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Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES® Profile
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®

@ErinMPrater

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Science writer, @ucsdstemcell . Formerly @fortunemagazine . M.A., health communication/promotion; M.A., strategic communication. #T1D #raredz #diagnosticodyssey

Colorado Springs, CO
Joined November 2012
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
New, highly mutated #COVID variants #Pirola BA.2.86 & JN.1 may cause more severe disease, new studies suggest. “We cannot ignore the evidence” that #Omicron may be evolving into a more severe form of itself, @ShanLuLiu1 told me. #COVIDTwitter #pandemic
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
9 months
Is this highly mutated #Omicron spawn the next big thing in COVID evolution—perhaps even WHO's Pi or Rho? Here's what we know so far, thanks to valuable contributions from @TRyanGregory , @RajlabN , @soupvector , @jbloom_lab , @LongDesertTrain #COVIDTwitter
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
#Pirola JN.1 is the probable future of the #COVID #pandemic , experts warn—but you didn't hear it from the @WHO . Exclusive interview w/ @mvankerkhove + expertise by @EricTopol @mtosterholm @soupvector @RajlabN @TRyanGregory @JPWeiland @LongDesertTrain
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
UPDATE: Among @mvankerkhove 's messages @ today's @WHO presser: We don't know how often we're being infected with #COVID or what the health impacts might be years, decades later. RE #longCOVID : "It's real. It's not in someone's head." TAG-VE to meet Monday.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
9 months
As @TRyanGregory advises, don't believe everything you read about BA.2.86 #Pirola . Nothing is known about symptoms; no one has said it's the deadliest variant since #Omicron ; and it's not surging in China. A trusty summary here: #COVID #epidemic
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
8 months
"There is a reasonable chance" Pirola BA.2.86 "quickly optimizes and gains back" some transmissibility, COVID modeler @JPWeiland tells me. Already there are multiple subgroups forming. The evolution of a highly transmissible Pirola is entirely possible.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
@TRyanGregory @WHO If a variant is different enough to necessitate a tailored booster, why wouldn't it deserve a new Greek letter name? Genuinely curious.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
#COVID has evolved to make you sicker quicker, new study finds: #pandemic #epidemic #endemic #publichealth
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
I had a chance to interview former White House COVID advisor Dr. Deborah Birx this week at @FortuneMagazine 's Brainstorm Health conference. #COVID will eventually evade #Paxlovid and could cause deaths to "easily double," she told me. More: #COVIDTwitter
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
6 months
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
XBB.1.16’s ability to outpace other variants suggests it “will spread worldwide in the near future,” researchers wrote. It's also “robustly resistant” to antibodies from a variety of variants, including BA.2 and BA.5. More: #XBB116 #COVIDTwitter #Arcturus
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
Highly mutated #COVID variant #Pirola JN.1 is fueling the pandemic’s second highest U.S. wave—and it’s still growing. This as COVID-related ER visits, hospitalizations, and deaths continue to rise. Move over, #Omicron ? #pandemic #epidemic #COVIDTwitter
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
9 months
Meet #Eris EG.5.1, a leading U.S. #COVID variant likely driving up infections and hospitalizations this summer: H/t @EricTopol @RajlabN @TRyanGregory #COVIDTwitter #Omicron #medtwitter #sciencetwitter #healthcare #tripledemic
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
Are #COVID survivors (read: pretty much all of us) at greater risk of developing Parkinson's dz-like symptoms in the future? Perhaps, new research suggests—but the development of the dz is multifactorial, @ChenShuibing tells me. #longCOVID #COVIDTwitter
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
3 months
My last 2 years at Fortune as a global public health reporter have been the thrill of a lifetime, but it's on to new & different things! Hoping to stay in the world of public health #journalism / #communication . If you know of a role that might be a good fit, plz lmk! #opentowork
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
8 months
As of today (Sept. 25), U.S. residents can order 4 free #COVID tests—12, if they're visually impaired. With a further fall/winter surge of cases expected on top of an already high plateau, now's the right time, experts say. More: H/t @JPWeiland @RajlabN
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
#BREAKING : The @WHO is aware of reports that #H5N1 bird flu has killed a Cambodian girl and sickened others locally. "We are following up and are in close touch with Cambodian authorities," a spox told @Fortune . More: #publichealth #outbreak #globalhealth
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
The so-called “R naught” value—or the number of people infected by a single person, on average—for #COVID initially ranged from 1.5 to 7, and now sits upwards of 12. The R naught value of H5N1 among birds: “around 100." #sciencetwitter #COVIDtwitter
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
@TaniaJSpencer @ShanLuLiu1 Thank you so much for reading, and for the kind words! It means a lot!
