With coronavirus outbreaks on the rise in the U.S., we turn our attention to COVID-19 for today’s episode. First, epidemiology researcher Robyn Gershon discusses American public health infrastructure, disaster preparedness, and the effects of the epidemic on healthcare and service-industry workers.

Then, Oakland-based journalist Alexis Madrigal gives a breakdown of his round-the-clock research for The Atlantic about U.S. data on coronavirus infections. You can read his latest coronavirus-related writing here, including his most recent article, co-authored with Robinson Meyer, “The Strongest Evidence Yet that America is Botching Coronavirus Testing.”

Robyn Gershon is a clinical professor of epidemiology at the NYU School of Global Public Health. Her research focuses on occupational and environmental health and safety, particularly in the areas of disaster preparedness, healthcare safety, and risk assessment and management in high-risk work occupations.

Alexis Madrigal is a staff writer at The Atlantic. He is the author of Powering the Dream: The History and Promise of Green Technology (Da Capo Press, 2011) and curator of the 5it newsletter.