Novel Coronavirus WBUR's ongoing coverage of the new coronavirus. Healey will end the COVID vaccination mandate for state workers, state health emergency Gov. Maura Healey said the vaccination requirement saved “countless lives." But she said it’s time to update the state’s COVID response. Health Mar 15, 2023 It's been 3 years since Mass. declared a COVID-19 emergency. Here's a look at where things stand To look back, and talk about where we are now, Department of Public Health Commissioner Margret Cooke joined WBUR's Morning Edition host Rupa Shenoy. Play Health 04:15 Mar 10, 2023 Advertisement Massachusetts to close free COVID testing sites, citing declining demand State and federal policy changes mark a new phase in the pandemic response, but they could make it harder for people to access COVID tests. Health Mar 7, 2023 BU researchers discover a mutation that may be weakening COVID Their work, published in the journal Nature, suggests that a protein mutation — in addition to changes in the virus's spike protein — played an important role in omicron's ability... Health Jan 12, 2023 It's the third winter of COVID. But this one is different The health care system is under stress — but not just because of COVID patients. Play Health 04:48 Jan 9, 2023 Marylou Sudders, state's health secretary and COVID-19 response leader, announces retirement Sudders was part of Gov. Charlie Baker's cabinet throughout his two terms. In a newsletter announcing her decision, she said one of her predecessors had pointed out she was the... Health Dec 19, 2022 Bump or spike? COVID in wastewater has experts unsurprised but wary As people gathered with loved ones over Thanksgiving, data suggests the virus had an opportunity to spread. But so far hospitals have seen only modest increases in patients hospitalized or... Health Dec 6, 2022 In second year of COVID, study finds fewer deaths but more years of life lost In 2021, 21% fewer people died of COVID than in 2020. But there were 500,000 more years of life lost, researchers found. The reason is that more younger people were... Health Dec 1, 2022 Baker offers jobs back to some workers fired over vaccine mandate Baker said that his team has been looking to connect with some former state employees who sought medical or religious exemptions to the vaccination requirement he ordered in August 2021. Local Coverage Oct 25, 2022 Attorney General Healey still chasing $16 million for masks that never came USiDG is one of scores of opportunists that jumped into the frenzied medical mask and supply business in the early days of COVID, when states were scrambling to acquire protective... Local Coverage Oct 19, 2022 Boston officials report elevated coronavirus levels in wastewater The concentration of the virus in local wastewater has increased by 3.1% over the past week and by nearly 100% over the past two weeks, according to new data from... Health Oct 10, 2022 Doctors urge COVID vaccination ahead of winter, but worry about weak demand Health care providers across Massachusetts are gearing up for a fall campaign to vaccinate people with new COVID boosters that promise to provide better protection against the latest strains of... Health Sep 19, 2022 Omicron booster shots now available in Mass. WBUR's Morning Edition host Rupa Shenoy was joined now by Dr. Ofer Levy, a pediatrician specializing in infectious diseases at Boston Children's Hospital and a member of the FDA COVID... Play Health 05:56 Sep 8, 2022 State distributing 5 million COVID tests State government will steer 3.5 million tests to cities and towns, who will then be able to make the tests available to residents, and food banks will also gain access... Health Sep 8, 2022 Some good COVID news: Deaths were at pre-pandemic levels in Mass. this spring, study finds The researchers called the findings good news but warned, "the future is completely unknown." Health Aug 24, 2022 To solve the mystery of long COVID, researchers look to an older disease The symptoms of long COVID appear almost identical to a condition known for decades: myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome. Understanding the connections between the two could be key to helping people... Play Health 05:12 Aug 8, 2022 COVID cases are rising in Mass. again WBUR's Morning Edition host Rupa Shenoy was joined by Dr. Cassandra Pierre, an associate hospital epidemiologist at Boston Medical Center. Play Health 05:42 Jul 26, 2022 Medical experts urge caution as COVID case numbers rise in Boston The Boston Public Health Commission reported COVID cases in Boston spiked by nearly 40% last week. Area hospitals are averaging about 150 new COVID-related admissions per day, up nearly 24%. Health Jul 18, 2022 Final report: Massachusetts wasn't ready for pandemic Even as Massachusetts climbed the state rankings for shots administered last year, the Baker administration's choice to deliver many of those shots at mass vaccination sites rather than through local... Health Jun 30, 2022 A Provincetown outbreak upended the 'hot vax summer,' but showed how to contain COVID The Provincetown outbreak is seen as a critical moment in the pandemic. It showed that vaccines would not end COVID, but it also held lessons on how to contain the... Play Health 05:03 Jun 30, 2022 Next Page
