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96
Global Health NOW: Global Vaccinations in Jeopardy; Kenyas Push to Improve HIV Testing During Pregnancy; and Run, Run, Robots!
UN: Global aid funding cuts upend vaccination efforts almost as much as the pandemic did
April 24, 2025
A child receives a vaccination from a health care worker during national vaccination day in Vian穩, Colombia, on September 25, 2021. Yair Suarez Salazar/Anadolu Agency via Getty
Global Vaccinations in Jeopardy
Vaccine-preventable diseases are thriving in a global environment of health funding cuts, misinformation, and humanitarian crises, UN agencies and others are warning during World Immunization Week.
Disease updates:
The Quote: Vaccines have saved more than 150 million lives over the past five decades, said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Funding cuts to global health have put these hard-won gains in jeopardy. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
Nearly a third of antibiotics consumed by people end up in rivers, from 51勛圖厙 and One Health Trust researchers that estimates the distribution of chemical pollutants from untreated wastewater and wastewater treatment plants.
AI models outperformed PhD-level virologists in lab problem-solving, from MITs Media Lab, Brazils UFABC, and other groups, raising fears that non-experts could weaponize AI models to create bioweapons.
A trial of 21 adults with peanut allergy offers evidence that the same micro-dosing approach approved in the U.S. for children with the allergy could work for adults as well, .
The Research Council of Norway launched a 100 million kroner ($9.6 million) fund to attract top U.S. researchers yesterday, in response to the escalating pressure on academic freedom in America; the council will issue a call for proposals next month focused on topics including climate, health, energy, and AI. MATERNAL HEALTH Pregnant Women 2X Likelier to Die in Abortion-Ban States
Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade, pregnant people living in states with abortion bans were nearly twice as likely to suffer pregnancy-related deaths compared to their counterparts in states without restrictions, .
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HIV/AIDS Kenyas Push to Improve HIV Testing During Pregnancy
A high number of women in Kenya who are missing HIV screenings during pregnancy is contributing to a persistently high number of babies with the virus, researchers say.
A closer look: In 2023, 200,000+ pregnant women missed HIV screeningsa major challenge to eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV, said Joab Khasewa, an officer with the National Syndemic Diseases Control Council, which conducted the research.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Run, Run, Robots!
There宎s long been concerns that robots could one day replace humans. But when it comes to running, we宎re still beating the bots.
Running side-by-side half-marathons in Beijing recently, the fastest human beat the fastest humanoid robot by well over an hour. Of 21 robot competitors, only six finished the race, .
But rather than showcasing the limits of their development their struggles in the race only underscore how very human robots have become.
Like so many who宎ve tried to take up running, many were falling, trembling and struggling to stay upright, One walked a short distance and fell, . Another overheated and needed water to cool down.
And, as in the human world, some are just annoyingly good athletes. One robot that was more like a gymnast also turned out to be a great runner.
Given all that androids have learned from us, there宎s some traits we宎d happily take from them. Like the ability to swap out a battery to regain our strength. Or to keep running when our head falls off. QUICK HITS In China, trade war with U.S. taking a toll on research labs
WHO launches new guidelines to tackle adolescent pregnancy and related health complications
Bowel cancer in young people is on the rise. Childhood toxin exposure could be the cause
Studies zoom in on clues to why Lyme disease persists and which antibiotic to prescribe
US fertility rate hovers near record low as Trump administration pushes for a baby boom
2025 State of the Air report: 46% of Americans breathe polluted, unhealthy air
Superbug-fighting paint promises cleaner hospitals and safer public spaces Issue No. 2714
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
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Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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Vaccine-preventable diseases are thriving in a global environment of health funding cuts, misinformation, and humanitarian crises, UN agencies and others are warning during World Immunization Week.
- The UN reports that global aid funding cuts are upending vaccination efforts almost as much as the pandemic did, .
- The cuts are severely limiting UNICEFs efforts to vaccinate 15 million children against measles.
Disease updates:
- Measles cases topped 10.3 million cases in 2023, a 20% surge over the previous year, .
