Health

WHO: Ebola outbreak began in February, deaths near 2,000

“In some areas of eastern DRC, the Ebola outbreak is outpacing our response, making it imperative that we rapidly scale up every aspect of our efforts to contain it”

Aug 11, 2026

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1 min read

Scientists have created new viruses using AI. Here’s how they did it

Scientists trained artificial intelligence on libraries of DNA and then asked the model to create recipes for viral genomes. Sixteen of them were viable, yielding new viruses.

Aug 8, 2026

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1 min read

FDA approves Moderna's mRNA seasonal flu vaccine

The vaccine, mFLUSIVA, is expected to be available for people 50 and older for the 2026-2027 respiratory illness season.

Aug 7, 2026

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1 min read

Severe COVID may awaken dormant viruses, leading to autoimmune disease, long COVID

Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin conclude that severe COVID-19 infections can reactivate viruses, leading to worse clinical outcomes, autoimmune diseases, and other long-term conditions such as long COVID.

Aug 7, 2026

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1 min read

Ebola outbreak was still expanding beyond the capacity to respond, and more support was needed to scale up all areas of response - Tarik Jašarević, for the World Health Organization (WHO)

As of 1 August, there had been 3,748 confirmed cases, including 1,657 confirmed deaths . . .

Aug 4, 2026

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1 min read

US cyclosporiasis outbreak kills two people in Michigan, officials say

Two people have died from cyclosporiasis in Michigan, the state’s health department said on Monday, marking the first fatalities in the largest US outbreak ⁠of the intestinal illness.

Aug 3, 2026

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1 min read

Fast-moving wildfires in Spokane, Washington, destroy hundreds of homes: "Worst natural disaster our region has faced"

Update: Arson arrest in Spokane wildfires (see post below) . . . Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown called the wildfires burning through the area the "worst natural disaster our region has faced."

Aug 3, 2026

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Trump administration unfreezes $600 million for Gavi for global vaccine effort

The Trump administration said on Wednesday it will immediately release $600 million in congressionally appropriated funds for vaccines for the world's poorest countries after Washington withheld the money ‌over unsubstantiated safety concerns raised by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Aug 1, 2026

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1 min read

A first-of-its-kind U.S. study suggests invasive mold infections may be an underappreciated — and potentially deadly — threat.

The researchers detected about 450 cases in Atlanta-area hospitals over five years. About a third of the patients died in the hospital.

Jul 31, 2026

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1 min read

Uganda declares itself free of Ebola as Congo continues to struggle with it

Authorities in Uganda declared the East Africa nation free of Ebola on Tuesday following the discharge of the country’s last patient in mid-June, a delicate milestone as the virus continues to plague neighboring Congo.

Jul 29, 2026

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Map Shows States Under Air Quality Alerts as Thousands Told Stay Inside

Air quality alerts spanned large swaths of the western United States on Sunday as wildfire smoke and high ozone levels triggered unhealthy breathing conditions across Oregon, Idaho, Washington, Montana, Colorado, and California.

Jul 27, 2026

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1 min read

Firefighters battle to contain France and Spain wildfires as thousands more evacuated

Firefighters are struggling to contain wildfires raging in France and Spain - nearly 200,000 people are evacuated near Bordeaux - where are the fires burning?

Jul 25, 2026

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1 min read

End of migrant protections creates elder care staffing challenges

Hundreds of thousands of migrants are facing uncertainty after the Supreme Court cleared the way for the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status for Syrian and Haitian nationals. It's raising alarm among leaders in the senior care industry, who say workers with TPS make up a significant part of a strained workforce. Geoff Bennett discussed more with Katie Smith Sloan of LeadingAge.

Jul 24, 2026

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Families brace for separation as Haitians set to lose protected status next week

A Supreme Court ruling stripped Haitian migrants of their temporary legal status. Those with U.S.-born children face an agonizing choice if deported: Should they take them to a still-dangerous Haiti?

Jul 24, 2026

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1 min read

Here’s Where The Cyclosporiasis Outbreak Stands After Taylor Farms’ False Positive

Investigators still believe shredded iceberg lettuce served primarily at Taco Bell (which Taylor Farms supplies) caused the outbreak because of common exposure among the sick, and the traceback investigation still points toward the same supply chain, but there’s no proof as of Monday.

Jul 20, 2026

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Iceberg lettuce at Taco Bell linked to cyclospora outbreak in 5 states

Do not eat shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico served at Taco Bell locations in IN, KY, MI, OH, and WV. FDA’s investigation is ongoing.

