Harvard on the Front Lines - Coronavirus

Hard lessons in the midst of hope

by Chris Berdik

04 Jun 2021
|
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

COVID-19 vaccines are rolling out, but variants continue to spread and public health systems around the world remain strained. Experts from across the Harvard Chan School reflect on the pandemic and what it means for the future of public health.

A key to the next pandemic: An early-warning system

by Alvin Powell

19 May 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

What do we need to do to get ready for the next global pandemic? In this series, the Gazette asks Harvard experts for concrete solutions to complex problems.

High-speed internet at a crossroads

by Alvin Powell

19 May 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

A computer science expert says heavy use of the internet during the pandemic offered lessons on best uses and the fallout of haves and have-nots.

When you dream of feeling naked in public — without a mask

by Colleen Walsh

07 May 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

You’re strolling down the street, or giving a work presentation, or having dinner with friends. Suddenly it hits you: You’re not wearing any clothes. It’s a common anxiety dream many of us have had at one point or another, but in recent months Harvard researcher Deirdre Barrett, who has been charting dreams during the pandemic, has noticed that people are increasingly reporting a kind of coronavirus equivalent in which people get caught maskless.

Why some die, some survive when equally ill from COVID-19

by Timothy Gower

04 May 2021
|
Harvard Gazatte

Researchers at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have identified the protein “signature” of severe COVID-19, which they describe in a new study published in Cell Reports Medicine.

Human organ chips enable rapid drug repurposing for COVID-19

by Lindsay Brownwell

03 May 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

Emulating human lung airway in vitro identified helpful effects of antimalarial drug amodiaquine, now in clinical trials.

HSPH Faculty Spearhead National Covid-19 Response Efforts Through Bipartisan, Interdisciplinary Initiative

by Ariel H. Kim and Anjeli R. Macaranas

14 Apr 2021
|
Harvard Crimson

Harvard School of Public Health Dean Michelle A. Williams said in an interview she was “inspired” to co-found the COVID Collaborative — a coalition of leading health and economic experts promoting comprehensive public health policies — in an effort to help direct local and national responses to the coronavirus pandemic.

Researchers at Harvard’s GenderSci Lab Explore Connections Among Race, Sex, and Covid-19 Mortalities

by Kate N. Guerin,

13 Apr 2021
|
Harvard Crimson

Researchers at Harvard’s GenderSci Lab investigated the intersectionality of race, sex, and Covid-19 mortalities, as detailed in a study published earlier this month in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

A pandemic that endures for COVID long-haulers

by Alvin Powell

13 Apr 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

Haravard Medical School’s Jason Maley explains Beth Israel program to treat lingering ailments.

Harvard Medical School's Karan on Global Vaccine Rollout

12 Apr 2021
|
Bloomberg

Dr. Abraar Karan, physician at the Harvard Medical School, discusses the global rollout of coronavirus vaccines. Concern is mounting that China’s Covid-19 vaccines are less effective at quelling the disease, raising questions about nations from Brazil to Hungary that are depending on the shots and the country’s own mammoth inoculation drive.

Approval of at-home tests releases a powerful pandemic-fighting weapon

by Alvin Powell

02 Apr 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved inexpensive, at-home coronavirus tests for over-the-counter sales this week, adding a potentially powerful weapon to the nation’s pandemic-fighting arsenal that experts say will likely still be needed despite increasing numbers of vaccinated Americans.

Fallacies, hard truths, and lessons learned from the global response to COVID-19

by James F. Smith

31 Mar 2021
|
Harvard Kennedy School

Researchers from Harvard and other universities are comparing what went right and what failed in 18 countries’ handling of the pandemic.

Harvard Medical School Researchers Identify Covid-19 Mutation That Makes Variants More Contagious

by Sarah Girma and Eric Yan

30 Mar 2021
|
Harvard Crimson

Harvard researchers have identified a mutation in several common Covid-19 variants that causes a structural change in the virus, allowing it to spread more rapidly, according to a study published earlier this month in the journal Science.

Post-pandemic challenges for schools

by Liz Mineo

29 Mar 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

The Harvard Education School dean says that flexibility and more hours are the keys to avoid learning loss.

COVID-19 vaccine protects mothers — and their newborns

by Julie Cunningham

25 Mar 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

A new study from Harvard and others shows that pregnant women show robust immune response to coronavirus vaccines and pass antibodies to newborns.

The main public health tool during 1918 pandemic? Social distancing

by Liz Mineo

25 Mar 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

Both the problem and the intervention have long histories.

Why It Pays to Think Outside the Box on Coronavirus Tests

by Emily Anthes

24 Mar 2021
|
New York Times

“It’s natural in an outbreak for people to become self-serving, self-focused,” said Dr. Pardis Sabeti, a computational biologist at Harvard University and the Broad Institute who lead the analysis. But, she added, “If you’ve been in enough outbreaks you just understand that testing in a box doesn’t makes sense. These things are communicable, and they’re coming in from the community.”

Seeking ‘a leadership moment’ on global vaccination

by Alvin Powell

23 Mar 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

Expert says every $1 spent manufacturing doses reaps $5 in worldwide benefits.

How a mutated coronavirus evades immune system defenses

by Ekaterina Pesheva

16 Mar 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

A new study led by Harvard Medical School scientists sheds light on the ways in which compromised immunity may render SARS-CoV-2 fitter and capable of evading the immune system.

