Midday Healthwatch - COVID-Vax Equity, School Reopening, Post-Vax Safety Tips

It’s the Midday Healthwatch with Dr. Leana Wen.  Johnson and Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine, which is being manufactured here in Baltimore, has been approved for emergency use by the US Food and Drug Administration, adding an important weapon in the fight against the coronavirus.  Unlike the vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna, the J&J drug requires only one dose, so it’s much easier to administer.  The company is promising 100 million doses by June and a billion doses by the end of the year.  Just under 14% of Marylanders have been inoculated against the virus as of today.  More than twice as many White people have been vaccinated than Black people.  Only about 4% of those vaccinated so far have been Latino.   Today, Tom talks virus, variants and vaccines with Dr. Leana Wen, who is an emergency physician and a visiting public health professor at George Washington University. She is also a contributing columnist for The Washington Post and an on-air commentator and medical analyst for CNN. Previously, she served as Baltimore's Health Commissioner.  She joins us on Skype.Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.