Debt ceiling deal will mean even less COVID-19 funding

June 4, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

In order to reach the debt ceiling deal, Biden had to make a lot of compromises—including limiting funding for COVID-19 and other public health needs. The deal could make it harder for state and local governments to distribute COVID-19 vaccines, track disease through programs like wastewater surveillance, and prepare for future health threats.

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National numbers, June 4

June 4, 2023.Reading time 5 minutes.

The COVID-19 plateau of the last few weeks continues at the national level, though experts are concerned that a summer surge could occur in parts of the country. Wastewater surveillance and testing data are indicating potential increases in the New York City region.

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Answering reader questions about wastewater data, rapid tests, Paxlovid

May 28, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

Answering reader questions about interpreting wastewater surveillance data, rapid test accuracy, and Paxlovid access.

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COVID source shout-out: Virginia’s new wastewater dashboard

May 21, 2023.Reading time 1 minute.

This past week, Virginia’s health department added a new wastewater surveillance section to its COVID-19 dashboard. The new section includes a map of testing sites, coronavirus trends by site, viral loads over time, and plenty of text explaining how to interpret the data.

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National numbers, May 21

May 21, 2023.Reading time 5 minutes.

Nationwide, COVID-19 spread in the U.S. continues to be in a somewhat-middling plateau: lower than the massive amount of Omicron transmission we all got used to throughout late 2022, but still higher than the lulls between outbreaks we saw in prior years.

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COVID source shout-out: Wastewater testing at the San Francisco airport

May 14, 2023.Reading time 2 minutes.

A few months ago, I wrote about how testing sewage from airplanes could be a valuable way to keep tabs on the coronavirus variants circulating around the world. This spring, San Francisco International Airport became the first in the U.S. to actually start doing this tracking; I covered their new initiative for Science News.

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The federal public health emergency ends next week: What you should know

May 7, 2023.Reading time 18 minutes.

We’re now less than one week out from May 11, when the federal public health emergency (or PHE) for COVID-19 will end. While this change doesn’t actually signify that COVID-19 is no longer worth worrying about, it marks a major shift in how U.S. governments will respond to the ongoing pandemic, including how the disease is tracked and what public services are available. Here’s all the key info you should know about this, in one place.

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Sources and updates, April 16

April 16, 2023.Reading time 4 minutes.

Sources and updates for the week of April 16 include new Long COVID research, bivalent booster effectiveness, air quality in schools, and more.

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How wastewater surveillance is funded, and concerns for its future

April 2, 2023.Reading time 12 minutes.

This week, I have a new story out in Scientific American about why the wastewater surveillance infrastructure built during the pandemic may not last in the long term. While current monitoring projects aren’t likely to go anywhere right now, issues with funding, uneven commitments at state and local levels, and the overall novelty of this field may lead those programs to shut down in the coming years.

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National numbers, April 2

April 2, 2023.Reading time 4 minutes.

While official COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to trend ever-so-slightly downward, wastewater surveillance data show potential new upticks in transmission. Despite continued minimal safety measures in most places, we have to remain wary of a potential spring surge.

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