- 5,500 cases of meningitis have been reported in 22 countries in the first three months of 2025.
- WHOs Americas region has seen 131 cases of yellow fever in four countries already this year.
The Quote: Vaccines have saved more than 150 million lives over the past five decades, said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Funding cuts to global health have put these hard-won gains in jeopardy. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
Nearly a third of antibiotics consumed by people end up in rivers, from 51勛圖厙 and One Health Trust researchers that estimates the distribution of chemical pollutants from untreated wastewater and wastewater treatment plants.
AI models outperformed PhD-level virologists in lab problem-solving, from MITs Media Lab, Brazils UFABC, and other groups, raising fears that non-experts could weaponize AI models to create bioweapons.
A trial of 21 adults with peanut allergy offers evidence that the same micro-dosing approach approved in the U.S. for children with the allergy could work for adults as well, .
The Research Council of Norway launched a 100 million kroner ($9.6 million) fund to attract top U.S. researchers yesterday, in response to the escalating pressure on academic freedom in America; the council will issue a call for proposals next month focused on topics including climate, health, energy, and AI. MATERNAL HEALTH Pregnant Women 2X Likelier to Die in Abortion-Ban States
Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade, pregnant people living in states with abortion bans were nearly twice as likely to suffer pregnancy-related deaths compared to their counterparts in states without restrictions, .
- Black women face the highest risk and are 3.3X more likely to die than white women in states with bans.
- Maternal mortality fell 21% in states that preserved abortion access post-Dobbs.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES HIV/AIDS Kenyas Push to Improve HIV Testing During Pregnancy
A high number of women in Kenya who are missing HIV screenings during pregnancy is contributing to a persistently high number of babies with the virus, researchers say.
A closer look: In 2023, 200,000+ pregnant women missed HIV screeningsa major challenge to eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV, said Joab Khasewa, an officer with the National Syndemic Diseases Control Council, which conducted the research.
- That same year, 3,742 babies contracted the virus7.3% of all births by women with HIV. The council says that rate needs to be brought below 5%.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Run, Run, Robots!
There宎s long been concerns that robots could one day replace humans. But when it comes to running, we宎re still beating the bots.
Running side-by-side half-marathons in Beijing recently, the fastest human beat the fastest humanoid robot by well over an hour. Of 21 robot competitors, only six finished the race, .
But rather than showcasing the limits of their development their struggles in the race only underscore how very human robots have become.
Like so many who宎ve tried to take up running, many were falling, trembling and struggling to stay upright, One walked a short distance and fell, . Another overheated and needed water to cool down.
And, as in the human world, some are just annoyingly good athletes. One robot that was more like a gymnast also turned out to be a great runner.
Given all that androids have learned from us, there宎s some traits we宎d happily take from them. Like the ability to swap out a battery to regain our strength. Or to keep running when our head falls off. QUICK HITS In China, trade war with U.S. taking a toll on research labs
WHO launches new guidelines to tackle adolescent pregnancy and related health complications
Bowel cancer in young people is on the rise. Childhood toxin exposure could be the cause
Studies zoom in on clues to why Lyme disease persists and which antibiotic to prescribe
US fertility rate hovers near record low as Trump administration pushes for a baby boom
2025 State of the Air report: 46% of Americans breathe polluted, unhealthy air
Superbug-fighting paint promises cleaner hospitals and safer public spaces Issue No. 2714
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Measles and the Malleable Middle宎; New Efforts to Boost Turkey's Birth Rate; and Science Cuts Leave Researchers Looking Abroad
April 23, 2025
A measles vaccinations information booth offered by Harris Public Health on April 5, in Houston, Texas. Raquel Natalicchio/Houston Chronicle via Getty
The Rise of Measles, Misinformation, and the Malleable Middle宎
As measles cases climb across the U.S., Americans are encountering pervasive false claims about the disease and its vaccineand many are unsure what to believe, according to a .
The poll examined false claims that:
Other key findings:
But amid deep cuts to local public health funding, the agency is scraping to find the resources to support states that are fighting outbreaks, said CDC senior scientist David Sugerman.