Lessons from Europe’s third coronavirus wave

15 Mar 2021
|
The World

Europe is facing a dangerous, new surge of COVID-19 cases, just as Italy, France and Germany suspend use of the AstraZeneca vaccine. Dr. Barry Bloom, former dean of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, talks with The World’s Marco Werman about what lessons the surge might offer US scientists and public health officials devising strategies to beat the new variants.

Professor, banking giant join on studies of rapid COVID tests to avoid future shutdowns

by Alvin Powell

10 Mar 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

Michael Mina, assistant professor of epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and associate medical director in clinical microbiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital says the virus won’t vanish despite greater vaccine availability.

Demystifying vaccination procedures

10 Mar 2021
|
Harvard John A. Paulson School Of Engineering And Applied Sciences

The nationwide COVID-19 vaccine rollout is picking up speed, but misinformation and confusion remain over when individuals are eligible for vaccinations and procedures to set up appointments. To demystify the myriad state government policies and help people get vaccinated faster, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences students Eric Lin, A.B./S.M. ’22, and Catherine Yeo, A.B. ’23, both computer science concentrators, launched a website to provide a one-stop-shop for the most up-to-date vaccination information from each U.S. state.

Lessons from Katrina on how pandemic may affect kids

by Alvin Powell

09 Mar 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

Psychologist says study of youth problems offer clues for months, years ahead.

Tracking attitudes and behavior on COVID in all 50 states, week by week

by James F. Smith

23 Feb 2021
|
Harvard Kennedy School

Researchers from Harvard help drive far-reaching project gauging how people view the pandemic and the tumult of the past year.

We may duck a surge from variant that sent Britain reeling

by Alvin Powell

19 Feb 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

Expert says falling COVID rates, rising vaccinations, and timing may hamper spread.

Seeded amid the many surprises of COVID times, some unexpected positives

by Liz Mineo

18 Feb 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

Various innovations, rise of women leaders, greater collaboration between scientists, clinicians, to name few.

One Year In: Where do we stand with COVID-19 diagnostics today?

by Kevin Jiang

18 Feb 2021
|
Harvard Medical School

Diagnostic tests are the backbone of efforts to track, treat, and control any infectious disease. Early on in the pandemic, however, uncertainty reigned as the CDC and clinics and hospitals around the country faced overwhelming demand for testing. Today, while diagnostic needs are far from met, more than 1.5 million COVID-19 tests are carried out in the U.S. every day, and a total of more than 300 million tests have been administered in a little over a year.

Upgrade your mask as more-transmissible COVID strain surges

by Alvin Powell

10 Feb 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

In shift, experts now urge N95s or double-masking as variants set to dominate viral landscape.

COVID-19 vaccines: Safety, side effects –– and coincidence

By Robert H. Shmerling, MD

08 Feb 2021
|
Harvard Health Blog

The rapid development of mRNA vaccines and other vaccines to prevent COVID-19 is welcome — some say miraculous — news. But while many people are scrambling to get a vaccine, others are hesitating.

Amid pandemic tragedy, an opportunity for change?

by Alvin Powell

05 Feb 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

“For the first time the connection between health and economic outcomes has become transparent,” said Tarun Khanna, director of Harvard’s Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute and one of four co-chairs of a new Lancet Citizens’ Commission to study how to bring universal health care to India. “The morality of universal health care has always been a driver of this urgency, but that’s not the new thing here. Rather, for the first time in 30 years GDP is expected to fall in response to a health crisis.”

Harvard professor: 5 activities can increase your happiness fast, and they’re free

by Gili Malinsky

02 Feb 2021
|
CNBC

Day to day, especially during economically strained times like the coronavirus pandemic, it’s easy to prioritize having and making money above everything else. But Ashley Whillans, assistant professor of business administration at Harvard Business School and author of “Time Smart,” has found that valuing time over money — even for just a few minutes a day — leads to an increase in happiness and well-being.

Newest vaccine emerges amid a ‘more complicated pandemic’

by Alvin Powell

01 Feb 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

On Friday, pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson reported successful results of its phase 3 clinical trial of a coronavirus vaccine developed in the lab of Harvard Medical School Professor Dan Barouch at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC). The announcement also, however, fueled concerns over the growing number of virus variants and the continuing effectiveness of available vaccines. The Gazette spoke with Barouch, who is the William Bosworth Castle Professor of Medicine and director of BIDMC’s Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, about the trial results, the potential for improved results after a second dose, and his thoughts about the ever-changing pandemic.

How Influencers, Celebrities, and FOMO Can Win Over Vaccine Skeptics

by Rohit Deshpandé, Ofer Mintz, and Imran S. Currim

29 Jan 2021
|
Working Knowledge

Drawing from product innovation theory, Professor Rohit Deshpandé and colleagues offer three recommendations to speed adoption of COVID-19 vaccines.

Pandemic pushes mental health to the breaking point

by Alvin Powell

27 Jan 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

Long after vaccines have tamed COVID-19’s physical impacts, its mental health effects will linger, a panel of experts said, citing increased anxiety and depression, accelerated retirements of burnt-out doctors and nurses, and continuing emotional fallout for low-wage workers who toiled despite increased risks at grocery stores, food processing plants, and other essential businesses. Experts from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), and the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation gathered for an hourlong online discussion of what may be one of the pandemic’s most painful if lesser-recognized effects.

Immunologist says technology can keep up with COVID variants

by Alvin Powell

22 Jan 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

While public health and infectious disease experts are keeping a wary eye on emerging coronavirus variants, particularly one in South Africa that shows some signs of evading immune responses, a Harvard public health expert predicted that, ultimately, technology and science would prevail.

