Interview with Dr. Michael Grandner, Director of the Sleep and Health Research Program at the University of Arizona and Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the UArizona College of Medicine – Tucson.

While COVID-19 vaccines are proven to be effective, it is still unclear if a booster shot will be needed after the initial doses. Dr. Shad Marvasti with the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix says it depends on immunity response. “We don’t know ultimately how long the immunity will last from the vaccine. We know that it’s going to be at least three months, if not, maybe six months, potentially up to a year," Marvasti said.

The University of Arizona College of Nursing recently expanded its program. Connie Miller, a clinical associate professor, is interviewed.

UArizona Health Sciences researchers are improving health by studying the interactions that govern the immune defense system against invading microbes.

Columnist Joanna Allhands interviews medical experts about COVID-19 recovery. "When we say 'recovered,' it's in terms of how likely you are to transmit the virus to others," said Deepta Bhattacharya, an immunologist at the University of Arizona College of Medicine –Tucson.

In an editorial, University of Arizona College of Medicine virologists Felicia Goodrum Sterling and James Alwine, write: It is essential that until we meet vaccination goals, we must remain vigilant with masking, distancing, avoiding crowds and hand hygiene to contain the spread of variants until enough are vaccinated to control the pandemic.

The COVID-19 vaccine is a powerful tool, but doctors still urge caution. The vaccine is effective at preventing severe illness from coronavirus, but it's unclear how it impacts transmission. "Being vaccinated means you're at low risk, not no risk, and so we still should be mindful of the most high-risk activities like indoor dining, large public gatherings," said Joe Gerald, an associate professor in the University of Arizona Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health.

Millions of people in the U.S. are drinking water that fails to meet federal health standards, including by violating limits for dangerous contaminants. Latinos are disproportionately exposed, according to the Guardian's review of more than 140,000 public water systems across the U.S. and county-level demographic data. Paloma Beamer, an exposure science researcher at the University of Arizona Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, found that most Latino residents in Nogales, Arizona, thought that drinking tap water was as unsafe as drinking alcohol and driving, and more detrimental to their health than smoking.

Researchers at the University of Arizona Health Sciences received a $1.5 million grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to study the effects of stress and the risk of cancer and reproductive health issues in female firefighters.

Experts say low-income seniors of color face many obstacles that are preventing them from getting a COVID-19 vaccination. A mobile vaccine program, run between the University of Arizona College of Public Health's Phoenix campus and Maricopa County, is aimed at reducing some of the glaring inequities in the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine among seniors that have become increasingly evident in Arizona.