Related:
Montana has a measles outbreak with its first cases in 35 years. Heres what you should know
Track the spread of measles in Texas GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Dialysis patients in Gaza are struggling to get treatment under the blockade; Gazas Health Ministry said that 400+ patients, representing around 40% of all dialysis cases in the territory, have died over the last 18 months because of lack of proper treatment.
U.S. health officials announced plans to urge food makers to phase out petroleum-based artificial colors by the end of 2026but stopped short of promising a formal ban, largely relying on voluntary efforts from the industry.
The NIH has canceled the Womens Health Initiativeits first and largest project centered on womens health, which enrolled tens of thousands in clinical trials of hormones and other medications and tracked the health of thousands more over three decades, yielding influential findings on disease prevention, aging, and cognitive decline.
Teenagers who went to bed earliest, slept the longest, and had the lowest sleeping heart rates outperformed others on cognitive tests, ; researchers found the impact of even small differences in sleep surprising. DEMOGRAPHICS A New Effort to Boost Turkey's Birth Rate
Turkeys government has announced a raft of incentives designed to boost the nations flagging birth rate, .
The Year of the Family initiative includes:
Related: The push for women to have more children has a powerful ally: Trump GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES BRAIN DRAIN Researchers Look Abroad Amid Science Cuts
U.S. researchers are seeking careers abroad as the Trump administration cuts science funding and workforce numbers, per an analysis of .
Comparing JanuaryMarch 2025 to the same period last year:
The Quote: We felt it was our duty to do what we could to show scientists there was a little light in the south of France where they could do their research, be a lot freer and where they were wanted, said Aix-Marseilles president, ric Berton.
QUICK HITS HHS Plans to Cut the National Suicide Hotlines Program for LGBTQ Youth
Taking the Side of Cancer: The War on Medical Research Is Being Fought Through Contracts
New agreement geared toward universal avian flu vaccine
RFK Jr.s autism study to amass medical records of many Americans
Hearing loss in older adults linked to nearly one-third of dementia cases
Researchers find immune system proteins involved in severe cases of schistosomiasis
The wholegrain revolution! How Denmark changed the diet and health of their entire nation Issue No. 2713
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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As measles cases climb across the U.S., Americans are encountering pervasive false claims about the disease and its vaccineand many are unsure what to believe, according to a .
The poll examined false claims that:
- Autism is linked to the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine.
- The MMR vaccine is more dangerous than measles.
- Vitamin A can prevent measles infections.
Other key findings:
- Despite rising misinformation, 78% of parents expressed confidence in the safety of the MMR vaccine.
- Parents who believed or were open to believing measles misinformation were more likely to delay or forgo vaccines for their children.
- Republicans and independents were at least twice as likely as Democrats to believe or lean toward believing the false claims.
But amid deep cuts to local public health funding, the agency is scraping to find the resources to support states that are fighting outbreaks, said CDC senior scientist David Sugerman.
Related:
Montana has a measles outbreak with its first cases in 35 years. Heres what you should know
Track the spread of measles in Texas GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Dialysis patients in Gaza are struggling to get treatment under the blockade; Gazas Health Ministry said that 400+ patients, representing around 40% of all dialysis cases in the territory, have died over the last 18 months because of lack of proper treatment.
U.S. health officials announced plans to urge food makers to phase out petroleum-based artificial colors by the end of 2026but stopped short of promising a formal ban, largely relying on voluntary efforts from the industry.
The NIH has canceled the Womens Health Initiativeits first and largest project centered on womens health, which enrolled tens of thousands in clinical trials of hormones and other medications and tracked the health of thousands more over three decades, yielding influential findings on disease prevention, aging, and cognitive decline.
Teenagers who went to bed earliest, slept the longest, and had the lowest sleeping heart rates outperformed others on cognitive tests, ; researchers found the impact of even small differences in sleep surprising. DEMOGRAPHICS A New Effort to Boost Turkey's Birth Rate
Turkeys government has announced a raft of incentives designed to boost the nations flagging birth rate, .
The Year of the Family initiative includes:
- Financial support based on a households number of children.
