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Beyond Weight Loss: New Grant Supports Study on Weight Stability, Black Women's Health
'From a public health perspective, prevention is as important as treatment. Still, what I observed was a large gap in prevention approaches to address ...
Public Health professionals find connection through community theater
LANDSTUHL, Germany — Three Public Health Command Europe employees recently participated in “The Stinky Cheese Man”, a Kaiserslautern Military Community...
Medical school professor wins women faculty award for public health work
Marcella Nunez-Smith, the School of Medicine’s inaugural associate dean for Health Equity Research, was recognized by the Yale Women Faculty Forum for her work in public health equity at a Wednesday event attended by various senior administrators.
Senator Murray launches working group to shield US public health from political influence
Health leaders ponder ways to boost confidence in science-backed public health
Trust in the U.S. healthcare system has plummeted in recent years.
Health leaders ponder ways to boost confidence in science-backed public health
Trust in the U.S. healthcare system has plummeted in recent years.
At WSU in Pullman, Murray Launches Public Health for America Working Group, Delivers Address to Chart What Comes Next After Trump & RFK Jr., and Discusses Key Public Health Challenges with Local Leaders and Experts
READ MORE: Senator Murray announces members of new public health initiative NYT: A Public Health-Minded Senator Asks: What Comes After Trump and Kennedy? ***LIVESTREAM OF DISCUSSION FROM KHQ HERE*** Pullman, WA — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and a senior member and former Chair of the Senate […]
MTSU Public Health Program celebrates growth, alumni impact at annual PHamily Dinner
From celebrating three consecutive years of enrollment growth to recognizing outstanding alumni, Middle Tennessee State University’s Public Health Program had plenty to celebrate during its fourth annual PHamily Dinner.
HHS Declares Public Health Emergencies for Florida, Alabama following Hurricane Isaias
Secretary Kennedy yesterday determined that public health emergencies exist in Florida and Alabama as a result of Hurricane Isaias.
HHS declares public health emergency in Alabama, Florida following Hurricane Isaias
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. yesterday determined that public health emergencies exist in Florida and Alab
Herpes ‘Remedies’ Sold On Amazon And Walmart Pose Public Health Risk, FDA Warns
WEDNESDAY, Oct. 14, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Creams, sprays and washes that promise relief from genital herpes are easy to order online, but none of them has been approved to treat the infection. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has sent warning letters to Amazon and Walmart over herpes
How Should Local Health Officers Respond to Measles Outbreaks?
A public health expert spoke with Governing about why cases are proliferating and how government officials should be working to address it.
Letters: Cutting city health budget in half jeopardizes vulnerable residents
As president and CEO of the Louisiana Public Health Institute, my job is to understand what helps our communities become healthier and to work alongside partners who share that commitment.
Email King County Council now to support public health clinics
With an end to temporary funding ahead, public health clinics need a reliable and sustainable funding source now as HR 1 kicks in.
Laurel County Health Department investigation reveals over 50 reported cases of measles
The new reported cases are part of an investigation with the Kentucky Department of Public Health and are linked to several large households with limited community interaction.
Alabama Health Officials Warn of Measles Case in Huntsville
Alabama Health Officials Warn of Measles Case in HuntsvilleThe Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) is urging residents to watch for measles symptoms and
Judge rejects NC State Health Plan's request to block Atrium affordability program
Atrium Health scored an early courtroom win on Tuesday when a judge rejected the state of North Carolina’s request for a temporary restraining order on an affordability program the health system pl | The state's treasurer has said the large health system's Affordability Protection Program, a response to being left out of a preferred provider program, would bankrupt the public health plan.
CVS agrees to pay $315 million to settle Justice Department case over opioid prescriptions
The settlement resolves a lawsuit brought in 2024 that accused the healthcare giant of providing massive amounts of opioids and other controlled substances “to fuel its own profits at the expense of public health and safety.”
Public health leaders say now is the time for vaccinations
Public health leaders in Washington, Oregon, California and Hawaii have released vaccine recommendations for the respiratory virus season.
Helen Branswell, infectious diseases and public health reporter, dies
Branswell earned the respect of experts and public health officials around the world with her accessible, prescient dispatches on scourges from influenza to polio and Ebola to COVID-19.
Helen Branswell, whose reporting on infectious diseases and public health drew acclaim, dies at 69
Helen Branswell, STAT's infectious disease reporter who earned the respect of experts and public health officials with her accessible, prescient dispatches, has died at age 69.
