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Arizona COVID-19 News

Expert: Arizonas vaccine exemption rate in kindergarten just a disaster waiting to happen
According to the CDC, the national rate of vaccine exemptions among kindergarteners is at 3%, the highest it's ever been. CDC data also shows exemptions in Arizona trending higher, even before the pandemic.
Take precautions for COVID-19 this Thanksgiving, health department says
With Thanksgiving and other holiday gatherings approaching, Dr. Kirin Raman with the Arizona Department of Health Services said Arizonans should take precautions as COVID-19 and other seasonal respiratory infections spread.
Nov. 21, 2023
Only 6% of nursing home residents got COVID boosters
According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, only 6% of residents in Arizona nursing homes are up-to-date with their COVID-19 vaccines. For staff, that figure is even lower. Just over 1% received the latest booster or the bivalent shot in the past two months.
Nov. 20, 2023
Vaccines rates lag as holidays approach
Thanksgiving gatherings and travel are just weeks away, and respiratory-illness season is ramping up. Yet, just 17% of people in the U.S. — and less than 16% of Arizonans — have receive the latest COVID-19 booster.
Nov. 13, 2023
Expert: Return to normal against 3 viruses not going to go well
Earlier this month, President Joe Biden declared the COVID-19 pandemic over. But many experts say COVID still isn’t just another seasonal respiratory virus and, even if it were, it would be hard to manage when people are struggling to get, and pay for, vaccines.
Sept. 29, 2023
SOAPBOX: An observation on student behavior coming out of the pandemic
Do you ever wonder what your kid's teacher is thinking? This week, we're hearing from Arizona educators for the latest collection in our SOAPBOX series, where listeners tell their own true stories.
Sept. 27, 2023
DIY filtration boxes clean air in cooling centers
DIY filtration boxes from an ASU lab help reduce the risk of respiratory particles that carry diseases like COVID or the flu in cooling centers around metro Phoenix, like the First United Methodist Church of Mesa.
Sept. 25, 2023
What to know about the new COVID-19 vaccine — and where to get them
The Show spoke with Dr. Nick Staab, assistant medical director with the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, about the long-awaited new COVID-19 vaccine.
Sept. 20, 2023
USAID virus monitoring program gets canceled
The U.S. Agency for International Development has canceled DEEP VZN before it could begin work. The program had been allocated about 10% of its promised funding and had not yet received a green light to begin field work.
Sept. 15, 2023
Medicaid disenrollment could affect 650,000 in Arizona. Heres how to keep your coverage
Since pandemic protections ended, states have shed millions of people from Medicaid rolls, many of whom could have stayed on if they had completed their paperwork. But mailings are sometimes confusing, misrouted or subject to other bureaucratic errors.
Sept. 13, 2023
Updated COVID-19 vaccines are on the way following CDC endorsement
Arizona pharmacies and doctors offices could start providing updated COVID-19 vaccines within a few days. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday recommended the shots for almost all Americans.
Sept. 12, 2023
Arizona could lose $22M in COVID education relief funds
The dispute between Governor Katie Hobbs and Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne comes over Emergency Assistance to Non-Public Schools funding. The U.S. Department of Education has encouraged all governors to work with each states educational agencies to administer their funding.
Sept. 11, 2023
COVID hospitalizations are up among older adults
Over the past several weeks, health insurance giant Humana has reported an uptick in older adults being hospitalized for COVID-19. Humana mainly covers people ages 65 and older, who rank among the populations susceptible to the virus’s most serious effects.
Sept. 7, 2023
Struggling AZ students get $40 million for tutoring
Superintendent Tom Horne said the cash was taken back from other programs approved by his predecessor, Kathy Hoffman. The website to sign up goes live Sept. 15.
Sept. 5, 2023
Health data breach hits 110K Pima County residents
Last month, Maximus Health Services – a large provider of contracted services for state, local and federal governments – reported hackers had accessed the health information of 8 to 11 million people. They’ve now confirmed the breach affected about 110,000 residents of Pima County.
Aug. 31, 2023
COVID-19 numbers are on an uptick. What does it mean for the near future?
The Show spoke with Dr. Nick Staab, assistant medical director with the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, about what's happening now with COVID-19 and what to expect through the fall.
Aug. 22, 2023
Experts: NIH squandered $1B in long COVID-19 funds over 2.5 years
Experts and patient advocates this week blasted the NIH for squandering research dollars provided by Congress to study long COVID-19. The criticism stems from a previously unreleased budget requested by U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo and shared with several news websites.
Aug. 11, 2023
CDC says long COVID-19 rates are dropping
A multi-institution study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests the portion of adults reporting long COVID-19 symptoms has dropped. It also says one in four people with the illness still report being unable to fully carry out daily activities.
Aug. 10, 2023
Barrow lands $10M ARPA grant to study COVID cognitive symptoms
Many long COVID-19 sufferers describe cognitive impairments not unlike dementia. Recently, the Arizona governor’s office awarded Barrow Neurological Institute $10 million to study possible differences and similarities between those symptoms and Alzheimer’s disease.
July 28, 2023
Arizona overpaid more than $300M in pandemic unemployment assistance
The majority of the overpayments came from administrative errors in the state Department of Economic Security.
July 24, 2023
COVID-19 delayed AZ hantavirus investigation for months
The coronavirus pandemic overwhelmed health care systems and slowed responses to other illnesses, especially respiratory viruses that resembled COVID-19.
July 12, 2023

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