Doctors hope Omicron causes milder cases of Covid — but it’s still too early to say
Physicians around the world have suggested the Omicron variant may cause milder illness than other…
Category: public health
‘Not a cause for panic’: Biden urges calm in face of Omicron fears
WASHINGTON — President Biden on Monday urged calm amid widespread concern about the Omicron coronavirus…
Scientists rapidly identified the Omicron variant. But firm answers about its impact could take weeks
The emergence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, with a suite of mutations that…
What’s known and unknown about the coronavirus variant identified in South Africa
Scientists in South Africa have identified a new coronavirus variant with a worrisome combination of…
Opinion: Listen: Revisiting: A medical historian on the deadly epidemics of the Civil War
Diseases like smallpox, measles, and dysentery killed two-thirds of the 1 million people who died…
From scholarship to trending: How experts took to their feeds to explain hard science during Covid-19
How does one communicate the fast-moving science of a pandemic to the public? Social media,…
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Virus expert Trevor Bedford on annual Covid boosters and the inevitable next pandemic
In January 2020, computational biologist Trevor Bedford told STAT’s Helen Branswell about the then-new coronavirus:…
Covid antivirals could be pandemic game-changers. But Americans might struggle to access them
Antiviral drugs for treating Covid-19 have been hailed as a pandemic “game-changer” — a tool…
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Her husband died by suicide. She sued his pain doctors — a rare challenge over an opioid dose reduction
For six years, Brent Slone had relied on opioid medication to tame his agonizing pain…
FDA expands emergency authorization for Covid-19 booster shots to all adults
The Food and Drug Administration expanded the emergency use authorization for the Pfizer and Moderna…
Lessons from a Flint water crisis researcher about building trust in science during the pandemic
Siddhartha Roy was only a graduate student in 2015 when he found himself in the…
5 things to know about monkeypox after a new case appeared in U.S.
For the second time this year, the United States has an imported case of monkeypox….
GOP opposition to vaccine mandates extends far beyond Covid-19
WASHINGTON — Right-wing politicians’ resistance to vaccine mandates is extending far beyond Covid-19 immunizations, a…
Fauci on the next phase of the Covid-19 pandemic and the ‘insanity’ of the threats he faces for pushing masks, vaccines
Anthony Fauci, the country’s top infectious disease expert who himself has become a something of…
8 lingering questions about the new Covid pills from Merck and Pfizer
The past two months have brought extremely good news in the fight against Covid-19. Two…
What would the public health experts do? STAT asked 28 about their holiday plans amid Covid-19
It has been nearly two years since Covid-19 reared its ugly head, as best we…
The U.K. is on its way to eliminating cervical cancer. Here’s why the U.S. isn’t close
A decade ago, a London cancer prevention researcher predicted that the United Kingdom’s national HPV…
Not all Covid waves look the same. Here’s a snapshot of the Delta surge
At first, Joyce Dombrouski thought it might just be some kind of blip. Maybe it…
Experimental Pfizer pill prevents Covid hospitalizations and deaths
An experimental antiviral pill developed by Pfizer reduced the risk of death and hospitalization by…
White House delays Covid-19 vaccine mandates for federal employees, contractors
The White House is delaying its mandate for federal workers and contractors to get vaccinated…
Mandates. A well-organized campaign. No politics. How Puerto Rico’s vaccine drive turned into a success
The leader of the Puerto Rico National Guard was still dealing with the aftermath of…
CDC advisers endorse Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine for kids 5-11
Children aged 5 to 11 can begin to be vaccinated against Covid-19 within the next…
Opinion: Make Covid-19 testing an empowering choice rather than a draconian punishment
Public health is at its best when it is pragmatic in the face of complex…
‘There was no plan’: Throwing spaghetti at the wall to overcome Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy
One or two donuts, a car, one million dollars, $25, Super Bowl tickets, french fries….
Can a pro-Covid vaccine, anti-mandate position help a Republican win in a Democratic state?
