Rosemary Westwood

Public Health Reporter

Rosemary Westwood is the public reporter for WWNO/WRKF. She was previously a freelance writer specializing in gender and reproductive rights, a radio producer, columnist, magazine writer and podcast host.

Ways to Connect

Here’s Why Louisiana’s Mask Mandate Took So Long

By • Jul 14, 2020
Ben Depp / National Geographic Society

Today marks day two of the new state-wide requirement for everyone to wear a mask or face-covering in public. But the measure announced by Governor John Bel Edwards over the weekend is already sparking resistance. For more on masks and the state of the virus in Louisiana, reporter Rosemary Westwood spoke with Dr. Joseph Kanter of the Louisiana Department of Health, where he’s the director of Region One.

Here are the key takeaways:

Sen. Cassidy on rising COVID-19 cases and a new stimulus package

By • Jul 10, 2020
Ashley Dean

As the number of coronavirus cases across the state grows, questions loom over whether people are following public health measures — and if not, how much worse the virus’s growth could become.

Louisiana’s COVID-19 Surge Is Among The Worst In The U.S. And Some Leaders Are Still Fighting Masks

By • Jul 9, 2020
Louisiana Department of Health

Louisiana is now one of the leading states in the nation for most new coronavirus cases.

With Demand Rising, New Orleans Forced To Cut Back On COVID-19 Testing

By • Jul 6, 2020
Ben Depp / National Geographic Society

Today’s mobile testing site opened at 8 a.m. at Dillard University, and it was booked up for tests five minutes later.

Ochsner Study Finds 75% of People With COVID-19 Have No Symptoms

By • Jul 2, 2020
CDC

A strikingly high number of people who have the coronavirus and are infectious also have zero symptoms, according to a new Ochsner Health study.

In a snapshot of the virus’s spread conducted in the metro New Orleans area in early May, 75 percent of people in the early stages of the virus — the period when they’re most infectious — were asymptomatic; 40 percent who had had the virus at some point never showed symptoms over the course of their infection.

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