My latest feature @thesicktimes.org: Wastewater surveillance in the U.S. urgently needs more funding. Public health organizations are calling for Congress to fund the CDC’s program in its 2027 budget, while state health departments plan ahead for potential gaps in grants.

You may have heard about the OMB rule change that will put politics over federal grants. However bad you think it is? It's probably worse. Thanks to @theverge.com for letting me report this one out. There is still time to comment. bit.ly/4v2X4nQ

NIH grants have been under political scrutiny since early 2025. But what does the screening process actually look like? What is being flagged? I spent a month digging into leaked docs and emails. We've published the 235-word list that are being flagged by an internal AI tool. And so much more. 🧵

Well would you! defector.com/would-you-ea...

Two researchers — one in Massachusetts and one in Shanghai — hoped for the same breakthrough: a gene therapy for deaf children. New Chinese investment in science propelled the one who got there first. n.pr/4weVi49

Scoop with @mercohn.bsky.social: Johns Hopkins University is laying off more than 100 employees in the Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Carey Business School and central administration. Hopkins is suffering "debilitating" decreases in federal research funding www.thebanner.com/education/hi...

After nearly 10 yrs at Scientific American, I was laid off yesterday. It's been the honor of my career working w/such brilliant, caring colleagues & writers. I'm proud of all we achieved and will always love this magazine. I'm #opentowork but first I plan to spend time "cultivating [my] own garden."

I’m so sad to share that yesterday was my last day at Scientific American. It was an honor to work alongside my incredible colleagues and to speak with researchers across the sciences. If you’re looking to hire staff or freelance, please consider me and my other laid off coworkers (🧵)

📣 BIG NEWS! 📣 We're re-launching bioGraphic as a completely independent nonprofit! As we make this transition, we're taking a publishing (and social media) break in July and August. Then we'll be back with more inspiring, paywall-free journalism about the natural world. More details below 👇

Scientific American is being sold to LabX Media, publisher of Discover: group.springernature.com/gp/group/med... They've fired me and other union staff, ahead of June 26 vote ratification. My rates are suddenly more reasonable, if you need editing or reporting - [email protected]

Been wondering why NSF isn't spending most of its FY26 appropriation? A $1.5B tech initiative may be the reason. And big cuts to hundreds of research programs could be just the beginning of the bad news. www.science.org/content/arti...

More than a year after USAID was thrown "into the woodchipper" there are shortages of lifesaving malnutrition treatment at clinics across Senegal. Community health workers told me that mothers often blame staff. "They think we are deceiving them ... It really hurts" www.npr.org/2026/06/13/n...

My first long radio story for NPR -- give it a listen!

Through an innovative program, parents in Senegal had easy access to a therapeutic food that's a boon for malnourished kids. Now there are shortages. Health specialists say U.S. aid cuts are to blame. n.pr/4gjSVbf

I traveled to Senegal to see how aid cuts are imperiling efforts to bring malnutrition treatment to kids. Mothers whose kids had been improving told me of relapsing, as clinics often have nothing to give. "Whenever your child is suffering, you suffer with them." www.npr.org/2026/06/13/n...

I first met Neil Shubin 30 years ago when he was digging for fossils of our fishy ancestors in Pennsylvania road cuts. Now he's becoming president of the National Academy of Sciences. We talked about taking the helm of the 163-year-old organization at this fraught moment. Gift link: nyti.ms/4giD3FX

Normally, NIH would be a key partner in starting trials to test vaccine candidates amid an Ebola outbreak. But the division that would have done that work "is now gone," says a former NIHer. That could slow eventual approval, even with a major infusion of cash from CEPI www.npr.org/2026/06/04/g...

A new study has found that the National Guard's presence in Washington, D.C. had no effect on violent crime in the city. The Guard has been deployed since last August as part of a federal task force to fight crime, and their numbers are set to double in the coming weeks. n.pr/3PWDxqK

Yesterday—4 days after OMB released its proposal to revamp all federal funding—there were 3500+ comments. Today there are nearly 4,500. Our story on the damage the proposal could inflict on science and the researchers pushing back. Reported w/@marilenharo.bsky.social:

Ebola's exceptionally high death rate is not inherent to the virus. High-quality supportive care can help keep patients alive, but that care is often out of reach for people at the epicenters of outbreaks, at least those who can't be airlifted to a U.S. hospital. www.npr.org/2026/06/02/g...

Ebola's exceptionally high death rate is not inherent to the virus. High-quality supportive care can help keep patients alive, but that care is often out of reach for people at the epicenters of outbreaks, at least those who can't be airlifted to a U.S. hospital. www.npr.org/2026/06/02/g...

Breaking: Judge Jackson blocks NSF from dismantling NCAR. www.courtlistener.com/docket/72496...

"The virus had been spreading for months, virtually unimpeded, “and this is the best we can do?” [said a Congolese doctor], the frustration pouring through his protective gear." Chilling reporting, the response is still far, far behind the outbreak. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/30/w...

If you want to understand the reality of #Ebola and what it is like, listen to this @npr.org story by @jonathanlambert.bsky.social It shares perspectives from myself & other clinicians who worked on the frontlines of Ebola and cared for patients. www.npr.org/2026/05/29/n...

Kenyan healthcare workers are pushing back hard against reported plans for the U.S. to establish Ebola quarantine/treatment facilities in Kenya for exposed American personnel during the ongoing Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak in Central/East Africa.

At least 18 NPR journalists have accepted buyouts and another 10 have been laid off as the public media network attempts to save money and reorganize the newsroom. n.pr/3RxYWqE

Scoop: NSF has been quietly blocking new funds and grants to four top universities: Duke, Harvard, Princeton, and Yale. Dozens of proposals from PIs at these universities—and their collaborators—have been stuck at the Office of Award Management awaiting finalization for months.

