In The News: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics

A ºÚÁÏÍø expert warns that Nevada's already poor vaccination rates will likely worsen following U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s decision to stop recommending COVID-19 vaccinations for healthy children and pregnant women.

The Vaccine Confidence and Demand Improvement Project launched in January through Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funding to ºÚÁÏ꿉۪s School of Public Health’s Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. This collaboration between ºÚÁÏÍø and Nevada’s Division of Public and Behavioral Health aims to reduce vaccine hesitancy among Nevada parents through social media campaigns.

By now, you have likely heard that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has suspended its testing procedures for milk in the U.S. But the information that has been dispersed online about this change may not have included the entire picture, and may have even been unintentionally misleading or confusing. Even worse, it may have caused parents, who regularly buy milk for their children, unnecessary worry about the safety of milk in the United States.
By now, you have likely heard that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has suspended its testing procedures for milk in the U.S. But the information that has been dispersed online about this change may not have included the entire picture, and may have even been unintentionally misleading or confusing. Even worse, it may have caused parents, who regularly buy milk for their children, unnecessary worry about the safety of milk in the United States.

Bird flu has been found in dairy farms in the Mountain West region but federal officials tracking the virus say it has recently spread to cattle. That has animal health inspectors concerned, though the virus — also known as the H5N1 virus — still isn’t a concern for people.

For years, Nevada has ranked among the lowest in the country for vaccination rates, and it’s getting worse.
Vaxart’s orally administered vaccine tablet was safe and elicited mucosal immunity in older adults.
Imagine a world where acute gastroenteritis caused by norovirus—one of the most contagious viruses known to humankind—could be prevented with a simple tablet. With Vaxart’s innovative oral norovirus vaccine, we may be on the cusp of that reality. As norovirus continues to wreak havoc on public health, particularly among vulnerable populations, this breakthrough offers a ray of hope in the battle against viral infections.

More than three-quarters of Clark County schools began the academic year with a reported kindergarten vaccination rate of less than 95 percent, the threshold needed to prevent an outbreak of the highly contagious virus, new data shows.

Unless you live under a rock (and if you do, invite us over), you likely know that the price of eggs in the United States is reaching new heights every day.
Unless you live under a rock (and if you do, invite us over), you likely know that the price of eggs in the United States is reaching new heights every day.

Five years ago, Covid-19 drastically changed lives all over the world. The pandemic also presented unique challenges for Las Vegas. We discuss how Nevadans continue to be impacted in a special collaboration with KNPR’s State of Nevada. We then meet Libby Hausrath, a ºÚÁÏÍø professor and lead researcher on a Mars project. She explains what samples being collected now may tell us about the Red Planet.