Helen Branswell

Infectious diseases correspondent for @newsie.social/@STAT. 2020 Polk winner. Nieman '11. She/her. #Covid #Ebola #monkeypox #flu #polio 🇨🇦

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Last Notes

2026-04-27 12:57:06 GMT

The risk posed by the SARS-CoV-2 virus — the cause of #Covid19 — is much different these days than it was in April 2020, when we were all learning about social distancing & flattening the curve. What happened? What does it mean for us? Experts share their thoughts. https://www.statnews.com/2026/04/27/is-covid-still-a-thing-expert-analysis-who-needs-vaccine-booster-shot/

2026-03-05 17:13:21 GMT

Read this: When #HHS rewrote the childhood vaccination schedule, it pushed several "recommended for all vaccines" to the "shared clinical decision making" category. SCDM has been conflated with informed consent by proponents of the change but it isn't that.
https://jakescottmd.substack.com/p/when-the-default-is-inaction

2026-03-02 14:19:00 GMT

Stanley Plotkin had a major hand in the development of a number of vaccines in use today; he designed the rubella vaccine. He remembers the world before widespread use of vaccines & knows what's coming as vaccine policy is rewritten & vaccine confidence is eroded. https://www.statnews.com/2026/03/02/stanley-plotkin-profile-godfather-of-vaccines-worried/

2026-02-02 14:09:26 GMT

5 more dairy cows tested positive for #H5N1 #birdflu antibodies on the Dutch farm where a previous cow tested positive. No surprise that if 1 was positive, others would be too. This dairy farm is the first outside the US to report H5N1 transmission. https://www-melkvee-nl.translate.goog/artikel/1450453-screening-melkveebedrijf-brengt-nog-vijf-koeien-met-antistoffen-tegen-vogelgriep-aan-het-licht

2026-01-30 14:10:16 GMT

With continued uncertainty over federal government support for biomedical research, PhD students are struggling to find labs willing to take on new students, @nprofile…74jf's Jonathan Wosen reports.
New students are the future of US science. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/30/first-year-phd-students-squeezed-tighter-research-funding/

2026-01-29 14:35:25 GMT

#CDC sets the list of vaccinations recommended for all kids. But decisions about which inoculations kids require for school entry are made at the state level. Anti-vax forces are shifting their focus there @danielpayne.bsky.social & @isabellacueto.bsky.social report. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/29/vaccine-requirements-state-challenges/

2026-01-29 14:27:10 GMT

People who oppose #vaccines often claim that doctors push them because they're paid to by Pharma or that vaccine administration is a big revenue source for doctors. The reality: Delivering vaccine puts an economic strain on many pediatric practices. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/29/pediatricians-vaccines-profits-incentives-costs/

2026-01-27 16:56:32 GMT

Why is the UK so far behind peer countries in terms of the diseases it screens babies for at birth, diseases for which early treatment makes an enormous difference? @nprofile…t622 's Andrew Joseph explores why. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/27/newborn-screening-tests-uk-pressured-expand-disease-testing/

2026-01-26 15:30:39 GMT

You want to read this: https://www.thebulwark.com/p/this-is-the-vaccine-story-rfk-jr-doesnt-want-you-to-hear-meningitis-meningococcal-disease

2026-01-25 21:29:26 GMT

Bill Foege was a public health legend. His loss is profound, particularly at this time. That he died at the end of the week in which the US withdrew from #WHO & the chair of ACIP mused about whether polio & measles vaccination are still needed — no words. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/25/william-foege-obituary-smallpox-cdc-vaccination/

2026-01-22 17:18:58 GMT

The new chair of the #ACIP was on the Why Should I Trust You? podcast. The interview was ... enlightening. Among other things, Kirk Milhoan seemed to question whether kids still need to be vaccinated against polio & said he doesn't like “established science.” https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/22/vaccine-policy-adviser-kirk-milhoan-individual-rights-trump-public-health/

2026-01-22 15:52:49 GMT

The US withdrawal from #WHO became official today, leaving the world less prepared for dangerous disease outbreaks. “When that will bite us in the ass, it’s impossible to predict. But there is a 100% certainty that it will bite us in the ass,” one expert told me. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/22/usa-divorce-world-health-organization-puts-america-at-risk/