Healey will end the COVID vaccination mandate for state workers, state health emergency Gov. Maura Healey said the vaccination requirement saved “countless lives." But she said it’s time to update the state’s COVID response. Health Mar 15, 2023
It's been 3 years since Mass. declared a COVID-19 emergency. Here's a look at where things stand To look back, and talk about where we are now, Department of Public Health Commissioner Margret Cooke joined WBUR's Morning Edition host Rupa Shenoy. Play Health 04:15 Mar 10, 2023
Massachusetts to close free COVID testing sites, citing declining demand State and federal policy changes mark a new phase in the pandemic response, but they could make it harder for people to access COVID tests. Health Mar 7, 2023
BU researchers discover a mutation that may be weakening COVID Their work, published in the journal Nature, suggests that a protein mutation — in addition to changes in the virus's spike protein — played an important role in omicron's ability... Health Jan 12, 2023
It's the third winter of COVID. But this one is different The health care system is under stress — but not just because of COVID patients. Play Health 04:48 Jan 9, 2023
Marylou Sudders, state's health secretary and COVID-19 response leader, announces retirement Sudders was part of Gov. Charlie Baker's cabinet throughout his two terms. In a newsletter announcing her decision, she said one of her predecessors had pointed out she was the... Health Dec 19, 2022
Bump or spike? COVID in wastewater has experts unsurprised but wary As people gathered with loved ones over Thanksgiving, data suggests the virus had an opportunity to spread. But so far hospitals have seen only modest increases in patients hospitalized or... Health Dec 6, 2022
In second year of COVID, study finds fewer deaths but more years of life lost In 2021, 21% fewer people died of COVID than in 2020. But there were 500,000 more years of life lost, researchers found. The reason is that more younger people were... Health Dec 1, 2022
Baker offers jobs back to some workers fired over vaccine mandate Baker said that his team has been looking to connect with some former state employees who sought medical or religious exemptions to the vaccination requirement he ordered in August 2021. Local Coverage Oct 25, 2022
Attorney General Healey still chasing $16 million for masks that never came USiDG is one of scores of opportunists that jumped into the frenzied medical mask and supply business in the early days of COVID, when states were scrambling to acquire protective... Local Coverage Oct 19, 2022
Boston officials report elevated coronavirus levels in wastewater The concentration of the virus in local wastewater has increased by 3.1% over the past week and by nearly 100% over the past two weeks, according to new data from... Health Oct 10, 2022
Doctors urge COVID vaccination ahead of winter, but worry about weak demand Health care providers across Massachusetts are gearing up for a fall campaign to vaccinate people with new COVID boosters that promise to provide better protection against the latest strains of... Health Sep 19, 2022
Omicron booster shots now available in Mass. WBUR's Morning Edition host Rupa Shenoy was joined now by Dr. Ofer Levy, a pediatrician specializing in infectious diseases at Boston Children's Hospital and a member of the FDA COVID... Play Health 05:56 Sep 8, 2022
State distributing 5 million COVID tests State government will steer 3.5 million tests to cities and towns, who will then be able to make the tests available to residents, and food banks will also gain access... Health Sep 8, 2022
Some good COVID news: Deaths were at pre-pandemic levels in Mass. this spring, study finds The researchers called the findings good news but warned, "the future is completely unknown." Health Aug 24, 2022
To solve the mystery of long COVID, researchers look to an older disease The symptoms of long COVID appear almost identical to a condition known for decades: myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome. Understanding the connections between the two could be key to helping people... Play Health 05:12 Aug 8, 2022
COVID cases are rising in Mass. again WBUR's Morning Edition host Rupa Shenoy was joined by Dr. Cassandra Pierre, an associate hospital epidemiologist at Boston Medical Center. Play Health 05:42 Jul 26, 2022
Medical experts urge caution as COVID case numbers rise in Boston The Boston Public Health Commission reported COVID cases in Boston spiked by nearly 40% last week. Area hospitals are averaging about 150 new COVID-related admissions per day, up nearly 24%. Health Jul 18, 2022
Final report: Massachusetts wasn't ready for pandemic Even as Massachusetts climbed the state rankings for shots administered last year, the Baker administration's choice to deliver many of those shots at mass vaccination sites rather than through local... Health Jun 30, 2022
A Provincetown outbreak upended the 'hot vax summer,' but showed how to contain COVID The Provincetown outbreak is seen as a critical moment in the pandemic. It showed that vaccines would not end COVID, but it also held lessons on how to contain the... Play Health 05:03 Jun 30, 2022