Creator
Laura López González
Laura López González is a freelance health journalist and editor with more than 15 years of experience covering global health. She is the former deputy editor of South Africa's Bhekisisa Centre for Health Journalism.
South Africa at the start of a Covid-19 vaccine the world has never seen
The World Health Organisation has enlisted a team of South African researchers to produce a new mRNA Covid-19 vaccine, but with no recipe to follow, it’s not an easy task
The convenient myth of an Africa spared from Covid-19
There are few, if any, studies to support Pfizer chief executive’s assertion that the global south would be more vaccine-hesitant than the north
Unvaccinated, untreated: Africa may not get its fair share of Covid-19 drugs
Only 18 countries are using dexamethasone, while tocilizumab and sarilumab can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars a dose
Hospital fire leaves South African cancer patients in the cold
When one of the country’s biggest public cancer treatment centres fell victim to fire and left more than a thousand patients waiting for treatment, an uncomfortable truth rose…
Zambia faces birth control shortages after UK slashes UN funding
The United Nations Population Fund is the world’s largest provider of contraception to poor countries. The UK’s cuts to the agency are almost three times more severe than…
Africa could produce a Covid-19 vaccine sooner than you think
In mere months, Moderna transformed an old Polaroid factory in America into a state-of-the-art vaccine-production centre. Why can’t we do the same?
South Africa pauses Covid-19 vaccine rollout after disappointing AstraZeneca results
SA’s one-million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine will expire by early April — unless India’s Serum Institute can safely extend their use-by date.
Egypt, Seychelles get first jabs
The two countries have rolled out China’s Sinopharm vaccine, but data issues are likely to keep some countries from doing the same
Six injections a year could stop new HIV infections
New research from seven countries in Africa signals the future of HIV prevention — but what can it learn from its past?
Wheeling and dealing for a Covid-19 vaccine
A Covid-19 jab could cost hundreds of rands. Or not. It’s anyone’s guess. Could another pandemic almost a century ago hold clues for handling the coronavirus today?
Will Africa’s best shot at a Covid-19 vaccine be enough?
The Covax Initiative is meant to guarantee access to potential vaccines for poorer countries. But rich countries have already bought up more than 4.2-billion doses, and there is…
South Africa could see 40 000 Covid-19 deaths by November
South Africa won’t have enough hospital beds, intensive care or otherwise, to treat Covid-19 patients, official predictions reveal. But there’s still time to act, say experts
Rethinking the mosquito net
Disease-spreading mozzies may be getting wise to our best defences, but science is fighting back with a new kind of chemistry. But will advances be able to outpace nature?
Risks & benefits: new HIV drug combo could change the course of SA’s epidemic
South Africa’s next chapter in HIV treatment holds amazing promise, but unlocking it rests on having the right kind of discussions with women
Collusion, competition and corruption — A new Rx for better healthcare?
The three Cs: Collusion, competition and corruption. There’ll be a renewed push to safeguard your money when it comes to healthcare, but will it work?