Connecting conservation and health: Central Asia strengthens preparedness for zoonotic disease risks in protected areas
From Kazakhstan’s steppe and mountain landscapes to Turkmenistan's deserts, protected and conserved areas play an important role in the region’s One Health response. A series of national trainings across Central Asian countries is helping conservation practitioners recognise potential wildlife disease risks, protect themselves in the field, and connect their observations with wider veterinary, public health and scientific systems.
College of Medicine welcomes Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence in public health sciences
Penn State College of Medicine welcomes Adane Kebede Tesega, PhD, as a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence for the current academic year.
Commentary: Access to rural healthcare is bigger than hospitals – and North Carolina is leading the way
Health begins long before someone steps foot in a doctor's office. Public health experts call these factors the social determinants of health. If you don't have a balanced diet or access to nutritious foods, your health suffers.
Trees as Public Health Infrastructure
New research shows that meeting tree canopy goals could prevent more than 67,000 premature deaths in the United States.
This era’s public health threat is digital (Opinion)
We addressed car safety through design standards, such as airbags. Policymakers could treat infinite scroll, autoplay, streaks, algorithmic recommendations as design choices potentially subject to similar public policies.
El Paso health director resigns, cites personal and family reasons
El Paso’s top public health official has stepped down, with the city confirming thaDr. Vinny Taneja has resigned as director of the Department of Public Health.
SUNY Potsdam to celebrate fourth annual Public Health Day
POTSDAM -- SUNY Potsdam's Public Health Program will host its fourth annual Public Health Day on Thursday, Oct. 29, as the College welcomes guests and partners at non-profit organizations to …
Brown County Public Health wants more pep in your day
Health officials recommend sleep, movement and less screen time to combat fatigue, stress.
Public health intelligence for a safer world: WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence strategy 2026–2030
Other in English on World about Disaster Management, Health and Epidemic; published on 12 Oct 2026 by WHO
Brown County Public Health wants people to get more pep
Public Health raises awareness of why 7 out of 10 people feel fatigued
Penn State, Pa. Dept. of Ag say Animal Diagnostic Lab expansion will protect farming, public health
Penn State broke ground on a $65 million expansion of its Animal Diagnostic Lab Monday, a project Pennsylvania's secretary of agriculture said will help the state continue to protect farming and public health.
Oregon public health officials investigating possible foodborne outbreak
Deschutes County Health Services, working with the Oregon Health Authority and other partners, has issued a Health Alert Network advisory telling health care providers in Deschutes County and the surrounding Central Oregon communities that it is investigating a multistate outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis infections. The advisory does not name a
SUNY Optometry’s Inaugural Advancing Vision Summit Explores the Future of Eyecare, AI, and Public Health
NEW YORK—The SUNY College of Optometry Foundation recently brought together leaders from across healthcare for its inaugural Advancing Vision Summit: The Intersection of AI, Eye Care, and Public Health, held September 25, 2026 at CURE in New York City. The day-long event marked the Foundation’s 70th anniversary and explored the growing role eyecare can play in preventive health, an announcement from SUNY said. Sponsors and supporters of the event included EssilorLuxottica, CooperVision, Jobson Optical Group, Alcon, NFP, NYC Health + Hospitals/Gotham Health, Allison & Stephen Flink, Haag-Streit, Marco Lombart, Lavelle Fund for the Blind, Designs for Vision and VSP.
El Paso County Health to end leadership of Youth Suicide Prevention
In a move advocates described as shocking, El Paso County Public Health is dropping its role in the community's youth suicide prevention program.
El Paso turns over third public health director since pandemic
El Paso top health official Dr. Veerinder Taneja resigns after two years.
