Skip to main content
U.K. Edition
Thursday, 28 March 2024

Midmorning With Aundrea - April 29, 2020 (Part 1)

Credit: WCBI
Duration: 0 shares 4 views

Midmorning With Aundrea - April 29, 2020 (Part 1)
Midmorning With Aundrea - April 29, 2020 (Part 1)

(Part 1 of 2) With millions of people out of work and losing their health insurance during the worst pandemic in a century, we explore health care options for those out of work.

And 30 years ago, NASA launched one of its greatest exploration tools, the Hubble Telescope.

We'll take a look at the magnificent views of space Hubble has given us over the years.

And WCBI producer Eric Lampkin shows us some very simple gardening tips In today's "Gardening With Eric"!

>> on that millions of americans are filing for unemployment amid the corona- virus pandemic.

Many who have lost their jobs, have also lost health insurance.

In our "financia fallout" series we've been reporting on the economic impact of the corona- virus.

Consumer investigative correspondent anna werner reports on the health insurance options for the unemployed.

"this is the stree that's generally filled - filled - with people and tourists&" the "beach" myrtle beach south carolina is empty& as is the hotel where donna zweig used to work as a food and beverage manager.

Until last month&.

They very kindly said that, you know, they're going to have to let me go because they just don't have the business.

They're going to not be able to open up the restaurant.

Zweig moved here last june from new jersey and took on two jobs, one full- time at the hotel, another part-time at a university.

But now she's lost both jobs.

For how long isn't clear.

The uncertainty, the anxiety, the mental pressure, financial&it's beyond anything i've ever experienced, i don't think any of us have making things worse: her new health insurance was supposed to kick in april 1st.

Now, she has to postpone a need medical procedure.

I can't afford to pay for it out of my pocket.

Is that something that could impact your future health?

Oh, definitely that's something minnesota doctor hannah lichtsinn says she's seeing daily.

That absence of our patients is really striking.

And it's, it's scary to me.

Some patients simply aren't showing up she says, because they no longer have health insurance.

Are you infuriated or are you sad, upset - all of those things at once.

It is devastating.

I'm sad for my patients.

I'm afraid for my devastating.

I'm sad for my patients.

I'm afraid for my patients.

And i'm angry that we as a society created a health care system that didn't actually prioritize the health of our patients.

Insurance options for people who are now out of work can be complicated.

The affordable care act allows people who have lost jobs now to apply through special enrollment to state healthcare exchanges, and many can get subsidies.

Prices and plans vary.

Some laid off workers qualify for cobra - temporary coverage - but it can be expensive.

And if their income falls low enough, some people will be able to get medicaid, but often only in certain states.

Health policy researcher dr. aaron carroll& we've done almost nothing to try to ease the path or to make it easy.

In fact, it appears to be incredibly difficult.

What's worse he says: many states appear overwhelmed.

It takes a significant infrastructure to do all of the checking and signing people up and checking to see if they qualify for subsidies during all of that.

It's not clear that right now in april, a lot of the exchanges, especially at the state based level and at the federal level, i guess, aren't actually staffed up and prepared to do that.

To me, that's outrageous that in a country as rich as ours.

Senator mark warner and other democrats are now proposing a bill to reopen enrollment for the affordable care act and expand medicaid in states where it hasn't happened yet, so people don't put off getting care.

Somebody, god forbid, who may be coming down with signs of the virus should not be afraid of going to the doctor because they can't afford to pay.

In this kind of circumstance, that kind of reluctance to use the system actually endangers all of us.

So it's not only in their best interests, the folks who lost their work or lost their health care, but it's in all our interests that these folks get health care coverage.

Donna zweig isn't sure any help will come fast enough.

She's put the house that was going to be her home in retirement in myrtle beach up for sale.

It's not going to do me any good this house if i can't pay for it.

Suggested outcue: to see what your options are under the affordable care act, go to healthcare dot- gov.

You answer a few questions and it will help guide you to options in your state.

And please tell us your story -- e-mail me at health costs at cbs news dot- com.

Anna werner, cbs news, berkley, california.

Multiple clinical trials are now underway to find effective treatments for covid-19.

New york hospitals are even studying a common a heartburn drug -- as a treatment option.

Elizabeth cohen has more.

Could it be&that a medicine on drug store shelves& might help in the fight against coronavirus?

Doctors are trying to figure that out.

Researchers in new york city are studying the active ingredient in pepcid, called famotidine.

It's because of something doctors observed in china.

Dr. kevin tracey: "patients who wer sick with covid but were taking famotidine had a, had a better outcome."

Now doctors at northwell health are trying it out in a clinical trial&.

Governor andrew cuomo: "you do th hard work..."

