What the latest science tells us about the coronavirus
Plus, President Trump’s immigration order contains broad exceptions, and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard is using the contagion to consolidate power.
Apr 23, 2020•16 min
The Daily 202's Big Idea
Start your day with the news you need to know and insights you can’t get anywhere else. Every weekday morning, The Washington Post brings you an insider’s view of the biggest stories of the moment.
Episodes
The coronavirus is killing kids. The numbers are low until it's your child.
Plus, the first coronavirus deaths in America occurred weeks earlier than previously thought, and the CDC director warns that the second wave of the contagion could be even more devastating.
Apr 22, 2020•14 min
EMTs look death in the eye all day, every day
Plus, President Trump says he will sign an order to temporarily suspend immigration, and South Korea’s government says it cannot confirm reports that Kim Jong Un is gravely ill.
Apr 21, 2020•16 min
Coronavirus causing unrest around the world, including ominous signs of much worse to come
Plus, President Trump says the federal government will do more to make swabs available for coronavirus testing, and pro-gun activists are using Facebook groups to push anti-quarantine protests.
Apr 20, 2020•16 min
There’s still no federal testing strategy, even as Trump issues guidelines to reopen economy
Plus, glitches are preventing stimulus checks from reaching millions of Americans, and virus outbreaks are closing meat processing plants.
Apr 17, 2020•15 min
Experts say a chaotic search for coronavirus treatments undermines efforts
Plus, survivors share what it’s like to be alive on the other side of the coronavirus, and as humans stay indoors, wild animals take back what was once theirs.
Apr 16, 2020•11 min
Leaked government planning memo lays out conditions for gradual reopening of the country
Plus, coronavirus checkpoints targeting out-of-state residents draw growing legal scrutiny, and more than 9,000 U.S. health-care workers have been infected with the contagion.
Apr 15, 2020•17 min
South Dakota becomes a hot spot after governor refuses to issue a stay-at-home order
Plus, school closures could severely stunt the development of millions of poor children, and the coronavirus ravages Little Italy in New York.
Apr 14, 2020•14 min
How the coronavirus tricks the body into betraying itself
Plus, demand from coronavirus patients is causing shortages of asthma drugs and sedatives, and experts inside the government say reopening the economy by May 1 may be unrealistic.
Apr 13, 2020•12 min
Hospitals are cutting staff amid the pandemic, and several areas fail a stress test
Plus, President Trump wants to reopen most of the country next month, and with Holy Week hushed by the pandemic, Pope Francis does social distancing his own way.
Apr 10, 2020•14 min
CDC case study of Chicago coronavirus outbreak shows how one person can set off a chain reaction
Plus, Joe Biden is the presumptive Democratic nominee after Bernie Sanders drops out of the race, and Democrats clash with President Trump over more money for small businesses.
Apr 09, 2020•13 min
The White House still has not settled on a national testing strategy
Plus, the acting navy secretary resigns, and the ventilator shortage pits New York hospitals against one another.
Apr 08, 2020•17 min
Revised models give reasons for hope, but reality is grim
Plus, the president’s embrace of hydroxychloroquine illustrates how he prioritizes anecdote over science, and Boris Johnson is getting oxygen in an ICU.
Apr 07, 2020•12 min
Coronavirus deaths are being underreported in America
Plus, Texas is going to begin screening drivers who enter the state from virus-stricken Louisiana, and Scotland’s chief medical officer resigned last night for violating her own guidance to stay home.
Apr 06, 2020•14 min
The Navy shoots the messenger, as coronavirus deaths in the U.S. top 1,000 in a single day
Plus, the coronavirus recession is shaping up to be the biggest blow to the U.S. economy since the Great Recession, and Italy and Spain report the number of coronavirus cases in their countries are beginning to stabilize.
Apr 03, 2020•15 min
The federal stockpile of personal protective equipment is already depleted
Plus, Florida finally issues a stay-at-home order, and Republicans are using the coronavirus crisis as cover to restrict women’s reproductive rights.
Apr 02, 2020•17 min
State officials wonder whether politics is playing a role in coronavirus resource allocation
Plus, some New York hospitals have stopped resuscitating coronavirus victims, and the United Nations says this pandemic is the single biggest challenge facing the globe since World War II.
Apr 01, 2020•17 min
Should we all be wearing masks? The CDC is considering the question.
Plus, states surge medical capacity to prepare for the influx of coronavirus victims, and more governors issue mandatory stay-at-home orders.
Mar 31, 2020•15 min
Trump extends social distancing guidelines until April 30
Plus, a choir practice in Washington state turns fatal, and the virus collides with maid culture in Latin America.
Mar 30, 2020•16 min
New York becomes ground zero again – this time for the coronavirus pandemic
Plus, President Trump clashes with governors over relaxing restrictions, and medical workers are rushing to update their wills in case they don't survive the pandemic.
Mar 27, 2020•14 min
Our domestic health care system is stretching past the breaking point
Plus, soldiers around the world are being mobilized to enforce lockdowns, and more states order residents to stay home.
Mar 26, 2020•19 min
Prince Charles testing positive is a reminder that the coronavirus does not discriminate
Plus, India is on a nationwide three week lockdown, and the Senate and the White House finalized a deal on a $2 trillion stimulus package.
Mar 25, 2020•15 min
Understanding why the coronavirus is so hard to beat
Plus, a deal on a stimulus package could be near, and President Trump wants to reopen the economy, even as public health officials object.
Mar 24, 2020•14 min
The infected talk about what it feels like to have coronavirus
Plus, the stimulus package to respond to the coronavirus hits a speed bump, and Sen. Rand Paul finds out he tested positive moments after swimming in the congressional pool.
Mar 23, 2020•14 min
Expect more than one spike in coronavirus deaths
Plus, the shortage of testing kits has amplified inequities in our health-care system, and rural areas of the country are likely to have the highest death rates.
Mar 20, 2020•15 min
The Trump ban on fetal tissue research is undermining the search for coronavirus treatments
Plus, Jared Kushner exerts control over the government's response to the pandemic, and President Trump gambles his reelection on what could be $2 trillion in bailouts.
Mar 19, 2020•14 min
Patchwork response and federal dysfunction complicate coronavirus response
Plus, Europe is closing its borders, and Joe Biden sweeps primaries in Florida, Illinois and Arizona.
Mar 18, 2020•16 min
Trump finally acknowledged the magnitude of the crisis
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Mar 17, 2020•14 min
Rationing ventilators in the U.S. could force agonizing tradeoffs
Plus, the Federal Reserve drops benchmark interest rate to zero, and essential details of the White House's coronavirus testing plan remain murky.
Mar 16, 2020•15 min
The U.S. has still tested fewer people for coronavirus than South Korea
Plus, President Trump launches airstrikes against Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, and Joe Biden hires a new campaign manager.
Mar 13, 2020•12 min