'SNL' Mitch McConnell Sketch Tests the Line of When Age and Health Jokes Go Too Far: Expert
Mikey Day portrayed Mitch McConnell in a sketch centered on his public health concerns.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Recommends Science-Based Thresholds to Target Dangerous Enhanced Kratom Products
Kratom products credit: CDPH DEA takes action based on updated recommendation from HHS October 11, 2026 - WASHINGTON - On Friday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services relesed the following: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) provided a new recommendation to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) that establishes science-based thresholds for 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl (MGPI), potent opioid compounds associated with products marketed as kratom. The Department of Justice today announced that DEA issued new Notices of Intent reflecting HHS’ updated scientific analysis and recommendations, including a new Notice of Intent for 7-OH and MGPI incorporating HHS’ recommended concentration and ratio thresholds. Following a review of available scientific data and comments, HHS Assistant Secretary for Health Admiral Brian Christine, M.D., recommended that DEA use concentration or ratio-based thresholds to determine which products containing 7-OH and MGPI are subject to Schedule I control for purposes of temporary scheduling of these substances under the Controlled Substances Act. The recommendation is designed to target concentrated or chemically altered products while distinguishing them from natural botanical kratom products, which may contain trace amounts of 7-OH and MGPI. “We are drawing a clear line between natural kratom and dangerous, enhanced opioid products,” said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “We listened to the public, followed the science, and developed a clear recommended threshold for temporary scheduling that targets concentrated 7-OH and MGPI without sweeping natural botanical kratom into Schedule I. The Trump Administration will continue taking decisive action against dangerous products that fuel addiction while making sure our policies are grounded in rigorous science.” Under the recommendation, 7-OH and MGPI would be controlled in Schedule I for purposes of temporary scheduling when either substance alone, or their combined amount when both are present: Exceeds 1 milligram per gram in solid powders, encapsulated material, or other solid forms, or exceeds 1 milligram per milliliter in liquid preparations; or When the mass of mitragynine present divided by the mass of 7-OH, or MGPI, or the combined amount of 7-OH and MGPI if both present, is less than 100. The ratio-based approach reflects the alkaloid composition of natural kratom products and provides a way to identify products intentionally enhanced or concentrated with 7-OH or MGPI. Available scientific data indicate that 7-OH occurs naturally in botanical kratom at relatively low or trace levels, while some evidence reviewed by FDA suggests MGPI may also occur at trace levels in some natural or kratom-derived products. FDA's scientific review found that 7-OH is substantially more potent than morphine in preclinical studies, with available data indicating approximately two to nine times greater potency depending on the study. FDA also identified evidence supporting a meaningful risk of opioid-like physical dependence and withdrawal from MGPI. “Our recommendation gives DEA a scientifically supportable framework to distinguish natural botanical kratom from products that have been concentrated or manipulated to deliver dangerous levels of potent opioid compounds,” said Assistant Secretary for Health Admiral Brian Christine, M.D. “This approach allows us to focus on the products that pose the greatest threat to public health.” In July 2025, following an FDA scientific and medical evaluation, HHS recommended that 7-OH above a specified threshold be placed in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. In July 2026, DEA announced its intent to temporarily schedule 7-OH above a specified threshold, and HHS simultaneously sought public comment on the proposed threshold. DEA subsequently temporarily placed MGPI and two synthetic 7-OH derivatives, MGM-15 and MGM-16, in Schedule I. Since then, questions have emerged about how scheduling could affect natural botanical kratom products potentially containing trace amounts of MGPI. The new HHS recommendation responds to those concerns by providing DEA with a more precise threshold based on both the concentration of 7-OH and MGPI and their relationship to mitragynine, the predominant alkaloid in kratom. HHS and FDA will continue working with DEA to protect Americans from dangerous concentrated and synthetic opioid products while ensuring federal policy is grounded in the best available science. Source: HHS
Backlash to Trump, RFK Jr. has scientists seeking office
Anti-vaxxers and attacks on the nation's public health system have spurred hundreds of doctors and scientists to seek office. In Sacramento, congressional hopeful Richard Pan is part of that wave.
New 'Age-Positive Public Health' movement launches in Maine
The Maine Council on Aging (MCOA) and Maine Public Health Association (MPHA) have launched a new Age-Positive Public Health movement to help make Maine a place where longer lives are healthier lives. According to a joint news release, the partnership brings aging and public health leaders together around a simple idea: Mainers are living longer, and we need to be much more intentional about helping people live these additional years in good health.
Trust in science falls as COVID-era confidence fades, global survey finds
The retreat has potentially far-reaching consequences for public health as vaccination rates decline and preventable diseases resurge.
Russian Anti-Plague Laboratory Death Raises Questions On Biosafety And Global Health
A number of questions linger after the Russian anti-plague laboratory death. A doctor explains the most important questions that remain that impact public health.
CDFW News | Del Norte County Recreational Razor Clam Fishery Closes Due to Public Health Hazard
California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Director Meghan Hertel has closed the recreational razor clam fishery in Del Norte County. This closure comes following a recommendation from state health agencies that determined consumption of razor clams in the area poses a significant threat to human health for domoic acid exposure.
AI with Intention: The TRAPP Framework
While artificial intelligence can streamline and support many aspects of public health communication, deciding when and how to use AI tools requires careful judgment.
