Greg Folkers

Exclusive | FDA’s Controversial Vaccines Chief Will Leave the Agency Dr. Vinay Prasad will depart in April, after a year leading the division that approves vaccines and biotech drugs.

WSJ: FDA’s Controversial Vaccines Chief Will Leave the Agency

by Liz Essley Whyte @lizessleywhyte.bsky.social @wsj.com

Vinay Prasad to depart next month
on.wsj.com/4rct7zT

Dynamics of natural selection preceding human viral epidemics and pandemics Using a phylogenetic framework to characterize natural selection, we investigate the hypothesis that zoonotic viruses require adaptation prior to zoon…

There's a common misconception that zoonotic viruses require significant adaptation to jump from animals to cause human epidemics.

Not so 👇.

Further, we see clear signs of 1977 flu experiencing cell passage, prior to epidemic.

SARS-CoV-2? Business as usual.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Bloomberg Government: RFK Jr. Pressured to Fill Vacancies Key to NIH Research Funds

by Victoria Knight
bit.ly/40O8fUE
bit.ly/4sugD7J

The Trump Administration Is Trying to Have Its Vaccine Policy Both Ways Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his subordinates want Americans to have more conversations with their physicians. But they also can’t seem to stop disparaging the medical establishment.

The Atlantic: The Trump Administration Is Trying to Have Its Vaccine Policy Both Ways

By Benjamin Mazer @theatlantic.com @mazer.us

bit.ly/3MQ43R7

STAT: What’s so religious about opposing vaccines?

By Cory Anderson @statnews.com @coryanderson.bsky.social

bit.ly/4lnoyRR

This Doctor-Senator Who Backed RFK Jr. Now Faces a Fight for His Job — And His Legacy - KFF Health News A year after Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, warily cast the vote ensuring Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s ascension to Health and Human Services secretary, his life’s work — in medicine and in pol...

KFF Health News: This Doctor-Senator Who Backed RFK Jr. Now Faces a Fight for His Job — And His Legacy

by Amanda Seitz @kffhealthnews.org
Senator Bill Cassidy

bit.ly/4csx4ww

Americans trust Fauci more than RFK Jr. The DOJ's fight against gender-affirming care, the impact of Trump's 'Don't take Tylenol,' and more health news

bit.ly/4ssh3va

@statnews.com @rosebroderick.bsky.social

Everything you ever wanted to know about #birdflu but were afraid to ask

CIDRAP: The State of US Vaccine Policy — Mar 5, 2026 by Unbiased Science

Jess Steier, DrPH, Izzy Brandstetter Figueroa, MPH

bit.ly/3ORWlGL
@cidrap.bsky.social @unbiasedscipod.bsky.social

The scale never fails

Can a strange new treatment finally relieve chronic sinus infections? Constant loss of smell, facial pain and a blocked nose are a reality for the 10 per cent of people living with chronic rhinosinusitis, a disease long-neglected by research. Targeting the nasal microbi...

I was today years old when I found out you can get a "snort transplant" to treat chronic nasal congestion.
Transplant of nasal microbiota may improve symptoms of chronic rhino-sinusitis.
Because I know this, you must now know this too 😊.
www.newscientist.com/article/2494...

RFK Jr. vowed to restore public trust in health. It's not working, a new survey suggests. Less than 40% of surveyed adults view Health Secretary Kennedy as trustworthy, compared with 86% who have confidence in their own doctors.

NBC: RFK Jr. vowed to restore public trust in health. It's not working, a new survey suggests

By Erika Edwards @erikaedwards.bsky.social @nbcnews.com

nbcnews.to/4sqPDpx

13 HIV/AIDS activists arrested on Capitol Hill Protesters demanded full PEPFAR funding

Wash Blade: 13 HIV/AIDS activists arrested on Capitol Hill /Protesters demanded full PEPFAR funding

by Michael K. Lavers

bit.ly/4rk2Pf5

OFID: Serologic Evidence of Hemorrhagic Fever Virus Spillover in Rural Liberia

Adam M Schafer et al @ofidjournal.bsky.social

bit.ly/4leZhJA

South Carolina measles outbreak: How much is it costing taxpayers to bring it under control? State health officials have tallied the cost of combatting the outbreak so far. The bills are still coming in.

Healthbeat: South Carolina has spent $1.6 million to combat its huge measles outbreak – and it’s not over yet

by Alison Young @alisonannyoung.bsky.social @healthbeat.org

bit.ly/46Jj8dR

NIH reneges on recognizing union for early career researchers The biomedical research agency says trainees in its labs are not “employees”

ScienceInsider: NIH reneges on recognizing union for early career researchers

By Katie Langin @klangin.bsky.social @science.org

I thought Jay Bhattacharya was committed to helping young investigators 🤔

bit.ly/4rMsD4o

Ross Kaminksy show

3-5-26 *INTERVIEW* Dr Jay Bhattacharya Acting Director of the CDC and the NIH pt 1

▶️ bit.ly/4svmR7q

Fiddling/podcasting while Rome burns

Guardian: Trump administration is failing to address spread of measles, experts say

by Hannah Harris Green

@theguardian.com
cc: Jay Bhattacharya CDC NIH

bit.ly/4rwxCpb

Annenberg: Stark Divide: Americans More Confident in Career Scientists at U.S. Health Agencies Than Leaders

@appc.upenn.edu
CDC HHS FDA NIH

bit.ly/4bbM0gd

A new poll shows who Americans trust over the CDC The new findings come after the Trump administration in January took the unprecedented step of overhauling the CDC’s routine childhood immunization schedule.

NEW: A new poll shows who Americans trust over the CDC. Survey reveals substantial gap between the major professional health associations and CDC, FDA and NIH. My story.
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/...

Good scientists are leaving NIH.

Counter to the quote from HHS, NIH is struggling to recruit qualified scientists to replace them.

My own role sits empty. NIH cannot replace me since I am still employed but prevented from working.

This admin is gutting science.
www.cnn.com/2026/03/05/h...

It is so damning of US news media that so many outlets refuse to just straight up say that Senator Tim Sheehy assaulted an activist.

He did not "help" Capitol police. They did not need his help. He wanted to assault the guy and did. He should resign.

I’m sure @nihfellowsunited.bsky.social will see Bhattacharya in court. UAW locals have a good track record of embarrassing him there so far.

NIH Says It Will No Longer Recognize the Research Fellows’ Union NIH leadership said the union “should never have been certified,” in an email to the union’s leadership.

A bit odd given the Director has claimed he is very concerned about the young investigators.

www.notus.org/health-scien...

Best evidence yet that GLP-1 drugs reduce the risk of substance abuse, from >600,000 US Veterans with T2 diabetes across alcohol, nicotine, opioid, cocaine, cannabis @zalaly.bsky.social
@bmj.com
www.bmj.com/content/392/...

Supporting the NIH fellows union. Which legally speaking DOES still exist. Regardless what the administration tries to claim.

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CIDRAP: Vaccine Integrity Project kicks off evidence review of Tdap vaccine in pregnancy

by Mary Van Beusekom
@cidrap.bsky.social
pertussis diphtheria tetanus

▶️ bit.ly/4bpqOEE

Soon, we will be asked to give political talks and try to figure out how much science we can slip in without getting arrested.

bioRxiv: Surveillance on California dairy farms reveals multiple possible sources of H5N1 transmission

A.J. Campbell et al

bit.ly/4l4ghSA

OFID: Re-evaluating the Potential Impact of PrEP in Achieving HIV Elimination in the United States: Insights from Modeling

Jason Baron et al

bit.ly/4csHlsK