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What South Carolina’s soaring measles outbreak means for the rest of the U.S. More than 840 measles infections have been reported in South Carolina, surpassing the tally in Texas last year. Public health experts say it shows the risks when vaccination coverage falls.

South Carolina is now experiencing the nation’s worst measles outbreak since the virus was declared eliminated a quarter century ago.

@lenasun.bsky.social and photographer Juan Diego Reyes show what’s happening on the ground wapo.st/4rttZRg

For nearly a century, the @washingtonpost’s foreign correspondents have been on the ground for the world’s most pressing stories. Now, our desk is facing potential steep cuts. Washington needs us. The world needs us. If you read us and need us, please watch this video and share.

RFK Jr. picks promoters of debunked vaccine-autism claims for key panel The autism advisory board includes members who have expressed skepticism about vaccine safety and its link to autism despite long-settled scientific conclusions contradicting such claims.

At least eight of the 21 people RFK Jr. picked for a key autism panel have been involved with anti-vaccine organizations or questioned vaccine safety, Ariana Eunjung Cha reports www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/...

Weiss tapped the three people RFK Jr. recently named on Katie Miller’s podcast as the best people for lifestyle advice — Mark Hyman, Andrew Huberman and Peter Attia — as CBS contributors

Formal U.S. withdrawal from WHO is decried as ‘scientifically reckless’ Trump justified withdrawing from the health alliance formed in 1948 based on what he viewed as the “mishandling” of the coronavirus pandemic and a failure to adopt changes.

NEW: US formally exits WHO. U.S. officials say nation will remain a global leader in health, but through “existing and new engagements directly with other countries, the private sector, nongovernmental organizations, and faith-based entities.” My story.
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/...

Top CDC vaccine adviser questions need for polio shot, other longstanding recommendations The chair of a federal vaccine advisory panel charted a new course for the committee in a podcast released Thursday, questioning longstanding recommendations.

The chair of a federal vaccine advisory panel charted a new course for the committee in a podcast released Thursday, suggesting the public might want to reconsider the use of polio vaccines. www.statnews.com/2026/01/22/v...

“The outrageous seizure of our reporter’s confidential newsgathering materials chills speech, cripples reporting, and inflicts irreparable harm every day the government keeps its hands on these materials,” The Post said in a statement. “We have asked the court to order the immediate return of all seized materials and prevent their use. Anything less would license future newsroom raids and normalize censorship by search warrant.”

The Washington Post demanded the feds return devices the government seized from reporter Hannah Natanson's home last week.

The extraordinary search “flouts the First Amendment and ignores federal statutory safeguards for journalists.” www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

And now they’ve back tracked and plan to restore the nearly $2 billion in grants www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/...

Trump administration slashes grants for mental health, addiction The extent of the SAMHSA cuts remains unclear but appear to broadly target more than 2,000 grants totaling nearly $2 billion.

The Trump administration has slashed federal grants that support mental health and addiction care.

“We are witnessing the complete dismantling of the recovery infrastructure we have built over time,” the leader of a group that lost funding said. www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/...

The Washington Post Guild is alarmed and appalled by federal law enforcement’s search and seizure of reporter Hannah Natanson’s property and personal devices. Hannah is a valued member of our union whose work covering the federal workforce has been essential (1/3)

How much red meat should you eat? We asked 3 top nutrition experts. New U.S. dietary guidelines have many people wondering if they should change what they are doing.

Three nutritionists weight in on eating red meat and whole fat dairy products now promoted under revised dietary guidelines www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/202...

She went anti-vaccine. Now she’s on the vaccine panel. On Jan. 13, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. added two outspoken vaccine critics to a powerful federal panel that helps shape immunization policy nationwide.

Video of some of the comments here www.washingtonpost.com/video/nation...

New RFK Jr. pick for vaccine panel: ‘I was not anti-vaccine. I am now.’ Two OB/GYNs appointed to an influential federal vaccine advisory panel have criticized vaccination during pregnancy and more broadly. One called the vaccine industry “disgusting.”

EXCLUSIVE:

We vetted RFK Jr.'s latest picks for a federal vaccine advisory panel. One explicitly called herself an anti-vaxxer, the other compared vaccine makers to cigarette manufacturers.

