Credit: Epicenter/Brianna Mancini

Five years after the start of the Covid pandemic, are we setting ourselves up for failure again?

The big idea: Five years after COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic, we're at risk of repeating history due to our failure to learn crucial public health lessons. The pandemic affected us in profound ways beyond the immediate death toll of 47,000 in NYC alone. It changed social attitudes, political landscapes, and even childhood development. Rather than emerging with a stronger sense of collective responsibility, American society has shifted further toward individualism. This unusual change in American life has made people "coarser and less public-minded" while pushing younger generations into increasingly online social lives controlled by corporate interests aligned with right-wing politics.Meeting the moment: HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an anti-vaccine crusader, is a particular point of alarm. In recent weeks, he’s made comments downplaying vaccine benefits during a measles outbreak, the CDC reopened debunked studies on vaccines and autism, flu vaccine strain determination panels were canceled, and there’s a planned review of childhood vaccination schedules, writes Felipe de la Hoz for Epicenter NYC. With federal agencies stepping back, state and local governments will need to fill the void. People should pursue recommended vaccinations and maintain public pressure against these changes.The stakes: When prevention works well, like vaccines, people forget why these systems matter in the first place. With declining trust in agencies like the FDA and declining childhood vaccination rates, we face disturbing and serious consequences. 

From the source: “People don’t seem to really understand the impact of these public health systems running under the hood, or what happens when they’re no longer there,” De la Hoz writes. “We have a couple of ways of finding this out — mass public education and attention, or the hard way. Let’s try not to have it be the hard way.”

Read more at Epicenter NYC.

Credit: Chris Allen, Black Voice News

Los Angeles County has its first measles case

The big idea: Los Angeles County has confirmed its first measles case of the year in a traveler who passed through Los Angeles International Airport, writes Black Voice News. This case comes as there is a national uptick in measles cases, with the CDC reporting 222 cases across 12 states as of March 6, 2025. Texas is experiencing a significant outbreak with 223 cases since late January, including one death of an unvaccinated school-aged child. Public health officials point to declining vaccination rates as the primary cause of these outbreaks. Measles had been declared eliminated in the U.S. in 2000 because of prior high vaccination rates. The stakes: The return of measles is a significant public health concern. It’s a highly contagious viral disease that spreads easily through the air and on surfaces. Infected individuals are contagious well before showing symptoms. Those at highest risk for life-threatening complications include young children, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems. The fine print: Californians tend to vaccinate at higher rates than the national average because of the state’s strict exemption policies. The eliminated religious and personal belief exemptions in 2016, allowing only medical exemptions which must meet specific criteria and be submitted through an official registry. However, students in home-based private schools or independent study programs without classroom instruction are exempt from these requirements. From the source: “Getting the MMR vaccine is the best way to protect yourself and stop the spread of this dangerous disease,” Los Angeles County Health Officer Dr. Muntu Davis said in a prepared statement.

Read more at Black Voice News.

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How to cope with an empty nest

The big idea: Empty nest syndrome is a psychological condition experienced by parents, especially those who have been primary caregivers, when their children leave home. It progresses through three distinct stages: anticipation (anxiety before the child leaves), grief (sadness after departure), and adjustment (establishing new routines and interests), Dr. Manoj Sharma writes in India Currents.The stakes: While empty nest syndrome is normal, it could require the help of a professional if it gets so bad that affects how the parent is functioning on a daily basis. Approaches from Indian philosophy such as yoga, meditation, and mindfulness practices can help on their own or complement treatment.What you can do: Among other things, be sure to stay in contact with your child in whatever way makes sense for both of you, develop or reestablish interests that you may have set aside while actively parenting, keep a journal and consider consulting with health care providers if issues become serious.

Read more at India Currents.

Highlighting the innovators transforminghealth outcomes in our communities

The story:  Arhan Chakravarthy and Samik Thakur, two Homestead, Calif., high school students, led an initiative called Project Preserve to raise awareness about dementia. They also advocated for the federal NAPA Reauthorization Act (HR 619) and Alzheimer’s Accountability and Investment Act (HR 620), writes India Currents.At the center: The students also created a podcast, “The Mind Matters: Understanding Dementia,” as part of the initiative. The podcast featured experts on dementia care and cognitive health. They also have an interactive platform called Brain Boggle to help people exercise their cognitive skills. Read more at India Currents.

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