Kara Karlson
@karakarlson.bsky.social
Mother. #DisabilityRights. #ElectionLaw attorney. 4th gen Arizonan. #Momvocate
Pinned
Kara Karlson
@karakarlson.bsky.social
· Nov 10
One of my proudest moments was when I got AZ policy changed to ensure people with intellectual & developmental disabilities received priority for COVID vaccines. This has been promised, but was quietly rescinded. Helping 42k ppl access life saving vaccines. Higher rate uptake than nat'l avg.
Reposted by Kara Karlson
Happy birthday to one of the greatest, Frederick Douglass. Born into slavery, he didn't know his actual birthday, but chose to celebrate it on this day.
Please read his books and essays; please teach your children his story when they are old enough to understand.
Please read his books and essays; please teach your children his story when they are old enough to understand.
February 14, 2026 at 3:23 PM
Happy birthday to one of the greatest, Frederick Douglass. Born into slavery, he didn't know his actual birthday, but chose to celebrate it on this day.
Please read his books and essays; please teach your children his story when they are old enough to understand.
Please read his books and essays; please teach your children his story when they are old enough to understand.
They are also working on killing (or ensuring the deaths of) everyone else.
Crushing the mRNA industry in the US also probably destroys a bunch of cures for various cancers just as an FYI.
February 14, 2026 at 2:12 AM
They are also working on killing (or ensuring the deaths of) everyone else.
They want to kill our children. This is not hyperbole.
February 14, 2026 at 2:00 AM
They want to kill our children. This is not hyperbole.
Reposted by Kara Karlson
In terms of what cures are being lost:
- Epstein-Barr virus is perhaps the major trigger for multiple sclerosis
- herpes simplex virus causes cold sores, genital herpes, infections in babies, deadly meningitis
- shingles virus causes an intensely painful disease
- Epstein-Barr virus is perhaps the major trigger for multiple sclerosis
- herpes simplex virus causes cold sores, genital herpes, infections in babies, deadly meningitis
- shingles virus causes an intensely painful disease
February 13, 2026 at 5:44 AM
In terms of what cures are being lost:
- Epstein-Barr virus is perhaps the major trigger for multiple sclerosis
- herpes simplex virus causes cold sores, genital herpes, infections in babies, deadly meningitis
- shingles virus causes an intensely painful disease
- Epstein-Barr virus is perhaps the major trigger for multiple sclerosis
- herpes simplex virus causes cold sores, genital herpes, infections in babies, deadly meningitis
- shingles virus causes an intensely painful disease
Reposted by Kara Karlson
This is a vivid, horribly relevant read. “She does not sleep well. And as you lift up her pajama top to check her rash one morning, you see that her breathing is labored, shadows pooling between her ribs when she sucks in air. You suffer an icy moment of realization: This is a medical crisis.”
This Is How a Child Dies of Measles
When your family becomes a data point in an outbreak
www.theatlantic.com
February 13, 2026 at 12:35 PM
This is a vivid, horribly relevant read. “She does not sleep well. And as you lift up her pajama top to check her rash one morning, you see that her breathing is labored, shadows pooling between her ribs when she sucks in air. You suffer an icy moment of realization: This is a medical crisis.”
Reposted by Kara Karlson
A lot of people are asking very good questions about the age for starting colorectal cancer screening.
These guidelines are set by the United States Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF), which had 2 out of 3 of their meetings cancelled in 2025 by RFK Jr.
He also wants to fire every member.
These guidelines are set by the United States Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF), which had 2 out of 3 of their meetings cancelled in 2025 by RFK Jr.
He also wants to fire every member.
February 12, 2026 at 2:39 PM
A lot of people are asking very good questions about the age for starting colorectal cancer screening.
These guidelines are set by the United States Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF), which had 2 out of 3 of their meetings cancelled in 2025 by RFK Jr.
He also wants to fire every member.
These guidelines are set by the United States Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF), which had 2 out of 3 of their meetings cancelled in 2025 by RFK Jr.
He also wants to fire every member.
The IOC is the baddies here.
The International Olympic Committee has disqualified a Ukrainian sled athlete over his refusal to remove images of war dead from his helmet in competition. n.pr/3Ztg0Pk
Ukrainian Olympian disqualified over images of war dead on his helmet
The International Olympic Committee has disqualified a Ukrainian sled athlete over his refusal to remove images of war dead from his helmet in competition.
n.pr
February 12, 2026 at 2:20 PM
The IOC is the baddies here.