- More flexible work policies, expanded childcare services, housing support, and enhanced medical services.
- Turkeys fertility rates have fallen from 2.38 children per woman in 2001 to 1.51 today, well below the 2.1 replacement rate.
- People are marrying and starting families later in life as living costs rise.
- The countrys older population has reached 10% for the first time, and the median age is now 34.
Related: The push for women to have more children has a powerful ally: Trump GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES BRAIN DRAIN Researchers Look Abroad Amid Science Cuts
U.S. researchers are seeking careers abroad as the Trump administration cuts science funding and workforce numbers, per an analysis of .
Comparing JanuaryMarch 2025 to the same period last year:
- U.S. scientists submitted 32% more applications for jobs abroadand views for positions abroad rose by 68% last month compared with March 2024.
- Applications from U.S. scientists seeking careers in Canada rose 41%.
The Quote: We felt it was our duty to do what we could to show scientists there was a little light in the south of France where they could do their research, be a lot freer and where they were wanted, said Aix-Marseilles president, ric Berton.
QUICK HITS HHS Plans to Cut the National Suicide Hotlines Program for LGBTQ Youth
Taking the Side of Cancer: The War on Medical Research Is Being Fought Through Contracts
New agreement geared toward universal avian flu vaccine
RFK Jr.s autism study to amass medical records of many Americans
Hearing loss in older adults linked to nearly one-third of dementia cases
Researchers find immune system proteins involved in severe cases of schistosomiasis
The wholegrain revolution! How Denmark changed the diet and health of their entire nation Issue No. 2713
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: U.S. Cancer Death Rates Falling; Students Forced to Take Pregnancy Tests; and Promoting Mines, While Undermining Protections
April 22, 2025
Claudia Tellez, MD, helps Nataly Arboleda off the exam table at the Lurie Cancer Center, in Chicago, on November 2, 2023. Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty
U.S. Cancer Death Rates Falling
Cancer death rates in the U.S. decreased steadily from 20012021, although rates of new cancer diagnoses have increased for women, .
New NIH director defends grant cuts as part of shift to support MAHA vision
Trump Laid Off Nearly All the Federal Workers Who Investigate Firefighter Deaths
National Science Foundation cancels research grants related to misinformation and disinformation
Trump Administration's HHS Cuts: Creating Waste And Inefficiency, Not Eliminating Them
Gawande: Federal cuts could mean loss of life, harm to U.S. science enterprise
As Trump administration champions IVF, it cuts key CDC staff REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS When Students are Forced to Take Pregnancy Tests
Across east Africa, girls are routinely subjected to pregnancy tests at schoola humiliating, invasive and potentially unlawful process that can also result in expulsion if the girls are found to be pregnant, per a report by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism.
While President Donald Trump has vowed to revitalize and expand coal mining in the U.S., advocates say they are dismayed by the administrations simultaneous decision to gut the health protections in place for miners, .
China's Integrated Policies on Climate Change and Health
Asias megacities at a crossroads as climate and population challenges grow
Vietnam reports H5N1 avian flu case with encephalitis
U.S. Supreme Court appears likely to uphold ACA preventive care coverage mandate
The awful working conditions of factories that slaughter bird-flu-infected chickens
Why cameras are popping up in eldercare facilities
Melinda French Gates on what billionaires with 'absurd' wealth owe back to society Issue No. 2712
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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You can or .
Cancer death rates in the U.S. decreased steadily from 20012021, although rates of new cancer diagnoses have increased for women, .
Takeaways:
- Cancer death rates decreased by 1.5% per year (20182022), representing a slowdown from the previous 2.1% average annual decline.
- Cancer incidence rates remained stable from 20132021 for men but increased 0.3% per year from 20032021 among women.
- Cancer incidence in 2020 fell compared to pre-pandemic levels across all demographic groups.
Details:
- Increases in breast cancer among women are likely driven by obesity, alcohol use, and increased age for giving birth for the first time, per .
- Racial disparities persist: Black women experience a 40% higher death rate from breast cancer and twice the death rate from uterine cancer, compared with white women.
