Category: NPR

In 2015, the mosquito-borne virus Zika exploded in South America. Health experts predicted it would erupt in Africa. But a major outbreak never happened. Now scientists think they understand why.

As the U.S. prepares for what will likely be the largest vaccination program in its history, the Trump administration plans to loan $590 million to a Connecticut company with a novel technology.

NPR’s Audie Cornish talks with Andy Slavitt, ex-acting head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and Scott Gottlieb, former Food and Drug Administration head, on COVID-19 vaccine efforts.

People who get more deep sleep appear less likely to develop Alzheimer’s. That may be because this phase of sleep allows the brain clears out waste products.

Dr. Glenn Hurst says hospitalizations are growing in part because of a nursing home “bottleneck.” Many people rehabilitate at nursing homes after leaving the hospital.

Texas recently surpassed a million confirmed coronavirus cases — the most in the United States. Nowhere is the surge more acute than in El Paso, which is being hammered by soaring cases and deaths.

Doctors who helped stop Ebola call on Joe Biden’s transition team to address COVID-19’s racial and economic inequities. The evidence shows a safety net under the most vulnerable protects us all.

Lydia Mobley is a traveling ICU nurse who is currently working at a hospital in central Michigan. She describes how hard it’s been treating patients during the current surge in coronavirus cases.

NPR’s Ailsa Chang talks with Vineet Arora, a hospitalist at the University of Chicago, about warning Illinois officials that hospitals will run out of intensive care unit bed by Thanksgiving.

NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly talks with Christi Grimm of the Department of Health and Human Services about dealing with the pandemic and navigating the ups and downs of the Trump administration.