The flu, a simple RNA virus, is not elite nor populist. It's just a virus.
It doesn't care whether the humans it attacks are so-called elites or populists either. We are all just hosts. Some will get sick, some of those will be hospitalized, and some of those will die.
This season is very bad.
It doesn't care whether the humans it attacks are so-called elites or populists either. We are all just hosts. Some will get sick, some of those will be hospitalized, and some of those will die.
This season is very bad.
So the feds ARE NOT considering an mRNA vaccine for the flu, which could save countless lives, but ARE backing research into whether horse dewormer can cure cancer, because the right views vaccines as elite and ivermectin as populist.
Cool.
kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
Cool.
kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
FDA won’t review Moderna application for first mRNA-based flu vaccine
The decision, which shocked company officials, comes as the FDA says it will take a stricter approach to federal vaccine approvals.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 11, 2026 at 3:24 AM
The flu, a simple RNA virus, is not elite nor populist. It's just a virus.
It doesn't care whether the humans it attacks are so-called elites or populists either. We are all just hosts. Some will get sick, some of those will be hospitalized, and some of those will die.
This season is very bad.
It doesn't care whether the humans it attacks are so-called elites or populists either. We are all just hosts. Some will get sick, some of those will be hospitalized, and some of those will die.
This season is very bad.
This guy voted to keep the Epstein files hidden b/c of "procedure" (but then release them so he wasn't standing alone). Miss me with the "porn" concerns.
missouriindependent.com/2025/09/29/m...
missouriindependent.com/2025/09/29/m...
February 11, 2026 at 3:02 AM
This guy voted to keep the Epstein files hidden b/c of "procedure" (but then release them so he wasn't standing alone). Miss me with the "porn" concerns.
missouriindependent.com/2025/09/29/m...
missouriindependent.com/2025/09/29/m...
Reposted by Kara Karlson
mRNA vaccine technology remains one of the greatest innovations in science that has happened in our live times. Nothing can change this fact and certainly not the FDA refusing to review a mRNA flu vaccine.
www.cnn.com/2026/02/10/h...
www.cnn.com/2026/02/10/h...
FDA refuses to review Moderna’s application for mRNA flu vaccine, company says | CNN
The US Food and Drug Administration has refused to accept an application from Moderna to review its first mRNA seasonal flu vaccine, the company said Tuesday, in another setback for the technology tha...
www.cnn.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:58 PM
mRNA vaccine technology remains one of the greatest innovations in science that has happened in our live times. Nothing can change this fact and certainly not the FDA refusing to review a mRNA flu vaccine.
www.cnn.com/2026/02/10/h...
www.cnn.com/2026/02/10/h...
I completed the COVID vaccine trial (and received placebo). This is shameful. You can't provide standard of care with placebo, and once a vaccine is in place, you can't randomize some people to get saline. New cancer drugs are tested this way (old chemo vs new, not no chemo). I hate this timeline.
Vinay Prasad of the FDA has broken with the usual approval process and refuses to review Moderna’s new flu shot.
He claims that the proposed clinical trial, which would compare the new vaccine to an already approved one, “does not reflect the best-available standard of care”.
He claims that the proposed clinical trial, which would compare the new vaccine to an already approved one, “does not reflect the best-available standard of care”.
Moderna says FDA refuses to review its application for experimental flu shot
Moderna said the move is inconsistent with previous feedback from the FDA on the experimental influenza shot, called mRNA-1010.
www.cnbc.com
February 11, 2026 at 2:29 AM
I completed the COVID vaccine trial (and received placebo). This is shameful. You can't provide standard of care with placebo, and once a vaccine is in place, you can't randomize some people to get saline. New cancer drugs are tested this way (old chemo vs new, not no chemo). I hate this timeline.
Reposted by Kara Karlson
I wrote about the Epstein files (gift link) www.theverge.com/tech/874721/...
How the men in the Epstein files defeated #MeToo
The emails show the “anti-woke” crusaders are afraid of accountability.
www.theverge.com
February 6, 2026 at 3:09 PM
I wrote about the Epstein files (gift link) www.theverge.com/tech/874721/...
The answer is "it depends."
