Plastic Payments and Pneumonic Plague: Week in Review
Consumers are changing the way they pay for things, and concern grows over a potential plague case in Russia.
Monday
With Medicare open enrollment beginning next week, Olivier spoke with C.J. Trent-Gurbuz, assistant managing editor of health at U.S. News & World Report, to run through what you need to know. Trent-Gurbuz broke down the four main parts of Medicare and what they cover, as well as available supplemental insurance known as Medigap.
Trent-Gurbuz said Americans can prepare for the enrollment period by making sure providers accept Medicare, checking the list of covered drugs under a given plan and planning coverage for major upcoming expenses like surgeries. For folks looking into Medicare Advantage, she recommended comparing your budget with your healthcare needs, considering factors like prescription drug coverage and geographic flexibility.
Tuesday
Olivier on Tuesday identified a clear takeaway from the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s consumer payment choice survey: Cash is no longer king. That transition is recent, with cash serving as the dominant payment type until 2018. Now, even 70% of consumers who make cash payments would prefer another method, the survey found.
The new findings raise questions about how policymakers will protect consumers using credit cards and help the 5.6 million households without checking or savings accounts.
Wednesday
Olivier took a midweek look at the array of ballot measures that will stand alongside the critical congressional and gubernatorial races in November.
- In North Dakota, voters will decide whether schools must provide students with free meals regardless of income.
- Voters in Alabama will decide whether the state constitution should require students to recite the Pledge of Allegiance every day and require schools to broadcast the first stanza of the Star-Spangled Banner once per week and allow student-led prayer.
- In Colorado, voters are weighing a constitutional right to natural gas access in a rebuke to climate change policies.
- Voters in Arizona will consider banning new traffic cameras, the latest in the national debate over license plate-reading cameras.
- And in Idaho, a ballot measure would amend the state constitution to designate English as the official state language.
Thursday
Olivier wrapped up by talking to medical expert Dr. Ashish Jha about the potential presence of pneumonic plague in Russia after an anti-plague institute employee died last week. Russian officials described the cause as a mysterious pneumonia, while local officials and media attributed it to pneumonic plague.
Jha said there’s no need to worry about a second pandemic – pneumonic plague, though highly fatal, cannot spread rapidly the same way COVID-19 does. But experts are worried about potential links to biological weaponization efforts after Russia refused to share any information. Jha is watching to see if a second case arises over the next few days. Without one, he said, there’s less cause for concern.
