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Gun deaths drive historic spike in child mortality rates
After decades of steady improvement, the death rate of America’s children and teens shot up between 2019 and 2021 — and COVID-19 wasn’t the reason. Gun-related deaths represented the largest share of the increase — by far. According to an analysis of the most recent death certificate data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, […]
As fentanyl scourge spreads, authorities worry about a new drug, animal ‘tranq’
As a dangerous new additive found in fentanyl and other street drugs surges from coast to coast, health officials in nearly every state are scrambling to track it. Xylazine, a large-animal tranquilizer not approved for human use, started showing up routinely in the drug supply in 2019, but didn’t take off until the coronavirus pandemic […]
Child vaccination rates dip after COVID and continue downward spiral
Child vaccination rates dipped into dangerous territory during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, when schools were shuttered, and most doctors were only seeing emergency patients. But instead of recovering after schools reopened in 2021, those historically low rates worsened, according to new data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Experts […]
Suspected suicide attempts by youth rose sharply during the pandemic
Suspected suicide attempts by young people ages 6-19 reported to U.S. poison centers increased 27% between 2015 and 2020, according to a new study from the University of Virginia. The findings are based on cases reported to the National Poison Data System as suspected suicides, which includes attempted suicides and deaths. The total number of suspected child […]