Assistant Professor of Climate Data Science | The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education
Boston University invites applications for a faculty position at the rank of Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth Environment. This tenure-track position in Climate Data Science , beginning on July 1, 2027, is part of the ongoing cluster hire in Environmental Data Science and complements faculty searches within the Faculty of Computing and Data Science.rnrnWe particularly welcome candidates whose research focuses on the physical basis of climate, climate variability, and climate change, and who employ data science methodologies to deepen our understanding of how the climate system is changing and how these changes affect the global environment. Areas of interest include—but are not limited to—the changing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events; interactions between the atmosphere and terrestrial, oceanic, biospheric, and cryospheric systems; and improved understanding of Earth system predictability at seasonal, decadal, and longer time scales. We envision this position playing a central role in connecting and enhancing existing departmental strengths in climate-related research and teaching, including terrestrial and marine biogeosciences, land surface and coastal processes, paleoclimatology, energy and economic policy, and environmental sustainability. This faculty member will also contribute to university-wide interdisciplinary initiatives — including the Urban Biogeoscience and Environmental Health (URBAN) program, the Institute for Global Sustainability, and the Center for Climate and Health at the School of Public Health — and is expected to develop collaborative ties with the Faculty of Computing and Data Sciences, where shared interests in machine learning, large-scale data analytics, and Earth system modeling provide natural ground for joint advising, co-teaching, and grant development. This hire reflects our commitment to advancing interdisciplinary scholarship at the intersection of climate and data science. This position contributes to the University convergence themes of Global Sustainability as well as Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Computing that are core pillars of BU's cross-disciplinary research priorities.rnrn Position Qualifications:rn Candidates should have a PhD or equivalent degree, demonstrated ability to obtain external funding to support their program of research and scholarship, and a commitment to excellence and innovation in teaching, education, and mentorship of students. The successful applicant will be expected to supervise graduate research in Ph.D. programs, teach at all levels in the Earth Environment curriculum, and maintain an externally funded research program. We seek applicants whose research complement strengths in the Department and around the University. For more information about the Department, see
mherst Public Health Department Hosting Vaccine Clinic
AMHERST, MA – The Town of Amherst Public Health Department will be hosting a vaccine clinic offering Flu and COVID shots on Thursday, October 22 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm at the Bangs Community Center (70 Boltwood Walk). Register here or by going to: northamptonma.gov/2219/vax Registration is highly recommended as there is limited walk-in availability. Vaccines are available for all Massachusetts residents ages 6
AI data centers impact public health. Here’s how to report the story
AI data centers consume vast amounts of power and release emissions. Learn how unpermitted generators and permit loopholes threaten public health.
How these census changes could threaten public health
The Trump administration wants to make three big changes to the U.S. Census, including eliminating questions about race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation and excluding anyone who is not a citizen or “lawful permanent resident."
North Yorkshire mayor David Skaith on using new health powers
The elected Labour mayor is giving a keynote public health speech at event in York.
Proposed U.S. census changes could be catastrophic for public health
“Erasing data does not erase need or harm,” writes social epidemiologist Nancy Krieger.
SLO County Public Health Confirms First Measles Case of 2026
Below is a press release from The County of San Luis Obispo Department of Public Health regarding a confirmed case of measles. SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. —
Public health report: September inspection season turns up minor violations at 20% of businesses
The Waltham Health Department had a busy September, inspecting 90 business establishments between Sept. 1 and Oct. 2. It found minor health violations at
Public health report: September inspection season turns up minor violations at 20% of businesses
The Waltham Health Department had a busy September, inspecting 90 business establishments between Sept. 1 and Oct. 2. It found minor health violations at
WA Sen. Patty Murray launches effort to restore trust in public health
As the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Murray holds one of the most powerful roles in Congress.
Russia’s plague scare and the danger of unpreparedness
The erosion of global public health infrastructure does not serve America's interests.
Public Health offers free drive-through flu clinics
Plumas County Public Health Agency announces its annual free drive-through flu vaccination clinics beginning Monday, Oct. 19, and continuing through
What is the US Public Health Service’s Commissioned Corps? Its top leader wants you to know
The U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps is working to connect with the armed forces.
It's time to face the truth: Youth violence is a public health epidemic in Delaware
Across the state, young men are dying before they’ve had a chance to really live. From Sussex to New Castle County, families are weeping, and communities are reeling, as an ongoing wave of youth violence turns communities into crime scenes. Young people involved in gun violence are unlikely to be deterred by tougher laws or […]
RFK Jr. tasks researchers with studying vaccine injuries
The US Department of Health and Human Services launched a program this week to study and capture the breadth of vaccine injuries, reviving a longtime priority for HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and stoking concerns from some public health advocates.
New resolution calls rat problem in Northeast Philly a ‘public health emergency'
A new resolution urges the Health Department and other agencies to coordinate an urgent response to rodent activity in Lower Northeast Philly.