Pandemic impact: Many Americans postponed cancer screenings for several months in 2020, but there wasnt a major increase in late-stage diagnoses, which are typically harder to treat, .
Late-stage diagnoses in 2021 returned to prepandemic levels for most cancer types.
Meanwhile in the U.K.: Cancer patients are not getting access to lifesaving drugs or clinical trials because of post-Brexit cost increases and red tape, .
Related: Top cancer experts being put off UK by politicians messaging on immigration
DATA POINT The Latest One-Liners R矇union health officials are calling for urgent reinforcements to manage a chikungunya virus outbreak on the French Indian Ocean Islandwith six deaths and 5,000+ cases since Januarythat is overwhelming hospitals.Intensive efforts to reduce high blood pressuree.g., through medication and health coachingcould reduce the risk of dementia by 15%, involving 33,995+ people with uncontrolled high blood pressure in 326 villages in rural China.
Traditional risk models used by regulators likely underestimate air pollution health impacts, , measuring risk of simultaneous exposures to multiple chemicals on different parts of the bodyand found increased risks missed by traditional methods.
Health care worker burnout is starting to drop from peak levels at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, but remains elevated compared to prepandemic times, assessing burnout and stress among Veterans Health Administration health care workers.
U.S. Policy and Science Cuts News: NIH moving to ban grants to universities with DEI programs, Israeli boycottsNew NIH director defends grant cuts as part of shift to support MAHA vision
Trump Laid Off Nearly All the Federal Workers Who Investigate Firefighter Deaths
National Science Foundation cancels research grants related to misinformation and disinformation
Trump Administration's HHS Cuts: Creating Waste And Inefficiency, Not Eliminating Them
Gawande: Federal cuts could mean loss of life, harm to U.S. science enterprise
As Trump administration champions IVF, it cuts key CDC staff REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS When Students are Forced to Take Pregnancy Tests
Across east Africa, girls are routinely subjected to pregnancy tests at schoola humiliating, invasive and potentially unlawful process that can also result in expulsion if the girls are found to be pregnant, per a report by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism.
While laws have been updated recently in countries like Uganda and Tanzania to prohibit such tests and expulsions as a violation of childrens rights, a number of schools in those countries continue the practice in breach of national guidelines.
- What the teachers did, it was torturing her, said one Ugandan father, David Wafula, whose pregnant daughter was examined by teachers in front of her classmates.
Context: Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest rate of adolescent pregnancies of any region in the world, per UN data.
While President Donald Trump has vowed to revitalize and expand coal mining in the U.S., advocates say they are dismayed by the administrations simultaneous decision to gut the health protections in place for miners, .
Included in cuts: The federal division that provides free black lung screenings for coal miners fired roughly two-thirds of the staff this month, and there are now no employees left to run the screening program in the agencys West Virginia office, or analyze x-rays already taken.
- The cut in services could have fatal consequences, a spokesperson for the Mine Workers of America : Theres not going to be anyone to work in the mines you are apparently reopening.
Plus: The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration has delayed enforcement of a rule imposed last year to limit miners exposure to toxic crystalline silica dustprompting multiple miners groups to file litigation against the agency, .
QUICK HITS Wave of Earth Day protests as Americans mobilize against TrumpChina's Integrated Policies on Climate Change and Health
Asias megacities at a crossroads as climate and population challenges grow
Vietnam reports H5N1 avian flu case with encephalitis
U.S. Supreme Court appears likely to uphold ACA preventive care coverage mandate
The awful working conditions of factories that slaughter bird-flu-infected chickens
Why cameras are popping up in eldercare facilities
Melinda French Gates on what billionaires with 'absurd' wealth owe back to society Issue No. 2712
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: COVID-19 Information Page Overhauled; Another Deadly Fireworks Factory Explosion in India; and Adolescent Girls Need Our Support
April 21, 2025
COVID-19 Information Page Overhauled
Federal websites once used for sharing information on vaccines, testing, and treatments for COVID-19 now focus on the theory that the pandemic originated in a Wuhan lab and criticize the Biden administrations handling of the pandemic, .