A safer return to campuses? There’s an app for that

by Juan Siliezar

21 Jan 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

A team of Harvard researchers have launched a new disease-modeling app that simulates what different transmission and mitigation scenarios can look like in university settings.

Lessons from teaching in COVID times

by Brett Milano

13 Jan 2021
|
Harvard Gazette

The pandemic has transformed education at Harvard, requiring students and faculty to innovate with online learning. During a recent plenary, deans from across campus looked back on the year with a sense of achievement — and a bit of fatigue as well.

Yes, the new variant of coronavirus is alarming. But kids should stay in school.

by Joseph G. Allen

30 Dec 2020
|
Washington Post

The emergence of a new variant of coronavirus has the world’s attention — and rightly so. The new variant seems significantly more transmissible than earlier strains of viruses, leading some scientists — including those who discovered that the new variant spreads faster — to make a bold but shortsighted recommendation: Close the schools. That’s the wrong answer. The right answer is enhanced controls in schools.

Harvard professor: New at-home coronavirus test is a ‘major boon’ — but more need to be approved

By Martin Finucane

16 Dec 2020
|
Boston Globe

A Harvard professor who has been an outspoken advocate for cheap, rapid, at-home coronavirus testing hailed a new test that will be sold over the counter and can provide results to the user in about 15 minutes. The new test, made by Australian company Ellume, is a “major boon,” said Dr. Michael Mina, a professor at the T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Mina is among a group of experts who have argued that at-home testing could offer a way out of the pandemic.

What Does December's Drug-Approval Dash Mean for COVID-19 Vaccines?

by Danielle Kost

14 Dec 2020
|
Working Knowledge

Even in the best of times, pharmaceutical regulators tend to rush through drug applications in December. Now add in a ruthless pandemic. Research and insights from Lauren Cohen.

We are over-cleaning in response to covid-19

by Joseph G. Allen, Charles Haas and Linsey C. Marr

11 Dec 2020
|
Washington Post

Business leaders, school districts and government officials often ask whether people are over-cleaning in response to the pandemic. The short answer is yes. The reality is that the novel coronavirus spreads mainly through the air. Especially with regular hand-washing, there’s no need to constantly disinfect surfaces.

A Harvard Trained Doctor Gives Suggestions For Safer Travels This Holiday Season

by Nel-Olivia Waga

09 Dec 2020
|
Forbes

The holidays are around the corner. The respect for traveling is high. Not only because of the uncertainty in planning due to weekly changing lockdown rules, quarantines and restrictions that differ from region to country but also the fear of catching the virus (and potentially passing it on to others) is in our minds. Taking the risk of a Christmas holiday with our loved ones to escape the (un)real world we are facing this year or staying safe and sound at home? That’s the question of the season.

What you should know about the COVID-19 vaccine

By Jeff Neal

03 Dec 2020
|
Harvard Law Today

In a Q&A, public health expert Carmel Shachar discusses the vaccine, who is likely to get it first, and whether people can be required to get vaccinated

Will there be a serious post-Thanksgiving COVID surge?

by Alvin Powell

02 Dec 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Public health officials have warned for months of the possibility of a serious post-Thanksgiving surge in COVID-19 cases. If it does happen, a Harvard epidemiologist says, the signs should become apparent this week, and she cautioned those who gathered with family and friends for the holiday to get tested or act under the assumption that they’ve been infected.

COVID-19 vaccine breakthroughs: What happens now?

by David Pogue

30 Nov 2020
|
CBS News

Reports say there are now three coronavirus vaccines, with effectiveness from 90 to 95%. What the reports do not say, however, is: How will they be distributed? How do we get them? Or what they'll cost? Or how soon they will end the pandemic? Now that we have the vaccine, what next? Harvard Business School professor Willy Shih, an economist and an expert on manufacturing comments.

What will the new post-pandemic normal look like?

by Alvin Powell

24 Nov 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

The coronavirus pandemic has exerted enormous pressure on American society and forced a host of changes to how we live and work. But those pressures have ebbed and flowed with the outbreak’s progress. When it all recedes in the likely not-too-distant future, experts expect older, more familiar ways of doing things to return, undoing some of the changes we’ve seen since March.

U.S. failed to control pandemic, but vaccination provides ‘chance to get next phase right’

by Alvin Powell

23 Nov 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

A smooth vaccine rollout is possible, Harvard experts say, but success will hinge on attention to the details.

A terrific first start

by Karen Feldscher

19 Nov 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Barry Bloom, Joan L. and Julius H. Jacobson Research Professor of Public Health, offers context about the news that two experimental vaccines appear to confer a high level of protection from the coronavirus.

Keeping safe from pandemic during the holidays

by Alvin Powell

09 Nov 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

With the coronavirus pandemic worsening again, the holidays are going to be a challenge this year, so a Harvard epidemiologist offered something of a survival guide for navigating travel, family gatherings, and other autumnal activities. William Hanage, an associate professor of epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health offers tips for family gatherings at Thanksgiving and in December.

Harvard Researchers Explore Link Between Pollution and COVID-19 Mortality

By Brandon L. Kingdollar and Austin C. Ma

06 Nov 2020
|
Harvard Crimson

Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health and universities across Europe have established a link between air pollution and mortality risk from COVID-19, according to an Oct. 26 study published by the Oxford University Press.

School of Public Health Co-Creates Interactive Planning Tool To Aid COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution

By Isabella B. Cho and Ashley R. Masci

05 Nov 2020
|
Harvard Crimson

Harvard School of Public Health and Brigham and Women’s Hospital developed a new vaccine allocation tool that will help local and state leaders across the nation strategize the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, according to a press release.

