When news broke of an epidemic in Wuhan, China, German scientist Christian Drosten was soon in great demand.

Drosten is one of the world's leading experts on coronaviruses, and, back in 2003, he and a colleague were the first Western scientists to discover SARS after China hid information about that outbreak.

The stock market has never seen a month like March. The Dow notched losses and gains of 1,000 points to as many as 3,000 points in a day in reaction to the coronavirus pandemic and its economic toll.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average has recovered from recent lows, but it's still down nearly 12% this month.

And the blue chip index is 24% below its recent peak in February. At its low on March 23, it was down a staggering 38% from the record high.

What will happen when COVID-19 hits refugee camps?

Eleven veterans have died at a soldiers' home in Holyoke, Mass., where a COVID-19 outbreak is now threatening even more residents and staff. At least five of the people who died have tested positive for COVID-19; other tests are still pending in the case, which Gov. Charlie Baker calls "a shuddering loss for us all."

An additional 11 veterans and five staff members have also tested positive, raising the facility's overall total to more than 20 confirmed cases. More tests are under way to determine the scope of exposure to the coronavirus.

Child care providers around the country have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, with many facing closure even as others struggle to stay open.

At least 12 states have shuttered all child care except for essential workers, according to The Hunt Institute, an education nonprofit. In California, the decision is up to each provider, who must balance the needs of families with the health and safety of workers and children.

Editor's note: NPR will be publishing stories from this investigative series in the weeks ahead, even as we focus our current coverage on the coronavirus pandemic. But here's a look at some of our key findings. You can watch the full documentary film from this investigation on the PBS series Frontline.

Michelle Kuppersmith feels great, works full time and exercises three to four times a week. So she was surprised when a routine blood test found that her body was making too many platelets, which help control bleeding.

Kuppersmith's doctor suspected the 32-year-old Manhattanite had a rare blood disorder called essential thrombocythemia, which can lead to blood clots, strokes and, in rare cases, leukemia.