So far they've enrolled 187 patients& and expect preliminary results in a few weeks.

Dr. kevin tracey: "there are man examples in the history of medicine where a drug that was designed for one purpose turns out to have an effect in another disease."

But dr. tracey warned don't rush out to buy heartburn medicine& the patients in the study are in the hospital, getting mega-doses intravenously ..

And it's not clear that it will work.

While the northwell doctors work on famotidine& dr. anthony fauci saturday had some hopeful words for another drug, remdesivir, for animals with coronavirus.

Dr. anthony fauci: "there was clinica benefits just reported a couple of weeks ago of sars coronavirus- 2 in rhesus macaques."

And a doctor at the university of nebraska saying results on a major remdesivir study in humans could be available in a week or two& also over the weekend&the governor of florida held a press conference&wher e a doctor said 12 patients had done well on convalescent plasma&antibodies from someone who's recovered from coronavirus are given to someone who's currently infected& dr. sunil desai: "an when we give it to that patient we are essentially boosting their immune system to help fight this infection.

This is going to be a huge game changer in our armamentarium to fight covid-19."

But experts warn& having 12 patients who recovered doesn't necessarily mean very much& since most covid-19 patients do recover& a larger study with a comparison would be necessary& only the best science&to get treatments that really work&for covid patients and their families&desperat e for answers.

The f-d-a says there are seven clinical drug trials for covid-19 underway with many more in the planning stages.

On the vaccine front, the world health organization says seven vaccines are in the testing stages.

82 vaccine candidates are in pre-clinical development.

A little later.

Photographs of a world far, far away.

Celebrating the hubble the corona-virus has spread across the globe, but there's one place it has ánotá touched: the international space station.

We're hearing about the unique experience of astronaut jessica meir who just returned from nearly seven months aboard the space station.

She spoke to mark strassmann about coming home to a changed world.

From 250 miles above earth, astronaut jessica meir practiced what you could call extreme social distancing.

Down below, a planet grappled with a contagion.

There were only three people on the space station // and it was difficult for us to understand: wow, of the seven and a half billion humans on earth right now we are really the only three people that aren't affected by this!

That changed a week ago today.

A soyuz capsule brought meir and two crew mates back to kazakhstan.

They landed on a planet in some ways unrecognizable from the one they left.

We came back to all these masked faces.

// was that your first corona reality check?

Yeah.

Absolutely.//the people pulling us out of the capsule, they were already wearing masks.

So that was really the first human that we saw.

While in oribt, meir achieved a space milestone.

She and astronaut christina koch performed the first all-female spacewalk last october.

That is amazing but long-duration space missions compromise an astronaut's immune system.

So when meir got back to houston, she went into quarantine.

Koch had to keep back.

&and from a distance we kinda could do a virtual hug.

// it's quite difficult for me because i'm a hugger and now i've been up there for seven months and i can't even hug people!

So it's pretty difficult.

Their employer, nasa, hopes its mission next month will leave the virus behind.

Space-x will send two nasa astronauts, doug hurley and bob behnken, to the international space station.

Ready for visors?

They'll become the first americans launched from u.s. soil since 2011, when the space shuttle retired.

But the corona- threat may block their families from watching in- person.

I would've said emphatically yes a few weeks ago.

But i think we're all just kinda one day at a timing' it at this point // and if not, they'll have to watch it from home potentially.

I honestly don't know.

Jim bridenstine, nasa's administrator, told us this launch will be different.

Instead of descending on the kennedy space center // this time what we're asking people to do is tune in.

Watch it on it on tv.

Watch it on the internet.

Stay at home.

// this is a moment in time when all of america can come together in the midst of a pandemic and celebrate something positive.

As for jessica meir - she has something to celebrate.

After a week in a quarantine facility, she gets to sleep in her own bed tonight.

Do you feel more isolated now than you did when you were orbiting the earth?

Yeah i do and i think that will come out even more once i do go home.

On the space station you're expecting that kind of isolation.

That's part of the experience.

We train for it.

We know it's there.

// here on earth we're not used to that.

Suggested outcue: like all of us, she's getting used to a different world.

Thirty years ago nasa launched one of its greatest exploration tools.

The hubble telescope has gifted the world some of the most iconic and mind- blowing images of deep space - helping scientists better understand our universe.

Here's chris martinez.

From capturing the birth of a star to uncovering galaxies millions of light years away& for 30 years, nasa's hubble telescope has given us a glimpse of the boundless beauty of our universe& "liftoff of th space shuttle discovery with the hubble space telescope, our window on the universe&" hubble launched in to orbit april 24th, 1990... and has since captured countless stunning snapshots of space& from planets in áour solar system - to seemingly endless clusters of stars.