The websites and redirect to a White House page entitled Lab Leak: The True Origins of COVID-19, which includes:
Scientists react: COVID researchers studying both theories said the new website includes inaccurate, oversimplified, and misleading information, with one virologist describing the page as pure propaganda.
CDC considers narrowing its COVID-19 vaccine recommendations
I Was There: A Public Health Worker's Response to the COVID.gov Rewrite GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Children in Burkina Faso have faced 2,483 documented rights violations amid escalating conflict in the country between 2022 and 2024, a ; violations include abductions, injuries from explosive devices, and recruitment into armed groups.
Mercury emissions near small-scale gold mines can be measured in wild fig trees growth rings, finds , the first to show hardwoods potential as a biomonitor of gaseous elemental mercury.
Receipt paper from many U.S. retailers contains high levels of bisphenol S, a chemical linked to cancer and reproductive problems; even brief contact with some receipts can result in enough chemical absorption to exceed safety standards laid out in Californias Proposition 65.
A U.S. attorney has sent letters to at least three medical journals accusing them of political bias and suggesting that the journals mislead readers, in a move scientists and doctors say could have a chilling effect on research publications. U.S. Health and Science Policy News Count the Dead by the Millions
Activists pile 200 coffins outside State Department to protest cuts to global AIDS relief
Ripple effect: In US, anti-immigrant policy strains child and eldercare
USAID cuts halt Yale-led efforts to build global health infrastructure
NIH freezes funds to Harvard and four other universities, but cant tell them
Trumps War on Measurement Means Losing Data on Drug Use, Maternal Mortality, Climate Change and More GHN EXCLUSIVE UPDATE Another Deadly Fireworks Factory Explosion in India
A large fireworks factory explosion in southern India on April 13 killed eight people and injured seven others in Kailasapatnam village in Andhra Pradesh, .
GHN Series: The GHN team learned of the explosion after publishing a two-part series on the dangerous conditions in fireworks factories in the southern Indian city of Sivakasi by freelance journalist Kamala Thiagarajan:
She also notes that a local charity has contributed to the purchase of a prosthetic leg for factory worker Muthukutti, whose story was shared in the series second article. His left leg had to be amputated after a February 12, 2021, explosion at Sree Mariyammal Fireworks Factory near Sivakasi. GHN EXCLUSIVE COMMENTARY Wajir girls reading together. 2021. icon (be one) K / Nicholas Oreyo The Worlds Adolescent Girls Need Our Support
As global funding cuts and policy shifts disrupt health and development programs around the world, teenagersparticularly teenage girlsare especially vulnerable, , who lead the Population Councils Girl Innovation, Research, and Learning Center.
Yet investing in teen girls pays off, making girls more likely to stay in school, secure stable jobs, and contribute to household income.
In the years since Roe v. Wade was overturned, more than a dozen U.S. states have banned virtually all abortions, and more than 100 abortion clinics have closed.
To get training in providing abortions, a small but growing number of providers have sought opportunities in Mexico.
OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Haiti awash with guns leaving population absolutely terrified
Why is tuberculosis, the world's deadliest infectious disease, on the rise in the UK?
ACA preventive care case reaches Supreme Court
What the Newest mRNA Vaccines Could Do Beyond COVID
Relieve the suffering: palliative care for the next decade
Rapid geographic expansion of local dengue community transmission in Peru
Nitrogen-fertilised grassland more likely to trigger hay fever, study suggests
A horse therapy program in Namibia brings joy to children with learning disabilities Issue No. 2711
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
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Copyright 2025 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
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Federal websites once used for sharing information on vaccines, testing, and treatments for COVID-19 now focus on the theory that the pandemic originated in a Wuhan lab and criticize the Biden administrations handling of the pandemic, .
The websites and redirect to a White House page entitled Lab Leak: The True Origins of COVID-19, which includes:
- A five-point breakdown making the case for lab leak origins.
- Accusations that federal officials like former NIAID director Anthony Fauci engaged in obstruction of information.
