public health

Latest in public health

contact tracing app
Health

How does contact tracing work, and how extensive will it be for Trump?

By Nina Pullano

President Donald Trump (left) and former Vice President Joe Biden at the first 2020 presidential debate
Health

Five key science takeaways from the first presidential debate

By Purbita Saha

a person with their hands in the water
Health

Brain-eating amoebae are very rare, but warming waters may change that

By Kat Eschner

child getting bandage after a vaccine
Health

One-third of US parents say they won’t get their kids the flu vaccine

By Rachael Zisk

black sand beach with chunks of ice
Health

A climate anomaly may have worsened the 1918 pandemic and WWI

By Kate Baggaley

a person holding a set of vaccines
Health

A coronavirus vaccine will save more lives if we share it widely

By Kat Eschner

a person wearing a mask
Health

COVID-19 may one day come and go like the flu, but we’re not there yet

By Kate Baggaley

person holding their stomach in pain
Health

Google search data can help pinpoint COVID-19 hotspots before they flare up

By Kat Eschner

a mother putting a mask on her daughter
Health

Trump downplayed the threat from COVID-19. Here’s how we could’ve fought back harder.

By Kate Baggaley

person receiving a vaccine
Health

AstraZeneca just paused its COVID-19 vaccine trial, and that’s a good thing

By Claire Maldarelli

cloth masks
Health

The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally may account for 19 percent of US COVID-19 cases in August

By Claire Maldarelli

Causes of Mortality in the Army
Health

Infographics have helped keep us alive for centuries

By Murray Dick/MIT Press Reader

a girl getting a bandaid after receiving a vaccine.
Health

What would it actually take to have a COVID-19 vaccine by November?

By Kate Baggaley

prescription drug
Health

Corticosteroids can help COVID-19 patients with severe respiratory distress

By Kat Eschner

people walking around with masks in the suburbs
Health

Herd immunity alone won’t stop COVID-19. Here’s why.

By Kate Baggaley

young adults
Health

Colon cancer rates among young people are on the rise, and doctors don’t know why

By Kat Eschner

masks
Health

One way to slow the spread of COVID-19? Stop talking. Seriously.

By Claire Maldarelli

CDC building.
Health

The CDC’s new COVID-19 testing guidelines could make the pandemic worse

By Sara Kiley Watson

vials of blood
Health

Scientists may have confirmed you can catch COVID-19 twice

By Claire Maldarelli

person under stress
Health

Social distancing can make living with eating disorders harder

By Kat Eschner

empty benches at a park
Health

Social distancing saves lives. Here’s the proof.

By Kate Baggaley

vaccine
Health

Russia just approved a COVID vaccine—but that’s not necessarily good news

By Claire Maldarelli

a person with a mask on
Health

Does your favorite mask actually work? Researchers now have a way to tell.

By Kat Eschner

an empty playground
Health

Nearly 100,000 U.S. kids tested positive for COVID-19 in the second half of July

By Claire Maldarelli

older man working on his computer
Health

Older adults have a hard time accessing virtual health care

By Kat Eschner

a person working in a lab
Health

Why you might need to sport a mask inside your own home

By Claire Maldarelli

lab work
Health

Pap smears are no longer the best way to screen for cervical cancer

By Kate Baggaley

generic pill pack
Health

The verdict on hydroxychloroquine is in

By Sara Chodosh and Claire Maldarelli

bats
Health

The virus that causes COVID-19 has been silently brewing in bats for decades

By Kat Eschner

flu vaccine
Health

Vaccines for flu and pneumonia could reduce your chances of getting Alzheimer’s

By Kate Baggaley

antibiotics
Health

Antibiotics could replace surgery for some kids with appendicitis

By Kat Eschner

Pink face masks.
Health

Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine has started a nationwide, Phase 3 trial

By Claire Maldarelli

person putting soap on hands
Health

We already know how to beat COVID-19 in three easy steps

By Kate Baggaley

face masks
Health

Where to get reliable COVID-19 data, now that the CDC doesn’t have it

By Sara Chodosh

apartment building
Health

How eviction is feeding—and being fed by—the pandemic

By Kat Eschner

face mask and gloves
Health

One in three young people could face serious symptoms from coronavirus

By Claire Maldarelli

empty food shelves
Health

COVID-19 is exposing the food deserts around Native American reservations

By Kat Eschner

people with PPE on
Health

Experts say COVID’s airborne transmission may deserve more attention

By Kat Eschner

masks.
Health

The racial disparities in COVID cases are even more striking than we thought

By Claire Maldarelli

vaccines generic
Health

Inside the race to develop a safe COVID-19 vaccine

By Kate Baggaley

dental office
Health

Is it safe to go to the dentist yet? Here’s how COVID-19 will affect your cleanings.

By Kat Eschner

vaccine generic
Health

COVID cases in the US might be ten times higher than reported

By Claire Maldarelli

Black lives matter protests
Health

COVID-19 cases are surging, but not because of Black Lives Matter protests

By Kat Eschner

pandemic social distancing sign
Health

COVID-19 antibodies might not last long, but immunity still could

By Claire Maldarelli

public bathroom
Health

You probably won’t get COVID-19 from flushing the toilet

By Kat Eschner

a person checking their blood sugar
Health

Doctors add diabetes to the list of COVID-triggered conditions

By Kat Eschner

drugs generic
Health

Scientists are working on at least 135 different coronavirus vaccines

By Claire Maldarelli

people at a protest for black lives matter
Health

Collecting missing demographic data is the first step to fighting racism in healthcare

By Kat Eschner

the new zealand flag on a flagpole against a blue sky
Health

What we can learn from New Zealand’s successful fight against COVID-19

By Kate Baggaley

Solar panels
Environment

The US could shift to 90-percent renewable energy by 2035 at no extra cost

By Jeremy Deaton/Nexus Media

people holding hands
Health

Sex during a pandemic can be risky. Here’s how to do it safely.

By Kat Eschner

a playground with tape around it that reads "danger, do not enter"
Health

New Zealand has eliminated COVID-19. Here’s how they’re keeping it that way.

By Claire Maldarelli

protesters at a rally for black lives matter
Health

Racism is undeniably a public health issue

By Kat Eschner

police at a protest
Technology

How to protect yourself from rubber bullets—and why these ‘nonlethal’ weapons are so dangerous

By Candice Wang

a person social distancing
Health

The CDC says you probably won’t get COVID-19 from deliveries or pets

By Claire Maldarelli

people on the beach
Health

The coronavirus doesn’t care about your long weekend plans

By Claire Maldarelli

Hoover dam
Technology

Michigan’s dam failures are just a small part of America’s aging infrastructure problem

By Kat Eschner

super cyclone amphan
Health

In the middle of a nationwide lockdown, India is preparing for a super cyclone

By Kat Eschner

train with sign saying help contain the spread of the coronavirus
Health

See which states still have increasing rates of COVID-19

By Sara Chodosh

grocery store carts
Health

COVID-19 surface tests can’t make public spaces safe just yet

By Lina Zeldovich/Undark

teens
Health

PrEP can prevent HIV infection in teens—so why aren’t they using it?  

By Kat Eschner

empty benches
Health

The coronavirus might show up in your semen, but don’t panic

By Claire Maldarelli

mask and gloves
Health

This pandemic won’t end without strong federal support

By Kat Eschner

SARS-CoV-2 strain under a microscope
Health

How the CDC plans to track the mutating coronavirus

By Kat Eschner