Virginia Hughes

Hi there.

I’m a science editor and occasional writer at the New York Times. I’m also an adjunct professor at NYU’s school of journalism.

Before that, I was the deputy editor-in-chief at BuzzFeed News and its founding science editor. And before that, I was a freelance reporter specializing in genetics, neuroscience, and medicine.

Email Me

Photo by Brian Friedman

Editing

They Were Entitled to Free Care. Hospitals Hounded Them to Pay.

With the help of the McKinsey consulting firm, the Providence hospital system trained staff to wring money out of patients, even those eligible for free care.
How a Hospital Chain Used a Poor Neighborhood to Turn Huge Profits

Bon Secours Mercy Health, a major nonprofit health system, used the poverty of Richmond Community Hospital’s patients to tap into a lucrative federal drug program.
How Nursing Homes’ Worst Offenses Are Hidden From the Public

Thousands of problems identified by state inspectors were never publicly disclosed because of a secretive appeals process, a Times investigation found. (AHCJ award winner)
Phony Diagnoses Hide High Rates of Drugging at Nursing Homes

At least 21 percent of nursing home residents are on dangerous antipsychotic drugs, a Times investigation found. (AHCJ award winner)
Halting Progress and Happy Accidents: How mRNA Vaccines Were Made

The stunning Covid vaccines manufactured by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna drew upon long-buried discoveries made in the hopes of ending past epidemics.
More Trans Teens Are Choosing ‘Top Surgery’

Small studies suggest that breast removal surgery improves transgender teenagers’ well-being, but data is sparse. Some state leaders oppose such procedures for minors.
Doctors Debate Whether Trans Teens Need Therapy Before Hormones

Clinicians are divided over new guidelines that say teens should undergo mental health screenings before receiving hormones or gender surgeries.
Is Covid More Dangerous Than Driving? How Experts Are Parsing Risks.

The coronavirus remains new enough and its long-term effects unpredictable enough that measuring the threat posed by an infection is a thorny problem.
U.S. Has Far Higher Covid Death Rate Than Other Wealthy Countries

Two years into the pandemic, the coronavirus is killing Americans at far higher rates than people in other wealthy nations, a sobering distinction to bear.

Feature Writing

A Brutal Inheritance

Commercial DNA tests showed that Hiram and Bruce were related. But their link proved to be much deeper — and darker — than either could have imagined. BuzzFeed News
Uprooted

Ancestry tests can unearth infidelities, sperm donations and adoptions of your parents and grandparents. Family secrets have never been more vulnerable. Matter
Newton's Unsolved Murders

Forensic genealogy helped nab the Golden State Killer. Now investigators across the country are using it to revisit hundreds of unsolved crimes. The New York Times
The Unbeliever

Lawrence Krauss, a famous atheist and liberal crusader, has been repeatedly accused of harassment. Will his “skeptic” fans believe the evidence? BuzzFeed News
Wake No More

What if you could sleep 50 hours straight and still never feel truly awake? Welcome to the bizarre, distressing, and totally exhausting world of the hypersomniac. Matter

Essays & Reviews

Does It Make Sense to Call Anyone ‘Normal’?

A review of “Nobody’s Normal: How Culture Created the Stigma of Mental Illness.” The New York Times
I Asked My Mom Why She Didn't Vaccinate Me

Her answer shows the power of a trusted doctor. “I was pro-vaccines, really, until Dr. Taylor.” BuzzFeed News
Learning Our Roots

A review of “The Invisible History of the Human Race: How DNA and History Shape Our Identities and Our Futures.” The New York Times
Death's Eternal Logistics

Why would anybody choose this strange little cemetery as their cause célèbre? What’s the point? The Last Word On Nothing
Down the Rabbit Hole

A review of “Reaching Down the Rabbit Hole: A Neurologist Explains the Mystery and Drama of Brain Disease.” The New York Times