Public Health Archives - Page 3 of 3 - Northwest Public Broadcasting

President Trump Declares National Emergency In Response To Coronavirus Pandemic

By NPR News March 13, 2020

President Trump holds a news conference about the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic in the Rose Garden at the White House on Friday. CREDIT: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

In a largely unprecedented move for a public health crisis, President Trump is declaring a national emergency to free up as much as $50 billion in federal assistance to state and local governments overwhelmed by coronavirus, and to lower regulatory barriers to surge medical resources to areas that need them most.Read More

Schools Close, Colleges Go Online, Pullman Declares Emergency As COVID-19 Response Ramps Up

By NWPB News March 12, 2020

Gov. Jay Inslee announces a ban on large events and gatherings of more than 250 people in King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties on Wednesday, March 11, 2020. CREDIT: King County TV

Pullman and Yakima County declare emergencies. And events with more than 250 people are prohibited in Washington's King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties. That's among many updates this week to the expanding COVID-19 outbreak in the Northwest.Read More

Coronavirus: COVID-19 Is Now Officially A Pandemic, WHO Says

By NPR News March 11, 2020

The World Health Organization called the COVID-19 viral disease a pandemic Wednesday. Here, workers in Spain place a medical mask on a figure that was to be part of the Fallas festival in Valencia. The festival has been canceled over the coronavirus outbreak. Alberto Saiz/AP

It's the first time the WHO has called an outbreak a pandemic since the H1N1 "swine flu" in 2009.Read More

Jay Inslee Orders Nursing Homes To Limit Visitors, Signals Social-Distancing Measures Are Next

By Austin Jenkins March 10, 2020

Warning that the number of coronavirus cases in Washington could double weekly, Gov. Jay Inslee on Tuesday indicated that mandatory social-distancing measures could be announced this week and, in the meantime, imposed new restrictions on nursing homes.Read More

Grant County Case First COVID-19 Death In Eastern Washington; Inslee Hints At Crowd Restrictions

By Austin Jenkins March 8, 2020

On CBS' 'Face the Nation' Gov. Jay Inslee hinted that he may soon order mandatory social distancing measures to stem the spread of coronavirus.

"We are contemplating some next steps, particularly to protect our vulnerable populations and our nursing homes and [the] like and we are looking to determine whether mandatory measures are required," Inslee said in an interview Sunday morning with CBS's "Face the Nation."Read More

WATCH: Answering Your Questions About Coronavirus

By PBS Newshour March 7, 2020

PBS NewsHour - Answering your questions about coronavirus

As the number of cases in the U.S. continues to rise, so too do questions about how the virus spreads and how the average person can protect themselves. Health officials are simultaneously trying to understand the virus while improving they way they identify cases and contain those that are known — and encouraging people to just practice good hygiene (and to be cautious, Read More

Where That $8.3 Billion In U.S. Coronavirus Funding Will And Won’t Go

By NPR News March 7, 2020

President Trump signs an $8.3 billion emergency spending bill in the White House Friday. That's significantly more than he originally requested from Congress. CREDIT: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images

President Trump and Congress Friday authorized a package of emergency funding to help and treat and slow the spread of COVID-19. About $950 million is designated for state and local response.Read More

Vice President Pence Visits Washington State As Coronavirus Outbreak Grows

By Austin Jenkins March 6, 2020

Vice President Mike Pence, at podium, speaks as Gov. Jay Inslee, left, and other officials look on during a news conference, March 5, 2020, at Camp Murray in Washington state. Pence was in the state to discuss the state's efforts to fight the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. CREDIT Ted S. Warren/AP

As the death toll climbs and the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Washington tops 70, Vice President Mike Pence traveled to the state Thursday to tour the Military Department’s Emergency Operations Center, meet with Gov. Jay Inslee and other elected leaders and announce the arrival of a shipment of supplies for healthcare workers from the Strategic National Stockpile Read More