"the hubble spac telescope basically changed our entire view of where we are in the universe&" hubble scientist dr. jennifer wiseman says the telescope is something of a time machine, allowing scientists to see stars and galaxies billions of years old.

That's answering questions about how the universe formed - and how it's growing.

"thos measurements continue today and have in fact yielded some recent surprising findings that the expansion rate of the universe is in fact starting to accelerate."

Hubble was designed to be improved and has undergone 5 upgrades in orbit... and while the spacecraft was never intended to last forever - researchers believe it still has life left in it& "the scienc instruments are in good shape the supporting instruments like batteries and gyroscopes are in good shape and we have clever ways of operating hubble over the coming years."

Time to unravel other interstellar mysteries and reveal more breathtaking wonders of the final frontier.

Chris martinez, cbs news, los angeles.

The hubble telescope was named for fame astrologer edwin hubble - and the spacecraft's successor, the james webb telescope is set to join hubble in orbit sometime in 2021.

Farm to table.

Eric lampkin with all you need to know to grown your own the days are longer.

And, warmer.

And many people thinking about planting a garden.

That may sound overwhelming.

But our own resident gardener eric lampkin makes it look so easy and fun.

Eric lampkin: i'm eric lampkin.

At night, i'm the six and ten producer, but during the day you will usually find me out here in my garden.

I'm here to introduce you to one of the easiest things in the world.

People think gardening is hard.

It's not.

This is what i call the "gateway drug" gardening.

It's nothing but a couple of bags of soil, some seeds and water.

You're good to go.

Now here you'll see on either side of me, these are what i call my "sala bars".

It's a mixtur of lettuce and other salad green.

I set these up just to basically keep the bags of soil off the ground.

What i'm going to show you today is how to do this and a couple of different options on how to do it.

I'll show you how.

Eric lampkin: all right, so this is the new salad bar.

You might say the third generation.

I built this basically using some scrap one by four i had lying around, chicken wire, a few screws.

I got it set up on sawhorses.

What we're going to do, the easiest thing, i've got two 50 pound bags of soil.

I got these at the co-op.

So, we've got a box, we've got potting soil.

The next thing you need's a knife.

Pretty simple operation.

You'll want to do this all the way end to end.

Basically, what you want to do is a little slit down the middle.

When it's all said and done, we will actually cut this piece of flap away.

You got your dirt up up here.

Do this on both bags, obviously.

Eric lampkin: all right, we've got some pretty black soil here.

It's going to be good.

You want to kind of move this to the edges a little bit, fan it out a little bit.

Get it even, as even as you can.

I'm just kind of getting this out, kind of banking it up a little bit in the ends.

That way, when it starts to really rain, you don't get all your soil washing down to the sides.

You'll have a little bank along the edge here.

I'll take my little garden knife here, and i'm going to make a little easy furrows.

You want to do it shallow.

Actually, lettuce seed only has to be about a quarter inch deep.

That's why it does so well in these bags like this.

Eric lampkin: the other thing about lettuce seed, it's really small.

Lettuce seed is tiny, so a little bit of it goes a long way, and a lot of it goes a real long way.

We're just kind of sprinkling.

You probably won't even be able to see this, and i'm probably sowing a little heavy here, but that's why you thin things out.

So, we've got the seeds in.

Hopefully they're kind of evenly spaced.

All that's left now is cover them up a little bit.

We're going to give it a good soaking with the garden hose.

If you don't have a garden hose, you can use a watering can, tea kettle, whatever you got.

It doesn't make that much difference, just so long as you give it a good soak in the first go around, and get it down there.

Give it a chance to germinate.

As warm as it's been, it should be pretty easy to germinate right now.

Eric lampkin: i forgot one thing, and this is very important, no matter how you set these up, you have to have drain holes in the bottom of your bag for the water to drain.

I've already watered this.

I've already soaked it in good.

This is the last step.

All right, this is pretty easy.

All you need is your handy dandy knife, and you don't have to have any sort of set pattern.

You just want to cut several little slits in the bottom of your bags of soil to give it some room to drain.

Eric lampkin: there you have it.

Pretty simple stuff.

Hopefully in the next few weeks, these beds are going to look like those beds over there.

You'll be seeing a little green stuff popping up, and you'll have your simple garden.

And, some good salads too.

Hey folks, if i can do this, you can do this.

That's our 6 and 10 pm producer eric lampkin.

He will be back soon with more gardening ideas.

Are you growing things?

Let us know.

Send us pictures of your garden and we'll share on mid morning.

The restaurant may be closed.

But the staff

You might like

Related news coverage

Advertisement

More coverage