AirTalk

In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with Dr. Shruti Gohil at UC Irvine’s School of Medicine.

Today’s topics include:

CA launches lotto for vaccinated residents

South Africa prepares for potential virus surge

Vaccinated people won’t need booster shots any time soon, research shows

Experts believe COVID-19 deaths have been undercounted

China’s two Sinopharm vaccines are 73% and 78% effective, study shows

CDC predicts national COVID-19 cases and deaths will fall over next 4 weeks

EU approves Pfizer vaccine for adolescents ages 12-15

Can vaccinated people still spread COVID-19?

Guest:

Shruti Gohil, M.D., professor of medicine and associate medical director for epidemiology and infection prevention at UC Irvine’s School of Medicine

Today on AirTalk, we break down the latest COVID-19 headlines. Also on the show, we round up the biggest news in D.C.; discuss the rise of inflation; and more.

As businesses begin to reopen and workers return back to their workplaces, newly adopted pets are faced with a new struggle: separation anxiety.

During the pandemic, pet adoption has experienced a boom in the United States as new owners looked to find companionship in a stressful time. And that sentiment has largely stayed put.

According to reporting from the New York Times, shelters nationwide have not reported drastic increases in pet returns and abandonment.  The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals conducted a survey and found that 23 million Americans adopted pets nationwide and considered not rehoming the pet post-pandemic. 

But faced with new owners being out of sight, how will these pets adjust?

Today on AirTalk, we discuss how owners returning to the workplace can accommodate their furry friends. Want to weigh in? Call us at (866) 893-5722.

Guests: 

Jill Goldman, certified applied animal behaviorist and the owner of Dr. Jill Goldman Animal Behavior Services in Los Angeles

Marcia Mayeda, director of Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control which is the largest animal sheltering organization in the nation, caring for more than 45,000 animals each year in seven animal care centers located throughout Los Angeles County.

Today, Senate Republicans offered a $928 billion-infrastructure plan to President Biden as part of the slow-moving negotiations over a plan for the country’s roads, bridges and broadband.

This also comes as Biden plans to announce a massive $6 trillion budget that would push the United States to its highest levels of spending since World War II. And the anniversary of George Floyd’s murder by Derek Chauvin highlighted that President Biden’s promised legislation on policing still has been snared in bipartisan negotiations.

Today on AirTalk, we’re getting the latest on politics in DC. Questions? Give us a call at 866-893-5722.

Guest:

Eli Stokols, DC-based White House reporter for The Los Angeles Times; he tweets @elistokols

Commodity prices have been experiencing a significant rise lately. The Labor Department's most recent consumer-price index report showed an increase of 4.2% from April 2020 to April 2021. 

Economists at the Milken Institute believe the severe price pops to be expected as reopenings remain inconsistent in different areas. According to reporting from the Wall Street Journal, investors currently face dwindling solutions to deal with the inflating costs as gold faces near-record prices and U.S. stocks take extended declines. 

Today on AirTalk, we dive into the potential effects inflation would have on consumers and investors.

Guests: 

Delia Fernandez, fee-only certified financial planner and investment advisor with Fernandez Financial Advisory, LLC in Los Alamitos

William Lee, chief economist at the Milken Institute, an economic think tank based in Santa Monica;  he specializes in Asia, trade, the global economy, job creation and more

In the last year as the pandemic has stretched on airlines and the travel industry saw a noticeable decline in tourism and travel. However with both pandemic and  travel restrictions begin to lessen, travelers are eager to get back into the great wide world. This year, AAA forecast a noticeable 60% increase in cross country traveling, that combine with rising gas prices, airline price wars and a return to general travel congestion it’s shaping up to quite an adventurous holiday weekend. Today on AirTalk, we want to know where you’re traveling this weekend? Are you taking a trip, if so how are you getting there? Are you taking any additional safety precautions while traveling? Tell us your plans by calling 866-893-5722.

Guests:

Marie Montgomery-Nordhues, spokesperson for the Automobile Club of Southern California (AAA)

Helane Becker, managing director and senior research analyst covering airlines, air freight and aircraft leasing for Cowen, an independent investment and financial services company based in New York

In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with Dr. Dean Blumberg from UC Davis. 

Today’s topics include:

Immunity to the coronavirus may persist for years, scientists find 

Manitoba, Canada is now the worst COVID-19 hot spot in North America 

Despite California's COVID-19 vaccine process, gaps remain  

First man to get jab William Shakespeare dies of unrelated illness 

CDC director expresses optimism about COVID-19 transmission ahead of Memorial Day weekend 

Six weeks ago some teens under 18 were eligible for the vaccine, what does preliminary data say about its safety?

Guest:

Dean Blumberg, M.D., professor of medicine and chief of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at UC Davis Children’s Hospital; he tweets @DBlumbergPedsID

Today on AirTalk, we break down the latest COVID-19 headlines. Also on the show, we discuss Amazon's acquisition of MGM; talk with SoCal women in the craft beer industry about their 'Me Too' moment; and more.

Earlier in May, Brienne Allan set off what some are calling the craft beer industry’s “Me Too” reckoning.  The production manager at Notch Brewing in Salem, Massachusetts started sharing hundreds of stories of misogyny, sexual assault and workplace discrimination from women in the beer world on her Instagram. 

This led to the firing of a staff member at the San Diego brewery Modern Times, whose CEO also stepped down amid allegations of mishandling complaints and creating a toxic work environment. 

Though the current world of craft beer is male-dominated, for hundreds of years beer brewing was a woman’s task, and there’s even some thinking that iconography associated with witches - brooms, cats and pointy hats - may have originated from alewives. 

We gather a roundtable of SoCal women in craft beer to respond to this moment in the industry and also discuss their own experiences, as well as the history of women in brewing. 

Guests: 

Alexandra Nowell, co-founder and director of brewing operations at Three Weavers Brewing Company in Inglewood 

Ting Su, co-founder of Eagle Rock Brewery, where she also founded a women’s beer forum

Laurie Gutierrez, vice president of SoCal Cerveceros, a latino-based homebrew club, where she heads up an all women brew crew; part time event representative for Sierra Nevada Brewing Company; co-host of The Brew'd Up Podcast, which focuses on homebrewing and craft beer

Frances Michelle Cannon, executive director of the L.A. County Brewers Guild; she is also the associate editor sfor the craft beer news site and podcast TheFullPint; she tweets @FrannyFullPint

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, American mental health has been under tremendous strain— whether from the disease itself, or the economic and social disruption that lockdowns have wrought.

But after over a year of living with COVID-19, reopenings are not the golden ticket to better mental health. Many Americans are struggling with the trauma of losing loved ones to COVID-19. Others feel overwhelmed by the emotional whiplash of constant closures and reopenings, which may leave shaky trust in the institutions that make these decisions. Although vaccines are very effective, for some it is not enough to feel fully confident about resuming life as they lived it before.

Today on AirTalk, we’re discussing mental health during the pandemic and as we move into reopenings. What are you struggling with? How are you coping? Call us at 866-893-5722.

For more information on mental health support, LAist offers a guide with some resources available here.

Guests: 

Miguel Gallardo, professor of psychology at Pepperdine University and licensed psychologist in independent practice

Denise Williams, licensed marriage and family therapist at Well Play: Social Wellness Center