Texas Standard For August 25, 2020

Across the Golden Triangle, evacuation orders take hold in advance of what meteorologists say could be a major hurricane threatening coastal Texas and Louisiana – we’ll check in with officials in Beaumont. And: Neither snow nor rain … but what about Congress? Texas lawmakers and the politics of the U.S. Postal Service in advance of Election Day. Plus: The first and oldest hospital in the Americas. All that and more today on the Texas Standard:

By Texas StandardAugust 25, 2020 9:36 am

Here’s what’s coming up on Texas Standard for Tuesday, August 25, 2020. Listen on your Texas public radio station, or ask your smart speaker to play Texas Standard.

Tropical Storm Evacuation And Preparation Amid COVID-19

Exactly three years after Hurricane Harvey made landfall, Hurricane Laura is strengthening in the gulf. Weather models predict it could hit anywhere along a line from central Louisiana to eastern Texas. In Beaumont, officials are taking no chances. We’ll hear from City of Beaumont Emergency Management spokesperson Officer Carol Riley.

We’re looking for reactions from folks on the coast, or those who experienced previous storms. You can share your reactions here: https://txst.us/3hsEIHH 

Texas Congressmen Backing A USPS Bill

As funding for the postal service becomes another flashpoint ahead of the presidential election, mail service delays have been scrutinized in congressional hearings with U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. The Texas Tribune’s Abby Livingston joins us to talk about how two Texas congressmen (Will Hurd and Michael McCaul) bucked fellow Republicans in supporting a $25 billion bill to support the Postal Service.

COVID-19 Testing For The Uninsured

Before the pandemic, more than a million people in Harris County didn’t have health insurance, which blocked them from easy access to health care. Now that’s affecting access to our most crucial tool of controlling the coronavirus: testing. Houston Public Media’s Sara Willa Ernst explains the challenges uninsured people in Houston face to find a test when they need it the most.

Teachers Return To School In Lubbock

While school districts across Texas map out their back to school plans, schools in Lubbock welcomed students back to campuses this week. Not all teachers were onboard with returning. Some even chose to resign. Texas Tech Public Media reporter Kaysie Ellingson has the story.

An Exploration Of Herd Immunity

Scientists around the world are racing to develop a safe and effective vaccine against the coronavirus. But some people propose letting the virus infect everyone until we have herd immunity. What, exactly, is herd immunity? Texas Public Radio Bioscience and Medicine reporter Bonnie Petrie, explains.

The Reopening Of Cinco Artistas In San Antonio

Many museums and galleries across Texas have been shuttered since the start of the pandemic. But several found creative ways to make their collections accessible online. And as the art world slowly reopens, some institutions are moving to a hybrid model. Texas Public Radio’s Jack Morgan tells us about one such exhibit, San Antonio’s Cinco Artistas, set to reopen September 4.

Special Feature: The Hospital De Jesús Nazareno In Mexico City

Hospitals are very much on everyone’s minds these days because of COVID-19. Their role is so indispensable, we may forget there was a time when hospitals didn’t exist. The Standard’s Joy Diaz reports on the first hospital to ever exist in the Americas: Mexico City’s gorgeously adorned Hospital de Jesús.

The Downside Of Tracking The COVID-19 ‘Positivity Rate’

To reopen more businesses in Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott has said the state’s “positivity rate” for COVID-19 has to be under 10 percent. But as the Houston Chronicle reports a recent “data dump” of 500,000 backlogged test results from private firms has vexed some local officials and health experts over the reliability of Abbott’s key metric. Cayla Harris, a state reporter for the Houston Chronicle, who has been covering this story talks to the Standard.

All this and Texas News Roundup, plus Social Media Editor Wells Dunbar with the talk of Texas.

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