2026-01-21 15:31:54 GMT

As of tomorrow, the US will be out of #WHO. It's leaving the organization with a large unpaid bill — 2 years of unpaid membership dues, including from the last year of the Biden administration. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/21/trump-withdrawal-world-health-organization-leaves-unpaid-bills-behind/

2026-01-20 22:29:22 GMT

Would the #CDC's principal deputy director view it as a public health loss for the US if the country loses its #measles elimination status? "Not really," Dr. Ralph Abraham said at a press conference today. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/20/cdc-measles-briefing-lost-elimination-status-cost-of-doing-business/

2026-01-20 14:33:44 GMT

Shared clinical decision making was devised to help patients & their doctors make choices when the answer isn't clear cut. People who devised the approach fear it's being hijacked to undermine decades of study supporting #vaccines, @nprofile…74jf's Eric Boodman writes. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/20/shared-decision-making-vaccine-guidance-twists-meaning-of-term/

2026-01-20 14:26:26 GMT

Vaccine proponents worry that Kennedy will drive manufacturers from the US market by adding autism to the vaccine injury compensation program & unleashing a flood of litigation. The path to that change is through a committee he's currently "acip-ing." (clearing out) https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/20/kennedy-fires-vaccine-injury-compensation-advisers-vicp-accv/

2026-01-19 14:24:59 GMT

The number of confirmed #measles cases in South Carolina has hit an astonishing 558 in an outbreak that started in October. For context: that is more cases in 4 months than the entire US racked up most years in the past 30+ years. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/measles-cases-south-carolina-rise-by-124-558-state-health-department-says-2026-01-16/

2026-01-19 13:14:01 GMT

Citing concerns it could drive antibiotic resistance, the #ECDC opts not to advise general use of doxy-PEP, where doxycycline is taken after unprotected sex to lower the risk of acquiring several types of #STIs. #CDC recommends it for high-risk individuals. https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/Doxycycline-prophylaxis-of-bacterial-STIs-in-the-EU-EEA.pdf

2026-01-14 15:55:34 GMT

Dismantling US vaccination policy will lead to more vaccine-preventable disease in kids. But how easy will it be to monitor the impact of the erosion of vaccine coverage? New data collection rule changes raise serious concerns about how visible results will be. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/14/childhood-vaccine-policy-data-reporting-rollback-cms/

2026-01-13 14:02:12 GMT

Richard Pazdur, an #FDA veteran who left the agency after briefly serving as head of the drug center, warns the FDA is in chaos, with policies being made up on the fly. "You can’t be making up the rules as you go along here," he said at a @nprofile…t622 event at #JPM. https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/13/richard-pazdur-jpm-fda-chaos-at-agency-stat-event/

2026-01-06 15:58:30 GMT

Super #flu isn’t a thing. But this year’s flu season is a doozy. Here’s what you need to know about subclade K, the variant of #H3N2 that’s making so many people so sick. (Correcting myself. I early said it was an H5N1 virus. It is not!!!) https://www.statnews.com/2026/01/06/flu-season-2026-subclade-k-explained-by-influenza-experts/

2025-12-31 15:48:07 GMT

The US science enterprise came under extraordinary attack in 2025. Despite the trauma and drama, science soldiered on. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/31/2025-new-medicines-disease-breakthroughs-medical-advances/

2025-12-26 19:12:06 GMT

2025 was even more disruptive in the public health sphere than I could have envisaged. As we look to 2026, I think we need to expect more chaos and more efforts to dismantle policies and systems meant to keep people safe. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/26/public-health-2026-issues-to-watch/

2025-12-24 16:13:01 GMT

Robert Kennedy has long disbelieved the science around the safety & benefits of vaccines. Since becoming HHS head, he's wasted no time in altering vaccine policy. And there's more to come in 2026, @nprofile…u4kc's Daniel Payne reports. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/24/vaccine-policy-2026-stat-3-to-watch/

2025-12-23 14:20:37 GMT

There's a lot of focus right now on a person's right to choose whether to be vaccinated. But the risks falling vaccination rates pose to individuals — especially young babies, the elderly & the immunocompromised — need to be part of that discussion. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/23/vaccine-policy-versus-medical-freedom-movement-4-questions/

