In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with Dr. Robert Kim-Farley, professor of epidemiology and community health sciences at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. 

Topics today include: 

• Omicron variant spreads in CA as mask order takes effect. 
• Will we always need COVID-19 boosters? 
• Broadway is canceling shows due to positive tests, and we’ve heard about the uptick in positive cases among athletes, too.  
  
  • Is there something about these environments that just makes transmission more likely? 
  • Are infections inevitable in an environment like this at this point in the pandemic as other things are opening more? 
• Met Opera to require booster shots for staff and audience and the shifting definition of “fully-vaccinated”. 
• L.A. County falls far behind Bay Area in vaccinating Black, Latino residents. 

This program is made possible in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.