Author: Claudinne Miller
Fungus Presents a Growing Threat to Health and Crops as Globe Warms
Discover Magazine Climate change could fuel the spread of a fungus that can sicken and even kill people, as well as threaten crops, according to a study posted on the preprint server Research Square. Fungal infections already kill about 1.5 million a year. There are now few effective antifungal agents available, with many fungi developing resistance to […]
May 6, 2025
Hepatitis A outbreak declared in L.A. County. ‘We really have to get ahead of this’
Los Angeles Times Los Angeles County has declared a communitywide outbreak of hepatitis A, a highly contagious viral disease that can lead to lasting liver damage or even death. Although cases of hepatitis A are nothing new in the region, health officials are expressing alarm at the prevalence of the disease and who is becoming […]
May 6, 2025
$500 Million Bet on Old Vaccine Technology Puzzles Scientists
MedPageToday The candidate vaccine uses technology that was largely abandoned in the 1970s. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. shifted the money from a pandemic preparedness fund to a vaccine development program led by two scientists whom the administration recently named to senior positions at the NIH. While some experts were pleased that Kennedy had […]
May 6, 2025
Stockpiling for mpox emergencies
Gavi Recent outbreaks of mpox have highlighted the global threat posed by this virus. Historically an infection that circulated in animals and only occasionally affected humans, mpox is increasingly spreading from person to person through close contact, causing a painful rash, fever, headache, muscle ache, backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills and exhaustion. Depending on the strain, it […]
Apr 30, 2025
5 Places to Turn for Accurate Health Information
NY Times Changes to federal health websites have raised concerns about their reliability. These independent sources offer an alternative. Soon after President Donald J. Trump took office for his second term, thousands of health websites run by the federal government that kept the public informed about infectious diseases, mental health, vaccines and more were taken […]
Apr 30, 2025
Many Americans say they will lose trust in public health recommendations under federal leadership changes
Harvard School of Public Health One hundred days into the new federal administration, a new poll reports that major segments of the U.S. public anticipate they will lose trust in public health recommendations with the changes in health agency leadership. The poll, conducted among a national sample of U.S. adults, found that 44% of the […]
Apr 30, 2025
Ticks Pose an Increasing Health Risk
Johns Hopkins With no vaccines yet and limited treatment options, avoiding tick bites is our best bet in reducing the risk of tickborne illnesses. The vast majority of vector-borne diseases in the U.S. are caused by ticks and the viruses, bacteria, and parasites they carry. Between 2019-2022, all 50 states and Washington, D.C. reported cases of […]
Apr 30, 2025
Americans expect to lose trust in public health under new leadership
Washington Post Leadership changes at federal health agencies are eroding trust in public health recommendations, with more Americans expecting to lose confidence than gain it, according to a poll released Tuesday by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the de Beaumont Foundation. The findings come as public health guidance is under intense […]
Apr 30, 2025
How public health has been upended in Trump’s first 100 days
Washington Post More than 20,000 jobs were eliminated, billions of dollars in scientific research has been threatened or paused, and a budget draft proposes a major restructuring of Health and Human Services. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and President Donald Trump have reshaped the nation’s public health infrastructure in the administration’s first 100 days. More than 20,000 […]
Apr 30, 2025
Elephant seals won’t recover from bird flu for 100 years
The Wildlife Society A colony of southern elephant seals lost nearly all its newborn pups in 2023 to the virus Avian flu has devastated a colony of southern elephant seals in Argentina—so much that it may take a century for the marine mammals to recover. High Pathogenic Avian Influenza ripped through the southern elephant seal […]
Apr 30, 2025