2025-12-22 16:06:45 GMT

2025 has been a tempestuous time at the #FDA and there are no signs the drama will subside in 2026. My colleague Lizzy Lawrence reports on what she's watching for in year 2 of Marty Makary turn at the helm of the embattled agency. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/22/fda-2026-outlook-commissioner-makary-future-vaccine-policy-deregulation/

2025-12-19 19:45:18 GMT

The former head of R&D for Pfizer warns the future doesn't look great biopharma. People looking for new cancer drugs, cures for rare diseases, or thinking about what we'd need in the next pandemic, take note. The concern here isn't just dividents & stock prices. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/19/pharmaceutical-industry-future-rfk-jr-trump/

2025-12-12 14:52:43 GMT

Tracy Beth Høeg assumes the role of acting director of the #FDA's drugs division Monday. #CDER staff are worried about what Høeg will do. Among her targets: #RSV monoclonals that have been game changers, but which Høeg questions. @lizzylawrence.bsky.social reports. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/11/tracy-beth-hoeg-fda-cder-director-faces-staff-mistrust/

2025-12-12 14:34:59 GMT

Parents who want to follow the new advice of the #ACIP & delay or decline to vaccinate their infants against #hepatitisB could encounter logistical problems vaccinating those babies against polio, pertussis & other serious illnesses, experts warn. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/12/cdc-acip-hepatitis-b-vaccine-change-overlooked-key-concern/

2025-12-10 15:02:44 GMT

A man who was a frequent sperm donor in Denmark was also the carrier of a gene mutation that causes cancers. The man fathered nearly 200 children in Europe, a portion of whom are at significantly elevated risk of developing cancer. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/10/200-children-inherit-gene-mutation-one-sperm-donor/

2025-12-10 14:53:15 GMT

This op-ed in @nprofile…u4kc is profoundly worrying. Identity-driven opposition to vaccines that's fueled by misinformation & political polarization is impeding the capacity of doctors to effectively care for their patients. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/10/anti-vaccine-rhetoric-doctors-emotional-toll/

2025-12-09 17:23:52 GMT

The destruction of the enterprise of US academic science has been one of the most confounding aspects of a hugely confounding year. My @nprofile…aqqx colleagues are writing about the consequences for individuals & the country.
You want to read this series.
https://www.statnews.com/american-science-shattered/

2025-12-06 15:50:51 GMT

"Our nation’s public health is not in good hands." — Public health lawyer Dorit Reiss breaks down this week's gobsmacking meeting of #CDC's vaccine advisory panel, #ACIP.
The #hepatitisB birth dose is gone. Kennedy's ACIP isn't done yet. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/06/acip-vaccine-advisory-panel-incompetence-bias-expert/

2025-12-04 15:07:01 GMT

It's hard to predict what the new #ACIP will do, but it looks like it will recommend that the universal birth dose for #hepatitisB be jettisoned. Experts warn even a delay of 2 months before the first dose will lead to chronically infected kids & deaths. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/04/cdc-acip-meeting-hepatitis-b-birth-dose/

2025-12-03 18:37:45 GMT

Former #CDC leaders worry this week's #ACIP meeting will lean heavily into theoretical risks of vaccines without acknowledging the significant and scientifically established benefits of them, in the process sowing more doubt about the importance of immunizations. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/03/acip-meeting-cdc-vaccine-advisory-panel-risks-benefits/

2025-12-02 16:05:58 GMT

#CDC employees with disabilities who have reasonable accommodation waivers allowing them to telework are being told they must return to office work. The future status of telework for these employees is unclear,
my colleague Rose Broderick reports. https://www.statnews.com/2025/12/02/cdc-reasonable-accommodation-requests-telework/

2025-12-01 16:54:21 GMT

Just when you hoped it was over: #USDA reports that California has found another #H5N1 #birdflu infected dairy herd, its 773rd. There's been a total of 1083 confirmed herds in 18 states since March 2024. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/hpai-confirmed-cases-livestock

2025-11-29 23:49:02 GMT

#FDA vaccines czar Vinay Prasad claimed in an email to staff late Friday that Covid vaccination had killed at least 10 children in the US. Experts suggest FDA should publish the data on the cases or put it to an independent body like the National Academy for study. https://www.statnews.com/2025/11/29/covid-vaccine-deaths-fda-memo-vinay-prasad/