Nipping COVID in the bud

by Alvin Powell

29 Oct 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Trial begins of at-home treatment that may keep early cases from growing severe.

Harvard researcher estimates COVID-19 has cost US 2.5 million years of life

by Kaelan Deese

21 Oct 2020
|
The Hill

A Harvard researcher who looked at the life expectancy of 200,000 Americans who have died from the coronavirus estimates COVID-19 has cost the United States 2.5 million years of life.

How a Pioneering Covid Testing Lab Helped Keep Northeast Colleges Open

by Melissa Korn

16 Oct 2020
|
Wall Street Journal

Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard processes 45,000 Covid-19 tests a day for more than 100 colleges.

They’re Back: Harvard Study Shows Outpatient Visits Return To Pre-Pandemic Numbers

by Martha Bebinger

15 Oct 2020
|
WBUR

In the spring, as coronavirus cases surged, research showed visits to pediatricians, cardiologists and almost every type of health care provider dropped roughly 60%. Physicians laid off staff, cut salaries and worried they wouldn’t be able to stay open. But now, eight months into the pandemic, an analysis of more than 50 million visits across the U.S., finds patients roaring back.

A Crisis Decades in the Making: Disability Housing Policy and COVID-19

by Katelyn Li

11 Oct 2020
|
Harvard Political Review

For the roughly 681,000 Americans with intellectual and developmental disabilities who reside in congregate care settings such as group homes and state institutions, the coronavirus pandemic has wrought a tragic, and largely invisible, crisis.

Building public trust in a coronavirus vaccine

by Jeff Neal

06 Oct 2020
|
Harvard Law Today

In an interview with Harvard Law Today, Carmel Shachar J.D./M.P.H. ’10, the executive director of the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics at Harvard Law School, says that political interference in the FDA’s process for ensuring that a vaccine is both safe and effective “opens the door to a public health disaster.”

Travel Alert: 10 States Now At ‘Tipping Point,’ Per Harvard-Brown Covid-19 Tracker

by Suzanne Rowan Kelleher

02 Oct 2020
|
Forbes

With coronavirus hot spots sprawling across the Midwest and Mountain West, one in five states is now “at a tipping point” for Covid-19 infections. The number of high-risk states has jumped from four to 10 in the past two weeks, according to the risk-assessment map run by the Harvard Global Health Institute and Brown School of Public Health.

Forum: Pandemic's Disproportionate Impacts on Minority Communities in U.S. Cities

by Joe Neel

30 Sep 2020
|
NPR

A poll out this month by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, finds that in some of America's largest cities, more than half of the households say they have lost a job, been furloughed, or had wages and hours reduced since the start of the coronavirus outbreak. No groups have been more affected than minority communities, both in terms of illness, death and financial devastation. These communities were already disproportionately burdened by wage gaps and chronic illnesses before the pandemic. Watch an expert panel discussion on the extent of these problems and approaches to mitigating, as part of The Forum at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Government funding 'very important' to coronavirus vaccine development: Top Harvard scientist

by Max Zahn with Andy Serwer

22 Sep 2020
|
Yahoo! Finance

The U.S. government has allocated nearly $11 billion to pharmaceutical companies to accelerate the discovery and production of a coronavirus vaccine — and it’s money well spent, Harvard University vaccine researcher Dr. Dan Barouch told Yahoo Finance in a recent interview.

Open Windows, Doors Could Help Stop Coronavirus Spread In Schools, Harvard Experts Say

03 Sep 2020
|
CBS Boston

In an op-ed for the Washington Post, professors Joseph G. Allen and Jack Spengler and research associate Jose Cedeño-Laurent of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health wrote, “Opening windows sounds too simple to be true… But in this case, simplicity is elegant – grounded in science and risk-reduction principles.”

Medical nonprofits are struggling during COVID-19. Harvard group offers a survival roadmap

by Karen Weintraub

13 Aug 2020
|
USA Today

This is a terrible time for the nation's 22,000 medical nonprofits. Professor Richard Hamermesh and Co-Founder of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation Kathy Giusti have a plan for that. The duo have published a "playbook" after a grant at Harvard Business School helped gather lessons the MMRF and 300 other medical nonprofits learned through experience and hard work.

Google and Harvard team up against COVID

by Dave Pearson

04 Aug 2020
|
AI in Healthcare

Pandemic forecasting models aren’t hard to find of late, but a new one combines epidemiological expertise from a top-three medical school with AI knowhow from one of big tech’s biggest. Google Cloud announced its linkup with Harvard’s Global Health Institute Aug. 3, saying the duo would offer free, AI-powered COVID forecasting over the next 14 days to public health officials, frontline healthcare workers and others engaged in the battle.

Harvard doctor says there are two conditions schools must meet to reopen

by Joseph Guzman

22 Jul 2020
|
The Hill

Harvard Global Health Institute Director (HGHI) Ashish Jha in an opinion piece for The Boston Globe says for schools to open up safely the level of the coronavirus in the community must be low, and the school itself must be prepared.

Vaccines for COVID-19 moving closer

by Shiv Pillai, PhD, MBBS

21 Jul 2020
|
Harvard Health Blog

As the world reels from illnesses and deaths due to COVID-19, the race is on for a safe, effective, long-lasting vaccine to help the body block the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. The three vaccine approaches discussed here are among the first to be tested clinically in the United States.

Harvard doctor: America 'needs to regroup' to fight coronavirus

by Adriana Belmonte

19 Jul 2020
|
Yahoo! Finance

Despite record numbers of coronavirus cases in many states across the country, there is still no coordinated response on a federal level. As a result, many states reopened their economies sooner than public health experts would have liked. And Harvard Public Health professor Dr. Howard Koh says the U.S. needs to take a step back and do a better job and battling the coronavirus as a country.