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
As long as #COVID has existed, it's been possible for the virus to recombine w/more deadly coronaviruses SARS or MERS, if someone was infected w/both. Given COVID's vast, rapid circulation, the possibility is worrying one expert I spoke with. #JN1 #Pirola
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
8 months
This week the @WHO will provide its last weekly epidemiological update on #COVID , @mvankerkhove tells viewers of a live Q&A. Updates from the international health agency will then be provided monthly. #COVIDTwitter #Omicron #medtwitter #sciencetwitter
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
“We are watching this antibiotic era turn into a post-antibiotic era,” @mtosterholm of @CIDRAP tells @Fortune RE: new 'super strain' of gonorrhea detected in the U.S.: #medtwitter #sciencetwitter #sexualhealth #STDs #STIs #publichealth #epidemic
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
While #Delta is rarely reported these days, it’s still found in some countries like #China , in addition to immunocompromised patients and animals around the world: H/t @TRyanGregory @RajlabN #Deltacron #publichealth #COVIDtwitter #medtwitter
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
Regarding the 10k COVID deaths (roughly) reported to @WHO last month: More than half were reported by the U.S. alone, and 1k were reported by Italy, @mvankerkhove said. There are 234 member nations and territories, and only 50 are still reporting deaths.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
@TRyanGregory @FortuneMagazine I couldn't do this without experts filling me in. Thanks so much to you, @RajlabN , @AliHMokdad , and all the others for taking my calls and bearing with my hours of questions each week!
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
@NicoleBarbosaPR @ShanLuLiu1 Thank you so much for the kind words! And for reading!
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
@WHO @mvankerkhove Only 21, less than 9%, are still reporting ICU data. Because so many countries are failing to report their data, "unfortunately, we’re back to sort of scraping the web, finding each report, and adding them to our dashboard,” @mvankerkhove said.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
9 months
Like Delta and #Omicron , this new, highly mutated #COVID variant likely evolved in an immunocompromised patient, experts say. While we're waiting to see if it takes off, here's what we know so far: #COVIDTwitter #medTwitter #Science #globalhealth #epidemic
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
Was just reminded that it's my 1st anniversary with @FortuneMagazine . It's been such an incredible (and incredibly fun!) year. Grateful to work with such a talented team. (And huge props to @Nicklich for making this happen!)
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
3 months
NEW: @DrTedros called pandemic treaty agreement "mission critical for humanity" @ Saturday's @economicssummit . New reax from @bruce_y_lee , @T_Inglesby , & @RajlabN , who says ancient Indian Arthashastra approach may help, as Zulu people's Indaba did @ COP21.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
5 months
@Ebony_Dog @CDCgov @JPWeiland @RajlabN @TRyanGregory @soupvector Likewise! Thank you so much! Happiest of holidays to you!
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
Autumn #COVID variants look shockingly similar and powerful for these 2 reasons: H/t @mtosterholm @CIDRAP @RajlabN #pandemic #publichealth #medicine
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
I've repeatedly reached out to @HHSGov since Oct. 26, inquiring RE: the # of pediatric hospital beds occupied in the U.S., but have not received a response. Around 75% are full, per NBC. More here: #COVIDTwitter #RSV #flu #MedTwitter #publichealth
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
@AshleyInMKE @luckytran @ShanLuLiu1 First? Wow ... and also, so sorry! What are your symptoms like?
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
@AnthonyGromko @mvankerkhove @WHO Yes. Not new, but under appreciated.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
If new #COVID variants route immunity, “we have Paxlovid as a backup, but the virus could also develop resistance to that over time,” @EricTopol said. “That’s the problem.” H/t @RajlabN @AliHMokdad @IHME_UW #COVID19 #BQ11 #XBB #COVIDtwitter #publichealth
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
The good news: #H5N1 candidate vaccines exist, and antiviral Oseltamivir, also known as Tamiflu, has been used to treat cases since 2003. Multiple other antibody treatments are available, @WHO officials say: #publichealth #globalhealth #avianflu #birdflu
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
9 months
@vinay_kishore Thanks so very much for this. Will fix! Take care.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
9 months
Major thanks to the experts who spend copious amounts of time sharing info/reviewing these things with me, repeatedly, to ensure I get them right: @RajlabN and @TRyanGregory , who have been so patient with me! and @soupvector , @LongDesertTrain , @EricTopol , @mtosterholm , & others.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
Move over, #Omicron ? #Pirola JN.1 is the probable future of the #COVID #pandemic , experts warn—but you didn't hear it from the @WHO . Expertise by @EricTopol @mtosterholm @soupvector @RajlabN @TRyanGregory @JPWeiland @LongDesertTrain
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
5 months
It's been a hell of a year, probably my most difficult yet. While I'm not a fan of marketing myself, I'd like to say that I finished two master's degrees this year, in spite of it all. Is M.A.² in an email sig/on LinkedIn obnoxious? Asking for a friend. Up next: MPH summer '24!