2025-11-26 18:28:51 GMT

What could possibly go wrong if you buy #botox on the internet & inject it at home yourself? PLENTY, it turns out. Three people from NY, WI & TX were hospitalized for 3-6 days. One required mechanical ventilation. Don't try this at home!
Reported in #CDC's #MMWR.
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/74/wr/mm7438a1.htm

2025-11-26 16:33:04 GMT

Fascinating story about evidence that #H5N1 #birdflu infected vampire bats in South America, raising the prospect of a potential new & dangerous host for the virus. Some good news: The virus didn't appear to spread well among the bats. By @martinenserink.bsky.social. https://www.science.org/content/article/vampire-bats-may-have-contracted-h5n1-bird-flu-peru-raising-worries-about-further

2025-11-20 18:54:22 GMT

"Essentially Cassidy asked for a promise. And all he got was an asterisk." Former CDC senior leader Dan Jernigan on how, after promising not to do so, Kennedy's HHS has rewritten #CDC 's webpage on whether there's a link between #vaccines & autism. https://www.statnews.com/2025/11/20/cdc-vaccine-safety-website-promotes-debunked-autism-link/

2025-11-20 13:44:23 GMT

Mutations in #H3N2 #flu viruses have some experts worried we're facing a second bad #influenza season. The new variant, subclade K, may be able to escape antibodies generated by previous infections or this year's flu shot. But some experts are hedging their bets. https://www.statnews.com/2025/11/20/flu-season-2025-vaccinations-still-helpful-h3n2-subclade-k/

2025-11-19 16:21:56 GMT

RFK Jr. says other nations should follow the US lead & bar thimerosal in #vaccines. The preservative safeguards multi-dose vials, a key tool for vaccination drives in many countries. Experts don't think it will happen, but worry that disinformation could take root. https://www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/rfk-jr-warning-thimerosal-vaccine-preservative-raises-concern/

2025-11-14 21:14:51 GMT

Great to see a new FluView post from #CDC today after weeks without updates.
It's not yet flu season in the US, but activity is starting to pick up. https://www.cdc.gov/fluview/surveillance/2025-week-45.html

2025-11-13 13:06:30 GMT

Update on the wild #polio discovery in Germany: The virus was found in wastewater in Hamburg.
@rki.de
, the German public health agency, says the virus sequence is very similar to some isolated in Afghanistan, so the likely source was an infected human. (page 10 here: https://www.rki.de/DE/Aktuelles/Publikationen/Epidemiologisches-Bulletin/2025/46_25.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=4)

2025-11-12 14:55:40 GMT

#FDA political appointees Vinay Prasad & Tracy Beth Høeg believe #vaccine safety surveillance programs aren't adequately geared to finding risks. They're trying to restructure the programs, often leaving FDA scientists out of the effort. A must-read from
@nprofile…u4kc's Lizzy Lawrence. https://www.statnews.com/2025/11/12/fda-vaccine-policy-controlled-by-vinay-prasad-tracy-beth-hoeg/

2025-11-10 14:50:18 GMT

As expected, Canada has lost its measles-free status because of the long-running outbreak there. With it goes the #measles elimination status of the entire zone of the Americas, the only division of the #WHO to ever have achieved measles elimination. https://www.statnews.com/2025/11/10/measles-canada-americas-paho-who-elimination-status/

2025-11-04 14:50:48 GMT

“We are witnessing nothing less than a clown show at #FDA right now.” People who worked at or rely on the US drug regulator see dysfunctional leadership & soap opera-ish behavior at a key federal agency, @matthewherper.bsky.social & @lizzylawrence.bsky.social report. https://www.statnews.com/2025/11/04/fda-in-disarray-expert-analysis-george-tidmarsh-scandal/

2025-10-28 02:45:13 GMT

The government shutdown is about to hit home in homes with the least capacity to weather shortfalls. Millions who rely on #SNAP to feed their families are caught in the crosshairs. “We need to remember that #SNAP is the safety net. Below the safety net is concrete.” https://www.statnews.com/2025/10/27/snap-benefits-cut-off-nov-1-government-shutdown/

2025-10-20 13:39:08 GMT

You know we're in uncharted territory when a former acting director of the #CDC, a scientist who spent years at the agency, says Americans can no longer look to the current CDC, under the current HHS leadership, for accurate vaccine guidance. https://www.statnews.com/2025/10/18/richard-besser-interview-first-opinion-podcast-transcript/

