Taking stock of the CDC's COVID-19 response, the importance of forest science, the evolutionary importance of chewing, and more

Director Rochelle Walensky said the agency’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic fell short and outlined plans to reorganize and strengthen its response to future public health threats.

Analyses suggest the virus has been silently spreading in nearby counties since May.

FEMA official Robert Fenton and a deputy are charged with increasing access to tests, vaccines, and treatment.

The Biden administration plans to elevate the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response to its own division in a bid to improve the response to current and future public health emergencies, The Washington Post reports.

Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech shots could be given to the youngest kids as early as June 21.

Two strains of monkeypox have been detected in the US, suggesting the virus has been circulating in the country for some time, the CDC says.

With a global alarm ringing because of an unprecedented outbreak of monkeypox, we should also consider a different but closely related viral threat.

The presence and spread of new, more-infectious and immune-evading variants show that the coronavirus is not done mutating.

And does it even matter?

The CDC has given the OK to lift indoor mask mandates in much of the US, and a growing number of states no longer require face coverings in schools. But most experts agree that masks slow school spread of SARS-CoV-2, and whether now is the right time to allow teachers and students to unmask is a matter of debate.

The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute scientist developed Botox for medicinal use.

Sherif Zaki worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for more than 30 years, and was renowned for uncovering crucial intel on various outbreak-causing scourges, from Ebola and Zika to SARS and influenza.

With the final hurdle cleared, the COVID-19 vaccine could be administered to US children ages 5 through 11 as early as today.

The CDC now suggests that only children who were within 3 feet, not 6 feet, of an infected student should quarantine, provided they were masked in a classroom. Does the science support this change?

Health authorities in both countries announced that people under certain age cutoffs are now ineligible for the Spikevax COVID-19 shot due to its association with heart inflammation.

President Biden’s planned rollout of additional COVID-19 vaccine doses is set to begin next week, but questions remain about who should get them.

A former academic and consultant, Hodge cofounded the CrisiScience Collective to help combat the pandemic.

The vaccines remain protective against serious disease and death.