Category: COVID-19

It’s Open Enrollment. Here’s What You Need to Know

For Californians who are buying their own insurance, enrollment in 2021 health plans runs through Jan. 31.

Lions and Tigers and Anteaters? US Scientists Scan the Menagerie for COVID

Thousands of animals in the U.S. have been tested for the coronavirus, as researchers work to understand its transmission and which other species might be at risk. So far, dozens have tested positive, mostly cats and dogs exposed to sick owners.

‘Is This Worth My Life?’: Traveling Health Workers Decry COVID Care Conditions

Frequently employed by staffing agencies based in other states, nurses and other healthcare professionals can find themselves working through crisis without advocates or adequate safety equipment.

Seniors Form COVID Pods to Ward Off Isolation This Winter

Older adults are deliberating what to do as days and nights turn chilly and coronavirus cases rise across the country. Some are forming “bubbles” with small groups of friends who agree on pandemic precautions and will see one another in person. Others are planning to go it alone.

The Best COVID Warning System? Poop and Pooled Spit, Says One Colorado School

About 6% of large universities with in-person classes are routinely testing all students. For many institutions, that strategy is out of reach. To get ahead of the virus, Colorado State University is experimenting with a combination of sewage monitoring and a lesser-known approach to pool testing.

How COVID Death Counts Become the Stuff of Conspiracy Theories

Experts say President Trump’s claim that COVID deaths are being overcounted is inaccurate. Most agree they are undercounted. Here’s what we know about COVID death numbers so far.

‘His Lies are Killing my Neighbors’: Swing-state Health Workers Try to Defeat Trump

Furious over Republicans’ handling of the pandemic, Wisconsin health care workers are speaking out against the president — and running for office.

They Work in Several Nursing Homes to Eke Out a Living, Possibly Spreading the Virus

An analysis of location data from 30 million smartphones found that facilities across the country that share the most workers also had the most COVID-19 infections. The “Kevin Bacon of nursing homes” in each state — the one with the most staffers working at other nursing homes — was likely to have the worst outbreaks of coronavirus contagion.

California’s Progressive — and Expensive — Health Care Ambitions Rely on Biden Win

There couldn’t be more at stake for California’s Democratic health care agenda in the presidential race. State lawmakers are already penning big-ticket legislation they hope to pursue should Democrat Joe Biden win, from single-payer to a new wealth tax.

‘It’s Science, Stupid’: A School Subject Emerges as a Hot-Button Political Issue

Science is becoming increasingly politicized, so how will it fare on the campaign trail — in 2020 and beyond?