2025-10-20 13:31:58 GMT

If people think the attack on scientific advances is going to stop with #mRNA vaccines, they should think again, a co-founder of Moderna warned last week at the #STATSummit. This is going to make it harder to treat a raft of common diseases, Noubar Afeyan warned. https://www.statnews.com/2025/10/20/moderna-founder-noubar-afeyan-science-attacks-go-beyond-vaccines/

2025-10-17 14:12:51 GMT

Idaho reported another #H5N1 #birdflu infected dairy herd recently, its 108th.
That makes 1,081 confirmed infected herds in 18 states since the outbreak was first recognized in spring 2024. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/hpai-confirmed-cases-livestock

2025-10-14 17:35:31 GMT

This is not how science is supposed to work: @nprofile…aqqx's Lizzy Lawrence interviews #FDA staffers on how the agency is being asked to investigate issues of interest to Health Secretary Kennedy. “It’s like the tail wagging the dog.... Go find data to support this." https://www.statnews.com/2025/10/14/fda-under-trump-rfk-jr-staff-describe-political-pressure/

2025-08-13 16:25:58 GMT

The "data" package Secretary Kennedy used to bolster his argument for discontinuing #BARDA funding for #mRNA research doesn't support his argument. @jakescottmd.bsky.social lays it out in a must read for @statnews.com. https://www.statnews.com/2025/08/13/rfk-jr-mrna-vaccine-research-science-papers-justification-misreading/

2025-08-12 16:22:38 GMT

Rocky start for new #CDC director Susan Monarez, whose first week was punctuated by Friday's attack. Her first all-hands meeting lasted ~13 minutes, with technical challenges with dead air for a time & some staff unable to join the call. "This is a mess," one said. https://www.statnews.com/2025/08/12/cdc-all-hands-meeting-wake-of-gunman-attack/

2025-08-09 23:04:55 GMT

"Public health workers are not the enemy:" former surgeon general Jerome Adams on yesterday's alarming attack on the CDC. https://www.statnews.com/2025/08/09/cdc-shooting-anti-vaccine-violence-rhetoric-public-health-workers/

2025-08-09 15:23:25 GMT

Big news: Vinay Prasad is returning to #FDA as head of the center for biologics. https://www.statnews.com/2025/08/09/vinay-prasad-returns-to-the-fda-weeks-after-his-ouster/

2025-08-08 21:14:38 GMT

“We reviewed the science, listened to the experts, and acted,” Secretary Kennedy said earlier this week, when he announced he was discontinuing #BARDA investments in #mRNA vaccines. More on the science he relied on. https://www.statnews.com/2025/08/08/kennedy-scientific-justification-mrna-vaccines/

2025-08-07 17:49:57 GMT

Axing #BARDA funding for research on #mRNA vaccines is not just a problem for pandemic preparedness, it's a national security threat, experts in that area tell STAT. “We're unilaterally disarming ourselves" — and advertising that fact. https://www.statnews.com/2025/08/07/kennedy-mrna-vaccines-national-security/

2025-08-05 22:59:42 GMT

Pandemic preparedness in the US has been leveled a crippling blow with the cancellation of multiple #BARDA contracts to help develop mRNA vaccines. No other vaccine platform produces vaccine so quickly; without mRNA, Americans will have a long wait for pandemic vax. https://www.statnews.com/2025/08/05/mrna-vaccine-development-canceled-by-kennedy-hhs/

2025-08-04 12:35:40 GMT

#USDA reports another #H5N1 #birdflu infected dairy herd in California, the 771st such detection in the state.
The cumulative national total of detected/confirmed herds is 1,078 in 17 states. The true number of infected herds? Who knows?
https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/hpai-confirmed-cases-livestock

2025-08-01 20:02:26 GMT

Dallas County has reported its first confirmed case of #WestNile in 2025. Recently, MA's Public Health Dept reported the first finding of #TripleE — Eastern Equine encephalitis — infected mosquitoes this year.
Aug-Sept is when some nasty mosquito-spread diseases emerge. Be prudent: Use bug spray.

