April 23, 2022

Pfizer’s COVID-19 pill could soon be easier to find

23 minutes

Today on Economics on Tap, we’re talking about the Biden administration’s plan to make Paxlovid, Pfizer’s COVID-19 antiviral pill, available in pharmacies across the United States. It might be easier said than done. Plus, Iran has tolerated economic sanctions for decades. Will the same hold true for Russia? We’ll also discuss the speedy demise of CNN+ and Google’s time-lapsed images showing the effects of climate change. We end with a round of Half Full/Half Empty. Today’s categories: Netflix (with ads!), a slowed-down U.S. Postal Service, Earth Day, national parks reservation systems and the return of Taco Bell’s Mexican pizza.

Here’s everything we talked about on the show today:

“Earth Day 2022” from Google

“Pfizer Paxlovid Covid Pill Will Soon Be Available Across the US in Biden Plan” from Bloomberg

“Iran Shows Why Sanctioning Russia Won’t Stop Putin’s War in Ukraine” from Foreign Policy

“CNN+ Streaming Service Will Shut Down Weeks After Its Start” from The New York Times

“Streaming services are embracing cheaper, ad-supported tiers” from Marketplace

“USPS slowing first-class package delivery to lower costs” from The Hill

“Trash or Recycling? Why Plastic Keeps Us Guessing” from The New York Times

“Reservation systems may be here to stay at popular national parks” from Marketplace

“Taco Bell is bringing back the Mexican pizza — and South Asians are rejoicing” from NPR

Tell us what you think about today’s show. Email us at [email protected] or leave us a voice message at 508-827-6278, or 508-U-B-SMART.

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