The head of public health for Georgia, Dr. Kathleen Toomey, said she is very worried that bills in the Georgia Senate could undo decades of progress in infectious disease eradication among children. “In the many years I’ve worked in public health, this is probably the first time I actually am worrying that we may lose…

An infectious disease expert with Emory University says while some people need and should get a booster of the COVID-19 vaccine, the key to preventing future waves of the virus is getting everyone vaccinated. Read the full article: GPB

The first results of a COVID-19 vaccination study found the treatments are safe and effective for children between 5 and 11, Pfizer and BioNTech announced Monday after a study of more than 2,200 children. Read the full article: Georgia Recorder

For pharmacists, cold weather means more people coming through their doors looking for relief from stuffy noses and sore throats or to ward off infection with a flu vaccine. October marks the start of the annual flu season, which typically worsens as the mercury drops before ending around May. And with Georgia hospitals still packed…

Mental health funding is desperately needed, especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, experts say, and House Speaker David Ralston is proposing a $7 million boost in the state’s crisis system. The Department of Behavioral Health & Developmental Disability licenses a medically monitored short-term residential program of crisis stabilization units. Read the full article: GPB

Back to school this year may be the most difficult students and administrators have faced in terms of emotional and mental well-being, experts in child and adolescent health say. The issues of grief, loss, anxiety, depression and trauma were present prior to the COVID-19 pandemic; they aren’t new concerns, said Dr. Veda Johnson, professor of pediatrics…

The United States wasn’t ready for the pandemic “and we have a lot of work to do to get better prepared for the next one,” says Dr. Anne Schuchat, who is retiring after 33 years at the agency. Read the full article: GPB

Researchers find an increased need for early intervention strategies to better educate people about the risks of heart disease after a study found a high prevalence of elevated blood pressure and obesity in young Black women. Doctors say the finding is further evidence of the effect of social determinants of health in minority communities, which have already been…

Georgia would observe standard time all year long under legislation that cleared a state Senate committee Wednesday. Senate Bill 100 would do away with the current practice of switching back and forth between standard time and daylight saving time every six months. “Most people want to stay on the same time all year,” Sen. Ben Watson, R-Savannah,…

COVID-19 patients have been filling hospitals and overwhelming health care workers for weeks. Now, those experts are begging Georgia’s governor for a mask mandate. More than 2,100 emergency room physicians, epidemiologists and health care workers signed a letter delivered to Gov. Brian Kemp Friday. This is the second letter sent to encourage Kemp to speak on…