Study suggests undetected cases help speed COVID-19 spread

by Juan Siliezar

16 Jul 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

A modeling study looking at more than 32,000 confirmed coronavirus cases in Wuhan, China, offers fresh insights into features of the virus, including ease of transmission, effectiveness of nonpharmaceutical interventions such as social distancing and face masks, and the impact that undetected cases have on the spread of the disease.

Travel Alert: Americans From 26 States Should Stay Home, Per Harvard’s COVID-19 Tracking Site

by Suzanne Rowan Kelleher

16 Jul 2020
|
Forbes

Americans from 26 states — more than half of the country — should not be traveling right now, according to the Harvard Global Health Institute’s risk-assessment map.

‘This is silliness’: Harvard’s Ashish Jha condemns CDC director’s suggestion that travelers from northern states to blame for COVID-19 outbreaks in south

by Dialynn Dwyer

15 Jul 2020
|
Boston.com

Dr. Ashish Jha, the director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, is quashing the suggestion made by the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that travelers from northern states could be to blame for the exploding outbreaks of COVID-19 being seen in southern states.

Top Harvard doctor: Florida and other states ‘opened up too early and too aggressively’

by Mark Gartsbeyn

13 Jul 2020
|
Boston.com

The head of the Harvard Global Health Institute has a simple explanation for the new surge in coronavirus cases seen in Florida and other states: They just opened up too quickly. Dr. Ashish Jha, one of Massachusetts’ top medical experts, spoke on the Today show Monday morning.

Harvard doctor 'very optimistic' that vaccine will come in early 2021, but may not be totally effective

By Ronn Blitzer

06 Jul 2020
|
Fox News

Dr. Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, predicted there is a likelihood that a coronavirus vaccine will be available in early 2021, but cautioned that it may not be 100 percent effective.

‘We can’t just give up’ — Harvard doctor says U.S. must take precautions as virus cases rise

by Kevin Stankiewicz

24 Jun 2020
|
CNBC

Dr. Jeremy Faust told CNBC that the U.S. cannot view surges in coronavirus cases as inevitable, as states across the country try to combat growing outbreaks.

Head of Harvard Global Health Institute thinks the U.S. needs a mask policy ‘across the country’

by Hayden Bird

23 Jun 2020
|
Boston.com

A Harvard professor thinks that wearing a mask in public should be required “across the country” during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Finding COVID clues in movement

by Alvin Powell

23 Jun 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Tracking mobility of individuals offers hints of whether a problem is rising or falling.

New economic tracker finds flaws in U.S. recovery plan

by Juan Siliezar

17 Jun 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

A Harvard Opportunity Insights report suggests targeted social insurance programs may be more effective.

The US is not done with the coronavirus pandemic, and a Harvard expert says we need to shift the blame game from reopening to fixing our testing and contact tracing system

by Lauren Frias

13 Jun 2020
|
Business Insider

After weeks of lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus, the US is on its way to reopen the economy. However, a number of states have been reporting spikes in new cases throughout the country.

Should you get tested for the coronavirus after protesting? Here’s what experts say about the risks.

By Teddy Amenabar

12 Jun 2020
|
Washington Post

There have been 2 million reported coronavirus cases in the United States and 112,000 people have died. Across the board, communities of color account for a disproportionate number of those affected. With people crowding together at demonstrations against police brutality, experts are concerned there could be a subsequent spike in cases.

Coronavirus deaths could reach 200,000 by early fall, Harvard doctor warns

by Maura Hohman

11 Jun 2020
|
Today.com

"Let's do everything in our power to get the virus under control," said Dr. Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute. "I think we ... absolutely can. I don't want a lockdown. Nobody does."

Explainer: What we know about the origins of the coronavirus pandemic

by David Stanway

10 Jun 2020
|
Reuters

Scientists are turning a spotlight on China’s version of the origins of the coronavirus pandemic as they scrutinize everything from the virus’s genetic code to proxy data, such as cremations and internet searches for disease symptoms.

Loss of taste and smell is best indicator of COVID-19, study shows

by Alvin Powell

01 Jun 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

MGH, King’s College London researchers use crowdsourced data from app to monitor symptoms in 2.6 million, study how the disease spreads.

Harvard Medical Students Partner With Crowdsolving Platform Groopit To Launch Yelp-Like Covid-19 Testing Review Platform

by Brianne Garrett

29 May 2020
|
Forbes

HMS students have launched an app to provide information on COVID-19 testing sites.

Harvard scientists are developing a coronavirus vaccine specifically for those most vulnerable: the elderly

by Holly Secon

24 May 2020
|
Business Insider

Researchers at Boston Children's Hospital are working to develop an age-specific coronavirus vaccine to protect those most vulnerable: the elderly.

‘If it’s not over on the disease … it’s not over on the balance sheet’

by Christina Pazzanese

20 May 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Kennedy School’s Carmen Reinhart, just named chief economist at the World Bank, says the COVID-born financial crisis will last until the health crisis is solved.

A summer like no other

by Alvin Powell

19 May 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

You can have outdoor fun in the COVID era, a Chan School expert says, but keep your distance.

Harvard epidemiologist: More research needed on antibodies that might prevent coronavirus reinfection

By Marie Szaniszlo

16 May 2020
|
Mercury News

A Harvard epidemiologist is warning more research is needed to determine when people infected with the coronavirus produce antibodies that might protect them from reinfection.

