John Baptist Mukasa is one of the 4 million-plus people around the globe who have died because of this pandemic. His death is a reminder of the devastating toll of COVID-19.

Critics say volunteering abroad does not always benefit local communities. The coronavirus travel bans have led to a different approach for volunteers who want to donate their services.

The pandemic has hurt even routine health services such as vaccines and checkups, as well as immunization outreach, for children around the world, the World Health Organization and UNICEF report.

We asked NPR readers to share photos of the objects they can't live without during the pandemic. Their responses are funny, surprising — and some might make you tear up.

The updated guidance promotes vaccination for those old enough and says vaccinated children may not need masks. What about kids too young for vaccines? And as summer begins, what about vacation risks?

Thursday on Political Rewind: Overall, the pandemic’s grip on the state has loosened. New cases and hospitalizations have fallen to new lows, and deaths from the virus have become far more rare. As a result, Gov. Brian Kemp lifted the restrictions he had imposed more than a year ago. But Georgia remains in the lower tier of states for putting shots in arms, especially in rural areas.

The wealthy merchant city of Dubrovnik, in present-day Croatia, had a problem. The Black Death was killing much of Europe, but Dubrovnik didn't want to lock down and lose business.

Pandemic travel regulations are frustrating parents whose children are visiting family in other countries and those who can't afford the cost of a ticket and a two-week hotel quarantine upon return.

The beleaguered nation is seeing a surge. The lack of testing means it's difficult to know the extent. One doctor says his Facebook feed is 30% to 40% of notices about those who died of the virus.

In most Georgia counties, COVID-19 vaccination rates have stalled. And with infections from the so-called Delta variant rapidly rising across the United States, public health experts worry the state could again see surges in serious virus cases. What’s behind the low vaccination numbers?  Host Steve Fennessy and GPB Macon Reporter and Editor Grant Blankenship try to answer that question on the latest episode of the Georgia Today podcast. 

 

An anthropologist put out a call: Take a photo of 15 essential items that help you cope.. She heard from 1,000-plus people in 50 countries. There's a lot of laptops — as well as wonderful surprises.

The challenge of refrigerating COVID-19 vaccines is acute in sub-Saharan Africa, where only 28% of health care facilities have reliable power. One solution? A new kind of freezer powered by the sun.

The Serum Institute began mass-producing COVID vaccines even before approval. They've made millions of doses. But so far only about 4% of people in India are fully vaccinated. What went wrong?

Vaccines may not be as effective for those who are immuno-compromised. Protecting them needs to be made a top priority, says researchers — to keep them safe and to slow the emergence of variants.

Here's what we know about the effectiveness of vaccines for variants of concerns, notably the delta variant, first identified in India and now responsible for more than 20% of new U.S. cases.