For Back-to-School, It's Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (Half the Answer #99, with Caitlin Gilbert)

Vaccination rates are falling across the country.

Caitlin M. Green, Trent R. Nelson, Caitlin Gilbert Aug 22, 2026

For Back-to-School, It's Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (Half the Answer #99, with Caitlin Gilbert)

Vaccination rates are falling across the country, vaccine deniers are occupying positions of power in the United States government, and previously eradicated diseases are reappearing. Tracking all of this is Caitlin Gilbert and her colleagues at the Washington Post health, science, and wellness desk. We asked her to fill us in on the state of the nation when it comes to vaccination, inoculation, and all things disease prevention.

Half the Answer can be heard on Spotify, on Apple, on YouTube, on Amazon, and elsewhere via its RSS feed.

Resources

https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/caitlin-gilbert/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/08/17/trump-rolls-back-vaccine-recommendations-see-where-your-school-stands/

https://bsky.app/profile/caitlingilbert.bsky.social

https://bsky.app/profile/caitlingilbert.bsky.social/post/3msr4aokzkc2s

https://www.tiktok.com/@caitlingilbertdata

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/24135-vaccines

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3407399/

Published in: Half the Answer, Podcast

Authors

Caitlin Green is a linguist specializing in Discourse Studies and Pragmatics. She lives in California with her husband, two daughters, and a very small black cat.

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Trent R. Nelson is a poet, historian, and philosopher, as well as a political and socioeconomic analyst. He is the managing editor for MWF Springfield and a contributing editor with Liberal Currents.

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Caitlin Gilbert is a data reporter covering health, technology, science and wellness at the Washington Post.

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