The Public Health Cost of FDA’s Tobacco Review Delays
When avoidable delays in reviewing cigarette alternatives prolong smoking, they cost lives. Quitting reduces the risk of premature death, while continuing to smoke sustains exposure to the hazards responsible for smoking-related disease. Because cigarette smoking and secondhand smoke cause more than 480,000 deaths annually in the United States, the years-long delay documented in a September...
New ‘Menopause at Work’ project aims to protect midlife women’s health and help them thrive at work | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Thanks to a WIN Challenge grant, the Center for Health Communication will help online influencers share evidence-based information about menopause that can prompt employers to provide more support for women workers.
Harris County Health Leaders Unite to Transform Care for the Region's Most Vulnerable Residents
The Harris Collaborative brings healthcare, public health and community partners together to improve outcomes for Harris County's most vulnerable residents
China nominates health official to lead WHO
China has nominated health official Song Li to lead the World Health Organization. The World Health Assembly is set to elect the next WHO head in May. Song is a senior public health official with...
Patty Murray launches initiative to restore trust in public health, starting with event at WSU
WASHINGTON – Sen. Patty Murray on Wednesday launched an initiative aimed at rebuilding trust in the nation’s public health system, assembling a group of experts to develop a “blueprint” for policy after the tenure of President Donald Trump and his top health official, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Russia’s public health watchdog denies a second infection in suspected pneumonic plague case
Russia’s public health watchdog has denied that a lab worker who died in Siberia had spread infection to another person as global concerns swirled about suspected pneumonic plague.
Russia's public health watchdog denies a second infection in suspected pneumonic plague case
Russia's public health watchdog on Thursday denied that a lab worker who died in Siberia had spread infection to another person, as global concerns swirled about suspected pneumonic plague.Rospotrebna...
Russia's public health watchdog denies a second infection in suspected pneumonic plague case
Russia’s public health watchdog has denied that a lab worker who died in Siberia had spread infection to another person as global concerns swirled about suspected pneumonic plague.
Russia's public health watchdog denies a second infection in suspected pneumonic plague case
Russia’s public health watchdog has denied that a lab worker who died in Siberia had spread infection to another person as global concerns swirled about suspected pneumonic plague.
Flu season arrived months early. Get vaccinated now, experts say
Flu activity began rising in September, ahead of its typical early-November start, said Dr. Dawn Terashita with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health
Medical Debt Is Crushing Hospital Patients in Los Angeles. Public Health Officials May Have a Fix.
In Los Angeles County, the nation’s most populous, a new system could screen hospital patients for financial aid, preventing hundreds of thousands from getting bills they can’t pay.
Ipsos Health Service Report 2026
Since 2018, Ipsos has been tracking perceptions of the quality of healthcare systems, the biggest health issues and the biggest public health problems.
A public health-minded senator asks: What comes after Trump and Kennedy?
Sen. Patty Murray, a former chair of the Senate health committee, is forming a group of experts to examine how to insulate the C.D.C. from political interference.
India Research Center marks 10 years of public health impact | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
The India Research Center has evolved into a platform for research, training, and public health research translation.
A Public Health-Minded Senator Asks: What Comes After Trump and Kennedy?
Senator Patty Murray, a former chair of the Senate health committee, is forming a group of experts to examine how to insulate the C.D.C. from political interference.
A Public Health-Minded Senator Asks: What Comes After Trump and Kennedy?
Senator Patty Murray, a former chair of the Senate health committee, is forming a group of experts to examine how to insulate the C.D.C. from political interference.
College of Public Health Faculty, Students Attend Arkansas Birthing Project Conference
The UAMS Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health had students, staff and faculty assist with the 2026 Arkansas Birthing Project Conference in Little Rock.
CCDPH Launches “Spread Facts, Not Flu & COVID” Campaign Ahead of Respiratory Virus Season - Cook County Department of Public Health
Today, Cook County Department of Public Health launched Building Healthier Communities 2030, suburban Cook County’s Community Health Improvement Plan. The plan was announced together with Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Cook County Department of Public Health, community organizations, healthcare providers and cross-sector partners. Building Healthier Communities 2030 serves as both a collective vision and a practical roadmap that will guide public health efforts across suburban Cook County through 2030.The plan aligns with President Preckwinkle's Policy Roadmap and reflects a shared commitment to advancing health equity through coordinated, community-informed action.
How Do Data Centers Impact Public Health?