Without naming your job, tell me something you say over and over again at work.
"It's in the syllabus"
"It's in the syllabus"
Without naming your job, tell me something you say over and over again at work.
"Sadly, not aliens."
"Sadly, not aliens."
February 8, 2026 at 1:14 AM
The answer is "it depends."
"Pro-life"
NEW: A baby held in immigration detention became so sick, she had to be rushed to a hospital in severe respiratory distress.
“She was at the brink of dying,” a lawyer told me.
But the girl didn’t go home after her 10-day hospital stay; instead, ICE put her and her mother back in lock up at Dilley.
“She was at the brink of dying,” a lawyer told me.
But the girl didn’t go home after her 10-day hospital stay; instead, ICE put her and her mother back in lock up at Dilley.
Toddler hospitalized with respiratory failure was returned to ICE detention without prescribed medication, lawsuit says
The 18-month-old was sent back to a South Texas facility after days in intensive care with severe respiratory distress, according to a federal lawsuit.
www.nbcnews.com
February 7, 2026 at 10:26 PM
"Pro-life"
Me: Siri, what happens when we let the people who have fomented antivaxx sentiment for decades get to control our public health services?
Siri:
Siri:
“In just a few weeks, the United States reported four times as many cases than typically seen throughout an entire calendar year, the CDC said… Declining vaccination rates have left approximately 300,000 kindergarteners unprotected from measles infection.” @jackiantonovich.bsky.social
4 times as many measles cases in a few weeks than US typically averages in a whole year: CDC
It comes as South Carolina is dealing with the largest outbreak recorded since measles was declared eliminated within the U.S. in 2000.
abcnews.go.com
February 7, 2026 at 8:43 PM
Me: Siri, what happens when we let the people who have fomented antivaxx sentiment for decades get to control our public health services?
Siri:
Siri:
Reposted by Kara Karlson
Hey so trumprx actually went live and it's got the same cost savings as goodrx. Exactly the same. However it's worse because it doesn't include generics. Generic protonix is about $6.
This literally does nothing. What a joke.
This literally does nothing. What a joke.
February 6, 2026 at 12:32 AM
Hey so trumprx actually went live and it's got the same cost savings as goodrx. Exactly the same. However it's worse because it doesn't include generics. Generic protonix is about $6.
This literally does nothing. What a joke.
This literally does nothing. What a joke.
Reposted by Kara Karlson
BREAKING: Over 680 members of the National Academy of Sciences, Medicine, and Engineering have endorsed articles of impeachment against RFK Jr.
(1/2 🧵)
(1/2 🧵)
February 5, 2026 at 9:08 PM
BREAKING: Over 680 members of the National Academy of Sciences, Medicine, and Engineering have endorsed articles of impeachment against RFK Jr.
(1/2 🧵)
(1/2 🧵)
Reposted by Kara Karlson
Have you ever caught yourself or someone else casually using the R-word? It might seem harmless, but it’s far from it. The R-word is loaded with hurt, discrimination, & a painful history. Here’s why it’s time we ditched it for good, from @thearcus.bsky.social:
thearc.org/blog/the-r-w... #disability
thearc.org/blog/the-r-w... #disability
The R-Word: Why Language Matters and How We Can Do Better - The Arc
The R-word is loaded with hurt, discrimination, and a painful history. Here's why it's time we ditched it for good.
thearc.org
February 5, 2026 at 3:36 AM
Have you ever caught yourself or someone else casually using the R-word? It might seem harmless, but it’s far from it. The R-word is loaded with hurt, discrimination, & a painful history. Here’s why it’s time we ditched it for good, from @thearcus.bsky.social:
thearc.org/blog/the-r-w... #disability
thearc.org/blog/the-r-w... #disability
So much for "harmless."
I mean, we knew it wasn't harmless. That's why early scientists who had a LOT of infectious disease targets went after measles. Anyone who says otherwise is lying.
I mean, we knew it wasn't harmless. That's why early scientists who had a LOT of infectious disease targets went after measles. Anyone who says otherwise is lying.
