public health

USF public health professor Donna Petersen says collaboration was critical in helping community leaders respond to the pandemic. In hindsight, she says interventions like shutdowns were in place too long.

In Florida, six of the nine existing incinerators are where the percentages of people of color are higher than the statewide average of 46%, according to the EPA. As Miami-Dade is experiencing, there is no perfect location to build a new one.

The spread of an avian flu virus in cattle has again brought public health attention to the potential for a global pandemic. Fighting it would depend, for now, on 1940s technology that makes vaccines from hens’ eggs.

The EPA is tightening regulation of ethylene oxide, a carcinogenic gas used to sterilize medical devices. The agency is trying to balance the interests of the health care industry supply chain with those of communities where the gas creates airborne health risks.

Where trees are growing — and who has access to their shade — affects health and well-being, especially in Florida, one of the hottest states in the country.

Even as the COVID-19 pandemic wanes, litigation — whether about vaccines, masks, or a range of other public health policies made during the pandemic — isn’t about to end.

The first FDA-authorized cigarettes with 95% less nicotine than traditional smokes will go on sale in Florida in early July.

Advocates want more transparency across the U.S. after New York and California pass laws requiring disclosure of ingredients on menstrual product packaging.

A growing body of research is finding links between air quality and mental health, as therapists report seeing patients with symptoms linked to pollution.

The full health risks of wearing apparel made with PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” are still unknown. But states are taking action so clothing makers will remove them.