captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> woodruff: good evening, i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, giving the vaccine-- calls for equitable global distribution of covid inoculations grow louder as cases skyrocket in the developing world. then, rebuilding gaza-- reconstruction efforts begin amid dire conditions as many residents lack food, water, and power in the wake of the war with israel. and, return to work-- the sharp rise in remote employment places the future of in-person office spaces in question even as vaccinations re-open society. >> we've really had this extended experiment, this proof of concept to see, well, does this work?

and many employers who never would have considered it before are finding that it does. >> woodruff: all that and more on tonight's pbs newshour. >> major funng for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> at fidelity, changing plans is always part of the plan. >> the kendeda fund. committed to advancing restorative justice and meaningful work through investments in transformative leaders and ideas.

more at kendedafund.org. >> carnegie corporation of new york. supporting innovations in education, democratic engagement, and the advancement of international peace and security. at carnegie.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions: and individuals. >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you.

>> woodruff: the united states will donate 75% of its unused covid-19 vaccine doses to nations in need. the white house has announced plans to ship 80 million doses by month's end. president biden had come under growing pressure to send vaccine overseas. today, his national security adviser, jake sullivan, called it "the right thing to do." >> thanks to the ingenuity of american scientists, and resilience and commitment of the american people, we're in a position to help others, so we will help others. and as the president has said, the united states will not use its vaccines to secure favors from other countries. >> woodruff: meanwhile, the world health organization reported vaccine shipments in africa have all but stopped as infections spike. we'll return to all of this, after the news summary. the u.s. justice department is investigating postmaster general louis dejoy. it's alleged that he pressured employees at his former business to give money to republican

candidates. a dejoy spokesman confirmed the investigation today, but said he never knowingly violated campaign finance laws. president biden has scrapped his call for a corporate tax hike to pay for an infrastructure deal. senate republicans had rejected the idea. today, the white house confirmed mr. biden is now offering a 15% minimum tax rate, to ensure that all corporations pay something. if there's no deal by monday, he could try to pass a package with only democratic votes. in israel, prime minister benjamin netanyahu attacked a coalition that's on the brink of ousting him. he urged right-wing parties to oppose the "dangerous left-wing" allian the coalition deal, involvg factions from across the political spectrum, brought both skepticism and hope in

jerusalem. >> they seem to have been able to get rid of bibi netanyahu, but that's not enough of a reason to have to make a government. so, i wish them luck, and wish us all luck with the new government. >> i think that the political situation has been deadlocked for too long. we have to try something new, even though it's a little bit scary and there's a lot of unknowns. >>oodruff: netanyahu is cranking up pressure on former allies to abandon the coalition before it can win confirmation in the iaeli parliament. crews off the coast of sri lanka worked today to avert an environmental disaster. a container ship loaded with chemicals is slowly sinking near the port of colombo, after being damaged by a fire. the ship had 25 tons of nitric acid and other chemicals on board, including tons of plastic pellets. it could also leak hundreds of tons of fuel oil. back in this country,

minneapolis tried to reopen the intersection where george floyd was killed by a white poce officer, just over a year ago. a community group led crews that removed concrete barriers and memorial items. with that, other activists put up makeshift barriers and insisted they'll stay until the city meets a list of demands. first-time claims for unemploymentenefits hit another pandemic low last week, at 385,000. and, wall street had a down day, led by tech stocks. the dow jones industrial average lost 23 points to close at 34,577. the nasdaq fell 141 points. the s&p 500 slipped 15. and, famed defense attorney f. lee bailey died today. the family gave no cause of death. bailey handled a series of headline-grabbing cases, from the suspected "boston strangler" albert desalvo, to patty hearst

to o.j. simpson. he also had a long series of personal legal troubles. f. lee bailey was 87 years old. still to come on the newshour: we discuss the many questions about covid inoculations with the head of the national institutes of health. reconstruction efforts begin in gaza amid dire conditions as many residents lack food, water, and power. we examine the troubling racial disparity in breast cancer fatalities in the united states. plus much more. >> woodruff: as we reported, the administration announced today it will donate much of its unused covid-19 vaccines to

countries around the world. nick schifrin has details, and speaks to the state department coordinator in charge of the effort. >> schifrin: the administration says it will donate 25 million vaccines immediately. 19 million, or 75%, will go to covax, the u.n. led effort to vaccine the world. of that, six million will go to central and south america, seven million to asia, and five million to africa. the other six million being allocated today, will be donated bilaterally to hard hit areas such as india, the west bank and gaza, and allies and partners, such as canada, mexico, egypt and iraq. echoing the world's scientists, the president said today, “as long as this pandemic is raging anywhere in the world, the american people will still be vulnerable.” by june, the u.s. promises to donate 80 million doses. to talk about this announcement and the administration's policy on sharing vaccines, i'm joined by gayle smith, the state department's coordinator for global covid response and health

security. gayle smith, welcome to the "newshour". the administration has had dozens of requests all over the world for vaccines. why are you making this announcement now? >> well, the president announced last month that we would be donating 80 million vaccines, and that came on top of a pledge from him to the american people that, once he felt that we were safely on the path to an effective vaccination program in the united ates, we would begin to share doses. this 25 million is the first tranche of those 80 million doses. >> reporter: a couple of groups, including one you used to lead, have critiqued your announcement. the first statement is from the one campaign. "the world is looking to the u.s. for global leadership and more ambition is needed." and doctors without borders said today thele 0 million doses the u.s. promises to share barely scratches the surface of what's needed. this is an emergency and the u.s. government must act with the urgency it merits. why not more urgency and why not more j generosity?

