Media Coverage

When reports of foodborne illness begin appearing across multiple states, identifying the contaminated product is rarely straightforward. Investigators often start with little more than patients describing meals they ate weeks earlier, then painstakingly reconstruct supply chains that can span continents before determining where contamination likely occurred.

President Donald Trump is back at it with his tariff threats for pharma, promising massive levies on generic drug imports starting in 2028.

The president’s proposal — which was announced on Truth Social and has yet to be solidified via an official proclamation or notice — is framed as a push to encourage domestic drug manufacturing.

Trump outlined a 100% tariff on generic drugs originating from outside the U.S. starting on Aug. 1, 2028, which would be increased to 200% the following year. 

But the conditions that have long kept generic drug manufacturing out of the U.S. largely haven’t changed and Trump’s most recent plan might only succeed in making drugs more expensive while failing to bring factories stateside, according to Tinglong Dai, the Bernard T. Ferrari professor of business at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School.

The recent Cyclospora outbreak linked to shredded iceberg lettuce is a reminder of just how difficult modern foodborne outbreak investigations have become. News reports often ask a simple question: Did investigators find the parasite in the lettuce? When a laboratory result is withdrawn or proves inconclusive, it can create the impression that the investigation has stalled or that the suspected food is no longer implicated.

Every summer, a familiar public health drama plays out in the produce aisles. Reports of a widespread gastrointestinal illness caused by Cyclospora, a microscopic parasite that hitchhikes on fresh leafy greens. As cases climb across dozens of states, public health officials scramble to answer a simple question: What is the source of the contamination?

Museums take this educational role seriously, and many institutions understand the need to sustain and broaden their appeal. “They used to be these big ivory towers of knowledge and history and thought and art,” said Hilary Knight, director of Change& in London and former director of digital at Tate. “Museums themselves are changing their role to be centers for discussion and encounter and to be much more participatory.”