Reopening research operations

by Nate Herpich

15 May 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Vice Provost Rick McCullough discusses the decision to shut down labs and outlines the plans to ensure a safe return to normal operations when the time comes

$16.5 million awarded to projects to fight COVID

by Alvin Powell

13 May 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

A Harvard-led scientific consortium awards grants for dozens of research projects ranging from vaccines and treatments to explorations of immunity.

Harvard and MIT researchers are developing a face mask that lights up when it detects the coronavirus

by Aria Bendix

13 May 2020
|
Business Insider

For the past six years, bioengineers at MIT and Harvard have been developing sensors that can detect viruses including the ones that cause Zika and Ebola. They're adapting their technology to screen for the new coronavirus. The team hopes to embed the sensors inside face masks so that when an infected person breathes, coughs, or sneezes, the sensors light up to signal the presence of the virus.

Most Critically Ill COVID-19 Patients Survive with Respiratory Failure Treatment Strategy, Research Finds

by Simon J. Levien

12 May 2020
|
Harvard Crimson

The majority of critically ill COVID-19 patients survive under current treatment guidelines for respiratory failure, clinicians at two Harvard teaching hospitals found.

A COVID-19 battle with many fronts

12 May 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

The stories of how the COVID-19 pandemic has upended work and life are as diverse as the new challenges and pressures the disease has created. The Gazette asked alumni who are engaged in the battle against the disease to share their experiences and how their work has radically changed.

Volunteers juice COVID testing at Beth Israel

by Alvin Powell

11 May 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Hard work, new equipment, and some extra help lets the lab super-charge capacity

Harvard Medical School student creates COVID-19 resources in over 30 languages

by Grace Griffin

10 May 2020
|
Boston Globe

Compelled by the COVID-19 outbreak, Pooja Chandrashekar spoke to mobile health clinic workers across the city about their needs during the pandemic and then rallied a group of students from more than 30 universities to create fact sheets in languages not commonly represented in the American health care system.

Battling the ‘pandemic of misinformation’

by Christina Pazzanese

08 May 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

The uncertainty around coronavirus has unleashed a torrent of misinformation, ranging from bad advice to conspiracy theories, that makes the work of health leaders trying to get accurate data to the public more difficult.

Is it coronavirus or something else? Harvard Medical School study offers insight for clinicians evaluating symptoms

by Travis Andersen

07 May 2020
|
Boston Globe

A recent Harvard Medical School study offers insights on determining whether patients with coronavirus symptoms are infected with the contagion or with a different ailment.

How far are we from a vaccine? Depends on who ‘we’ is

by Alvin Powell

07 May 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Former Chan School Dean Bloom assesses where efforts stand and the challenges ahead

Report: COVID-19 Will Likely Spread for Up to Two More Years

06 May 2020
|
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

A team of pandemic experts, including Harvard's Marc Lipsitch, has predicted that the new coronavirus is likely to keep spreading for another 18-24 months in the U.S.

We Shouldn’t Wait for a Breakthrough in the COVID-19 Pandemic

by Gary P. Pisano

06 May 2020
|
Harvard Business Review

While the U.S. policy approach to COVID-19 should continue to support big breakthrough initiatives like vaccine and drug development and building massive test and trace capacity, we should not ignore the potential cumulative impact of the many small things we already know how to do or might try that together could make a big dent in the current crisis.

Applying wisdom from the Himalayas to the ER’s COVID battle

by Alvin Powell

06 May 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Using insights from his medical research in the "death zones" of the world's highest peaks, an MGH fellow tests a treatment designed to kill coronavirus directly in the lungs.

Outpatient COVID-19 Clues

by Ekaterina Pesheva

06 May 2020
|
Harvard Medical School

What can we learn from people with coronavirus who seek care at outpatient clinics?

Why Trump’s timeline for a coronavirus vaccine in 2020 is too optimistic: Harvard expert

by Zack Guzman

05 May 2020
|
Yahoo! Finance

Echoing the timeline from Dr. Fauci, the White House’s own lead medical professional on the coronavirus task force who has guided to a longer timeline of 12 to 18 months to develop a vaccine, Harvard Medical School professor Dr. Mark Poznansky warned that the scientific unknowns surrounding the new virus likely dictate that the process will probably extend into 2021.

A Coronavirus Vaccine Project Takes a Page From Gene Therapy

By Denise Grady

04 May 2020
|
New York Times

Researchers at two Harvard-affiliated hospitals are adapting a proven form of gene therapy to develop a coronavirus vaccine, which they expect to test in people later this year.

What is the right strategy to limit the spread of COVID-19?

By Leah Burrows

01 May 2020
|
Harvard John A. Paulson School and Engineering and Applied Sciences

Researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School and Engineering and Applied Sciences, in collaboration with Harvard Medical School and MIT, have developed a model to simulate the impact of different physical distancing strategies on the spread of SARS-CoV2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Dr. Sarah Fortune on the U.S. Response to the Coronavirus Pandemic

01 May 2020
|
C-SPAN | Washington Journal

Dr. Sarah Fortune, chair of the Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, talked about the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic to C-SPAN.

Harvard Medical School Students Staff Coronavirus Telephone Triage

by Anaridis Rodriguez

30 Apr 2020
|
CBS Boston

Beyond the front line, 12 hours a day, seven days a week, nearly 200 Harvard medical students are taking on a new role and answering the call for help, staffing a telephone triage from home. With critical rotations on hold and college campuses closed, the students’ job is to follow up with patients who test positive for the coronavirus. They’ve been at it since March and so far have made thousands of calls.