Glenn Youngkin is playing both sides on Covid-19 vaccines. In his effort to win Virginia’s…
As ‘test to stay’ gears up nationwide, Massachusetts’ ‘rocky’ rollout raises questions
Massachusetts is drawing praise and even imitation for its “test-to-stay” approach to keep kids in…
3 takeaways from the emergence of the ‘Delta Plus’ coronavirus variant
Yet another version of the coronavirus is getting global attention, this one dubbed AY.4.2. It…
Congress has bipartisan support to try to deal with the next pandemic. But those talks are already falling behind
WASHINGTON — Addressing the federal government’s failures during the Covid-19 pandemic has fallen off the…
Deadly infection linked to contaminated room spray sold at Walmart
This story will be updated. Four cases of a serious, sometimes fatal infection called melioidosis…
Half doses, third doses, kids’ doses: Covid vaccine delivery goes next-level difficult
The U.S. Covid-19 vaccine rollout is about to get a lot more complicated. When the…
Politics is derailing a crucial debate over the immunity you get from recovering from Covid-19
WASHINGTON — Among scientists, there’s little debate: People who get sick with Covid-19 develop at…
Three lessons for the effort to scale up Covid-19 rapid tests
In Ann Arbor, Mich., as in many other cities across the country, you’d be hard-pressed…
Opinion: Listen: A family physician on making medical abortion more accessible
Abortion access is being threatened across the country: Texas has come close to banning abortion as…
Opinion: The U.S. deserves the best public health doctors. They needn’t be medical doctors
The Covid-19 lockdown began in Massachusetts the week I submitted my dissertation to become a…
STAT+: STAT+ Conversation: Can tech improve health care’s value proposition?
Editor’s note: A livestream of the conversation will be embedded below at 1 p.m. ET….
CDC director defends decision to overrule expert panel on Covid booster shots for health and other front-line workers
Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, on Thursday defended herself…
‘Reaching a detente’ with SARS-CoV-2: Helen Branswell on covering Covid-19, misinformation and more
On Wednesday, STAT senior writer Helen Branswell spoke with Seth Mnookin, director of the MIT…
Listen: An Alzheimer’s scholar on the paradox of declining dementia rates
Although billions of dollars have been poured into potential pharmaceutical cures for dementia, particularly Alzheimer’s…
The stages of pandemic emotion: from horror to hope to rage — and now, an anxious optimism
The first days of summer this year saw Americans jubilant, as Covid-19 cases plummeted across…
Opinion: Why U.S. pandemic management has failed: lack of attention to America’s epidemic engines
Few U.S. journalists, politicians, or public health officials expressed any extraordinary concern when reports of…
Opinion: Overdose prevention sites can save lives and promote recovery. We must be willing to try them
The latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are simply staggering:…
The government’s Covid-19 response will continue in a shutdown, but health agencies will face major staff shortages
A version of this story first appeared in D.C. Diagnosis, STAT’s weekly newsletter about the…
Biden’s chaotic messaging on Covid-19 boosters is pitting the White House against the government’s scientific advisers
WASHINGTON — The White House’s chaotic, contradictory messaging on Covid-19 vaccine booster shots has given…
Opinion: The brain health paradox: Dementia rates have fallen even as drugs have failed
Billions of dollars have been spent in pursuit of a pharmaceutical treatment for Alzheimer’s and…
FDA authorizes Pfizer’s Covid-19 booster for people over 65 or at high risk
The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday granted an emergency use authorization to Pfizer and…
Opinion: Do we need vaccine exemption boards?
When I was a senior in college, the U.S. government tried to draft me —…
‘Delta has been brutal’: Covid-19 variant is decimating rural areas already reeling from the pandemic
Health inequities in rural communities across the South are continuing to determine who is most…
A hospital, and a family, lost during the pandemic
DAWSON, Ga. — When the days feel too hard, Latasha Taylor finds peace standing…
A community pioneer lost, and remembered
BELLE GLADE, Fla. — It was the first day of the new year when Angela…
The land as medicine
HALE COUNTY, Ala. — Small, cramped trailer homes and old farmhouses can be glimpsed…