Restrictive Coronavirus Testing To Be Relaxed Amid Widening Washington Outbreak

By Tom Banse March 4, 2020

Testing capacity for novel coronavirus in Washington increased significantly on Tuesday once a University of Washington virology lab began accepting samples. UW MEDICINE

As the death toll from the novel coronavirus continues to rise, many people who feel sick are naturally concerned they might have the infection. Until now, a coronavirus test has been difficult to get locally because of limited capacity and strict rules for who qualifies. However, both of those restrictions may relax soon.Read More

Jay Inslee Says Washingtonians ‘Should Begin To Think About Avoiding’ Large Crowds And Gatherings

By Tom Banse March 3, 2020

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is flanked, from left, by state Secretary of Health John Wiesman, Emergency Management Director Robert Ezelle and Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal during a coronavirus briefing Monday in Olympia.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said Monday that his emergency powers would allow him to order the cancellation of large public gatherings to control the growing coronavirus outbreak in his state. However, he told reporters during a briefing in Olympia that he does not plan to use that authority at this time.Read More

Is A Vaping-Linked Illness A Public Health Crisis? Depends On Who You Ask

By PBS Newshour October 9, 2019

Vaping has been linked to a cluster of hospitalizations in Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota. sestovic/Getty Images When Dylan Nelson

In a complex world surrounded by seemingly endless risks, why should one, like vaping e-cigarettes, become a problem that attracts so much national attention from health officials, politicians and the press?Read More

Will Washington State’s New Public Option Plan Reduce Health Care Costs?

By Austin Jenkins May 16, 2019

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed two historic bills into law on Monday. One creates a public health insurance option, the other a new long-term care benefit. CREDIT: AUSTIN JENKINS / NORTHWEST NEWS NETWORK

Millions of Americans who buy individual health insurance, and don't qualify for a federal subsidy, have been hit with sticker shock in recent years. Instability and uncertainty in the individual market — driven in part by changes Congress and the Trump administration made to the Affordable Care Act — have resulted in double-digit premium increases.Read More

Plague Practice: Washington State Prepares For The Worst

By Paige Browning May 6, 2019

A nurse prepares a flu shot from a vaccine vial at the Salvation Army in Atlanta. CREDIT: AP PHOTO/DAVID GOLDMAN

If there's a disease outbreak in Washington state, health officials want to be prepared. This week, the state's Department of Health is hosting a statewide drill to practice sending out medicine as quickly as possible. The simulation: the plague has spread across Washington.Read More

Washington Lawmakers Consider Bill Limiting Vaccine Exemptions Amid Measles Outbreak

By NWPB News February 8, 2019

Kebby Johnson, center, of Spokane, Wash., holds a sign that reads "Say No to HB 1638," as she waits in line, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, to attend a public hearing before the House Health Care & Wellness Committee at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Amid a measles outbreak that has sickened people in Washington state and Oregon, lawmakers heard public testimony Friday on a bill that would remove parents' ability to claim a philosophical exemption to opt their school-age children out of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. CREDIT: TED S. WARREN/AP

Amid a measles outbreak that has sickened more than 50 people in the Pacific Northwest, Washington lawmakers heard testimony Friday on a bill that would remove parents’ ability to claim a personal or philosophical exemption to opt their school-age children out of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.Read More

As Count Rises, Health Officials Say Measles Outbreak Could Last Months

By Kristian Foden-Vencil January 29, 2019

A sign prohibiting all children under 12 and unvaccinated adults stands at the entrance to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver, Wash. CREDIT: GILLIAN FLACCUS/AP

As the number of confirmed measles cases in Southwest Washington and Oregon grew to 36 cases, health authorities said Monday that their biggest concern is low vaccination rates in schools and the possibility that the crisis could stretch out for months. Read More

Trump Says Administration Working On ‘Very Very Strong’ Policies To Combat Opioids

By NPR News March 1, 2018

The president made an unexpected appearance at Thursday's White House opioid summit. "It's a problem that's growing," he said of the drug epidemic that has struck the country.Read More