Reopening America

To get back to work, companies are trying to secure tests for their workers. Amazon, for example, is looking for ways to test employees regular including building its own testing lab. But there is a big discussion of the best way to proceed. Will employers need more diagnostic tests or would it be better for antibody tests? Then there are also questions about costs, supply, and concerns about employee privacy. Sarah Krouse, reporter for the WSJ, joins us for how employers want to ramp up their own testing capabilities.

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A look at the initial stumbles by the CDC in making testing kits. The roll out of testing kits was initially delayed because of faulty CDC test kits with contaminated components. The worse part of it is, that the component that was contaminated was not critical to detecting the virus. It took more than a month for the CDC to get back on track and prevented the U.S. from ramping up at the beginning of the outbreak here. David Willman, investigative reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for more.

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As we continue to track and monitor the spread of COVID-19 cases across the country one important metric is the total death count. But depending on which state we are getting numbers from, these deaths can be tallied in very different ways. Some states only count the death if there is a confirmed laboratory test, others count probable cases of coronavirus. Some, like Dr. Deborah Birx say a death should count to the total tally if someone has COVID-19 regardless of the cause of death, others wouldn’t count it if someone for example died by a heart attack. All of these inconsistencies amount to what could be an undercount in official numbers. Emma Brown, reporter at the Washington Post, joins us for which deaths count toward the COVID-19 death toll.

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Coronavirus and social distancing has disrupted the power of touch. While we maintain distance, things like the handshake may be dying, you can’t hug a friend or loved one, and some feel like they may be in touch isolation. So what does this mean for how we connect with each other when this is all over? It may take some time to get things back to normal and feel comfortable with the way we touch and want to be touched. In the mean time, experts agree you should give your skin whatever it needs to make it feel its best. Tim Teeman, senior editor at the Daily Beast, joins us for a conversation about the power of touch… its importance and how it might comeback.

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There is still so much yet to be learned about the novel coronavirus causing the pandemic we are currently in. One such thing we still don’t fully understand is the origin of the virus itself. State Department cables dating back to 2015 warned of safety issues at a Wuhan lab studying bat coronaviruses and potential human transmission. So while it seems that the coronavirus was probably not engineered in a lab, could it have somehow escaped from that lab. Josh Rogin, columnist from the Washington Post who obtained these State Department cables, joins us for what we know.

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We taking a look inside Italy’s fight against COVID-19. Isobel Yeung, senior correspondent at Vice News was embedded in the Lombardy region of Italy, a global hotspot for the coronavirus. While she was there she reported from the Papa Giovanni Hospital and spoke to doctors in the ER and ICU about their experiences treating patients, she spoke with local residents about how their lives have changed and if they feel things are getting any better. Isobel also went to a local funeral to observe how social distancing has affected the whole thing. It is an emotional and informative look into how the pandemic has changed Italy and you can see it all on Vice TV. Isobel joins us for more.

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Throughout this pandemic, there are those ready to take advantage of others with fake cures, scams and price gouging. One huge scam that came to light recently involved a union group in CA that was supposed to buy 39 million masks, the only problem… the masks never existed and the union was duped by a supposed broker in Australia and supplier in Kuwait. Adam Elmahrek, investigative reporter at the LA Times, joins us for more.

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As the country gets ready to re-open the economy, states are already preparing test-and-trace programs that will help in the effort. Massachusetts, Utah, and North Dakota are among those working on a comprehensive strategy that includes increased testing and contact tracing that will monitor those that are infected and their close contacts. Emma Court, health reporter at Bloomberg News, joins us for how technology will play a major role.

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As 17 million Americans file claims for unemployment, many are having problems completing the process online. For some states, the problem is rooted in crashing websites due to a decades old coding language known as COBOL that almost no one knows. There aren’t many programmers that are fluent in this language as most systems have modernized. Makena Kelly, policy reporter at The Verge, joins us for why some unemployment checks are being held up.

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As we continue to monitor the effect that social distancing and closing down large parts of the economy is having on the country we are beginning to see a second round of layoffs. People who thought they were safe are increasingly facing unemployment. Employees working from home, government employees, and even some healthcare workers are all in danger the longer that business is shut down. Harriet Torry, economics reporter at the WSJ, join us for round two of job losses.

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