Category: COVID-19

Damage to Children’s Education — And Their Health — Could Last a Lifetime

Black and Hispanic students have lost up to 12 months of learning, which could lead to lower incomes and shorter, sicker lives.

Without Enough Boots on the Ground, California’s Vaccination Efforts Falter

California’s vaccination rates have stagnated, particularly in Black and Latino inner-city neighborhoods and in rural towns. County health officials, who say trust is their most important commodity, need more money for one-on-one interactions with holdouts, but the state has instead largely funneled money to advertising firms and tech companies.

Analysis: Why We’ll Likely Never Know Whether a Covid Lab Leak Happened in China

If international scientific sleuths are hoping to see a lab log or find a whistleblower, that sort of information won’t be revealed. In China today, it is dangerous to say what you know if it challenges the official government narrative.

Covid’s Lingering Effects Can Put the Brakes on Elective Surgeries

Even after recovering from covid, many patients experience respiratory or other problems and, since this effect of the virus is so unpredictable, medical experts aren’t sure when it is safe to undergo elective surgery. But medical experts are setting up guidelines.

The WHO Didn’t Reverse Its Position on Kids and Covid Vaccines

The World Health Organization this week updated its guidance on children and covid vaccinations — but in a different way than alleged in a viral social media post.

A Break From Breathlessness: How Singing Helped Me Through Long Covid

Long before covid, music therapists used singing and wind instruments to help COPD and asthma patients. These same therapies might help patients recover from covid’s lingering symptoms as well. And though it wasn’t clinical music therapy, singing with an online choir has helped me navigate long covid.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: How to Expand Health Coverage

Democrats in Congress and the states are devising strategies to expand health coverage — through the Affordable Care Act, Medicare, Medicaid and a “public option.” But progress remains halting, at best. Meanwhile, lawmakers in Washington may have to agree on how to control prescription drug prices if they wish to finance their coverage initiatives. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN and Shefali Luthra of The 19th join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also, Rovner interviews Michelle Andrews, who reported and wrote last month’s KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” episode about a very expensive sleep study.

Black and Hispanic Americans Suffer Most in Biggest US Decline in Life Expectancy Since WWII

Even those not infected by the virus could suffer health problems related to poverty, job loss, eviction — or all of the above. And the pandemic drove the nation’s largest decline in life expectancy since World War II.

Thousands of Young Children Lost Parents to Covid. Where’s Help for Them?

More than 46,000 children in the U.S. have lost a parent to covid-19. Families say finding even basic grief counseling has been difficult and there’s been no coordinated effort to help these children access services or benefits.

Is Rand Paul Mixing Up the Vaccine Message for Covid Survivors?

The scientific literature shows that natural immunity does provide protection against covid-19, but experts say getting vaccinated can provide additional protection against variants.