As artificial intelligence booms, data centers—the physical infrastructure driving AI—have become a topic of concern for towns across the United States. Research shows that even the industry's claims of modest economic benefits are overstated. They’re worsened by the staggering health and environmen
Missoula Public Health seeks public input in community health survey
Missoula County residents may get a knock on their door later this month, as Missoula Public Health and local partners are conducting a community health survey
Structural fragility in digital public health communication
Communications Health - Structural fragility in digital public health communication
Nevada's health insurance rates projected to rise 17%
(The Center Square) - Health insurance rates through Nevada’s public Health Link program are set to rise 17% in 2027. The increase comes after a state Division of Insurance's reluctant approval of a r...
Cartier Got Down to Business for the 20th Anniversary of the Women’s Initiative
Guests from across the arts, public health, philanthropy, and fashion gathered at the Morgan Library and Museum to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Cartier Women’s Initiative: the maison’s fellowship for entrepreneurs focused on implementing social and environmental change.
Local Farms and Food Businesses Receive Nearly $500,000 in Grants to Help Make Metro Chicago Food System More Equitable - Cook County Department of Public Health
Today, Cook County Department of Public Health launched Building Healthier Communities 2030, suburban Cook County’s Community Health Improvement Plan. The plan was announced together with Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Cook County Department of Public Health, community organizations, healthcare providers and cross-sector partners. Building Healthier Communities 2030 serves as both a collective vision and a practical roadmap that will guide public health efforts across suburban Cook County through 2030.The plan aligns with President Preckwinkle's Policy Roadmap and reflects a shared commitment to advancing health equity through coordinated, community-informed action.
Local Farms and Food Businesses Receive Nearly $500,000 in Grants to Help Make Metro Chicago Food System More Equitable - Cook County Department of Public Health
Today, Cook County Department of Public Health launched Building Healthier Communities 2030, suburban Cook County’s Community Health Improvement Plan. The plan was announced together with Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Cook County Department of Public Health, community organizations, healthcare providers and cross-sector partners. Building Healthier Communities 2030 serves as both a collective vision and a practical roadmap that will guide public health efforts across suburban Cook County through 2030.The plan aligns with President Preckwinkle's Policy Roadmap and reflects a shared commitment to advancing health equity through coordinated, community-informed action.
Why we need to talk about public health
At the Yale School of Public Health, a new course on public health communications helps advance a core priority for the school: providing communities with the scientific information they need.
Why we need to talk about public health
At the Yale School of Public Health, a new course on public health communications helps advance a core priority for the school: providing communities with the scientific information they need.
Oak Park approves five-year public health plan focusing on equity
The new Illinois Project for Local Needs Assessment, or IPLAN, from the public health department aims to help fix health inequities in Oak Park.
Peng Gao receives NIH New Innovator Award for research measuring chemical exposure in blood and tissues | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Peng Gao was awarded an NIH Director's New Innovator Award from the NIH's High-Risk, High-Reward Research program.
OCHD launches first public health vending machine
The Oneida County Health Department (OCHD) recently announced the launch of its first public health vending machine.
Brazil: Lessons from a Disaster
By Antonio Martins (Outras Palavras) Defeats become deeper and more prolonged when we misunderstand what caused them, avoid correcting course, and embrace “solutions” that only compound our mistakes. Lula’s government and the Brazilian left suffered a disaster in Sunday’s election. Contrary to every poll, the president finished the first round 2.2 million votes behind Flávio Bolsonaro—and, more significantly, 3.4 million votes below his total four years ago, when the machinery of the state was working against him and in favor of his opponent. His vote share declined in 98 percent of Brazil’s municipalities. The PL, the main party of the far right, elected 121 deputies and 28 senators, becoming the largest caucus in both houses of Congress. The parties aligned with the Centrão—Brazil’s bloc of transactional center-right parties—were somewhat diminished, but will still hold roughly 250 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 35 in the Senate. That will make it easier to assemble the majorities needed to amend the Constitution or impeach Supreme Federal Court justices. If elected, Flávio Bolsonaro could appoint four members of the Court, substantially altering its internal balance of power. What produced these results? How can the far right be prevented from consolidating them into a prolonged political hegemony? And what is the essential change of direction the left now needs? Explaining the Disaster Across the commercial media and the exuberant chaos of digital platforms, interpretations are multiplying. Some focus on specific episodes: Lula’s absence from the Globo debate, his very close relationship with Alexandre de Moraes, or his emphasis on issues supposedly remote from most people’s everyday concerns, such as rare earth minerals. Among the more systemic interpretations, three seem especially questionable. One argues that the principal defeat was