2025-08-01 13:35:11 GMT

The dismantling of the science-driven #ACIP continues, with members of professional groups (pediatricians, family docs, obgyns, etc) that have liaison status on the panel that shapes #CDC's vaccination policy told they are biased, can't serve on ACIP work groups. https://www.statnews.com/2025/08/01/cdc-vaccine-advisers-acip-work-groups-recommendations/

2025-07-31 16:21:55 GMT

Unsettling case: A UK baby develops #botulism after eating peanut butter. Father is peanut allergic; parents were trying to lower baby's risk of peanut allergy by gradually introducing peanut to its diet, per medical guidance. Baby was very ill but recovered. https://www.eurosurveillance.org/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2025.30.30.2500512?emailalert=true

2025-07-31 00:37:22 GMT

The NYC #Legionnaires outbreak has grown to 22 cases, with 1 death. Cases have been reported in Central Harlem (ZIP codes 10027, 10030, 10035, 10037 & 10039) & bordering communities. Sounds like cooling towers (multiple?) may be the source??? https://www.nyc.gov/site/doh/about/press/pr2025/nyc-health-provides-update-on-legionnaires-cluster.page

2025-07-30 16:38:47 GMT

George Tidmarsh, #FDA's newly appointed top drug regulator, will also serve as the agency's biologics head on an acting basis after the abrupt departure of Vinay Prasad, @lizzylawrence.bsky.social reports. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/30/george-tidmarsh-fda-cber-biologics-vaccines-center-acting-director/

2025-07-25 15:15:26 GMT

The pediatric death toll from #flu for 2024-25 continues to climb, with #CDC informed of 5 more deaths last week. That brings the season's total so far to 266, which is only 22 fewer than during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic! Of kids eligible for vax & for whom vax status is known, 90% weren't vaxed.
This is unlikely the total story for the 2024-25 #flu season. Pediatric flu deaths are sometimes reported to #CDC on a significant delay. Case in point: Last week CDC was informed of a child who died from flu in Jan 2024, bringing the 2023-24 pediatric toll to 208. https://www.cdc.gov/fluview/surveillance/2025-week-29.html

2025-07-23 18:58:43 GMT

With #CDC still director-less, Sec. Kennedy has signed off on #ACIP recommendations to require all #flu vaccine for the US market to be #thimerosal free.
He did not, however, sign off on the ACIP recommendation that everyone get a flu shot. That recommendation is "under review." Ditto a recommendation for use of Merck's new monoclonal to protect babies from #RSV.
https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/23/kennedy-approves-acip-recommendation-thimerosal-removed-from-flu-vaccines/

2025-07-23 18:53:18 GMT

Fascinating new study from the University of Pittsburgh & Penn State about whether exposure to H1N1 flu is helping protect humans from #H5N1 #birdflu.
Flu is never dull. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/23/h5n1-bird-flu-immunity-boosted-by-previous-influenza-a-infection/

2025-07-18 18:10:49 GMT

#CDC has been informed of another child who died from #flu this season; the death was earlier this month. (Flu circulates year round, but at lower levels in summer.)
The to-date season total is 261 pediatric deaths, a tragically high number. Most weren't vaxed. https://www.cdc.gov/fluview/surveillance/2025-week-28.html

2025-07-15 00:12:54 GMT

A very big study from Denmark generates some reassuring findings about aluminum in childhood vaccines, finding no association between aluminum and development of a number of illnesses, including asthma. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/14/aluminum-in-vaccines-large-danish-study-finds-no-link-to-autism-asthma-allergies/

2025-07-14 13:27:38 GMT

Relitigating settled #vaccines science through an ideological lens: Secretary Kennedy, a long-time critic of vaccines, is staffing key HHS positions with anti-vax allies. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/14/antivaccine-influence-inside-hhs-public-health-experts-alarmed-rfk-jr-hires-vaccine-skeptics/

2025-07-11 21:51:13 GMT

#NIH cracks down on studies it perceives as "gain of function" research, suspending grants to dozens of projects. Some of the axed work doesn't seem to actually qualify as actual GOF work, though, Jon Cohen & Jocelyn Kaiser of Science report. https://www.science.org/content/article/exclusive-nih-suspends-dozens-pathogen-studies-over-gain-function-concerns

2025-07-11 15:31:04 GMT

New pediatric #flu deaths for 2024-25 continue to be reported to #CDC; last week 4 more were added. The latest occurred in mid-June.
There've been a staggering 260 deaths in '24-25, the worst year (except the 2009 pandemic) since CDC started tracking peds flu deaths. #CDC reports that of the kids who died who were eligible for vaccine (ie 6 months & older) & for from vaccination status is know, 89% hadn't been vaxed for the 2024-25 season.
There was vaccine available. In 2009, during the pandemic, vaccine became available as the major wave subsided.
Tragic. https://www.cdc.gov/fluview/surveillance/2025-week-27.html

