Barbara Feder Ostrov


Kaiser Health News

Barbara Feder Ostrov, Senior Correspondent for California Healthline, has reported on medicine and health policy for more than 15 years. She covered the medical beat for the San Jose Mercury News for eight years and edited the website of the Center for Health Journalism at the USC Annenberg School of Journalism. She previously worked at The Palm Beach Post and the Miami Herald. Her work also has been published in The Boston Globe, Ms. Magazine, Atlantic.com, PBS NewsHour, NPR, CNN.com and EverydayHealth.com. She has won awards from the Society for Women’s Health Research, the California Newspaper Publishers Association and the Florida Press Club. She is based in San Jose, California.

From this contributor

Explore more from The Transmitter

Nachum Ulanovsky sits against a black background with one bat in his hands and another with its wings spread above his head.

Diving in with Nachum Ulanovsky

With an eye toward realism, the neuroscientist, who has a new study about bats out today, creates microcosms of the natural world to understand animal behavior.

By Claudia López Lloreda
16 October 2025 | 14 min listen
Developing human fetus.

Gene-activity map of developing brain reveals new clues about autism’s sex bias

Boys and girls may be vulnerable to different genetic changes, which could help explain why the condition is more common in boys despite linked variants appearing more often in girls.

By Giorgia Guglielmi
16 October 2025 | 6 min listen
Research image of astrocytic activation in mice.

Engrams in amygdala lean on astrocytes to solidify memories

Disrupting the astrocyte-neuronal dynamic in mice destabilizes their memory of fear conditioning.

By Lauren Schneider
15 October 2025 | 6 min listen

privacy consent banner

Privacy Preference

We use cookies to provide you with the best online experience. By clicking “Accept All,” you help us understand how our site is used and enhance its performance. You can change your choice at any time. To learn more, please visit our Privacy Policy.