Author: Claudinne Miller
The Flu Really Is That Bad
The Atlantic The virus is storming the country, a reminder of how terrible its toll can be. The flu situation in the United States right now is, in a word, bad. Infections have skyrocketed in recent weeks, filling hospitals nearly to capacity; viral levels are “high” or “very high” in most of the country. In […]
Jan 14, 2026
The Best Flu Drug Americans Aren’t Taking
The Atlantic This flu season has been rough. Antivirals can help. Antiviral drugs for influenza, the best known of which is Tamiflu, are—let’s be honest—not exactly miracle cures. They marginally shorten the course of illness, especially if taken within the first 48 hours. But amid possibly the worst flu season in 25 years, driven by […]
Jan 14, 2026
South Carolina confirms 124 new measles cases as outbreak on the Arizona-Utah line grows
AP Health officials in South Carolina confirmed 124 new measles cases since Friday, as the outbreak in the northwestern part of the state balloons following the holidays. There is a second, separate measles outbreak along the Arizona-Utah border, where 418 people have been infected since August. Last year was the nation’s worst year for measles spread since […]
Jan 14, 2026
Medical Groups Will Try to Block Childhood Vaccine Recommendations
NYT The groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, say the C.D.C.’s revised vaccine schedule is not based on scientific evidence and will harm the public. Six leading medical organizations plan to ask the courts to throw out revisions to the childhood vaccination schedule announced last week by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and […]
Jan 14, 2026
Nonmedical Childhood Vaccination Exemptions Are Climbing
MedPageToday Nonmedical exemptions to childhood vaccination requirements are on the rise, with substantial variation among U.S. counties and states, an analysis of county-level data showed. The median rate of nonmedical vaccination exemptions for personal beliefs or religious reasons increased from 0.6% in 2010-2011 to 3.1% in 2023-2024, while the rate of medical exemptions remained steady, […]
Jan 14, 2026
New RFK Jr. pick for vaccine panel: ‘I was not anti-vaccine. I am now.’
Washington Post Two OB/GYNs appointed to an influential federal vaccine advisory panel have criticized vaccination during pregnancy and more broadly. One called the vaccine industry “disgusting.” Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Tuesday expanded a key federal vaccine advisory panel to include more critics of vaccines who have contradicted mainstream medical guidance, including one […]
Jan 14, 2026
COVID Continues to Take a Toll, Especially Among Older Adults, Study Suggests
MedPageToday However, estimated COVID-related hospitalizations and deaths did decrease from 2022 to 2024. Despite the end to the public health emergency declaration in May 2023, COVID-19 continued to have a large impact on the U.S. population and healthcare system, a cross-sectional study suggested. From October 2022 to September 2023, there were an estimated 43.6 million […]
Jan 7, 2026
COVID-19 still claims more than 100,000 US lives each year
Medical Express Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers report national estimates of 43.6 million COVID-19-associated illnesses and 101,300 deaths in the US during October 2022 to September 2023, plus 33.0 million illnesses and 100,800 deaths during October 2023 to September 2024. People 65 years and older accounted for the majority of hospitalizations and deaths.COVID-19 […]
Jan 7, 2026
Bayer files separate lawsuits against Moderna, J&J and Pfizer-BioNTech over COVID vaccine tech
Fierce Pharma Bayer has filed separate lawsuits against the creators of three COVID-19 vaccines, claiming they violated intellectual property developed by Monsanto, the crop science company the German company acquired a decade ago. In federal district court in Delaware, Bayer filed one complaint against Moderna and another against partners Pfizer and BioNTech. In U.S. district […]
Jan 7, 2026
The role of wild birds in the global highly pathogenic avian influenza H5 panzootic, 2020–2023
Nature The emergence of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) H5 clade 2.3.4.4b has triggered an unprecedented global panzootic in recent years. As the frequency and scale of HPAI H5 outbreaks continue to rise, understanding how wild birds contribute to shape the global virus spread across regions—affecting poultry, domestic and wild mammals—is increasingly critical. In this […]
Jan 7, 2026