President Joe Biden has picked a top Democratic aide named Gene Sperling to oversee spending of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan designed to lift the economy from the devastation of the pandemic. Sperling had served under both Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama as director of the National Economic Council. The President, together with Vice President Kamala Harris are embarking on a tour of the nation called “Help is here,” to promote the benefits of the plan. According to Associated Press, “The White House has detailed a theme for each day, scheduling a focus on small businesses, schools, warding off evictions, and direct checks.” Meanwhile Axios reported that Goldman Sachs economists are predicting an 8% growth of the U.S. economy, which if correct, “would mark the largest economic expansion for the U.S. in generations.” According to Axios, “Not only would 8% annual growth denote a stupendous turnaround from the coronavirus pandemic, it would significantly outpace the firm’s growth expectations for the U.S. from as recently as late 2020.”  To fund the American Rescue Plan, Mr. Biden is planning to raise taxes, which according to a report in The Hill includes, “raising the corporate tax from 21 percent to 28 percent; increasing the income tax rate on people making more than $400,000; expanding the estate tax; paring back tax preferences on pass-through businesses such as limited-liability companies; and setting up a higher capital gains tax rate for individuals making at least $1 million.” 

As vaccinations continue ramping up across the U.S. parent groups are demanding that schools reopen fully after a year of remote education. There were several protests over the weekend in cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles. Their demands were underscored by a new report showing that a year into the pandemic, at least 12 million school-aged children continue to have no access to the internet. Meanwhile a group of scientists say that their research revealed social distancing between children in a school environment does not need to follow the 6-foot guidelines and that 3 feet of space between kids is just as good at preventing Covid-19 infections from spreading. On Sunday, the nation’s top infectious diseases expert Dr. Anthony Fauci was asked about the research on school re-openings on CNN. And a new report has found that the pandemic’s impact on the mental health of young people has been quite serious. A U.S. based non-profit group called Sapien Labs surveyed nearly 50,000 young people in 8 countries and concluded that more than a quarter of them are at risk of being diagnosed with clinical mental health disorders. 

Among the surprising health impacts related to the pandemic are lead poisoning of children. The stay-at-home orders of the past year have result...