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The US has spent trillions of dollars fighting the pandemic, but the price tag is much higher due to the preventable costs of treating the unvaccinated. |
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Calculating the high cost of COVID in wasted lives and dollars It’s difficult to put a price on human life, but a recent study tallied the cost of treating COVID-19 among unvaccinated Americans – and the numbers are astounding. In August alone, the U.S. spent $3.7 billion in what it calls “preventable†medical expenses, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Over $5.7 billion was spent this summer. As alarming as those numbers may seem, the study said the actual total may be much higher. And the return on the dollar is even more discouraging as more than 666,000 (or 1 in every 500 Americans) have died from the virus since the start of the pandemic. For all the money being spent on the pandemic, much of it is avoidable waste. SEE WHY ANALYSTS SAY THE COSTS ARE UNSUSTAINABLE
Unemployment claims tick upward again after record low Getting a grasp of the unemployment picture seems like an exercise in futility as each week yields surprising numbers that don't match up with projections. Thursday's report was no different as first-time claims for jobless benefits rose in the wake of last week's record low. The report shows that 332,000 new unemployment claims were filed last week, an uptick from where it was just a week after posting a pandemic low. The initial jobless benefits claims topped projections by the Dow Jones, which projected the figure to be about 320,000. Worst of all, employers still can't hire enough qualified workers. FIND OUT WHY UNEMPLOYMENT DATA REMAINS STAGNANT
What is ‘Ghosting Coasting’? Trend troubling labor market “Ghosting Coasting†has nothing to do with the supernatural, but the frightening trend is having some scary effects on the labor market. The term refers to the growing number of workers who take a job and then quickly disappear, costing employers in wasted training hours, paperwork and extending the already painful labor shortage. The trend is hitting the restaurant industry particularly hard as unskilled workers frequently decide to disappear and re-apply for unemployment. Already sporting a high 80% turnover rate before the pandemic, the restaurant industry is expecting that figure to double as stores continue to shut down due to the labor shortages. And now other industries are seeing increases in cases of ghosting coasting. FIND OUT THE FINANCIAL IMPACTS OF GHOSTING COASTING
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Markets
| DJIA | 34,751.32 | -0.18% |
| S&P 500 | 4,473.75 | -0.16% |
| Nasdaq Composite | 15,181.92 | 0.13% |
| Japan: Nikkei 225 | 30,500.05 | 0.58% |
| UK: FTSE 100 | 7,039.56 | 0.17% |
| Crude Oil Futures | 72.12 | -0.67% |
| Gold Futures | 1,766.20 | 0.54% |
| Yen | 109.96 | 0.20% |
| Euro | 1.18 | 0.11% | | * As of market close |
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This edition is brought to you by The Economist, covering the German elections 2021 with a dedicated hub, election prediction model and poll tracker for full analysis.
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DC on edge ahead of 'Justice for J6' rally
Lawmakers, police and average Americans are bracing for what could be a replay of the Jan. 6 riot on Capitol Hill this weekend as right-wing groups descend on Washington, DC for another protest. The Justice for J6 rally is set for noon Saturday as security measures are being put in place to prevent a repeat of the riot supporting former president Donald Trump. Organized by Look Ahead America, the rally is billed as a protest of the treatment of the rioters who have been arrested in the aftermath of Jan. 6. But intelligence groups fear that the crowd may have sinister motives in mind and steps are being taken to prevent another violent insurrection. FIND OUT WHAT IS BEING DONE TO AVOID ANOTHER RIOT
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Mississippi claims highest COVID death rate
It’s not exactly the category one wants to be ranked No. 1, but Mississippi claimed the title as the state with the highest COVID-related death rate earlier this month. The Magnolia State is currently averaging 306 deaths per 100,000 residents, surpassing New Jersey (292) and ending the Garden State’s 15-month run of holding that undesirable distinction. Health officials are blaming Mississippi’s low vaccination rate and failure to enact and observe COVID protocols that could go a long way toward preventing new cases, hospitalizations and deaths. Those same factors also play a role in the other hot-spot states with the lowest vaccination rates in the nation – Alabama, Idaho, West Virginia and Wyoming. SEE THE LINK BETWEEN LOW VACCINATION RATES AND DEATHS
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'Peril' says Barr had harsh words for Trump
The fallout from the soon-to-be-released book "Peril" continues to send shock waves through the nation about just how bad things were behind closed White House doors in the final days of the Trump presidency. One anecdote involving former AG Bill Barr reveals a shocking conversation. Responding to the former president's predictions of a cakewalk re-election victory, Barr clapped back with a claim that we can't repeat verbatim (but it rhymes with "ducking grass pole"). According to the book, which is co-authored by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa and comes out next week, Barr told Trump that suburban voters "just think you're a [expletive expletive]," proving that if Barr was Trump's puppet, he wasn't a good one. FIND OUT HOW TRUMP RESPONDED TO BARR'S COMMENTS
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Breaking bad news
Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein gained fame for covering the Watergate story, but they weren't the first WAPO writers to chase the case. Who wrote the initial Watergate break-in story? Thursday’s answer: The 1960s rock band Spirit once sued Led Zeppelin for stealing the music to "Stairway to Heaven" from its song "Taurus." A jury ruled against Spirit and "Stairway" remains one of rock's top classics. SEND YOUR ANSWER HERE TO SHOW OFF YOUR KNOWLEDGE
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Fast Start for friends
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