Eilís O'Neill
Reporter
About
Eilís is a reporter covering health. She focuses on health inequities, substance use and addiction, infectious diseases, mental health, and reproductive and maternal health.
Eilís came to KUOW in 2016. Before that, she worked as a freelance reporter, first in South America, and then in New York City. Her work has aired on NPR’s Morning Edition and All Things Considered, APM’s Marketplace, Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting, and other programs.
Eilís' work as part of a team covering Covid-19 outbreaks and vaccine hesitation in Washington won a regional Murrow award, as did a series about children who lost parents to Covid-19. Her series about the opioid crisis on the Olympic Peninsula won several regional Society for Professional Journalists awards as well as a national Public Media Journalists Association award.
Eilís grew up in Seattle and was a high school intern at KUOW, in the program that later became RadioActive. She has a Master's in Science, Health, and Environment Reporting from Columbia University. She lives in Seattle with her husband and two children.
Location: Seattle
Languages: English, Spanish
Pronouns: she/her
Stories
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Worst whooping cough outbreak in a decade has infected thousands
Whooping cough is spreading nationwide at the highest levels since 2014. There have been about 17,500 cases this year — more than four times as many compared to the same time last year — and four confirmed deaths. And experts are concerned that the outbreak could worsen in the fall and winter months.
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Washington offered state Medicaid to undocumented adults. Thousands still don't have coverage
Washington state has extended new health insurance options to undocumented immigrants, but thousands of people who are eligible are still waiting for coverage.
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King County gives away lockboxes to keep guns from being stolen, accidentally fired
King County public health officials hope homes in the area will be a little safer after the county gave away thousands of firearm lockboxes.
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Mayor Harrell wants to triple Seattle's spending on opioid treatment
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell has unveiled his public health priorities for the 2025 budget. He proposes tripling the amount of money the city is spending on opioid treatment: from $5.33 million to $14.57 million.
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Seattle's free and subsidized preschool program still has room for 600 kids
Seattle has expanded its program offering free and subsidized preschool to hundreds of families each year, and there are about 600 open seats still available for this school year.
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'I didn’t know it existed.' Why young people are the least vaccinated in Seattle area
Seventy-one percent of King County residents never got the last booster. And young people are the least likely to get the vaccine: Only 18% of people ages 18 to 34 got last year’s shot.
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In Seattle area, 988 mental health hotline supports tens of thousands in crisis
When people call 988, they get immediate help — but from a trained crisis counselor instead of law enforcement or paramedics. So far, close to 100,000 people have called or texted 988 from Puget Sound-based area codes.
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Need anti-withdrawal meds? In King County, call this 24/7 hotline
People addicted to opioids in King County can call a new hotline and get a prescription right away for a drug that can help.
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King County offers free clinics to help kids catch up on their shots
Kids got behind on their vaccines during and after the pandemic. To try to turn things around, free clinics in many South King County locations will offer vaccines.
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Kaiser midwives no longer deliver babies in Seattle, even as demand increases
Kaiser Capitol Hill is a midwifery practice that will stop delivering babies in early 2025, shutting down an option for hundreds of moms who worked with this group every year. In recent years, families expecting babies have increasingly sought midwifery care; women often choose midwives when they want more time with their provider or are hoping to avoid medical interventions, like epidurals or C-sections.