- Criticisms of the Biden administration, the WHO, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo for the pandemic response, including masks, lockdowns, and social distancing.
Scientists react: COVID researchers studying both theories said the new website includes inaccurate, oversimplified, and misleading information, with one virologist describing the page as pure propaganda.
- The overhaul reflects a broader practice of officials recently scrapping health websites that do not align with their views, .
CDC considers narrowing its COVID-19 vaccine recommendations
I Was There: A Public Health Worker's Response to the COVID.gov Rewrite GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Children in Burkina Faso have faced 2,483 documented rights violations amid escalating conflict in the country between 2022 and 2024, a ; violations include abductions, injuries from explosive devices, and recruitment into armed groups.
Mercury emissions near small-scale gold mines can be measured in wild fig trees growth rings, finds , the first to show hardwoods potential as a biomonitor of gaseous elemental mercury.
Receipt paper from many U.S. retailers contains high levels of bisphenol S, a chemical linked to cancer and reproductive problems; even brief contact with some receipts can result in enough chemical absorption to exceed safety standards laid out in Californias Proposition 65.
A U.S. attorney has sent letters to at least three medical journals accusing them of political bias and suggesting that the journals mislead readers, in a move scientists and doctors say could have a chilling effect on research publications. U.S. Health and Science Policy News Count the Dead by the Millions
Activists pile 200 coffins outside State Department to protest cuts to global AIDS relief
Ripple effect: In US, anti-immigrant policy strains child and eldercare
USAID cuts halt Yale-led efforts to build global health infrastructure
NIH freezes funds to Harvard and four other universities, but cant tell them
Trumps War on Measurement Means Losing Data on Drug Use, Maternal Mortality, Climate Change and More GHN EXCLUSIVE UPDATE Another Deadly Fireworks Factory Explosion in India
A large fireworks factory explosion in southern India on April 13 killed eight people and injured seven others in Kailasapatnam village in Andhra Pradesh, .
GHN Series: The GHN team learned of the explosion after publishing a two-part series on the dangerous conditions in fireworks factories in the southern Indian city of Sivakasi by freelance journalist Kamala Thiagarajan:
She also notes that a local charity has contributed to the purchase of a prosthetic leg for factory worker Muthukutti, whose story was shared in the series second article. His left leg had to be amputated after a February 12, 2021, explosion at Sree Mariyammal Fireworks Factory near Sivakasi. GHN EXCLUSIVE COMMENTARY Wajir girls reading together. 2021. icon (be one) K / Nicholas Oreyo The Worlds Adolescent Girls Need Our Support
As global funding cuts and policy shifts disrupt health and development programs around the world, teenagersparticularly teenage girlsare especially vulnerable, , who lead the Population Councils Girl Innovation, Research, and Learning Center.
- The U.S. foreign assistance freeze could deny access to contraceptive care for ~11.7 million women and girls this yearupping the risk of unintended pregnancies and maternal deaths.
Yet investing in teen girls pays off, making girls more likely to stay in school, secure stable jobs, and contribute to household income.
- Every dollar invested in adolescent girls empowerment in Africa by 2040, , can generate more than a tenfold return in economic impact.
In the years since Roe v. Wade was overturned, more than a dozen U.S. states have banned virtually all abortions, and more than 100 abortion clinics have closed.
To get training in providing abortions, a small but growing number of providers have sought opportunities in Mexico.
- In 2023, Fundaci籀n MSI trained nine American doctors to perform abortions at Mexican clinics.
- This year, it is on track to train more than 50and has the capacity to train up to 300 doctors a year, says MSI Latin Americas managing director.
OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Haiti awash with guns leaving population absolutely terrified
Why is tuberculosis, the world's deadliest infectious disease, on the rise in the UK?
ACA preventive care case reaches Supreme Court
What the Newest mRNA Vaccines Could Do Beyond COVID
Relieve the suffering: palliative care for the next decade
Rapid geographic expansion of local dengue community transmission in Peru
Nitrogen-fertilised grassland more likely to trigger hay fever, study suggests
A horse therapy program in Namibia brings joy to children with learning disabilities Issue No. 2711
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
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