Robert F Kennedy Jr walks on stage during the Republican National Committee midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, on 10 September. Robert F Kennedy Jr walks on stage during the Republican National Committee midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, on 10 September. Health secretary calls for medical and lifestyle details to be sent to doctors and AI to address'chronic disease epidemic' Tue 29 Sep 2026 10.41 EDTLast modified on Tue 29 Sep 2026 11.13 EDT Robert F Kennedy Jr laid out an expansive vision for collecting, sharing and analyzing US health information at a Maha event hosted by a close ally and outspoken anti-vaccine activist. Medical and lifestyle data, from doctor's visits to exercise, should be connected and shared with the government and independent researchers, where it can be searched by AI - including potential links between vaccines and health outcomes including autism and mortality, suggested Kennedy, the secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and a longtime vaccine skeptic. "We need to use America's health data to determine whether the food we eat, the chemicals we encounter, the vaccines that we're administering, the other environmental and lifestyle exposures are contributing in one way or another to the chronic disease epidemic," Kennedy said at an event with the Maha Institute on Monday, with about two dozen people tuning into the live stream.

For the past few months, nurse Dale Weiser has been making unexpected home visits. As the state battles the deadliest measles outbreak in recent history, the clinical supervisor drives 30 miles (48.3km), sometimes daily, to a rural corner of Pennsylvania where many Amish people live. Walking into strangers' homes, Weiser says she tries her best to be respectful and non-intrusive as she vaccinates dozens of family members against the measles, sometimes around the kitchen table. A lot of people that I encounter, they don't have health insurance. They don't have a lot of interaction with the health system, and they just haven't seen the need to get these vaccines, said Weiser, who works for the Chester County Health Department.

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is on track to be the largest ever. In fact, the ongoing outbreak in Africa is among the most concerning epidemics the organization trying to tame it has ever seen. "Other than Covid, which affected the whole world, this is the thing that has frightened me the most," says Nicole Lurie, who has worked for Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations since 2017 and now serves as executive director for preparedness and response and the US director. More than 7,000 people have contracted the Bundibugyo Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo since May, around half of whom have died, according to government data compiled by the World Health Organization. "This is the most rapidly growing Ebola outbreak that we've seen. It's probably on pace to be the worst the world has ever seen," Lurie tells WIRED, "and it's quite terrifying."

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Max Brooks reflects on 20 years of'World War Z' More information Adding us as a Preferred Source in Google by using this link indicates that you would like to see more of our content in Google News results. Max Brooks released'World War Z' on September 12, 2006. Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. By signing up, you confirm you are 16+, will receive newsletters and promotional content and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy . A new virus emerges in rural China. Although those who contract it initially display moderate, flu-like symptoms, their health quickly declines. The mortality rate is unclear, but one aspect is immediately obvious--it's very contagious.

With the risk of infection rising, parents and young adults are facing agonizing choices about being out in public as school starts back up. As students head back to school, parents have all the usual worries about their kids, like remembering to pack lunch and making it to the bus stop on time. But parents of immunocompromised kids have a new one: How to deal with the resurgence of measles . Cases of the highly transmissible disease have reached a 35-year high in the US, with nearly 3,000 confirmed infections in 2026 so far. The first two measles-related deaths of the year were recorded in Pennsylvania, right as the school year is getting going. With vaccination rates dropping across the country, parents of kids who aren't able to get vaccinated or don't mount a strong enough immune response due to weakened immune systems are weighing whether it's safe enough to go to school.

Influential right-wing conspiracy theorists and MAGA-aligned pundits are falsely claiming that the Covid vaccine killed Dolly Parton, the vaccination advocate and philanthropist. Conspiracy theories surrounding singer and philanthropist Dolly Parton's recent death have flooded the internet, referencing everything from satanic rituals to cloning . But one conspiracy theory has dominated all the others: the claim that Parton's death was caused by "turbo cancer" brought on by the Covid vaccine. There is no evidence to support the claim that Parton's death had anything to do with the vaccine. Parton, 80, died after "a short battle with cancer," her family said in a statement.

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The fatalities come amidst declining vaccination rates and calls from President Donald Trump to split up the MMR vaccine. Amid a 35-year high in US measles cases, two people in Pennsylvania have died after contracting the virus, the state's health department confirmed on Tuesday. They are the first measles-related deaths in the country this year. Both individuals were unvaccinated residents of Lancaster County in south-central Pennsylvania, which has a large Amish population. The health department said in a statement that it would not be releasing additional information about the individuals to protect their privacy.

Moderna and Merck's personalized mRNA cancer vaccine reduced melanoma recurrence and metastasis in a Phase 3 trial. The companies plan to seek FDA approval.