Epidemics and Pandemics - The Atlantic

Epidemics and Pandemics

A Lab-Leak Story You Haven’t Heard

October 15, 2026

Blurry photograph of Robert F Kennedy Jr.

What We Really Know About the Russian ‘Plague’ Case

Jacqueline Munis

October 6, 2026

A maintenance worker walks out of the headquarters of Rospotrebnadzor, Russia’s agency for consumer protection and public health

How to Destroy a Lesbian Bar

September 25, 2026

A gif of a rainbow neon sign flickering on and off. A broken beer bottle lies in pieces beneath it.

RFK Jr.’s Brazen Reassurance to Anti-Vaxxers

September 17, 2026

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s face

The AI Pandemic Isn’t On Its Way

Katherine J. Wu

September 11, 2026

a pixelated virus

More American Families Are Refusing Vaccines

Katherine J. Wu

August 25, 2026

A white-gloved hand vaccinates someone's arm.

Even College Students Have Stopped Hanging Out

August 17, 2026

Yellow-tinted photograph of a woman reading while sitting alone at a table with six empty chairs next to her.

Anthony Fauci’s Group Chat Is Making People Lose Their Minds

August 15, 2026

Fauci speaks on a phone

The Atlantic Daily

Trump’s Latest Vaccine Order Is Making Things More Confusing

August 13, 2026

Doctor Nola Jean Ernest talks with Shaquanta Alfrod as she holds her son Yuri, 1, at the doctor's office in Enterprise, Alabama, on September 12, 2025.

A Perfect Album for a Frustrating Decade

Spencer Kornhaber

August 13, 2026

The singer Phoebe Bridgers

Why MAGA Is So Obsessed With Fauci

August 8, 2026

A black-and-white photo of Anthony Fauci looking ahead with his finger resting on his chin.

The Most Basic Step of the Ebola Response Is Falling Short

August 7, 2026

A white suited healthcare worker in DRC

What ‘America First’ Means for Global Health

August 3, 2026

A worker in medical safety gear stands near striped barrier tape in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Anthony Fauci Is Not the Villain in This Story

July 31, 2026

Photograph of Dr. Anthony Fauci standing up in a government hearing with his right hand raised.

The Revelatory Cringe of Anthony Fauci

July 29, 2026

A pink diary against a blue background that reads "Property of Anthony Fauci"

The Lessons About Ebola the U.S. Wants to Forget

July 16, 2026

Volunteers put on equipment to assist with the Ebola epidemic in Bunia, the Democratic Republic of Congo

Lab-Leak Payback Has Begun

July 7, 2026

Wuhan Institute of Virology with some virus like splotches in green lined up beside it

Actually, the SAT Was Necessary After All

June 9, 2026

An illustration of the state of California in front of a backdrop of standardized-test-sheet bubbles

Flu Vaccines Should Not Be This Hard

Katherine J. Wu

June 7, 2026

The U.S. Is Winging This Ebola Outbreak

Katherine J. Wu

May 28, 2026

A health-care worker cares for a patient.

What the Trump Administration Needs to Do to Contain the Ebola Outbreak

Stephanie Psaki, Beth Cameron, and Jon Finer

May 22, 2026

A photo of workers in protective equipment at a hospital in Mongbwalu, DRC, during the Ebola outbreak response in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The U.S.’s Most Concerning Anti-Vaccine Policy

Katherine J. Wu

May 21, 2026

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and a syringe

This Ebola Outbreak Will Be Hard to Contain

Katherine J. Wu and Hana Kiros

May 19, 2026

A health worker stands at a checkpoint where she oversees hand washing and temperature screening for all visitors and patients entering Kyeshero Hospital in Goma

The Close, Prolonged Contact Myth

May 12, 2026

Photograph of news anchors and camera crews wearing hi-vis neon orange and yellow vests with a cruise ship sailing in the body of water behind them

‘This Is Not Going to Be the Next COVID’

May 8, 2026

a cruise ship against a blue background with a map of the globe

A Brutal First for the Cruise Industry

Katherine J. Wu

May 5, 2026

the cruise ship

Hegseth to the Troops: We Are Bringing Back the Flu!

Alexandra Petri

April 22, 2026

Tissue box with tank wheels illustration

The Seinfeld Theory of Fiction

March 19, 2026

In an illustration, five different figures look down in arched columns

A New Level of Vaccine Purgatory

Katherine J. Wu

March 18, 2026

A syringe pulling a vaccine from a vial

Gullible, Cynical America

March 9, 2026

A photo collage in purple and yellow depicting a cow, RFK Jr., a hand holding a vial, and other images

Jay Bhattacharya Might Get His COVID Capstone

Katherine J. Wu

March 5, 2026

Jay Bhattacharya

Scientists Figured Out the Problem With Johnson & Johnson’s COVID Vaccine

February 11, 2026

A person being vaccinated

The Only Thing That Will Turn Measles Back

Katherine J. Wu

February 5, 2026

A blue map of the US teeters on the point of a vaccine's needle, against a red background

Polio Was That Bad

January 28, 2026

Collage of a vial of inactivated polio vaccine, boxes of inactivated polio vaccine, and a pair of gloved hands sticking a syringe into a vial

South Carolina Is America’s New Measles Norm

Katherine J. Wu

January 27, 2026

Uncle Sam has white dots all over his face

The Best Flu Drug Americans Aren’t Taking

January 12, 2026

Xofluza pill surrounded by other pills