Rob Stein

On Monday, health care workers began administering the first shots of a COVID-19 vaccine. NPR discusses the latest news and explores the challenges the U.S. could face in vaccinating people.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its recommendations. Now it says people without coronavirus symptoms need to quarantine for 10 days, or seven — if they then test negative.

Social distancing fell dramatically between spring and fall and the gap between Democrats and Republicans widened. But both ends of the political spectrum agree on some measures to fight COVID-19.

A survey shows social distancing dropped between April and late fall, especially in states currently hit hardest by COVID-19. The partisan chasm in support of measures to stop the virus widened.

Federal health officials could reduce the quarantine from the currently recommended 14 days to as few as seven for people who test negative for the virus.

Demand for COVID-19 testing has gone up as the virus surges across the nation. Luckily, testing has gotten better and people who want tests now have several options.

Coronavirus case numbers are exploding across the country. The U.S. death toll from COVID-19 reached 250,000 on Wednesday, with a caseload of over 11.3 million.

The United States has surpassed 250,000 deaths from COVID-19 on Wednesday.

The Food and Drug Administration has cleared the first at-home coronavirus test for emergency use during the pandemic. But it's expensive and requires a prescription.

More than half of labs are reporting they're running short on test kits, pipettes and crucial chemicals.

NPR correspondents discuss the latest on coronavirus cases around the U.S. and take a look at what the incoming Biden administration can and can't do about the surge during the transition.

The grim milestone passes as the virus that causes COVID-19 spreads out of control from coast to coast.

The U.S. has reached a new, worrisome high: it's surpassed a daily count of nearly 120 thousand new confirmed coronavirus cases, a 20 percent jump in just one week.

As the U.S. awaits election results, the pandemic continues to ravage the country. More than 120,000 new cases were reported in a single day for the first time this week. NPR discusses the latest.

An NPR analysis shows that the majority of counties with the highest COVID-19 death rates showed stronger support for Trump in 2020 than they did four years ago.

Coronavirus cases are surging in many countries, including the United States and in Europe, and governments are imposing new lockdowns. NPR takes a look at the state of the pandemic around the world.

Coronavirus cases are surging to record levels around the U.S.; hospitalizations and deaths also are rising, raising concerns about how the situation will develop in the winter.

A general increase in mask-wearing has been encouraging, U.S. public health experts say. But too few young people, especially, are social distancing and taking other steps to slow coronavirus' spread.

Now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines a "close contact" as spending a total of 15 minutes within 6 feet of an infected person over a 24-hour period.

Coronavirus test results are coming back faster but still taking too long to help fight the pandemic effectively, a national survey shows.