March 10, 2021 - PBS NewsHour full episode

In our new wrap Wednesday, the federal government is buying another 100 million doses of Johnson & Johnson’s single-shot COVID vaccine, doubling its current order. Also, the federal budget deficit has hit an all-time high, Texas marked the end of its mask mandate, the Senate confirmed Federal Appeals Judge Merrick Garland for U.S. Attorney General, and Hawaii is under a state of emergency.

A key part of the COVID aid bill creates the most significant changes to the Affordable Care Act since it was passed more than 10 years ago, including larger subsidies to buy insurance, reducing deductibles and more money for Medicaid expansion. The CBO estimates the changes would cost more than $90 billion in the next two years. Julie Rovner, of Kaiser Health News, joins Judy Woodruff to discuss.

As of Wednesday, Texans can work and gather without a statewide mandate for masks or social distancing, after Gov. Greg Abbott signed an executive order earlier this month that declared the state "100 percent open." Judge Lina Hidalgo, a Democrat and head of Harris County's governing body, which includes Houston, joins Lisa Desjardins to discuss.

Europe's tourist industry has taken a beating during this pandemic, spurring Denmark to introduce vaccine passports as a way to boost travel. The digital documents will provide proof of a traveler’s COVID-related health, eliminating the need to quarantine upon arrival in a new country. But opponents fear this could create billions of second-class citizens. Malcolm Brabant reports.

The pandemic has highlighted structural inequities within American life, including a disproportionate impact on Black communities and poorer neighborhoods and access to and attitudes toward the vaccine. A new national public health campaign is trying to reach some Black Americans while leveraging the power of art to achieve “community immunity.” Jeffrey Brown reports for our series, "CANVAS."