Covid-19 tore through Mississippi’s Black population in the pandemic’s early days, but community efforts slowed the rate. Now health officials and community leaders aim to replicate the success as they dole out vaccines.
Category: Vaccines
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The Return of the Public Option
Lawmakers are working on fleshing out the concept of a “public option,” a government-run or heavily regulated insurance plan that would compete with private insurance. But the details are complicated, both substantively and politically. Meanwhile, bioethicists are debating whether the U.S. should be vaccinating low-risk adolescents against covid-19 while high-risk adults in other countries are still waiting. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Rachana Pradhan of KHN join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.
Corporations Encourage Employee Vaccination but Stop Short of Mandates
Public health officials fear that requiring jabs on the job would create a noisy, counterproductive backlash.
If You Are Vaccinated, You Can Dance the Night Away
After being closed for 14 months because of the pandemic, a North Carolina nightclub reopens. But now, in addition to showing an ID to gain entry, patrons also must show their vaccination cards.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Roe v. Wade on the Ropes
The newly conservative Supreme Court will hear a case that could overturn the nationwide right to abortion and cause political upheaval. Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s abrupt announcement that vaccinated people can take off their masks in most places has caused upheaval of its own. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet and Mary Ellen McIntire of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.
Stark Racial Disparities Persist in Vaccinations, State-Level CDC Data Shows
Black Americans’ vaccination rates still trail all other groups, while Hispanics show improvement. Native Americans show the strongest rates nationally.
What Does Approval of the Pfizer Vaccine for Teens and Preteens Mean for My Child?
The federal government has extended the emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to preteens and young adolescents, adding nearly 17 million more Americans to the pool of those eligible to be immunized against covid-19.
Listen: Pandemics, Patents and Profits
KHN’s Julie Rovner joins The Atlantic’s “Social Distance” podcast, hosted by Dr. James Hamblin and Maeve Higgins, to talk about President Joe Biden’s support for an initiative to waive patent protection for covid vaccines and the politics of drug policy in the United States.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Drug Price Effort Hits a Snag
Democratic leaders in Congress have vowed to pass legislation to address high prescription drug prices this year, but some moderates in their own party appear to be balking. Meanwhile, younger teens are now eligible for a covid-19 vaccine and the Biden administration reinstated anti-discrimination policy for LGBTQ people in health care. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.
Latinos Are the Most Eager to Get Vaccinated, Survey Shows — But Face Obstacles
A new survey shows that unvaccinated Hispanics are almost twice as likely as unvaccinated Blacks or whites to want a covid vaccination. But many still face a variety of access problems, ranging from fear to time squeeze.
