Andrew Kerr New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called for a “full investigation” on Friday of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s handling of nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ocasio-Cortez’s statement follows moves by the Democratic leaders of the state Senate to strip Cuomo of his emergency powers after a top Cuomo aide told state lawmakers that the…
Cate Varney, University of Virginia When researchers began to develop what they hoped would be an effective COVID-19 vaccine, they already knew that H1N1 influenza – a novel virus, like COVID-19 – more severely affected patients with overweight or obesity. Patients with a body mass index of 30 or above had a higher risk of…
Chuck Ross Nine officials in the New York state department of health have resigned in recent months, during the height of the coronavirus pandemic, over frustrations with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, according to a report from The New York Times. The health department’s deputy commissioner for public health resigned in late summer, according to…
Andrew Trunsky Ten Senate Republicans released a $618 billion counterproposal to President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package hours before they meet in hopes of finding some common ground, but the two proposals have far more differences than similarities. The $618 billion package only slightly resembles that of the Biden administration, whose proposal is…
By Mikhail Timonin The COVID-19 pandemic has ravaged the world for the last year, and continues to be a threat even now as vaccines are being distributed worldwide. Lockdowns in most countries have resulted in millions of jobs lost, economies tanking, as well as countless businesses going bankrupt. The US government’s attempts to mitigate the…
The pandemic has shaken the foundations of American education to the core. Students have been shifted to online schooling or alternative learning methods with no notice. People are trying to make due, but what this is showing parents is that the education system is inadequate. This is no shock, considering most people were dissatisfied with…
For months, Americans were told by many scientists and media that lockdowns were necessary until a vaccine for COVID-19 was available, even though it was unclear when that would be. Two vaccines have since been approved for use, but the virus is claiming lives faster than ever in large part because officials are struggling to…
The disaster that was 2020 is finally over. Now it’s time for the inevitable post-mortems. First and foremost, the COVID-19 pandemic posed enormous challenges to American institutions, and continues to do so. Frankly, we were not prepared. We need to diagnose what went wrong, so that we are never caught unaware like this again. Fortunately,…
State unemployment agencies aren’t especially responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars even in the best of times. Yet when the COVID-19 crisis and government lockdowns put tens of millions of Americans out of work, Congress responded by pouring more taxpayer money into state-level unemployment systems. The federal legislation enormously increased weekly payouts and expanded unemployment benefits…
The end of the COVID-19 pandemic may now be in sight, with two vaccines making the rounds and a few more on the way. As of now, they are only available for “high risk” persons (the elderly, health care workers, educators, and such.) It won’t be long until they’re available for the general public, though….