Meg Tirrell joined CNBC in April 2014 as a general assignment reporter focusing on biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. She appears on CNBC's Business Day programming, contributes to CNBC.com and is based at the network's global headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, N.J. Tirrell has covered development of new drugs for Alzheimer's, cancer and rare diseases, and tracked public health emergencies from Ebola to Zika. Her work has explored why fewer drugs are developed for children, chronicled the sequencing of her own genome, and followed the manufacturing of a flu shot from egg to pharmacy. In 2014, she revealed the agonizing decision-making behind Compassionate Use of unapproved drugs, and in 2016, she reported extensively on drug pricing controversies and the impact of politics on development of new medicines. Prior to joining CNBC, Tirrell covered the biotechnology industry for Bloomberg News, where she also contributed to Bloomberg Television and Bloomberg Businessweek. She holds a master's degree in journalism from Northwestern University and a bachelor's degree in English and music from Wellesley College.