By Janelle Stecklein | Editor
“They think they’re doing the right thing, and they go online and they get onto a site that creates confusion and eventually could cause harm to them or their children.” - Dr. Steven Crawford of a growing number of children not being vaccinated
A nurse vaccinates a child at the Latino Community Development Agency through the Oklahoma Caring Foundation's Caring Van program on July 9, 2026 in Oklahoma City. (Photo by Courtney Bell/Oklahoma Voice)
By Courtney Bell
Cecilia Ramirez spends her summer crisscrossing the Oklahoma City area.
She drives a van decorated with smiling cartoon kids and suns designed to look like they were drawn with chalk. Her van is stocked with all the vaccinations necessary for Oklahoma school enrollment, such as tetanus, measles and polio. It also has some immunizations that are recommended but not required, like meningitis and human papillomavirus.
Ramirez’s van is one of several operated by the Blue Cross Blue Shield’s Oklahoma Caring Foundation that travels around the state to administer free vaccines to children who are uninsured or on Medicaid and who otherwise might not be able to easily access them.
A dog walks along a wooded trail in a Maryland park. Ticks are commonly found in wooded and grassy habitats, and the lone star tick has expanded well beyond its historic range in the Southeast. (Photo by Amanda Watford/Stateline)
By Amanda Watford
As ticks spread into new parts of the country and emergency room visits for tick bites climb higher than usual, states are scrambling to monitor where the pests are showing up, what diseases they may be carrying and how to warn residents before a bite turns into something far more serious.
The Oklahoma Forensic Center in Vinita provides court-ordered mental health treatment to criminal defendants who have been deemed incompetent to stand trial. (Photo by Sierra Pfeifer/KOSU)
By Sierra Pfeifer, KOSU
More than a year after it was due, the state’s plan to provide court-ordered treatment for Oklahoma defendants found incompetent to stand trial has been approved by the consultants overseeing a high-profile consent decree.
A black bear clings to a tree trunk in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve in this undated photo. (Photo provided by the National Park Service)
By James Brooks
An Alaska state lawmaker saved another from a black bear in front of the Alaska State Capitol.
A demonstrator, visibly doused in pepper spray, reacts during a federal raid at Bro-Tex, a paper distributor St. Paul Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025. Courageous citizenship may again be required this year to ensure a free and fair election. (Photo by Nicole Neri/Minnesota Reformer)
OPINION
By J. Patrick Coolican
The feckless response of American elites to President Donald Trump’s authoritarian attempt the past decade has often been a failure of imagination: Oh, surely he’ll leave office after he loses. Oh, his immigration officers surely won’t roam our streets racially profiling people and killing our neighbors.
ICYMI
Thanks for reading The Word on Oklahoma. Did you know our weekend digest is also free? Sign up here. And if you enjoyed today’s edition, please forward to a friend. Increasing our readership helps us cover more news.