Category: Vaccines

With Vaccine Delivery Imminent, Nursing Homes Must Make a Strong Pitch to Residents

More than half of long-term care residents have cognitive impairment or dementia, raising questions about whether they will understand the details about the fastest and most extensive vaccination effort in U.S. history.

Lie of the Year: The Downplay and Denial of the Coronavirus

It’s no worse than the flu, and other deadly disinformation about the coronavirus

Pediatricians Want Kids to Be Part of COVID Vaccine Trials

Some years from now, infants and school-aged children will probably be the mainstay of a universal vaccination program against COVID-19 in the United States. But first, doctors want to be sure that newfangled vaccines won’t harm them.

Hospitals Scramble to Prioritize Which Workers Are First for COVID Shots

Even as the federal Food and Drug Administration engaged in intense deliberations ahead of Friday’s authorization of the nation’s first COVID vaccine, and days before the initial doses were to be released, hospitals have been grappling with how to distribute the first scarce shots. Their plans vary broadly.

Supply Is Limited and Distribution Uncertain as COVID Vaccine Rolls Out

Hospitals and nursing homes must decide who gets the initial doses as the U.S. heads into the biggest vaccination effort in history. There’s a lot left to figure out.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Vaccines Coming Soon but COVID Relief Bill Still Stalled

Even as the Food and Drug Administration nears emergency authorization for the first vaccine to protect against COVID-19, Congress remains at loggerheads over a COVID relief bill that could also provide the funding to fully distribute the vaccines. Meanwhile, President-elect Joe Biden announced the first members of his health team. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Kimberly Leonard of Business Insider and Mary Ellen McIntire of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Michael Mackert of the University of Texas-Austin, an expert on communicating public health information.

What Seniors Can Expect When COVID Vaccines Begin to Roll Out

At least two vaccines could get federal emergency use authorizations this month. Nursing home and assisted living residents will be among the first to receive inoculations. Here’s a guide on how that rollout may proceed.

Demand for COVID Vaccines Expected to Get Heated — And Fast

With two vaccines against coronavirus disease poised for release within weeks, experts say they expect attitudes to shift dramatically from hesitancy to “Beanie Baby”-level urgency.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Who Will Run the Biden Health Effort?

The official transition to a Joe Biden administration has finally begun, and he is expected to announce his health care team soon, including a new secretary of Health and Human Services. Meanwhile, as the COVID-19 pandemic worsens in the U.S., officials are preparing for the effort to get Americans vaccinated as soon as vaccines are approved by the FDA. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KHN’s Julie Appleby, who wrote the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” installment.

Come for Your Eye Exam, Leave With a Band-Aid on Your Arm

Dentists and optometrists across the country are trying to join in the fight to get everyone vaccinated against COVID-19, the flu and other diseases.