Reopening America

More than 1 million Americans are still waiting for unemployment aid. Deep backlogs are contributing to some not getting financial aid, but also to blame are extensive fraud prevention checks, old computer systems, and applications getting flagged for extra scrutiny. Any claim set aside for a manual review can take months to resolve. Heather Long, economic correspondent at the Washington Post, joins us for more.

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The rollout of the vaccines so far in the U.S. has been moving at a slower pace than expected. In California, where the state is experiencing huge coronavirus numbers and shortages of equipment and oxygen, only 35% of doses that have arrived have been administered. Colleen Shalby, reporter at the LA Times, joins us for why the rollout hasn’t gone as expected and what Gov. Newsom is planning to speed things up.

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The new variant of the coronavirus that was found in the U.K. has now made its way into the U.S. The mutated virus is more transmissible, but not more severe and has been found Colorado, California, Florida and most recently, New York. People infected with the new variant are thought to have greater concentrations of the virus in their noses and throats. Apoorva Mandavilli, reporter at the NY Times, joins us for how Covid is spreading faster.

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The coronavirus is mutating, and while we should be cautious, there is no cause for alarm yet. A new variant of the virus has appeared in the U.K. that officials said could spread up to 70% faster, but luckily, the variant doesn’t seem to be any more severe. Some have expressed concern that it might become resistant to the current vaccines rolling out. The worries are focused on whether the new strain is less vulnerable to certain antibodies. Apoorva Mandavilli, reporter at the NY Times, joins us for what we know about this new Covid variant.

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The airline industry is looking to more testing as a way to make people feel safer while flying. What will that look like? Think testing sites at airports, adding results to passenger records, and offering flights only for tested passengers. While it may help, some caution that tests aren’t always reliable and fake negative-tests certificates already making the rounds. Scott McCartney, Middle Seat columnist at the WSJ, joins us for more.

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A CDC panel over the weekend has made its recommendations on who is next in line to receive the two vaccines we have available so far. What is called Phase 1b, will see first responders such as police and firefighters, other frontline workers like teachers and grocery workers and also people over 75 get the vaccine. Karen Weintraub, health reporter at USA Today, joins us for who’s next in getting the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines.

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The disruption that the pandemic has caused to the education system has ranged from kids having to transition to remote learning, parents experiencing burnout trying to help their kids learn and balance work life, but it has also caused a teacher shortage. Early retirements and quarantines are forcing some school administrators to recruit parents as substitute teachers, increase class sizes, and even use bus drivers to babysit classrooms. Arizona in particular has been hit hard by a shortage of teachers and many say that educational achievement has suffered because of it. Valerie Bauerlein, national reporter at the WSJ, joins us for more.

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The pandemic has accelerated the exit of many Americans from big cities and tax heavy states to cheaper ones that can provide lower costs, bigger living spaces, and a better quality of life. New York and California have seen a big exodus and people are moving to places like Texas and Florida. Austin, gained the most people between April and October this year. Misyrlena Egkolfopoulou, reporter at Bloomberg News, joins us for how the pandemic is speeding up relocations.

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As coronavirus vaccines are rolling out, the big question is… Who is next in line? A CDC panel is meeting this weekend to discuss recommendations for who will get the vaccine after healthcare workers and residents of nursing homes. Groups such as teachers, firefighters, and even camp counselors are lobbying to be next. Rachel Roubein, health care reporter at Politico, joins us for who are the next most essential group.

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The novel coronavirus has been with us for about a year now, we have vaccines rolling out and know a lot about the virus that has wreaked havoc on the world, but we also still have many questions. It is a virus of contrasts… it’s dangerous enough to send some to the hospital and kill over 1.6 million people worldwide, but mild enough for many to recover quickly or be asymptomatic. Andrew Joseph, reporter at STAT News, joins us for what we know about coronavirus one year in.

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