Electing Donald Trump as President has sparked discussions about potential changes to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). One of the most talked-about nominations is Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Health Secretary. Kennedy is known for his vaccine skepticism and has proposed reducing the H
The United States government is putting a big chunk of money, about $590 million, into developing a bird flu vaccine. The company Moderna will use this money to keep working on a vaccine that protects against the H5 and H7 types of bird flu. This isn't the first time they're getting help; earlier th
In wealthy countries, there's a big difference in how many people get the COVID-19 vaccine. We wanted to find out why this happens at different stages of the pandemic. Some countries did way better than others in getting people vaccinated. To understand why, researchers looked at various national f
Super-resistant bacteria, or superbugs, are a real threat to people with weakened immune systems. Think cancer patients, the elderly, and those with long-term illnesses. Traditional vaccines don't work as well for these folks because their immune cells are either low in number or not functioning pro
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants to make America healthy again by tackling corporate pollution and pushing for healthier diets. However, he's joining the Trump administration, which has a history of undermining public health programs and making healthy living more expensive. For instance, the GOP has cut
In April 2022, India began vaccinating children aged 6-12 against COVID-19. A study looked into moms' views of this new vaccination program. Researchers chatted with mothers from a big city hospital and smaller medical centers in both urban and rural areas. They wanted to understand why some moms mi
Whooping cough is serious. Babies can get very sick and even die from it. So, why are there more cases of whooping cough lately? One big reason is that not enough people are getting the vaccine. Infants start getting it at two months old, then again at four months and six months. They get two more s
Once a shining example, Tennessee's high childhood vaccination rates are now slipping. Parents like Jen Fisher in Franklin, Tennessee, are feeling the heat. Her 12-year-old son, Raleigh, has a weak immune system due to a congenital heart condition. Vaccines are his best protection against serious il
You might have received a COVID-19 vaccine shot in your arm, but what about your nose? Scientists are exploring a new way to boost your immune system by giving a second vaccine dose through your nose. This two-step process starts with an initial shot in your muscle, like the vaccines you're already
Gammaherpesviruses are known for causing cancer and lifelong infections in humans. Unfortunately, there are no approved vaccines for major types like Epstein-Barr virus or Kaposi sarcoma herpesvirus. Scientists often use a virus called murine gammaherpesvirus-68 (MHV68) to study these infections in
