Experts warn that communities underestimate measles’ danger

A sharp rise in U.S. measles cases is linked to falling MMR vaccination rates and growing immunity gaps

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Respiratory syncytial virus is continuing to spread later into the spring than usual, driving most states to extend the window for RSV immunizations for eligible infants and toddlers.

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The CDC has paused diagnostic testing for more than two dozen infectious diseases —including rabies and pox viruses — according to the agency’s website.

HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon told Healio that the pause is temporary while the CDC “evaluates these assays as part of our routine review to uphold our commitment to high-quality laboratory testing.”

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The largest measles outbreak in the United States seems to be winding down. The South Carolina Department of Public Health says the state has now gone two full weeks without a new infection. Also, no one in the state is in quarantine or isolation for measles at this time, according to Brannon Traxler, MD, MPH, South Carolina’s chief medical officer.

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Flu and Covid, including a new variant called BA.3.2, nicknamed “cicada,” are still circulating, along with several other respiratory illnesses and a nasty stomach bug that are leaving many Americans feeling cruddy.

The symptoms for most of the viruses are so similar — sniffles, cough, muscle aches, fever — that doctors say you really can’t tell what you’ve got without a test.

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The School of Public Health’s Pandemic Center received a $900,000 grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York to launch a program for mid-career professionals in Africa designed to provide specialized training on biological threat reduction policy. The three-year initiative is set to launch in summer 2026 and will include a 9–10-week online course and a yearlong fellowship.

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This hour, we look at the spread of measles in the United States. And we talk to health and science communicators who are working to tell the story of that disease in new ways.

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Ahead of the World Cup, state health leaders say they are relying on a playbook they’ve used many times before, for blizzards, holiday celebrations, championship games, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Boston Marathon bombing.

Yet the World Cup dwarfs virtually any other event hosted in the region in decades, spanning 16 North American cities over five weeks and drawing an estimated 2 million fans to Greater Boston. Players and ticket-holders will ricochet across not just the region, but the country.

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Measles cases continue to rise – this is worrying. The good news is that there is a super effective vaccine that protects you and your loved ones.

Note – we use data from both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Brown University Pandemic Center’s weekly tracking report. While the CDC tracks confirmed cases only, the Pandemic Center tracks both probable and confirmed cases using publicly available data from state health departments. (Numbers below are correct as of March 13, 2026).

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Americans’ trust in federal vaccine recommendations declines markedly under Trump

One in three Americans trust childhood vaccine guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics more than the CDC’s recommendations, a new poll finds

Just six in 10 Americans trust the federal government’s childhood vaccine recommendations, a new poll finds. That marks a notable drop from June 2025, when 71 percent of poll respondents said they trusted the government’s vaccine guidance. The greatest decline was among Democrats—from 81 percent to 66 percent—although Republicans’ and Independents’ trust also waned.
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In March 2020, the World Health Organization’s director-general declared COVID-19 a pandemic, saying the agency was “deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction.” Since the virus emerged six years ago, the disease has taken the lives of more than 7 million people, according to data tracked by KFF, a health research organization. COVID infections have left hundreds of millions of people with long COVID, a complex and chronic condition.

“We’re going to have more pandemics,” said Jennifer Nuzzo, professor of epidemiology and director of the Pandemic Center at Brown University School of Public Health, noting that data shows that the chances of future pandemics and the frequency with which they could occur are increasing.

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