Prognosis: Misconception

Covid-19 is on the rise around the country. Texas and Florida, two of the most populous U.S. states, reported record numbers of new infections on Sunday. The recent surge in those states and others has led public-health officials to worry that reopening the economy has come at too grave a cost. What's clear is that between reopening policies, weariness with staying home, and large protests around the country, Americans are moving around and interacting more than they have in months. Emma Court has been covering what is increasingly looking like a second wave of the virus.

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When the country went into lockdown this spring, it forced kids to adapt to a new life at home. The adjustment for them--and their parents -- has been huge. Experts still aren’t sure what will happen in the upcoming school year, meaning kids could be living in quarantine for much longer. Kristen V. Brown reports on what we how children are coping with the virus so far.

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The coronavirus is hitting Latin America in ways unseen in the developed world. In Mexico, Covid-19 is savaging a health care system that was already inadequate. Doctors and nurses in Mexico say they lack masks and gloves. Hospitals are at 80% capacity in Mexico City. More than 20,000 health care workers have caught the virus. Nacha Cattan reports on what happens when a crisis hits a system that was unprepared, and underfunded, in the best of times.

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A top World Health Organization official sparked a controversy earlier this week when she said cases of asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19 spreading the virus are "very rare.” She later clarified her remarks. That provided a moment to explore the debate over so-called silent spreaders -- people who don't get sick after they're infected with the virus -- and their role in its transmission.

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Never in the modern scientific era have so many people been infected with the same virus in such a short period of time. For many survivors of coronavirus, symptoms hang on for weeks or even months. Bloomberg senior editor Jason Gale reports on efforts for finding ways to prevent such cases of post-Covid-19 illness in the future.

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The controversial drug is back in the news. In the early days of the pandemic, President Trump and some doctors touted it as an effective treatment. But studies soon discredited the treatment. Now, in an unexpected twist, some research papers dismissing the drug have also been thrown in doubt. So how useful is Hydroxychloroquine and how reliable are the reviews we rely on to assess a drug's safety? Laura Carlson speaks to Bloomberg reporters Michelle Cortez and Robert Langreth for answers.

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Madrid was one of Europe’s hardest hit cities by the coronavirus, but now it's coming back to life. We explore how the reopening is going as Bloomberg reporter Jeannette Neumann talks to owners of some of the hundreds of bars, restaurants, and hotels that dot the city.

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Social distancing has been the guiding principle in how to open up the U.S. amid the pandemic. But no one could have foreseen the densely-packed protests after George Floyd’s death in police custody. Could the protests now set off a new wave of infections? Bloomberg’s Michelle Cortez spoke to scientists about that possibility. What they have to say is not reassuring.

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Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley insists that the long-delayed drug-price bill he is co-sponsoring will get a vote this year. Grassley worries that if the bill doesn't pass, drugmakers will charge whatever they want for Covid-19 related drugs. But drug lobbyists are counting on the coronavirus making drug pricing reform obsolete. Emma Court and Riley Griffin spoke to Senator Grassley about the bill.

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At least 21,000 New Yorkers are dead from Covid-19, with a few dozen added to the city’s count every day. The city’s deaths are 10 times those of Los Angeles County’s. They’ve surpassed the 16,000 lives lost in Italy’s hard-hit Lombardy region. Drew Armstrong reviewed the statements of experts, officials, and politicians to better understand the root causes of New York City’s devastating outbreak.

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