Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

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Pandemic Health-Care Inequities: How They Put All Americans at Risk May 05, 2020

Show notes

COVID-19 has been a national disaster. The impact has disproportionately affected minority and lower income Americans, who tend to have jobs that can’t be done from home and are less likely to have health-care coverage or access to medical care. That’s true in most crises, but this one is different. Anyone who fails to get tested or treated for COVID-19 risks getting others sick and delays economic recovery for all, regardless of socioeconomic status. How can safety-net hospitals, Medicaid providers, and health plans ensure that all Americans get the tests and health care they need during the pandemic? Will the current sentiment that "We’re all in this together" finally convince the public of the need for universal coverage? CEOs of two safety-net hospitals and the nation’s largest public option health plan will discuss how they’re handling the crisis, what they’re doing to reduce inequities, and the potential impact of the crisis on health care going forward.

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Democracy and COVID-19: What Happens Next? May 03, 2020

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Within weeks, the COVID-19 pandemic has uprooted almost every fabric of American life. Workplaces have moved to remote or closed, cities have shut down, and the country has largely grounded to a halt. In a pivotal election year, more than a dozen states have postponed their primaries, campaigning has moved to the digital world, and individual civil liberties have been curtailed to prevent community spread. What effects will this have on America and the world’s democratic systems? Join our two experts as they break down our changing world. James Fallows has written for The Atlantic for more than 40 years, and his award-winning reporting has taken him through Asia, Europe and across the United States. Kori Schake is the director of foreign and defense policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, and her distinguished career in government includes working at the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Department of Defense and the National Security Council at the White House.

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CLIMATE ONE: COVID-19 and Climate: Economic Impacts May 02, 2020

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The COVID-19 recession is unfolding at historic speed and depth. New jobless claims reached 10 million in just two weeks, a record pace. Wall Street’s fear gauge closed at an all-time high in mid-March. Environmentally, though, the shutdown has come with some temporary benefits—decreased travel, cleaner water and a plunging demand for oil. But crashing the economy isn’t exactly a climate solution. How will the coronavirus recession reshape the economy and prospects for addressing climate in a post-pandemic world? How does this economic crisis compare to others in history? Join us for a conversation with Kathleen Day, finance lecturer at Johns Hopkins University and author of Broken Bargain: Banks, Bailouts, and the Struggle to Tame Wall Street; Amy Jaffe, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations; and Matt Rogers, senior partner at McKinsey & Company.

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A Healthy Society Series: The Whole Story May 02, 2020

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The root of the word health is whole. Two medical professionals with long careers in medicine, health and science will talk about a new system called HealthMedicine, which is integrative, holistic, preventative and person-centered. What would it look like to put care back into health care? Building communities that support healthy living is the goal of these two professionals. This is the first program in a series led by the Health & Medicine Member-led Forum of The Commonwealth Club.

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Pi Mai: Lao/Thai/Cambodian New Year in the Time of COVID-19 May 01, 2020

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Pi Mai is the Laotian New Year (also known as Songkran). It is a time of renewal. But how are Lao, Thai, and Cambodian celebrants dealing with this holiday during a time of sheltering at home, closed businesses, and a raging pandemic? We'll talk with four community activists about New Years in the age of the coronavirus.

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Rep. Adam Schiff: What America Missed About COVID-19 Apr 30, 2020

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As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads across America, leaders and citizens alike across the country are asking the same question: How were we so unprepared? And how should we respond as a nation? Representative Adam Schiff, chair of the House Intelligence Committee, is working on getting answers and ensuring we’re better prepared for the next pandemic. In the last few weeks, Schiff and his congressional colleagues proposed a 9/11-style bipartisan commission to investigate the government’s response, determine if the administration ignored key warning signs, and help oversee how they spend the more than $2 trillion in relief funding. Join Schiff and Mother Jones Editor in Chief Clara Jeffery for a virtual conversation about missed warnings, the government’s response and where we go from here.

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Dr. Harvey Fineberg: Ten Weeks to Crush the Curve Apr 29, 2020

Show notes

The president says we are at war with the coronavirus. It’s a war we should fight to win. The economy is in the tank, and anywhere from thousands to more than a million American lives are in jeopardy. Most analyses assume that both the pandemic and the economic setback must play out over a period of many months. However, there is another option, one that simultaneously limits fatalities and gets the economy cranking again in a sustainable way. Dr. Harvey Fineberg believes if we establish six bold steps to mobilize and organize the nation, we can defeat COVID-19 by early June. The aim is not to flatten the curve—the goal is to crush the curve. Learn more about this forceful and focused campaign to eradicate COVID-19 in the United States. Fineberg has held several prominent positions over the course of his career, including dean of the Harvard School of Public Health, provost of Harvard University and president of the Institute of Medicine (now the National Academy of Medicine).

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Alexis Madrigal: The COVID Tracking Project Apr 29, 2020

Show notes

As the COVID-19 crisis grips America and the world, the daily counts of confirmed cases and deaths have become ubiquitous. But these two numbers paint an incomplete picture about how widespread the outbreak truly is. To provide a more detailed scope of the crisis, journalist Alexis Madrigal started the COVID Tracking Project. Madrigal and a team of data and science experts have spent hundreds of hours obtaining, organizing and publishing high-quality data breaking down the test numbers. The data report the number of positive and negative tests done at the national and state levels, as well as pending tests and deaths. Madrigal joins us to break down this important work and how data can help us better understand an invisible enemy.

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COVID-19, Santa Clara County and the Future Apr 27, 2020

Show notes

As California nears 25,000 cases of COVID-19, there have now been more than 1,800 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Santa Clara County, with a death toll of over 60. With a population of nearly 2 million, the number of COVID-19-related deaths per 100,000 residents is the highest rate of any of the Bay Area’s five most populous counties. How are Santa Clara's leaders handling this crisis and what steps will they take to handle pandemics in the future? Hear more from Santa Clara County officials. This program is free, though donations are strongly encouraged and appreciated. This program is part of The Commonwealth Club’s virtual series, addressing the myriad impacts of COVID19 on our community and society at large. It is supported by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and collaborative of local funders and donors. We are grateful for their support and hope others will follow their example to support the Club during these uncertain times.

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Asian American Voices on Anti-Asian Violence Apr 26, 2020

Show notes

As Americans have grappled with coming to terms with the pandemic and its many effects on their lives—working from home, loss of income or job, homeschooling their children, worries about their own or their loved ones' health—some of them also have to worry about being attacked because of their race. Join us for a timely discussion of the discrimination, verbal abuse and even physical attacks directed at Asian-Americans as the COVID-19 pandemic has spread across the country.

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