Dr. Larry Brilliant on the Covid-19 Vaccine and What Lies Ahead

On Monday Dec. 14, the first doses of the Pfizer vaccine were administered to healthcare workers in California and several other states. That same day, the death toll from Covid-19 surpassed 300,000 people. According to Dr. Larry Brilliant, CEO of Pandefense and an epidemiologist who helped eradicate smallpox, we are living through “the best of times and the worst of times.” While the vaccine, which was discovered, developed and produced within a year’s time, gives hope that the pandemic will end, experts predict the U.S. death toll will  continue to rise unless more steps are taken to put in public health policies on a nationwide basis. We talk to Larry Brilliant about the vaccine, its rollout and what we can expect in the months ahead. [Originally aired Dec. 15, 2020]