Alana Semuels

Why Baby Boxes Are Suddenly Everywhere Devices to help parents anonymously surrender an infant are spreading across the U.S., stirring emotions and debate.

Anti-abortion communities are using private and public money to install baby boxes—devices where people can anonymously surrender infants—in fire stations and hospitals. In June 2020 there were just 29 of these devices in the U.S., now there are more than 350. My story:
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Without after-school care, some parents are deciding they can't work full-time.

“We are basically withholding the luxury of being a full-time worker from some families,” one economist told me.

The Nightmare of Finding After-School Care in America ‘Am I going to have to quit my job? What am I going to do?’

Many parents can't find after-school programs for their kids. This year, disappearing federal funding and staff shortages is making the problem even worse.
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A Battle Is Brewing Over Whole Milk Opposing viewpoints about whether whole milk is healthy or not illuminate a growing debate in nutrition science.

"The real question is: is there any reason to be pushing high-fat dairy? And no, I don’t think we have a case that’s a good thing to do.”

The Trump administration wants to get whole milk back in schools. Nutritionists aren't so sure it's a good idea.

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Original essay here:
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Breathing Poison: You Can’t Outrun Wildfire Smoke | KQED Five years ago, Alana Semuels fled California for New York, hoping to avoid another toxic wildfire season, but then haze from Canadian fires followed her there.

Oh look, I'm featured on KQED in a story about that time I was pregnant 5 years ago and the sky turned orange and San Francisco couldn't breathe: www.kqed.org/science/1998...

"Costs of equipment like food warmers and refrigerators have gone up dramatically since the pandemic; Soltanmorad says she was recently quoted $11,000 for a piece of equipment that cost just $2,500 in 2019."

Why It's So Hard to Make School Lunches Healthier The MAHA movement's goal to improve school lunches faces big obstacles.

MAHA wants to change school lunches, which it says are "poisoning" children. But to get processed food out of meals, schools will have to build new kitchens, hire more staff, and overcome chronic budget shortages:
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Infant Deaths Spur Public Health Emergency in Mississippi The highest infant mortality rate in a decade has spurred the state to declare a crisis.

Mississippi had already received an "F" from the March of Dimes for its maternal and infant health outcomes. Then its infant mortality rates got even worse.
time.com/7312122/miss...

Why So Many Childcare Centers Are Closing The end of pandemic-era subsidies are forcing many centers to shut their doors or raise rates.

Childcare centers are closing across the country after the expiration of federal and state money that helped them survive the pandemic. time.com/7309693/dayc...

Why more women are leaving the U.S. workforce More than 200,000 women who are 20 years or older have left the U.S. workforce since January, new jobs report data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows. Alana Semuels, a senior correspondent...

I was on CBS Morning News today to talk about why women are leaving the workforce in droves. Check out the link here: www.cbsnews.com/video/why-mo...

What's wild is that while 212,000 women 20 and older have left the labor force since January, among women 25-34 years old, 330,000 have exited during the same time period.

Why So Many Women Are Quitting the Workforce Labor force participation among women has started falling again in 2025.

Return-to-office policies are not proven to make companies more productive. Many CEOs who reported women quitting said they were struggling to fill jobs because of that loss of female employees and that their overall workforce productivity is down. time.com/7306896/wome...

"For many women, this is more than an economic problem: it’s a depressing reminder that the brief period of time when work-from-home reigned—when balancing family and work was actually sometimes possible—is over."

“What is most heartbreaking about all of this is that the pandemic felt like this revolution, where they finally realized we’re human beings and they’ll treat us with some degree of respect,” says a mother whose company now mandates three in-office workdays. “It’s like we didn’t learn anything.”

Here's a useful chart from ‪@mlheggeness.bsky.social‬ -- the black line is women's labor force participation this year

Why So Many Women Are Quitting the Workforce Labor force participation among women has started falling again in 2025.

After a pandemic boost, women's labor force participation is falling again. Why? A combination of strict RTO policies and vanishing childcare funding: time.com/7306896/wome...

'People Are Going to Die': Cuts Leave Domestic Violence Support Groups Reeling Key federal funding has been declining and is likely to drop more in coming years.

Falling funding for domestic violence support groups is leading to shuttered shelters, closed hotlines, and a reduction in resources for survivors.

"People are going to die," one advocate told me.

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The FDA Might Ban Fluoride Supplements. Dentists Are Upset Ingestible fluoride is under fire by the FDA. Dentists are pushing back.

I sat through an all-day FDA hearing on fluoride supplements so you didn't have to! Dentists, doctors, and, um, science, were on the defensive.
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Why So Many Seniors Can't Afford Long-Term Care A growing group of middle-income elderly people are too rich for government benefits but can't afford long-term care.

I wrote about the seniors who are "too rich" for Medicaid but too poor to afford the long-term care they need. Their numbers are growing as the country ages and will likely grow more with Medicaid cuts.
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How Health Insurance Monopolies Affect Your Care In some states, one health insurer dominates the market, driving up prices and creating red tape.

In many states, one health insurer has a monopoly on the market. That drives up prices and worsens care. In Alabama, BCBS has 94% market share.
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The Surprising Reason Rural Hospitals Are Closing It's not just Medicaid or Medicare: Private insurance payments lag in rural areas.

Rural hospitals are closing across the country. Why? It's probably not what you think.
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Abortion Bans Worsen Violence in Relationships, Study Finds A new study shows that intimate partner violence increased in places requiring far travel to abortion clinics.

Violence in intimate relationships increased 7-10% in regions that added abortion restrictions after Dobbs, a new study finds: time.com/7295172/abor...

“I have gone down to Haiti nine times, and I have never seen the level of decay that I saw when I worked in Florida,” one dentist told me, about Floridian teeth.

America's Dental Health Is in Trouble Fluoride bans and proposed Medicaid cuts are worrying dentists.

America’s teeth are in bad shape, and dentists say that looming policy changes like Medicaid cuts and bans on fluoridation will make them even worse. time.com/7291226/amer...

How to Decimate a City Syracuse thought that by building a giant highway in the middle of town it could become an economic powerhouse. Instead, it got a bad bout of white flight and the worst slum problem in America.

Learn more about 81 here from an old piece by @alanasemuels.bsky.social

www.theatlantic.com/business/arc...

and the need for better road systems from City Limits by @megankimble.bsky.social

Trump Administration Cuts Funding for Autism Research Despite focusing on finding a cause, the Trump Administration has cut many autism programs.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was just asked if the administration has cut any funding to autism. The answer is yes:
time.com/7279068/trum...

When Fighting with Your Insurance Company Becomes a Full-Time Job The American health care system requires us to spend too much time getting coverage approved.

Americans spend countless hours on the phone battling with their health insurance companies.

It's time for the employers who buy these health insurance policies to do something about it:
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One thing her perspective, which pins disease avoidance and overall health on eating well, avoiding processed foods and pharmaceuticals, and exercising frequently, does not seem to answer is why people who eat well and exercise a lot still drop dead at 40 or get cancer.

Inside the Health Views of Casey Means, Trump’s Surgeon General Nominee Means holds many health beliefs that mirror those of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

I wrote about the new surgeon general pick, Casey Means, who believes drugs are overprescribed and many health problems can be solved by changes in lifestyle.

She also wrote an AI-assisted poem that pretty much sums up MAHA if you are into that type of thing.

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