Barbara Mantel is AHCJ’s health beat leader for freelancing and has written about subjects such as how to find and keep an accountability partner, how to tap the rich resources at libraries and how to break into narrative journalism. Mantel, an award-winning journalist, began her journalism career as the economics reporter and then assistant managing editor of a business news program on ESPN television. She moved to NPR as its economics and business correspondent and later served as the first senior editor, senior producer and director of the public radio program “Science Friday.” Mantel’s byline has appeared in a wide range of media outlets, including CQ Researcher, AARP, Undark, Next Avenue, Medical Economics, Healthline, NBCNews.com, Today.com, NPR and The New York Times. Tara Haelle is AHCJ’s health beat leader for infectious diseases and medical studies. She’s an independent science/health journalist, author, speaker, and photographer. Her work has appeared in the National Geographic, Scientific American, Texas Monthly, Science News, Medscape/WebMD, The New York Times, Wired, and O Magazine, among others. She specializes in public health and medical research, particularly vaccines, infectious disease, maternal and pediatric health, mental health, healthcare disparities, and misinformation. She also covers medical research conferences and edits Long COVID Connection on Medium. Haelle earned a master’s in photojournalism from the University of Texas at Austin, and her images have appeared in Texas Monthly, NPR, the, Chicago Sun-Times and elsewhere.