Jul 18, 2026

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Wildfires expose millions in Midwest, Northeast to dangerous smoke: "Perfect storm for really dry conditions"

Heavy smoke from several large wildfires blazing in Canada and Minnesota is expected to engulf large swaths of the Midwest and Northeast U.S. this week, exposing millions of people to dangerous air pollution.

Jul 15, 2026

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Five Teton County Measles Cases Confirmed by Wyoming Department of Health

The Wyoming Department of Health (WDH) has confirmed two additional cases of measles in Teton County, bringing the statewide total to six. One case is an adult with no identified links to the previous three Teton County cases. The other case is an adult who had direct exposure to a previously identified case. This underscores the highly contagious nature of the measles virus.

Jul 15, 2026

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US to block citizens in Congo from immediate travel home, citing Ebola

The order, which is being taken under a transportation authority known as Title 49, will place U.S. citizens in Congo or those who have recently left on a “do-not-board” list until they have spent at least 21 days in a third country, the person said.

Jul 14, 2026

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Congo Ebola outbreak still spreading largely undetected, WHO official says

Four out of every five new Ebola cases in parts of Democratic Republic of Congo have no known link to existing patients . . . warning that the true scale of the outbreak could be two to four times larger than official data suggest . . . In Bunia, Ituri's capital and a city of one million, roughly one in two patients tested for Ebola turns out to be positive, a sign of intense, ongoing community transmission . . .

Jul 12, 2026

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Ebola workers strike as CDC head says agency’s response will last months

To add to an already difficult public health crisis, some healthcare workers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have gone on strike, saying they are fighting an Ebola virus in an outbreak with inadequate equipment and low wages . . .

Jul 10, 2026

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World must move faster on Ebola response for DR Congo: UN relief chief

The world must move faster to contain the spread of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), UN relief chief Tom Fletcher said on Thursday . . . “Any delay will be measured in Ebola deaths and in lives lost to the wider humanitarian consequences of this outbreak” . . .

Jul 9, 2026

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Six Years After the First COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines, Billions of Doses Clarify Their Protection and Rare Risks

Learn how mRNA vaccines work, why serious risks remain rare, and how the technology could be used beyond COVID-19.

Jul 9, 2026

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1 min read

New CDC data suggests Houston and suburbs new COVID-19 hotspot

Houston is now roughly six years removed from the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. But recent data suggests COVID might be surging once again in the Bayou City.

Jul 6, 2026

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1 min read

Heat and severe storms damper July 4th celebrations, leave hundreds of thousands without power

While millions of Americans across the Northeast experienced record-setting temperatures, thunderstorms in the Midwest downed trees, ruptured power lines and made transportation treacherous.

Jul 5, 2026

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1 min read

Health

WHO: Ebola outbreak began in February, deaths near 2,000

Scientists have created new viruses using AI. Here’s how they did it

FDA approves Moderna's mRNA seasonal flu vaccine

Severe COVID may awaken dormant viruses, leading to autoimmune disease, long COVID

Ebola outbreak was still expanding beyond the capacity to respond, and more support was needed to scale up all areas of response - Tarik Jašarević, for the World Health Organization (WHO)

US cyclosporiasis outbreak kills two people in Michigan, officials say

Fast-moving wildfires in Spokane, Washington, destroy hundreds of homes: "Worst natural disaster our region has faced"

Trump administration unfreezes $600 million for Gavi for global vaccine effort

A first-of-its-kind U.S. study suggests invasive mold infections may be an underappreciated — and potentially deadly — threat.

Uganda declares itself free of Ebola as Congo continues to struggle with it

Map Shows States Under Air Quality Alerts as Thousands Told Stay Inside

Firefighters battle to contain France and Spain wildfires as thousands more evacuated

End of migrant protections creates elder care staffing challenges

Families brace for separation as Haitians set to lose protected status next week

Here’s Where The Cyclosporiasis Outbreak Stands After Taylor Farms’ False Positive

Iceberg lettuce at Taco Bell linked to cyclospora outbreak in 5 states

Wildfires expose millions in Midwest, Northeast to dangerous smoke: "Perfect storm for really dry conditions"

Five Teton County Measles Cases Confirmed by Wyoming Department of Health

US to block citizens in Congo from immediate travel home, citing Ebola

Congo Ebola outbreak still spreading largely undetected, WHO official says

Ebola workers strike as CDC head says agency’s response will last months

World must move faster on Ebola response for DR Congo: UN relief chief

Six Years After the First COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines, Billions of Doses Clarify Their Protection and Rare Risks

New CDC data suggests Houston and suburbs new COVID-19 hotspot

Heat and severe storms damper July 4th celebrations, leave hundreds of thousands without power

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