Education Jul 10 Affirmative action ruling raises concerns over impact on medical school diversity There are concerns about how the Supreme Court’s ruling striking down affirmative action in college admissions could affect the medical profession. Currently, just 5.7 percent of doctors in the U.S. are Black and nearly 7 percent are Hispanic. There’s worry…
Nation Jul 06 Meta launches Twitter competitor Threads as Zuckerberg and Musk rivalry intensifies Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta has launched its new app that’s expected to compete with Twitter, which has faced backlash under Elon Musk’s ownership. The text-based app known as Threads looks nearly identical to Twitter and has seen more than 30 million…
Health Jul 04 Prescription drug shortages make treatment decisions difficult for doctors and patients The U.S. is in the midst of an ongoing prescription drug shortage with more and more medication in short supply for longer stretches of time. Those medications include chemotherapy drugs, antibiotics, ADHD medication and more. It’s making treatment decisions difficult…
Health Jul 03 First cases of malaria transmitted in U.S. in decades prompt concerns For the first time in 20 years, malaria has been locally transmitted within the U.S. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified five cases, four in Florida and one in Texas. William Brangham spoke with infectious disease epidemiologist…
Nation Jun 26 Some retailers pull back Pride plans after conservative backlash June is Pride Month, a time when companies show their support for and celebration of the LGBTQ+ community. But this year, right-wing backlash has forced some to rethink Pride. Boycotts, employee harassment and threats of violence prompted companies to pull…
Education Jun 20 District extends school year to help students catch up from pandemic learning loss The school year is either already over or is wrapping up in most places around the country. As another year finishes, there are still real concerns about learning loss dating back to the pandemic and the ongoing struggles to catch…
Nation Jun 19 The grandmother of Juneteenth on what the holiday means for Americans In 1865, Union Army Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, to inform the country's last enslaved people that they had been freed under the Emancipation Proclamation. The day now known as Juneteenth was formally recognized as a national holiday…
Science Jun 15 Scientists issue increasingly dire warnings as ocean surface temperatures spike The ocean is rapidly heating up, hitting record-breaking levels. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported that ocean surface temperatures spiked in April and May to the highest levels recorded since the 1950s. All this could have dangerous consequences for…
World Jun 08 Millions of Americans warned to stay inside as wildfire smoke blankets eastern states A heavy pall of polluted air still blankets much of the eastern U.S and it may not dissipate for days as fires in Canada send vast curtains of smoke south. The bad air has officials warning that breathing it can…
Health May 31 Purdue Pharma family protected from lawsuits in exchange for addiction treatment funding A court ruled the owners of Purdue Pharma, the Sackler family, will be protected from civil lawsuits linked to the opioid crisis in exchange for a $6 billion settlement. Purdue, which filed for bankruptcy in 2019 amid thousands of lawsuits,…