“My grandchildren will not get any shots if I can help it"

@lenasun.bsky.social reports
wapo.st/4pFHsEe

How to know when kids are too sick for school Experts offer guidance on when to send sick children to class or keep them home from school.

Great look here at when you should keep a sick kid home from school since it can be infeasible to do so with every sniffle.

From @karinaelwood.bsky.social, @jennaportnoywp.bsky.social & Shikha Subramaniam www.washingtonpost.com/health/inter...

Gov. Wes Moore bill would let Maryland bypass federal vaccine schedule Maryland Gov. Wes Moore is proposing legislation that would decouple vaccine recommendations from federal guidance days after the Trump administration overhauled the childhood vaccine schedule.

The blue state rebellion against RFK Jr.'s overhaul of vaccine recommendations continues.

@jennaportnoywp.bsky.social reports Maryland Gov. Wes Moore is pushing legislation to allow the state to makes its own recommendations www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...

New dietary guidance pushes whole milk, warns against processed food The guidelines also promote red meat and lower consumption of grains, while warning against added sugars and artificial sweeteners.

What's in the new dietary guidelines crafted by RFK Jr. and the Trump administration, @rachelroubein.bsky.social explains

✅ whole milk
❌ flour tortillas
✅ kimchi
❌ artificial sweetener
✅ butter

www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/...

CDC staff ‘blindsided’ as child vaccine schedule unilaterally overhauled The Trump administration took unprecedented steps to recommend fewer vaccines for children without extensive consultations with career scientists.

SCOOP: CDC vaccine experts were blindsided by RFKJr top deputy’s decision to unilaterally overhaul child schedule. Also, previously undisclosed CDC presentation refutes Trump admin narrative that US is outlier on vaccine policy. My story @Washingtonpost.com
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/...

These are the vaccines no longer broadly recommended to children The Trump administration is widely recommending fewer childhood immunizations, including for influenza, rotavirus and hepatitis A.

The Trump administration says evidence supports giving one HPV vaccine dose instead of two.

But in May, the FDA said there's enough evidence to conclude that a single dose provides the same protection against cervical cancer as two doses www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/...

What to know about vaccines no longer routinely recommended to children The Trump administration is widely recommending fewer childhood immunizations, including for influenza, rotavirus and hepatitis A.

What science shows about the vaccines that are no longer routinely recommended to children because of Trump and RFK Jr., explained by @lenasun.bsky.social & @paigecunningham.bsky.social

After extensive back-and-forth, @lenasun.bsky.social confirmed the RSV recommendation is not actually changing.

Admin now categorizes RSV immunization as for high-risk groups. But otherwise healthy newborns should still get if their moms weren't vaccinated. Which is the existing guidance!

The Trump administration said it was important to change the vaccine schedule to improve public trust, but insisted their answers to questions about the changes should be attributed to anonymous officials.

(Kudos to @lenasun.bsky.social who pushed back against this during the press conference)

More details on the specific vaccines and what has changed

U.S. overhauls childhood vaccine schedule, recommends fewer shots The new strategy would no longer broadly recommend vaccines for flu, hepatitis A and B, rotavirus and meningitis. The Trump administration says this aligns the U.S. with peer countries.

BREAKING: The U.S. has overhauled the childhood immunization schedule, no longer recommending all children receive annual flu shots, RSV immunizations and other shots.
wapo.st/4joGue1

In case you missed it last week when many were still on vacation

One more night in a ‘sober house’ for sports bettors He hasn’t bet in months. It’s almost time to move out. Is he ready to have his phone back?

This is fantastic journalism about addiction and the toll of unfettered sports betting wapo.st/49lI9w2

First dose at age 12 through 15 months. Second dose at age 4 through 6 years.

Yes the data is for kindergarteners

The share of counties where 95% or more of kindergartners were vaccinated against measles has dropped from 50% before the pandemic to 28%, according to our analysis of public records from 44 states and the District of Columbia. At least 19,000 schools are now more vulnerable to outbreaks.

You definitely want to look at these maps. Some of this is bleak but expected. Wisconsin? That's a surprise to me.

“The share of US counties where 95% or more of kindergartners were vaccinated against measles—the number doctors say is needed to achieve overall protection for the class, known as ‘herd immunity’— has dropped from 50% before the pandemic to 28%”🛟🧪