2025-07-11 13:29:26 GMT

New #H5N1 #birdful detections in dairy herds are few & far between these days. But the virus is still around. #USDA reported a new infection in California today, CA's 768th & the nation's 1,075th since the outbreak in cows was first recognized in March 2024. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/hpai-confirmed-cases-livestock

2025-07-10 18:46:08 GMT

#Moderna's #Covid vaccine for children has finally moved from an emergency use authorization — an EUA — to a full license. But the FDA approval includes the limitation that Sec. Kennedy announced a while back, that it should be used in kids at high risk from Covid. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/10/moderna-covid-spikevax-children-fda-approval/

2025-07-09 21:07:34 GMT

Using doxycycline after unprotected sex — doxy PEP — is effective at reducing some sexually transmitted infections in some people. But new research suggests is probably also driving development of resistance to tetracycline antibiotics in some bacteria. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/09/doxy-pep-use-to-reduce-sexually-transmitted-disease-may-be-fueling-antibiotic-resistance/

2025-07-09 19:00:06 GMT

When Secretary Kennedy fired the former members of #ACIP, he said it was needed to restore confidence in the committee. His dept promised to release conflict of interest forms for the new ACIP members he chose. Hasn't happened, @isabellacueto.bsky.social reports. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/09/kennedy-conflict-of-interest-radical-transparency-acip-vaccine-experts/

2025-07-09 15:36:50 GMT

#CDC is one step closer to having an actual director. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/09/senate-help-committee-advances-susan-monarez-trump-cdc-director/

2025-07-09 14:35:49 GMT

#CDC reports the confirmed #measles count in the country so far this year has hit 1,288, the highest single year total since 1992 — and the highest since measles was declared eliminated in the US in 2000. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/09/measles-america-breaks-33-year-record-anti-vaccine-sentiment-key-factor-behind-outbreaks/

2025-07-07 14:24:52 GMT

Low morale, layoffs & voluntary departures, and distrust of the new leadership is hindering the functioning of the #FDA, my colleague Lizzy Lawrence reports.
This is hardly the recipe for an effective drug regulatory agency. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/07/fda-job-cuts-morale-low-staff-anxious-impact-of-new-leadership-makary-prasad-rfk-jr/

2025-07-07 14:19:57 GMT

As courts have struck down #NIH grant terminations, the agency has charted a new path towards cutting that it hopes can withstand court challenges. My college Anil Oza has the scoop. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/06/hhs-nih-grant-terminations-legal-guidance-internal-memo/

2025-07-03 14:14:29 GMT

Red states miss out on the impact of the ruling overturning the cancelation of research grants. Only researchers in states whose attorneys general took part in the suit challenging the cutting of funding — ie mostly in blue states — see their grants restored. https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/03/nih-cuts-grant-restoration-complicated-by-limits-to-court-order-trump-dei-restrictions/

2025-07-02 16:50:04 GMT

Though the West Texas #measles outbreak has slowed down, the nationwide number of confirmed cases this year is still climbing. The number of recorded cases in the first 6 months of 2025 is close — 8 shy — to surpassing the 2019 total to become the highest yearly tally since measles elimination.

2025-06-30 16:37:33 GMT

That we are in strange times is clear from the fact that this is news (and good news): The US will continue to fund cancer prevention and tracking efforts at the state level. @isabellacueto.bsky.social reports. https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/30/hhs-resumes-funding-cancer-screening-state-level-tracking/

2025-06-30 15:14:17 GMT

Huge cuts to research funding by the current US administration can seem abstract. It's why it's so important to tell people where the rubber is hitting the road — what is being lost in this seemingly indiscriminate slashing.
Concrete examples here.
https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/30/harvard-university-funding-cuts-impact-outside-boston/

2025-06-27 15:52:06 GMT

Wow! The pediatric death toll for the 2024-25 flu season keeps climbing. #CDC was informed of +3 deaths last week; they occurred between early Feb & mid April.
The total is now 253 pediatric deaths (& more reports could still come). 90% of these kids weren't vaxed.
https://www.cdc.gov/fluview/surveillance/2025-week-25.html

