The Food and Drug Administration wants to streamline the COVID-19 vaccination process. Officials meeting this week will consider simplifying the process with annually updated shots to cover COVID-19 and anticipated variants.

Researchers, including Northeastern’s Mauricio Santillana, say machine learning applied to digital data streams will serve as a real-time early warning system for sharp increases in COVID-19 cases at the county level.

XXB.1.5, the new Omicron subvariant, now accounts for nearly all COVID-19 cases in New England and New York and is spreading across the country. Northeastern experts expect the U.S. will ride the wave without being swamped by hospitalizations and deaths.

In these tricky economic times, asking for a raise may seem even more daunting than it would have even a year ago. How is inflation influencing these conversations between employer and employee? Ravit Heskiau-Ludwig, associate teaching professor of management and organizational development at the D’Amore-McKim School of Business, offers some insight.

Professor Alessandro Vespignani, director of Northeastern’s Network Science Institute, says the surge of Omicron-type infections threatens to overload China’s hospitals and aggravate supply chain problems.

With acetaminophen and ibuprofen hard to find, some parents are asking if they can cut down adult medications to give their children. Brandon Dionne, associate clinical professor in Northeastern’s School of Pharmacy, urges caution.

Among the key findings of a Northeastern-led survey, researchers also found that self-diagnosing via at-home, or rapid, testing has far eclipsed medical testing for the virus, meaning official reporting is missing “a significant number of positive cases” at this late stage of the pandemic.

A new study focuses on the crucial question of why people are more vulnerable to catching colds during the months of winter. The findings could be tested against a variety of pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, says Northeastern professor Mansoor Amiji.

A Northeastern University researcher found that although deaths in Democratic areas of the U.S. were higher at the very beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, by the winter of 2020, people in Republican-leaning regions were dying in much higher numbers.

Pfizer and Moderna are currently developing and testing various “combined” vaccines to guard against diseases such as COVID-19, the flu and RSV using only one injection. A Northeastern expert discusses the potential benefits of such combination drugs.

Northeastern experts say promising results from the bivalent booster combined with greater immunity in the general population means the coronavirus may pack less of a seasonal wallop in the coming months.

Northeastern experts predict this year’s flu shot will be a good match for circulating strains and explain why getting the vaccine before Thanksgiving is the best idea.

The results of a survey series published by a team of researchers, including Northeastern’s Mauricio Santillana, found that long COVID was more prevalent in women and older adults and that vaccines still mitigated the risk of long-term effects.

Northeastern experts explain what is behind the triple whammy—masking and social isolation allowed immunities to common viruses to fade—why it’s hitting now and why next year might not be as bad.

Newly approved “bivalent” vaccine boosters by Moderna and Pfizer target Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 as well as original COVID-19. Experts say people who have recently been vaccinated against COVID or infected should wait to get the shot.

Research from a team co-led by Qi Ryan Wang, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Northeastern, could lead to better emergency responses, especially in low-income communities.

David Lazer, university distinguished professor of political science and computer science, says the new research points to “systemic failures” in providing patients with Paxlovid and Molnupiravir.

The university’s requirement for students, faculty and staff to be fully vaccinated and boosted will remain in place, and campus life will continue with no restrictions.

Several Northeastern University professors call for a more robust response to the latest virus spreading in the U.S. and Europe and beyond.

With 10% of Paxlovid patients rebounding, should length of antiviral course be extended? Northeastern University professors weigh in.

Jared Auclair’s lab is gearing up to help protect the U.S. from emerging pathogens with a new focus on biosurveillance. The likely first step? Testing samples collected at airports and other places of entry for monkeypox.

The nymphal deer ticks that are out now are less likely to carry the pathogens that cause Lyme disease than the adult ticks, but they are so hard to spot—and therefore remove—they are responsible for most cases of human infection. Prevention is key.

“We identified every data source that we could get our hands on—from administrative data to social media posts,” says Northeastern professor Dan O’Brien, who leads the Boston Area Research Initiative that oversees the data project.

A data harmonization undertaken by Northeastern researchers drew from a variety of information sources to construct a picture of what long COVID looks like in the U.S.

Researchers at the Covid States Project sought to tease out where parents of both vaccinated and unvaccinated children get their information about the COVID-19 vaccine and matters affecting their children’s health. Northeastern experts explain their findings in a new survey.

The virus has unexpectedly spread to Europe, Australia, and North America, with the first U.S. patient undergoing treatment in Boston. “But it’s not something to panic about at this point,” says Brandon Dionne, an associate clinical professor in Northeastern’s department of pharmacy and health systems sciences.

People leave a trail of breadcrumbs when they navigate the digital world, offering clues about what is happening in their lives—including their health. Northeastern’s Mauricio Santillana is using machine learning algorithms to turn those clues into an early warning system for disease outbreaks.

The short answer is yes, says Jared Auclair, director of the Biopharmaceutical Analysis Training Lab at Northeastern. Here’s a look at why different tests have different expiration windows, and the best way to store them at home.

While Dr. Anthony Fauci’s comments last week signal hope that the U.S. and other nations could finally be moving into a post-pandemic world, officials should proceed with caution, Northeastern experts say.

A study of more than 27 million people across the U.S. has found a link between COVID-19 infections and Type 1 diabetes. Northeastern’s Trenton Honda says, “Our interest is really looking at the question, ‘Are there going to be hidden costs, even among those who are not at high risk from COVID itself, because of COVID, later on?’”

According to analysis by researchers at Northeastern and partner institutions, the CDC counts, when compared with census data, indicate that in 26 states, more than 100% of people above age 65 have gotten at least one shot. What went wrong? David Lazer, university distinguished professor, explains.

The ruling sparked criticism from legal experts, some of whom contend that U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle misunderstood the law and, therefore, erred in her reasoning. Wendy Parmet, director of Northeastern’s Center for Health Policy and Law, breaks down the decision and its implications.

The Cambridge-based biotech pioneer has plans to open a $500 million facility in Kenya and deliver 500 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine yearly in Africa, Moderna’s Patrick Bergstedt said at a Northeastern forum Wednesday run by the university’s Africa Global Initiative.