Daily News Lesson

SHOW ALL

Aug. 9, 2021, 8:10 a.m.

As Delta variant surges, should public or private sectors mandate vaccines?

Summary

As the country wrestles with the latest Delta-driven surge, certain sectors of state/federal government and some corporations are mandating that their employees get vaccinated. The NewsHour looks at what these mandates require and whether they’ll make a difference in containing COVID's spread and people's health and safety.

Five Facts

  • Who is Andy Slavitt?
  • What actions are Slavitt and a group of bipartisan former government officials pushing for?
  • Why are they targeting those who don’t have a strong ideological objection to the vaccine, but still aren’t vaccinated?
  • How could a higher rate of vaccination help other people?
  • Where does Slavitt point out a vaccine mandate would be very effective in increasing vaccination rates?

Focus Questions

  • How might the private sector requiring vaccinations be more impactful in increasing vaccination rates to fight the Delta variant than the public sector (state/federal government) doing so?
  • How does increasing vaccination rates save lives?
Media literacy: How might different people respond to the public sector or private companies mandating vaccinations differently? How might you take action in response to this message?

For More

This Daily News Lesson was written by EXTRA intern Cecilia Curran and EXTRA’s Victoria Pasquantonio. Curran is a sophomore at Amherst College.

Links

TRANSCRIPT

Recent Daily News Lessons

Red, White & Blue To-Do Pomp & Parade in Philadelphia

Daily News Lesson

America at a Crossroads: A look at America's founding from the room where independence was declared

Judy Woodruff visits Independence Hall to commemorate America's 250th anniversary with historians Lindsay Chervinsky and Ron Chernow.

Screenshot 2026-07-21 at 10.25.25 AM

Daily News Lesson

America at a Crossroads: What political satire can reveal about the strength of a democracy

Political satire can reveal a hidden strength of the democracy of a country

surveillance

Daily News Lesson

Police say Flock cameras help solve crimes, but critics call them an invasion of privacy

Dozens of cities have cancelled their contracts with Flock after significant backlash followed a series of law enforcement errors

wildfiress-e1784233815803

Daily News Lesson

The health risks of wildfire smoke across the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic

Learn about the dangerous wildfire smoke blanketing wide regions of the U.S.

SUPPORTED BY VIEWERS LIKE YOU. ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY:

PBS News Hour Classroom

Copyright © 2025 News Hour Production LLC. All Rights Reserved

Illustrations by Annamaria Ward