COVID-19 is indiscriminate. Everyone is susceptible. That’s a message we hear consistently from public health officials throughout Appalachia. But we know that some are more vulnerable than others: the elderly and those with particular preexisting health conditions, for example. It’s also true that entire communities are at greater risk: those […]

Nearly half of adult Americans say they or someone in their household has postponed some type of medical care since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S., according to a study from the Kaiser Family Foundation.  Fear of exposure to the virus in a hospital or doctor’s office […]

Among the communities hardest hit by the outbreak of COVID-19 are those that are heavily dependent on tourism. A recent study published on the website Volusion noted the disproportionate economic impact of the outbreak on retail, leisure and hospitality workers.  According to that study, Asheville, North Carolina, was among the […]

In the rural westernmost counties of North Carolina, providing services to neighbors in the best of times requires resourcefulness – doubly so in a crisis. Getting from point A to point B on these mountain two-lanes often entails circumventing point E. It’s 35 miles from Franklin, county seat of Macon […]