Science

Coronavirus Updates: Unemployment Numbers, Democratic National Convention Pushed Back

4:50pm April 02, 2020

Last week, more than 6 million jobless Americans sought unemployment benefits. NPR correspondents look at the rising economic fallout from COVID-19 — and the latest science and political news.

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Where Vaccines To Prevent COVID-19 Stand

4:13pm April 02, 2020

by Joe Palca

More than two dozen vaccines for COVID-19 are underdevelopment, and at least three have begun human tests. Here's what's being tried, and why it's now possible to develop candidates in record time.

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United Nations officials are delaying a climate conference this fall, which many climate activists hoped would the biggest step forward since negotiations in Paris in 2015. Here, activists rally on Dec. 12, 2015.

Pandemic Delays International Climate Change Negotiations

2:45pm April 02, 2020

by Lauren Sommer

Many countries were expected to release ambitious new climate plans at a conference this fall, but United Nations officials say governments are focusing on the coronavirus crisis.

A worker cleans an area along the Las Vegas Strip that's now devoid of the usual crowds, with casinos and many other business shuttered.

Fighting COVID-19 Is Like 'Whack-A-Mole,' Says Writer Who Warned Of A Pandemic

5:26pm April 01, 2020

by Terry Gross

Atlantic writer Ed Yong warned of a global pandemic two years ago. He says scientists are still working to understand how COVID-19 travels through air — and whether more of us should be wearing masks.

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Coronavirus Updates: Congress Considers More Action, Scientists React

5:17pm April 01, 2020

NPR science and White House correspondents relay the latest in the United States response to the coronavirus epidemic.

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What Happened Today: New Model Projections, Coronavirus Task Force Speaks

9:32pm March 31, 2020

NPR politics and science correspondents answer listener questions about the federal government response to the coronavirus and the possibility that as many as 100,000 Americans could be killed by it.

Seema Verma, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), speaks during a news conference in Washington, D.C., Tuesday, March 10th, 2020.

To Stop The Pandemic, Seema Verma Is 'Getting Rid Of A Lot Of Regulations'

7:41pm March 31, 2020

by Mary Louise Kelly

As head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Verma says she's working to ease safety rules and lighten licensing requirements, to expand the number of hospital beds and health workers.

Coronavirus Updates: Governors Speak, Model Guidance

6:27pm March 31, 2020

NPR science and politics correspondents relay the latest updates on the United States response to the coronavirus outbreak.

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A tent stands outside the emergency entrance of Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, on Saturday.

Are Hospitals Seeing A Surge Of Coronavirus Patients? Some Officials Aren't Saying

6:06pm March 31, 2020

by Lauren Sommer

With a lack of tests, epidemiologists say the next best way to monitor the pandemic is by tracking hospitalizations. But hotspots like California and Washington are releasing little information.

A spokesperson for St. Barnabas Hospital said Monday that it takes four to six days for the hospital to receive coronavirus test results.

New York City Hospitals Struggle To Get Virus Testing Online Amid Patient Surge

4:22pm March 31, 2020

by Rebecca Hersher

On-site testing was delayed for weeks at a Brooklyn hospital that has been designated COVID-19 only. Rapid on-site testing can help hospitals prevent the virus from spreading inside their facilities.