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
6 years
Speaker, then chants of "hey hey, ho ho, Cory Gardner's got to go." @CardboardCoryCO appears to be here -- or a look-alike. #Pueblo #marchforourlives @csgazette @colo_politics
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
Antimicrobial resistance—the failure of prescription drugs like antibiotics & antivirals—could kill 10 million annually by 2050, leaders warn in Davos at @wef , calling the issue a "silent pandemic." @SKyriakidesEU @bishen_shyam @PeterASands @HelenClarkNZ
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
#Monkeypox breakthrough infections are real. ‘This vaccine will not be a silver bullet,’ @WHO officials say: #outbreak #publichealth #MPX #MPV
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
ICYMI: No, Disease X isn't a new virus. Nor is it a group project for world leaders at this week's @wef (Wednesday). What you need to know about the symbolic term + other potential #pandemic pathogens on @WHO 's priority list. (That still includes #COVID .)
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
9 months
Unfortunately, some media outlets love to publish articles about variant symptoms—even when there is no data—as clickbait. They usually just list the typical Omicron symptoms, so nothing new—but they get your click.
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
#COVID is at or near record levels around the country. @Stanford & @VerilyLifeSci ( @Google ) scientists say one (pretty gross) indicator doesn’t lie: #COVID19 #publichealth #coronavirus #pandemic #endemic
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 years
I'm in Larkspur with the El Paso County Sheriff's Office. Expecting an update shortly on the search for missing 11 year old Gannon Stauch. Today was the second day of searching in Douglas County. @csgazette
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
9 months
And to the readers, who write in with feedback and encouragement. Means more than you know. Helps balance out the hate mail. :)
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
#Breaking : The U.S. is officially in a flu epidemic, federal health officials say. They’re preparing to deploy troops and ventilators if necessary. More here: #flu #epidemic #endemic #publichealth #RSV #COVID #MedTwitter #COVIDTwitter #ScienceTwitter
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
"We're not afraid to use these Greek letters," @WHO 's @mvankerkhove said Wednesday. But no new letter for #Kraken XBB.1.5: #COVIDTwitter #MedTwitter #COVID #pandemic #Omicron
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
New multi-cancer early detection (MCED) blood tests have researchers seeking to define "meaningful" #cancer . “Just because you can detect cancer through an MCED test doesn’t mean it’s time to take action," @AmericanCancer 's @AmerCancerCEO says. More:
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
2 years
“I’ve been a practicing ICU doctor for a decade now, and I think I can safely say this is one of the worst surges I’ve ever seen.” @AnitaKPatelMD on the surge in #RSV , #flu , and #COVID cases threatening kids hospital capacity. More here: #parenting #health
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 years
DA Dan May is among those present here at the #GannonStauch press conference, scheduled to kick off here in about 13 minutes. We're about to head into final mic checks for TV. @csgazette
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
The world should "calm down" RE: the risk of a new #COVID variant from #China , the country’s former CDC chief says. Takes on that assertion from top experts @AmeshAA @TRyanGregory @GeorgesBenjami7 @bruce_y_lee here: #COVIDTwitter #medTwitter #publichealth
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 years
Statement from dad, speaking of son's birth, born weighing 1 lb, 2 oz. "I'd been looking forward to his teenage years." His heart stopped with the news that "my little boy is not coming home." Mother is sobbing and partially collapsing. SO spox is crying. #GannonStauch @csgazette
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
Update: The WHO should extend the PHEIC for 2 reasons, @DrJayVarma —formerly of CDC, w/postings in China—told @FortuneMagazine : rapid viral mutation and China's massive outbreak: #publichealth #COVIDtwitter #medtwitter #pandemic #globalhealth
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
1 year
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
4 months
ICYMI: No, Disease X isn't a new virus. Nor is it a group project for world leaders at this week's @wef . What you need to know about the symbolic term + other potential #pandemic pathogens on @WHO 's priority list. (That still includes #COVID .) H/t @AmeshAA
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@ErinMPrater
Erin Prater, M.A.², CHES®
9 months
@EssayWells To be sure. It's significant that a study is documenting it. That's all.
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