not the left’s, since its congressional representation declined only slightly. The decisive movement captured at the ballot box, according to this view, was a shift within the right itself—from the more moderate and transactional forces of the Centrão toward the more ideological and radicalized forces of the PL and Novo. A second interpretation holds that the nature of electoral and political processes has changed. The material interests and aspirations of society, it argues, no longer play the central role they once did; they have given way to forms of subjective self-identification that the left has yet to understand. And a third concludes that, because of these two developments, we should expect a political winter: a prolonged period in which the far right and the broader right dominate Brazilian political life. There are important elements in all three interpretations. The problem lies in what they deny or leave out: Lula’s third government was a small-bore government. It offered the majorities that elected it neither a clearly better life nor reasons to believe again in politics and its power to transform society. These failures flowed from two fatal accommodations, which I will examine below. As a result, the government suffered a slow but steady erosion of support. And, as has happened in so many Western countries, it gave the far right the opportunity to present itself as anti-system and to benefit from popular frustration and distress. The interpretation that emphasizes the migration of votes from the center-right and traditional right toward the far right has been advanced, among others, by the courageous journalist Leonardo Sakamoto. In his UOL column on Monday, October 5, he highlights the miserable behavior of the traditional conservative parties. Over the past four years, they repeatedly joined forces with the “neo”-fascists, helping to “normalize” them—a criticism that could equally be directed at almost the entire corporate media. Believing they could use the far right as a stepping stone, they instead ended up partly devoured by it. This was especially true in the Senate, where the PL’s gain of 13 senators and Novo’s gain of two came at the expense of the PSD, which lost nine; the MDB, which lost two; the PSDB, which lost two; and the PP, which lost one. Sakamoto’s observation is accurate and necessary, but it leaves uncomfortable questions unanswered. Why did the erosion of the Centrão benefit the far right rather than, for example, producing growth for the left—as has happened so many times before, both in Brazil and elsewhere? The answer is not difficult. Throughout its four years in office, Lula’s third government was almost invariably associated with the Centrão. Here lies its first accommodation: accepting the limits imposed by conservative institutions; avoiding, as much as possible, any attempt to strain those limits through popular pressure; and believing only in the modest changes that could be squeezed through openings in Congress. The failure of the campaign to end the six-day workweek is emblematic. Lula could have electrified the presidential race by pairing it with a popular campaign for passage of the measure. Instead, he chose to place his hopes in the hands of Senate president Rodrigo Alcolumbre. He generated no mass mobilization, did not force his opponents onto an uncomfortable defensive, and won no victory. In September 2025, the government squandered the greatest of its many opportunities to shake up conservative power in Congress. Popular opposition to the so-called Shielding Amendment—which, if approved, would have restricted criminal proceedings against members of Congress—brought crowds into the streets, mobilized primarily by artists and social movements. This opened the possibility for a broader political education: a campaign that could begin exposing the limits and dysfunctions of Brazil’s political system while putting Bolsonaro’s movement on the defensive for its predictable support of political privilege. The amendment was defeated. But the executive branch then backed away from the fight. It remained associated with an institutional world widely seen as corrupt, elitist, and indifferent to ordinary people’s struggles. In doing so, it forfeited its credibility as a vehicle for the protest vote. On Sunday, it reaped the bitter fruits. Are We Doomed? Taking a different approach from Sakamoto, the philosopher Moysés Pinto Neto and other writers have drawn attention, in their first analyses of October 4, to the fragmentation of the public sphere produced by Big Tech platforms. Through their algorithms, these platforms present each person with a different view of social reality. As a consequence, it becomes much harder to identify common material problems and demands—for example, the fight for labor rights or for a properly funded public health system. Voters no longer embrace such demands, these authors argue, because they no longer see themselves as part of a collective. Instead, they tend to value the identities assigned to them by neoliberal subjectivity—the role of the entrepreneur, for example. On this interpretation, the left’s possible error lies in clinging to outdated illusions. Moysés’s warning is highly relevant and resonates with arguments such as Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor’s “Apocalyptic Fascism and the Billionaires’ Bet.” Unlike a century ago, the far right no longer promises a radiant future. It concentrates instead on resentment—especially that of young men. “They belong to a generation that fears it may never own a home, but compensates with the pleasure it gets from constantly provoking progressives online. Convinced their future has been stolen, they share memes romanticizing historical authoritarian regimes,” the authors write. But Moysés seems to confuse this danger with inevitability. He fails to see that the left’s answer cannot be adaptation. On the contrary, it must strengthen the possibility of politics as collective action. Nor does he recognize that precisely