Swabs designed by Harvard Wyss Institute enter human trials for COVID-19

28 Apr 2020
|
Yahoo! News

Researchers at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University, in collaboration with healthcare, research, and industrial partners, have designed a new, fully injection-molded nasopharyngeal swab that can be manufactured quickly and inexpensively at high volume to help address the nationwide and international shortage of swabs for COVID-19 testing and research.

Studying COVID-19 in real time

by Juan Siliezar

28 Apr 2020
|
Harvard Gazette

Across a range of disciplines, from medicine to history, biology to business, the crisis has become a living part of the curriculum at Harvard.

Can We Track COVID-19 and Protect Privacy at the Same Time?

by Sue Halpern

27 Apr 2020
|
The New Yorker

Researchers led by Harvard's Caroline Buckee are using cell phone data to study people’s mobility patterns, in order to help control COVID-19—without violating people’s privacy.

Covid-19 Dispatch: Edward Glaeser

22 Apr 2020
|
Managing The Future of Work

Harvard economist Edward Glaeser is an expert on how cities function as economic engines and centers of innovation. He notes that the advantages of density in spurring creativity and productivity are mirrored by the vulnerability it creates to threats like disease. Cities and their most vulnerable residents have borne the brunt of pandemics since antiquity. As Covid-19 tests the resources and resilience of urban centers and confronts leaders with difficult choices, Glaeser explains the policy options for protecting people and stabilizing the economy.

Reopening after coronavirus is a 'much bigger' job than most Americans realize, Harvard study finds

by David Knowles

22 Apr 2020
|
Yahoo! News

Despite President Trump’s assurances that the U.S. is “winning” its war against the coronavirus, and moves by some governors to end stay-at-home measures, a new Harvard University study paints a stark picture of what will be required for the country to emerge from the pandemic.

A Conversation with Larry Summers, Former U.S. Treasury Secretary A Conversation with Larry Summers, Former U.S. Treasury Secretary

20 Apr 2020
|
Perspectives on the COVID-19 Pandemic

Professor Robin Greenwood and former Harvard president, Lawrence H. Summers, discuss the impacts of Covid-19 and what lies ahead for the US and global economy.

Easing the Economic Aftermath of a Global Pandemic

By Aysha Bagchi

20 Apr 2020
|
Harvard Law Today

HLS professors call for changes, including a more transparent COVID-19 bailout oversight plan.

Coronavirus ‘is the Big One… I hope never to see bigger’: Harvard epidemiologist

by USA TODAY Editorial Board

09 Apr 2020
|
USA TODAY

USA TODAY’s Editorial Board spoke with Dr. Marc Lipsitch, a professor of epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and director of Harvard’s Center of Communicable Disease Dynamics.

The Collective Effort

03 Apr 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

Harvard students, alumni, faculty, and staff from the nationwide ‘To Serve Better’ project reflect on how coronavirus is affecting their communities.

Harvard to Help Track the Virus

by Colleen Walsh

03 Apr 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

Hundreds of students from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health will assist with phone calls and emails to identify anyone who may have had contact with the coronavirus.

Grim as It Is Now, Larry Summers Guesses Recovery Could Be Faster Than Anticipated

by William D. Cohan

02 Apr 2020
|
Vanity Fair

There are huge dangers of fraud and unfairness in the stimulus—but, the former Harvard president says, “It may be the end of the Reagan–Thatcher libertarian wave.”

Zooming through the Grad Schools

by Liz Mineo

02 Apr 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

Though they vary in their missions, Harvard faculty members report few serious problems and some pleasant surprises in the move to online learning at Harvard.

A Million N95 Masks Are Coming From China—on Board the New England Patriots’ Plane

by Victoria McGrane & John R. Ellement

02 Apr 2020
|
The Boston Globe

The Massachusetts governor struck a deal for supplies but needed a way to transport them. The result was a tense saga and a shipment on the NFL team’s 767 with the help of Jonathan (MBA 1990) and Robert Kraft (MBA 1965).

Organized to Fight the Pandemic

by Ekaterina Pesheva & Kevin Jiang

01 Apr 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

To stem the coronavirus crisis, Harvard Medical School scientists forge ahead on six key fronts.

Leadership on the Front Line: Mayors Get Crisis Response Lessons from Harvard Experts

by Nora Delaney

01 Apr 2020
|
Harvard Kennedy School

The Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative and Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Coronavirus Local Response Initiative helps hundreds of city leaders tackle the pandemic.

University Community Rallies to Deal with COVID-19 Crisis

01 Apr 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

Administrators, professors detail many and varied ways Harvard is trying to help, including offering use of hotel by Cambridge first-responders, health care workers.

COVID-19 Changed How the World Does Science, Together

by Matt Apuzzo & David D. Kirkpatrick

01 Apr 2020
|
The New York Times

Internationally collaborative work on the coronavirus by a team of Harvard doctors is highlighted in the New York Times.

Harvard Postdoc Launches National COVID-19 Research Volunteer Database

by Ethan Lee

01 Apr 2020
|
The Harvard Crimson

Harvard postdoctoral fellow Michael F. Wells is developing a database of volunteer researchers across the country to help perform COVID-19 lab work, using a Google Form to collect information.

From the Lab to COVID Front Lines

by Alvin Powell

31 Mar 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

Technology developed at Harvard provides early boost to Mass. COVID testing.

These Places Could Run Out of Hospital Beds as Coronavirus Spreads

by Margot Sanger-Katz, Sarah Kliff & Alicia Parlapiano

30 Mar 2020
|
The New York Times

A new Harvard analysis in the New York Times shows that many parts of the United States will have far too few hospital beds if the new coronavirus continues to spread widely and if nothing is done to expand capacity.

