Helen Chickering

The pandemic is showing no sign of letting up  in North Carolina. The state set another COVID  daily case  record with 29,069 new cases on Sunday (1/9). For perspective, BPR’s Helen Chickering checked  in with North Carolina Health News editor Rose Hoban.  (and check out the NC Health News look ahead for health in 2022  here)

  12/10 Exciting update!  Alisa Hove is advancing to the  Jeopardy! semifinals:   https://www.jeopardy.com/contestant-zone/2021/professors-tournament

Heads-up Jeopardy! fans:  A college professor from Western North Carolina is putting her skills to the test as a competitor on the brain bending quiz show. BPR's Helen Chickering reports. 

The 2018 murder conviction of a Haywood County man charged with selling narcotics linked to a deadly overdose has caught the attention of public health researchers. They’ve published a paper that raises questions about the harsh punishment. BPR’s Helen Chickering talked with the researchers over Zoom about the behind the scenes work that led to the findings. 

Several health departments  and vaccine providers across Western North Carolina are rolling out the Pfizer COVID-19 booster shot  to people 65 and older and others now eligible.  Buncombe, Henderson, and Haywood Jackson,  Madison, and McDowell counties are among those offering the booster shot.  Meantime,  there are lots of questions about just who is qualified to get the extra dose.

This week marks 12 years since the federal minimum wage was last raised. To mark the occasion, workers in Western North Carolina and across the country hit the streets, calling on low-wage employers to take action. BPR’s Helen Chickering reports.  

A local biologist who's been making waves for her research into jellyfish that reside in freshwater ecosystems, including some here in Western North Carolina is part of an international campaign to protect and better understand marine life in a vast stretch of salt water - most of us will never see.

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in our weekly segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering brings us this week’s answer.   

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in a new segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering brings us this week’s answer.  This week's COVID question comes from Charlene Reeves of Asheville.

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in a new segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering talks with a local expert about some of the concerns parents and caregivers may have about the COVID-19 vaccine and children. 

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in our weekly segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering brings us this week’s answer.   

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in a new segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering brings us this week’s answer.   

COVID-19 cases in North Carolina continue a “rolling simmer” with the 7-day average of new confirmed cases now hovering around 2,000.  At least 1,096 people are hospitalized, up from 1,064 from Friday. Meantime, state and local health officials are grappling with how to keep up  vaccine enthusiasm – just a few of the topics BPR’s Helen Chickering and NC Health News editor Rose Hoban tackle in their weekly coronavirus check-in.  

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in a new segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering brings us this week’s answer.   This week's question comes from Beth Baxley of Macon County. Her question came in just before Federal officials hit the pause button on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in a new segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering brings us this week’s answer.   

This week's question comes from Dr. Penny Brewster  of Franklin.

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in a new segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering brings us this week’s answer.   

North Carolina now is now under a new – less restrictive -  pandemic executive order, an updated COVID vaccine schedule. And somewhere in-between in all – Governor Roy Cooper revealed announced his budget plan with a renewed push for Medicaid expansion. It is a good time for our check-in with North Carolina Health News editor, Rose Hoban.

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in a new segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering brings us this week’s answer.   

This week's question comes from Emma Rodriguez of Henderson County. “After getting the COVID-19 vaccine, if I get  tested for COVID-19,  will the test come out positive?”

As COVID-19 shots go into arms across North Carolina, state health officials continue to focus on distributing vaccines quickly and equitably.  A recent CDC  report  puts North Carolina among the top ten states in the nation for equitable vaccine distribution.                                                                                              But when it comes to access to care for COVID-19 patients, North Carolina’s plan for   rationing care fell short, according to federal regulators.  NC Health News editor Rose Hoban has been following the story and shared details during her weekly check-in with BPR’s Helen Chickering.

BPR is answering listener queries about the Coronavirus in a new segment –Talk to Us: COVID Questions.  BPR’s Helen Chickering brings us this week’s answer.   This week's question comes from Bob Evans of Buncombe County.

This week North Carolina health officials announced  that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities will be given higher priority for receiving COVID-19 vaccines.   North Carolina Health News editor Rose Hoban has been following this story and shared details with BPR’s Helen Chickering  during their weekly check-in.