Public Health

[Chicago’s Cooling Centers Provide Needed Relief. But Are They Enough?](/content/chicagos-cooling-centers-provide-needed-relief-but-are-they-enough/ "Chicago’s Cooling Centers Provide Needed Relief. But Are They Enough?"/index.html)

Rachel Yoon-July 19, 2025

In the summer of 1995, a blazing heat swept over Chicago. A combination of hot and humid air settled in the area, leading to...

[The Real Cities That Never Sleep Are in Ohio](/content/the-real-cities-that-never-sleep-are-in-ohio/ "The Real Cities That Never Sleep Are in Ohio"/index.html)

Vivian Liu-July 17, 2025

An analysis done by Innerbody using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Numbeo places three Ohio cities in the top...

[In Nebraska, Tele-Health Provides Care in the “Middle of Nowhere”](/content/in-nebraska-tele-health-provides-care-in-the-middle-of-nowhere/ "In Nebraska, Tele-Health Provides Care in the “Middle of Nowhere”"/index.html)

Clara Baisinger-Rosen-March 1, 2025

As the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the globe, seeing a doctor or visiting a hospital became not only inconvenient, but sometimes even dangerous. Telehealth...

[Rat-ical Solutions to Chicago’s Rodent Problem](/content/rat-ical-solutions-to-chicagos-rodent-problem/ "Rat-ical Solutions to Chicago’s Rodent Problem"/index.html)

Emily Fischer-November 11, 2023

Rats! Whether categorized as rodents, wildlife, vermin or pests, they have a profound impact on human populations in big cities — affecting wide-ranging aspects of residents’ lives from food to psychology to safety. In Chicago, which has been ranked the rattiest city in the United States for eight years by pest control company Orkin, experts are finding new solutions to educate about and hopefully eradicate the invasive species known as the sewer rat.

[Confluence: Stewarding Cleveland’s Water](/content/confluence-stewarding-clevelands-water/ "Confluence: Stewarding Cleveland’s Water"/index.html)

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the Midstory Team-October 30, 2023

The Great Lakes are one of the largest freshwater systems in the world, accounting for 21% of the world's surface freshwater and 84% of...

[The Psychology Behind Ohio’s Vax-a-Million — and What Experts Say Would Work Better](/content/the-psychology-behind-ohios-vax-a-million-and-what-experts-say-would-work-better/ "The Psychology Behind Ohio’s Vax-a-Million — and What Experts Say Would Work Better"/index.html)

Susanna Kemp-August 26, 2021

In May, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced a lottery: the state would give five residents who got the COVID-19 vaccine $1 million each and five...

[What’s the Deal With Post-vaccination COVID-19 Antibody Tests? Answers from Experts](/content/whats-the-deal-with-post-vaccination-covid-19-antibody-tests-answers-from-experts/ "What’s the Deal With Post-vaccination COVID-19 Antibody Tests? Answers from Experts"/index.html)

Sarah Dolgin-July 8, 2021

As the United States reopens, mask mandates wane and variants continue to spread, some people are looking to receive antibody tests to see if...

[The Pandemic Travel Dilemma: How the Midwest is Faring this Holiday Season](/content/the-pandemic-travel-dilemma-how-the-midwest-is-faring-this-holiday-season/ "The Pandemic Travel Dilemma: How the Midwest is Faring this Holiday Season"/index.html)

Caitlin McNally-December 23, 2020

The holiday season is looking different this year with decreased mobility, and while some places are seeing a surge of cases post-Thanksgiving, some states across the Midwest have managed to prevent and mitigate the predicted danger through public health announcements and limited mobility and gatherings.

[Sustained Outrage in the Fight Against the Opioid Epidemic: A Review of Death in Mud Lick](/content/sustained-outrage-in-the-fight-against-the-opioid-epidemic-a-review-of-death-in-mud-lick/ "Sustained Outrage in the Fight Against the Opioid Epidemic: A Review of Death in Mud Lick"/index.html)

Marissa Michaels-October 9, 2020

Pulitzer-prize winner Eric Eyre’s new book exposes how hard drug distributors work to keep eyes off of their numbers and how important it is for journalists to keep looking. In the small towns of America, it can literally mean life or death. The opinions expressed in this series are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect any official organizational stance. Cover graphic by Ruth Chang for Midstory.

[COVID-19 Risk Assessment for Ohio: Identifying Risks for Ongoing Reopening and Resilience to Future Hazards](/content/covid-19-risk-assessment-for-ohio/ "COVID-19 Risk Assessment for Ohio: Identifying Risks for Ongoing Reopening and Resilience to Future Hazards"/index.html)

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the Midstory Team-September 15, 2020

As our researchers watched Ohio’s response to the pandemic, they wished to contribute meaningfully toward the next stage of disaster response and help to prepare our state for future crises. This risk assessment brief is a comprehensive look, county by county, of factors that put Ohio’s populations at risk for COVID-19, including socio-economic status, mobility, race, overcrowded housing and more.