Facing a Pandemic, Broad Does a Quick Pivot

by Leah Eisenstadt

30 Mar 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

How the institute converted a clinical processing lab into a large-scale COVID-19 testing facility in a matter of days.

How to Get America Working Again

by Robert S. Kaplan & Mickey D. Levy

30 Mar 2020
|
The Wall Street Journal

Any sustainable strategy against the coronavirus has to balance public health and economics, HBS professor emeritus Robert S. Kaplan and Mickey D. Levy tell the Wall Street Journal.

An Option to Serve in COVID-19 Fight

by M.R.F. Buckley

30 Mar 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

Graduating Harvard med students given early degree chance to help in hospitals.

Crowdsourcing COVID-19

by Nancy Fliesler

27 Mar 2020
|
Harvard Medical School

New website COVID Near You, developed by researchers at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital, tracks user-reported symptoms in real time.

On-Again, Off-Again Looks to Be Best Social-Distancing Option

by Alvin Powell

27 Mar 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

Harvard School of Public Health coronavirus analysis finds strategy would prevent overwhelming hospitals while building immunity.

Harvard to Guarantee Workers’ Pay, Benefits Amid Coronavirus Disruptions

by Nate Herpich

27 Mar 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

Amid the upheavals to campus life brought by the coronavirus pandemic, Harvard announced today it would guarantee pay and benefits through May 28 to its employees and contract workers who have experienced job disruptions since the University announced the move to virtual classes.

Patent Protection Should Take a Backseat in a Crisis

by Scott Duke Kominers

26 Mar 2020
|
Bloomberg Opinion

Government could buy the rights to key medical products, letting lots of companies produce them to end shortages says HBS professor Scott Duke Kominers.

Don’t Panic about Shopping, Getting Delivery or Accepting Packages

by Joseph G. Allen

26 Mar 2020
|
The Washington Post

Harvard School of Public Health's Joseph G. Allen tell the Washington Post why the risk of getting sick from UPS packages, food delivery, and grocery stores is low.

HMS Experts to Advise Baker

by Mary Markos

25 Mar 2020
|
Boston Herald

HMS medical, infectious disease experts named to state advisory board.

Learning from Recovery

by Stephanie Dutchen

25 Mar 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

Researchers HMS and at Brigham and Women’s Hospital are adapting an antibody-detection tool to study the aftermath of infections by the novel coronavirus.

Managing Through Crisis: CIO Ron Chandler on HBS IT Readiness

25 Mar 2020
|
HBS Newsroom

HBS CIO Ron Chandler describes how the HBS IT department had to equipped and prepared faculty, students, and staff to go from a traditional in-person work and learning environment to all-digital—in 10 days.

Lessons from Italy’s Response to Coronavirus

by Eric J. McNulty & Leonard Marcus

25 Mar 2020
|
Harvard Business Review

US and European policymakers at all levels can learn from Italy’s mistakes.

Will Inequality Worsen the Toll of the Pandemic in the US?

by Alvin Powell

24 Mar 2020
|
The Harvard Gazette

The Harvard School of Public Health's Mary Bassett warns that responses must include steps to ease the health and economic impacts on the poor.

Tech Lenders Push for a Piece of the Coronavirus, Small-Business Bailout

by Kate Rooney

23 Mar 2020
|
CNBC

Karen Mills, a senior fellow at HBS, comments to CNBC on fintech companies' argument that they could get funds into the hands of small businesses faster than commercial banks.

The Crisis Could Last 18 Months. Be Prepared.

by Juliette Kayyem

21 Mar 2020
|
The Atlantic

The shutdowns happened remarkably quickly, but the process of resuming our lives will be far more muddled, Juliette Kayyem of the Harvard Kennedy School tells The Atlantic.

How Social Distancing Could Ultimately Teach Us How to Be Less Lonely

by Arthur C. Brooks

20 Mar 2020
|
The Washington Post

HKS professor and HBS senior fellow Arthur Brooks lays out tips in the Washington Post on how to successfully endure the necessary evil of social distancing.

How Grocery Stores Restock Shelves in the Age of Coronavirus

by Danielle Wiener-Bronner

20 Mar 2020
|
CNN

HBS professor Willy Shih, talks to CNN about the phenomenon called the "bullwhip effect."

This Is How We Can Beat the Coronavirus

by Aaron E. Carroll & Ashish Jha

19 Mar 2020
|
The Atlantic

Mitigation can buy us time, but only suppression can get us to where we need to be, Harvard Global Health professor Ashish Jha tells The Atlantic.

Near Real-Time Studies Look for Behavioral Measures Vital to Stopping Coronavirus

by Diana Kwon

19 Mar 2020
|
Scientific American

HBS professor Jon Jachimowicz talks about the global team trying to identify the most effective means of encouraging individuals to act in ways that will help fight the coronavirus in Scientific American.

Designing a Coronavirus Vaccine

by Alice McCarthy

11 Mar 2020
|
Harvard Medical School

In response to this public health crisis, researchers in the Precision Vaccines Program (PVP) at Boston Children's Hospital are on the frontlines of developing a vaccine specially targeted toward older populations.

Vaccines can get us to herd immunity, despite the variants

by Alvin Powell

Harvard Gazette

A Harvard immunologist said current vaccines appear to be effective enough to end the pandemic, despite growing concerns that more infectious COVID-19 variants would severely blunt the effectiveness of the preventative treatments and set the nation back in its fight against the disease.