“Some children affected by measles in the ongoing South Carolina outbreak have developed a serious complication of the disease called encephalitis, or swelling of the brain, state epidemiologist Linda Bell said… Among children who get measles encephalitis, 10 to 15% die”
@jackiantonovich.bsky.social
@jackiantonovich.bsky.social
Measles Is Causing Brain Swelling in Children in South Carolina
In the ongoing measles outbreak in South Carolina that has infected more than 800 people, some children have developed a rare but serious complication called encephalitis.
www.wired.com
February 5, 2026 at 4:45 AM
So much for "harmless."
I mean, we knew it wasn't harmless. That's why early scientists who had a LOT of infectious disease targets went after measles. Anyone who says otherwise is lying.
I mean, we knew it wasn't harmless. That's why early scientists who had a LOT of infectious disease targets went after measles. Anyone who says otherwise is lying.
💔
As we mourn the murders of autistic teens Otis and Leon Clune at the hands of their parents, we are forced to again state that however difficult it may be for families to support their disabled loved ones, murder is never excusable. There are always other options. Always.
tinyurl.com/NoExcusesTPGA
tinyurl.com/NoExcusesTPGA
February 5, 2026 at 2:49 AM
💔
I hate this. Even when this page was up, parents were still getting their autistic children killed in search of a non-existent cure.
The death that comes to mind for me was when a hyperbaric chamber burned a kindergarten-age child alive. That was just a little more than a year ago.
The death that comes to mind for me was when a hyperbaric chamber burned a kindergarten-age child alive. That was just a little more than a year ago.
I am not exaggerating: Removing this webpage warning against fake autism "treatments" will kill autistic people.
www.medpagetoday.com/neurology/au...
www.medpagetoday.com/neurology/au...
FDA Removes Warning Page About Dangerous Autism Treatments
Autism researchers question motivations for latest HHS changes, including the new IACC
www.medpagetoday.com
February 5, 2026 at 2:15 AM
I hate this. Even when this page was up, parents were still getting their autistic children killed in search of a non-existent cure.
The death that comes to mind for me was when a hyperbaric chamber burned a kindergarten-age child alive. That was just a little more than a year ago.
The death that comes to mind for me was when a hyperbaric chamber burned a kindergarten-age child alive. That was just a little more than a year ago.
Reposted by Kara Karlson
State vaccine requirements for school entry are absolutely essential if we have any hope of maintaining herd immunity.
It is madness for states to repeal these requirements. And vaccine exemptions should not be permitted unless for a documented medical contraindication.
It is madness for states to repeal these requirements. And vaccine exemptions should not be permitted unless for a documented medical contraindication.
February 4, 2026 at 11:45 PM
State vaccine requirements for school entry are absolutely essential if we have any hope of maintaining herd immunity.
It is madness for states to repeal these requirements. And vaccine exemptions should not be permitted unless for a documented medical contraindication.
It is madness for states to repeal these requirements. And vaccine exemptions should not be permitted unless for a documented medical contraindication.
Administrative law is good, actually.
CC: J. Roberts
CC: J. Roberts
You want a hot take? Here’s a hot take. Making this stuff an issue of trust or political divides is… individualizing public health. It’s an abdication of the actual tools we had for living in a society: legal standards for business and food safety. It’s okay to regulate stuff, folks
This is bonkers. MAHA 'farmers' with ecoli tainted raw milk admit they really don't know how to make the stuff after all.
"Producing raw milk takes careful planning from a facility and infrastructure standpoint. Unfortunately, we learned this after the fact."
people.com/ballerina-fa...
"Producing raw milk takes careful planning from a facility and infrastructure standpoint. Unfortunately, we learned this after the fact."
people.com/ballerina-fa...
February 4, 2026 at 4:31 AM
Administrative law is good, actually.
CC: J. Roberts
CC: J. Roberts
Happy anniversary indeed!
February 4, 2026 at 4:22 AM
Happy anniversary indeed!
Some years ago, I spent the night/morning before an oral argument at the 9th Cir in the ER with the most horrible case of food poisoning you could ever imagine. I didn't have a jacket or shoes. In SF. It was... unpleasant.
But I won!
But I won!
This hotel I am staying in for trial may be the grimmest place I have ever stayed and that includes the room in Budapest I shared with several Swiss and a monkey
February 4, 2026 at 3:45 AM
Some years ago, I spent the night/morning before an oral argument at the 9th Cir in the ER with the most horrible case of food poisoning you could ever imagine. I didn't have a jacket or shoes. In SF. It was... unpleasant.
But I won!
But I won!