such a reversal is already becoming possible in some of the most promising mobilizations of the twenty-first century: the election, at the end of 2025, of the young Muslim Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York, on a platform centered on the intensely material fight for an affordable city; the Left Party’s victory in Berlin two weeks ago, built around the demand to expropriate private real-estate corporations; and the very recent wave of demonstrations in Spain—including an occupation of Madrid’s Puerta del Sol—in which tens of thousands of young people mobilized by the Tenants’ Union have demanded limits on rents. By putting itself in the straitjacket of the “fiscal framework” in the first months of 2022, Lula’s third government adopted the second fatal accommodation of its term. Faced with conservative institutions and a country devastated by four years of Bolsonaro, increased public investment was the government’s remaining weapon for offering a more dignified life to the majority and forging an anti-conservative pact with them. The same state that disburses 1 trillion reais a year to enrich a small class of rentiers could instead spend money to extend the Family Health Strategy to every Brazilian, at a cost of 30 billion reais; provide full-day public schooling and childcare to all adolescents and children—and, especially, relief to their mothers; achieve universal sanitation while cleaning up polluted urban rivers; multiply metro systems; begin transforming the urban peripheries; and undertake many other urgently needed projects. In April 2023, an article in Outras Palavras warned that the fiscal framework could “shrink the Lula government and preserve the forces that condemn the country to inequality and regression.” A year later, another article showed that restraints on public spending were strangling policies vital to ordinary people and undermining the president’s popularity. In November 2024 came a reality check, in the form of the government’s humiliating defeat in the municipal elections. Even then, the fiscal lock was neither removed nor loosened. On the contrary: throughout the government’s four years, fiscal restraint remained central to its political narrative. The administration proudly proclaimed that it had “put the state’s accounts in order,” without grasping either how misleading that phrase was—given the payment of 1 trillion reais in interest—or how badly the message was hurting it politically. Lula finally woke up in September 2026. The increase in Bolsa Família benefits, after four years of being frozen; the announcement that anti-obesity drugs would be offered through Brazil’s public health system; and the ban on online betting showed that the state has the power to act decisively on behalf of the majority when those in government are willing to confront obstacles. The huge marches that closed the campaign in Fortaleza, Salvador, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo on the eve of October 4 showed how such initiatives can mobilize activists and the broader public. But it was too late—and too little to change the outcome of the first round. History has not ended The possibility of a turnaround in the three weeks leading up to November 25 cannot be ruled out. It will not be simple or easy. Lula must not only make up a deficit of 2.2 million votes; he must also offset the movement of voters who backed other right-wing candidates in the first round, most of whom are likely to move toward Flávio Bolsonaro. Pulling that off will require a broad, grassroots effort to win over voters, potentially reinforced by new initiatives from Lula. The coming hours and days will be decisive. If Bolsonaro’s movement also wins the presidency, the result will create a high-risk situation for Brazilian sovereignty and democracy. The enormous challenges posed by such an outcome would require the left to reexamine, in depth and with a genuine willingness to engage in self-criticism, its political projects—or its lack of them—and its practices. But would that mean we are condemned to the long winter of far-right hegemony that some analyses are beginning to forecast? It is far too early to say, suggests a recent text by Álvaro García Linera, the thinker who served as vice president of Bolivia under Evo Morales. His central hypothesis is that this political current will prove short-lived. At a moment when the entire world is once again talking about sovereignty and protecting national economies, the far right offers a stale, recolonizing neoliberalism. Its submission to the United States is as blatant and pathetic as Flávio and Eduardo Bolsonaro’s overtures to Donald Trump. Its project amounts to something like every man for himself: greater inequality, capitalism without limits, devastation, and supremacism. Will it work? In the United States, just two years into his second term, Trump himself is reaching record levels of unpopularity and may be on the verge of losing Republican control of both the House and Senate in November. Every new beginning is difficult. Whatever the outcome of the second round, the defeats of October 4 show how profoundly the Brazilian left will have to rethink and rebuild. But just as it would be foolish to underestimate the seriousness of its mistakes, it would be equally foolish to conclude that rebuilding a political project is no longer possible. History has not ended. The times are moving faster than ever. Originally published in Portuguese by Outras Palavras. English translation by Eric Blanc; I’ve added the subtitles. More We can’t stop the far right at home or abroad without a revitalized labor movement, which is yet another reason why you should become a sustaining supporter of the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee (EWOC) — one of US labor’s pivotal bright spots. Relatedly, Jacobin published a short piece of mine reflecting on a decade of Bernie Sanders inspiring a whole new generation of young worker organizers.
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