2025-06-26 21:56:23 GMT

You can't make this stuff up.
Fortunately, my brilliant colleague @jasonmast.bsky.social, was around to explain to you all what happened at the first meeting of the new #ACIP. https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/26/cdc-acip-rfk-vaccines-public-health-policy-changes/

2025-06-26 20:18:52 GMT

The discussion and votes today by #ACIP on thimerosal and flu vaccines broke the mold of how the work of that committee has been conducted. And it likely foretells how the newly constituted ACIP — Kennedy's ACIP — will conduct itself in future. https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/26/rfk-jr-new-acip-panel-bans-thimerosal-in-flu-shots-preservative-long-a-target-of-antivax-activists/

2025-06-26 13:53:46 GMT

The new #ACIP at work. It did something the old ACIP would have done — recommended use of a new RSV monoclonal for babies — but in a much different way. https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/26/cdc-acip-merck-rsv-monoclonal-antibody-enflonsia/

2025-06-25 22:10:44 GMT

Yesterday #CDC posted an extraordinary (also thorough & very useful) pre-buttal of claims about thimerosal in flu vaccines that will be made tomorrow at #ACIP. #HHS made CDC take it down.
Never a dull moment these days.
https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/25/cdc-vaccines-advisory-committee-meeting-day-1/

2025-06-25 15:43:03 GMT

New #ACIP co-chair signals the new committee will reopen issues core to anti-vax concerns, including the notion that kids are getting too many vaccines. https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/25/cdc-vaccines-advisory-committee-meeting-day-1/

2025-06-25 13:10:21 GMT

#USDA reports the first new #H5N1 #birdflu infected dairy herd in weeks, this one in Arizona. It's the state's 5th and the country's 1074th.
Does the trickle of new positives mean the outbreak is ending? Who knows? So little visibility on this situation. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/hpai-confirmed-cases-livestock

2025-06-24 17:59:24 GMT

Pretty interesting to see #CDC post pre-buttals on thimerosal in vaccines & the MMRV vaccine in advance of this week's #ACIP meeting, where the new committee appears intent on reopening debate on settled science. https://www.cdc.gov/acip/meetings/presentation-slides-june-25-26-2025.html

2025-06-24 17:34:20 GMT

Development of more highly targeted vaccines means that even though kids today get a lot more shots, their immune systems are exposed to far fewer antigens (the active components) than kids encountered from a few shots decades ago, @jakescottmd.bsky.social explains. https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/24/too-many-too-soon-vaccine-schedule-children-antigens-immune-system-aluminum/

2025-06-24 14:18:47 GMT

That happens when #ACIP recommendations are no longer science based? When #CDC's vaccine schedules include recommendations based on opinions, not data? We're heading towards a balkanization of vaccination recommendations, experts fear. https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/24/vaccine-recommendations-insurance-coverage-in-uncharted-territory-after-cdc-cuts/

2025-06-23 14:14:03 GMT

The departures of senior staff from the #FDA continues, with Jacqueline Corrigan-Curay, acting director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, informing staff today she's leaving. The cumulative loss of expertise is substantial.
https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/23/fda-cder-acting-director-jacqueline-corrigan-curay-retiring-departures-mount/

2025-06-20 15:28:01 GMT

The death toll this past #flu season took on kids continues to climb. In its latest flu update, #CDC reports on another 4 deaths, bringing the total to date to 250 — an extraordinary number. 89% of the kids for whom vaccination status was known weren't fully vaccinated.
https://www.cdc.gov/fluview/surveillance/2025-week-24.html

2025-06-20 13:53:24 GMT

Steve Woloshin has for years taught journalists how to read and interpret scientific studies accurately. Ironic to see one of his own papers is mis-cited and misrepresented in the MAHA report on the health of children. https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/20/maha-children-health-report-citations-errors-sloppy/

2025-06-20 13:42:41 GMT

The growing politicization of vaccines isn't going to serve the United States well, six former #ACIP chairs warn in an opinion piece in @statnews.com. The result will be more illness and deaths from preventable diseases & an erosion of #pandemic preparedness. https://www.statnews.com/2025/06/20/acip-cdc-vaccine-advisory-committee-chairs-warn-threats-immunization-science-licensure/