Nazis, halted an outbreak of epidemic typhus. Some — including survivors alive today — say frame of mind was key.

Dr. Chris Hoover (left) and Dr. Connie Liu (right) walk through their home with their children Taro, 3, and Hiro, 4 months, in Gallup, N.M. On a short reporting trip across the Southwest, NPR met very different families and asked them the same simple ques

It's Been A Hard Year. 5 Families On How 2020 Will Shape Their Vote For President

11:29am August 26, 2020

The spread of COVID-19, the ensuing economic crisis and the reckoning around social injustice has made 2020 a year like none other. NPR wanted to know how these events might shape political choices.

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Clark County Commission Vice Chairman Lawrence Weekly swabs his nose while giving a coronavirus test to himself during a tour of setup at a temporary coronavirus testing site in Las Vegas on Aug. 3.

National

Las Vegas Casinos Are Open At 50% Capacity. What About Las Vegas Hospitals?

3:52pm August 11, 2020

by Will Stone

Las Vegas is on shaky footing as it reopens with one of the nation's highest infection rates. An NPR analysis shows the city could run into trouble with hospital capacity if cases keep climbing.

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A mural in Chennai, India, celebrates workers on the front lines against the coronavirus pandemic. The global case count crossed the 20 million threshold on Monday, with the U.S., Brazil and India in the lead.

World News

Global Coronavirus Case Count Surpasses 20 Million

9:49pm August 10, 2020

by Rachel Treisman

According to Johns Hopkins University, more than 20 million people worldwide have tested positive for the virus. The milestone comes almost exactly five months after the WHO declared it a pandemic.

A woman carrying her mask walks past a sign mandating the wearing of face coverings in an effort to control the spread of coronavirus as she walks in Palisades Park in Santa Monica, Calif., on July 25, 2020.

Health & Safety

LA Health Official: 'Every Single' Person And Business Needs To Help Curb Virus Surge

2:40pm July 28, 2020

by Steve Inskeep

NPR's Steve Inskeep talks with Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, about how the county has become a hotspot.

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