In The News: School of Public Health

Five years after becoming Nevada’s first diagnosed COVID-19 patient, Ronald Pipkins reflects on the lasting division the pandemic carved into America’s social fabric — a fracture that still echoes today as public trust in vaccines, science and government intervention remains perilously low.

With 146 confirmed cases of measles in the current Texas outbreak, and the first U.S. death from the disease in a decade, you may be wondering whether you actually did get all your childhood vaccinations. These include the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine, designed to protect you from the notoriously contagious measles.
With 146 confirmed cases of measles in the current Texas outbreak, and the first U.S. death from the disease in a decade, you may be wondering whether you actually did get all your childhood vaccinations. These include the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine, designed to protect you from the notoriously contagious measles.
The funding was supposed to last for at least several more months, said Jace Flatt, an associate professor of health and behavioral sciences at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. But on Friday, he and several other scientists studying LGBTQ+ health received a letter from the National Institutes of Health informing them that some existing, ongoing grants from the federal government were terminated, effective immediately.
Vaccines are one of, if not the, most important developments in public health history, and despite nearly a century of data, some people still doubt their safety and efficacy. Infectious disease experts, however, do not—and if you're 50 years old or older, you're going to want to get certain specific jabs to keep yourself safe from some awful (and awfully contagious) illnesses.
At the end of February 2025, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 164 cases of measles in 9 jurisdictions in Alaska, California, Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York City, Rhode Island, and Texas. An outbreak of measles is considered when there are 3 or more related cases, and 3 outbreaks have been reported in 2025 with most cases in Texas. A large majority of these cases were unvaccinated individuals and 20% were hospitalized with one confirmed death. This is a cause of alarm for the public as measles was declared to have been eliminated in 2000 in the United States. Hence, we need to be cognizant of precautions and preventive measures.

Just like the gadgets we use every day are designed with a limited lifespan in mind, the immune system also experiences a type of "planned obsolescence" as we age.

Doctors are warning about the potential health risks tied to eating sushi, coming on the heels of a parasitic brain infection diagnosed in a tourist in Hawaii. If not flash-frozen properly, raw fish can be a source of bacteria and parasites that cause food poisoning-like effects – severe nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.
Many travelers live in fear of bed bugs. The small pests are most commonly found in hotel rooms. However, a couple of years ago, visitors to Paris learned that nearly an entire city can become infested. In Paris, bed bugs were stopped everywhere, from movie theatres to the metro.

Federal grant freezes are impacting many institutions and programs including some right here in the Las Vegas valley.

Federal grant freezes are impacting many institutions and programs including some right here in the Las Vegas valley.

The Raiders have demonstrated a longstanding commitment to the growth of flag football through their Silver & Black Youth Football Program, a partnership with the UNLV School of Public Health, and investment in skills clinics that have benefited thousands of student-athletes.