Prognosis: Misconception

The U.S. vaccine supply is poised to double in the coming weeks and months, according to an analysis by Bloomberg, allowing a broad expansion of doses administered across the country. Covid-19 vaccine manufacturers and U.S. officials have accelerated their production timelines, and Drew Armstrong reports that the spigots are about to open, providing hundreds of millions of doses just as pharmacies...

As vaccines roll out across the U.S., logistics and supply are just some of the challenges in making sure everyone has equal access to the vaccine. Angelica LaVito reports how one Boston health system is also confronting another major problem in vaccine distribution: a long history of racial inequity in the U.S. healthcare system. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Doctors and nurses can feel as if they’re living in two worlds. One in which patients are getting sick and dying from the coronavirus, and another in which people deny the virus is real. Emergency room physician Mike Hunihan describes what it’s like to live and work with that dissonance. Today's special episode is a collaboration with Tradeoffs, a podcast about our costly, complicated and counter-...

On the outskirts of Marburg, a small college town in Germany, coronavirus vaccine manufacturer BioNTech has spent five frantic months renovating one of its factories to produce mRNA. Demand for the vaccine has been so massive that the Pfizer-BioNTech partnership can’t meet it with its existing facilities--hence the race to retrofit factories that weren't initially designed to support the vaccine....

Just two months ago, the incredible performance of new vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer had people cheering for an imminent end to the pandemic. But an onslaught of fast-spreading and potentially dangerous mutations of the virus changed that. So now, even as pharma companies ramp up production in the early stages of a massive rollout, they are racing to retool their vaccine strategies. Robert Lang...

This weekend, Chicago Public Schools reached a tentative agreement with its teachers to resume in-person learning later this week. The deal isn’t final, and it’s the latest in a series of tense back-and-forth between the city’s schools and its teachers union. The bitter fight in Chicago echoes other big cities. Shruti Singh reports that tensions have escalated coast to coast between unions fearing...

When we’re coming down with a cold or are feeling a bit stressed, or perhaps even exhibiting the first symptoms of COVID-19: minute changes to our voice are often one of the first indicators that something is wrong. These vocal biomarkers are often beyond what a human can detect: but what if an app on your phone could? Health reporter Michelle Fay Cortez recently spoke to David Liu, CEO of Sonde H...

Joe Biden’s new Covid-19 czar is a former business executive and Biden ally named Jeff Zients, who is little known to most Americans. Zients doesn’t have a medical or military background, like the two men who ran Operation Warp Speed, the Trump Administration’s vaccine delivery program. Anna Edney reports that the posting will test Zients’s reputation with Democrats in Washington as the go-to-guy...

Since Pfizer and Moderna vaccine shipments in the U.S. began in mid-December, the priority has been doctors, nurses and other professionals likely to come in contact with the novel coronavirus. But health care workers who aren’t with hospitals and major health systems say they’re being overlooked. Elise Young reports that thousands of health-care workers are still seeking vaccinations even as stat...

Rochelle Walensky, the new leader of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, faces two difficult missions at the same time: Leading the agency’s Covid-19 response and trying to restore the agency’s stature, post-Trump. I talked to John Tozzi reports on the job ahead for Walensky, and how she plans to achieve it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The U.S. is struggling to monitor Covid-19 variants, a key part of watching for the emergence of dangerous mutations that might spread quickly, evade vaccines or kill more infected people. The country ranks 32nd in the world for the number of tests it’s done to detect mutations per 1,000 Covid cases. Kristen V. Brown reports that other countries, like the U.K., have established robust, nationwide...

President Joe Biden has vowed to reopen most U.S. schools in his first 100 days. But that could ignite clashes among teachers, their unions and parents over how to do that safely. Petitions and potential teacher strikes loom, even while parents watch children struggle online. Nic Querolo reports that the issue has been one of the toughest pandemic challenges for local policymakers. See omnystudio....

Vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna and others will have the power to one day end the pandemic, or at least tame it—but only after 70 percent or more of the world’s population gets inoculated against Covid-19. So far, the rollout has been anything but smooth. Big drugstores say they’re ready to come to the rescue. Robert Langreth and Angelica Lavito describe the potentially massive vaccine infrastructur...

In a race to catch up with emerging coronavirus variants, wealthy countries are already benefiting from potent vaccines. While the U.S., Britain and European Union have given citizens about 24 million doses so far -- more than half of the shots administered globally -- vast numbers of countries have yet to begin their campaigns. James Paton reports that these disparities pose a threat to both have...

Everyone is fighting the same coronavirus, but nearly a year into the pandemic, quality of life and control of the pathogen’s spread look vastly different across the world. Bloomberg’s Covid Resilience Ranking scores the largest 53 economies on their success at containing the virus with the least amount of social and economic disruption. Rachel Chang discusses the data and the analysis that went i...

An accelerating rush to give coronavirus vaccines to Americans has caused confusion over who can get a shot when. And the difficulty getting shots -- or even information about the vaccine -- is complicating the push toward widespread immunity. Michelle Fay Cortez reports on what’s gone wrong with the vaccine rollout so far, and whether the upcoming Biden administration’s plans will improve it. See...

Most states have prioritized health-care workers in their vaccination programs. But across the country, vaccine providers are finding that some of those workers don’t want the shot. Nurses and firefighters are among those questioning its safety after approval in record time. Elise Young reports that reluctance to get the shot that could end the pandemic goes well beyond anti-vax activists who spou...

As vaccinations roll out across the country, a few people have incurred serious allergic reactions. Though the rate is very low, it is still higher than that for the seasonal flu vaccine. Despite that, the CDC is sticking with its recommendation that most people should still get the shots. Emma Court explains why. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The United Kingdom’s national health system is in danger of breaking under the weight of its raging Coronavirus outbreak, and the next few weeks will be its biggest challenge yet. The death toll is the highest in Europe and daily infections are at a record. Medical staff say they may be forced to turn people away from hospitals if the latest lockdown fails to stop the spread quickly enough. James...

As states struggle to piece together vaccine strategies without a coordinated national plan, some have resorted to web-based technology for logistical support. The result: they’re lining up appointments using software that’s better suited for arranging volleyball meetups than a historic public health campaign.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Indonesia had planned to prioritize its working-age population for its Covid-19 vaccine. But they recently announced a change of plans: The inoculation program would instead start with healthcare workers, civil servants and the elderly. The government didn’t give a reason for the change, but the shifting procedures show some of the difficulties in coordinating a vaccine rollout for a massive natio...

On today’s special edition of the podcast, we’re revisiting one of our early episodes that took a close look at how the novel coronavirus lived before it entered humans and who it lived in. Bats are almost certainly the source of this pandemic, but these flying mammals may also hold the clues to stopping the next one. Bloomberg senior editor Jason Gale explores how research into bats led to the di...

Scientists have long believed the source of the pandemic can be traced back to bats. Pioneering research by an Australian veterinarian named Dr. Hume Field more than 20 years ago showed why bats are an important host of some of humanity's most feared viruses. Bloomberg senior editor Jason Gale recently caught up with Hume to hear more about how the SARS-CoV-2 virus got from bats to people. Mention...

The approved COVID-19 vaccines developed by Moderna and the Pfizer and BioNTech partnership use genetic material called messenger RNA to effectively transform the body’s own cells into vaccine factories. This approach is a first for vaccines. It relies on decades of clinical research into whether messenger RNA technology can be used to treat a broad range of ailments, from cancer to the seasonal f...

The U.S. has begun a massive vaccination campaign to fight the coronavirus. But the effort will have plenty of challenges, including convincing people to get immunized. It’s not the first time the country has rolled out this kind of public health initiative. John Lauerman spoke with infectious-disease specialist William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University to learn more. See omnystudio.com/listener...