A Pandemic Update: The Variant and the Vaccine Rollout

<p>As 2020 drew to a close, a concerning development in the pandemic came out of Britain — a new variant of the coronavirus had been discovered that is significantly more transmissible. It has since been discovered in a number of countries, including the United States.</p><p>The emergence of the new variant has added a new level of urgency to the rollout of vaccines in the U.S., a process that has been slow so far.</p><p>Today, an exploration of two key issues in the fight against the pandemic.</p><p>Guests: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/carl-zimmer">Carl Zimmer</a>, a science writer and author of the “Matter” column for The New York Times; <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/abby-goodnough">Abby Goodnough</a>, a national health care correspondent for The Times. </p><p>For an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/the-daily?module=inline">subscribe to our newsletter</a>. You can read the latest edition <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/column/the-daily-newsletter">here</a>.</p><p>Background reading: </p><ul><li>The new variant of the coronavirus, discovered in December, appears to be more contagious than, and genetically distinct from, more established variants.<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/31/health/coronavirus-variant-transmission.html"> Here is what we know about it</a>.</li><li>The first case of the variant in the U.S. was<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/29/health/uk-coronavirus-variant-colorado.html"> found in Colorado</a> in December. Pfizer has said that <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/08/health/pfizer-covid-vaccine-variant-mutation.html">its vaccine works</a> against the key mutation.</li><li>The distribution of the vaccine in the U.S.<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/31/health/vaccine-distribution-delays.html?searchResultPosition=4"> is taking longer than expected</a> — holiday staffing and saving doses for nursing homes are contributing to delays. </li></ul><p>For more information on today’