The U.S. invested billions in trying to detect and respond to outbreaks fast. Aid cuts dismantled much of that architecture. "Outbreaks are always going to occur ... It's more the fact that it circulated for so long, I think that part is related to cuts." www.npr.org/2026/05/21/n...

I am skeptical that already approved Ebola virus vaccines and monoclonals will show promise during the ongoing outbreak of Bundibugyo virus for the simple reason that the two viruses are highly divergent (~35% AA divergence in GP). Focus should be on BDBV-specific or "pan-Ebola" countermeasures. 🧵

The U.S. invested billions in trying to detect and respond to outbreaks fast. Aid cuts dismantled much of that architecture. "Outbreaks are always going to occur ... It's more the fact that it circulated for so long, I think that part is related to cuts." www.npr.org/2026/05/21/n...

Aid cuts likely added to delays in detecting the Ebola outbreak, now the third largest on record. "Outbreaks are always going to occur, but it's more the fact that it circulated for so long, this thing is much bigger than we've realized. That part is related to cuts" www.npr.org/2026/05/21/n...

Epidemiologists -- I need your help! Are there any examples of previous #ebola outbreaks where cases were first flagged by humanitarian workers, who then alerted health officials? I'm hearing a lot about the importance of informal surveillance of humanitarian work, and am looking for examples.

Epidemiologists -- I need your help! Are there any examples of previous #ebola outbreaks where cases were first flagged by humanitarian workers, who then alerted health officials? I'm hearing a lot about the importance of informal surveillance of humanitarian work, and am looking for examples.

Periodic reminder that "de-extinction" is not a real thing www.nytimes.com/2025/05/07/m...

Good article. No doubt, the rare species of ebola virus made it hard to detect this outbreak. But that doesn’t make it okay. Snapping into action at the first sign that a novel virus is causing a deadly outbreak is exactly what we need to be prepared for a pandemic. We failed this test.

This Ebola outbreak caught public health officials off guard. Part of that is the rare species of Ebola. But aid cuts likely didn't help. "At every level, international response capacity has been badly undermined by funding cuts, says @jeremykonyndyk.bsky.social www.npr.org/2026/05/18/g...

NEW FROM ME: The president posts 19 times a day on average. Most of those posts go unnoticed. But then, they’re…yknow…the president talking to the world. So I figured, let’s just read and analyze all of them. www.npr.org/2026/05/08/n...

I really, really hate to sharing this, but last week, we @biographic.bsky.social learned that the California Academy of Sciences will no longer be providing the magazine with financial support, including money we were expecting to receive this year. We're in a real bind.

Nature clearly benefits human health. But fully fleshing out the links between biodiversity and health is really hard. New research quantifies those connections in rural Nepal, finding insects are responsible for more than 20% of key nutrient intake and 44% of income. www.npr.org/2026/05/06/n...

Nature clearly benefits human health. But fully fleshing out the links between biodiversity and health is really hard. New research quantifies those connections in rural Nepal, finding insects are responsible for more than 20% of key nutrient intake and 44% of income. www.npr.org/2026/05/06/n...

When the NIH abruptly terminated thousands of research grants last year, the fallout wasn’t distributed equitably. A new analysis suggests the cuts disproportionately hit women, BIPOC, and LGBTQ+ investigators. My latest for @nature.com

Researchers looked at whether a tried-and-true poverty alleviation effort that gives cash and coaching to households, and is typically implemented in rural areas, could work in an urban setting. n.pr/3QREdO7

Much of what's known about the health risks of the wildlife trade comes from specific outbreaks, like mpox, ebola or covid. A new look across mammals by @colincarlson.bsky.social et al finds that if we trade a mammal, we're waaaay more likely to share its pathogens. www.npr.org/2026/04/09/n...

The State Dept is deliberately withholding PEPFAR funds that Congress appropriated, CDC staffer says. "That's a controlled demolition. The people who will pay the price are the more than 12 million people living with HIV who depend on these programs for their treatment." www.npr.org/2026/04/04/n...

"Congress appropriated these funds. The money exists. The State Department is simply not transferring enough of it to CDC to keep these programs running... that's a controlled demolition." How the administration is "choking off" PEPFAR, imperiling lives around the globe. www.npr.org/2026/04/04/n...

U.S. work combatting HIV/AIDS has saved millions of lives globally. Under the Trump administration, funding has been slow in coming and unpredictable, wreaking havoc on people trying to do the work. n.pr/4cerH2q

"Congress appropriated these funds. The money exists. The State Department is simply not transferring enough of it to CDC to keep these programs running... that's a controlled demolition." How the administration is "choking off" PEPFAR, imperiling lives around the globe. www.npr.org/2026/04/04/n...

Every story has a quote left on the cutting room floor. For this one, it's this: Me: The U.S. has sequenced 1000 measles genomes from our outbreak. Virologist @eddieholmes.bsky.social: "This is 2026! There shouldn't be 1000 measles genomes. That's disastrous." kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Today, MSF is going public with something we've been fighting behind closed doors for months: Gilead will not sell us their new HIV drug, lenacapavir. The sticking point isn't even price, they just refuse to sell. Open letter linked + explainer 🧵1/ www.doctorswithoutborders.org/latest/gilea...

"Countries heavily reliant on US aid see a 10.5% increase in maternal mortality following a switch from a Democratic to a Republican administration—about 44.7 additional deaths per 100 000 live births." gh.bmj.com/content/11/3...