>> well, i think we certainly share the urgey and the commit commitment to generosity. this first tranche of unaided doses come after covax, $2 million. more funding from covax coming down the road and a very ambitious global response plan led by the agency for international development as the president said, when he announced this, that we intend to lead in the global response, we cannot do it alone, so we're also leveraging the support of other partners. but this is not our only move on vaccines. there's the support to covax. we are working with producers to produce more in this year. also investing through our development finance cooperation, a local manufacturer that will bring vaccines on line we hope by the last quarter of this year. so we have the ambition. >> reporter: there's the acknowledgment that the u.s. eds to be vaccinated, but limb ask you about europe, for

example. theine union has exported more than 160 million doses of vaccine, aually more than it's administered inside of europe. so with all due respect, couldn't the u.s. be more generous than it is being today? >> well, we've got companies that are exporting now, so, you know, i think that's already out there. and i think, when you look at a response plan that is over $10 billion, you look at us being, by far, in the le on sharing doses -- and again, this is the beginning -- our investments in manufacture, i think we are on the path to leading this global effort. >> reporter: today's announcement does not include the 60 million astrazeneca doses. >> right. >> reporter: which no american may ever get that are in the united states. can you donate those as well? >> (indiscernible) from the f.d.a., we want to make sure that any vaccines we share are fully safe and as soon as we get that, yes, we are going to share those 60 million doses. >> reporter: i was talking to

some people who support your decision today, and they urge this to be the beginning. as you've said, are you committing that not only the 25 million but the 80 million dses that you've committed by the end of june will just be the first step? >> it's the first part of a multi-pronged strategy and, yes, we intend to be doing much more. again, we're going twork with allies. we have g-summit coming up and as the president said prepared to lead. we can't do it alone. we intend to do it with others. we are looking to achieve much greater -- (indiscernible). >> reporter: and how can you urge those allies including those in the g7 whom you're meeting in a few weeks to am accelerate their donating to covax vaccines that they don't need to the rest of the world. >> i think many are. we've had recent announcements including support for covax, additional funding there, and also trine creeds commitments in dose sharing. our aim is to rise and increase

the commitment from all of us. so far, i would say the progress is quite good. >> reporter: gayle smith, thank you very much. >> thank you so much for having me. >> woodruff: today the >> woodruff: even toe though the rest of the world are clamoring for the vaccine, more are wanting to get it. a number of private and public partnerships were announced to try to ensure that at least 70% of adults have one shot by the fourth of july. vaccination rates did hit a high in april but have been fall ever since. we ask some of you to tell us about your concerns and why you've chosen to wait. we're going to try answering some of those with dr. francis collins, he is the director to

have the national institutes of health. dr. collins, thank you so much for being with us again. it is contradictory to hear -- to think that the rest of the world wants the vaccine. some americans still hesitant to get it. but what i want to ask you about that is what can make the most difference now achieving president biden's goal of 70% of americans by the fourth of july? >> well, as the president announced in this national month of action, i think that's partly about trying to be sure people have answers to their questions, lots of information going to be shared, including right now in this program, but in lots of other places. and community folks who are perhaps trusted as specific agents of information, but also trying to knock down any remaininbarriers that have gotten in the way of people being able to get access, such things as providing childcare so you can get your vaccine, providing rides on things that

otherwise might be hard to come by, because there are so many advantages to being vaccinated, as i can vouch, having gotten to that point with my wife. i think we also want to be sure people grab on to that. this is a liberating feeling. >> woodruff: dr. collins, we do have some of these concerns and i want to share them with you and have you respond to them. debby hackie asked about how the vaccines are made. here's what she said. >> how did they come up with the formula for the vaccine? who was involved in creating the formula for the vaccine? how long have they done research on it before they decided to try it out on human beings to see if it, you know, is actually effective or not, and are they accumulating data from the -- what they've done to see how the vaccine is working?

>> basically, the mrna vaccines in the united states, that was developed over the course of 25 years, a very careful investigation to see how this might work in very small-scale efforts and the ultimately, just being ready at the time that covid appeared to try this in very large phase three trials. as far as following up, all the people in those trials, at least 30,000, are being tracked continually to see are they still resisting infection and are there any long-term side effects and, so far, the news is really good, ad all that information is accessible to people because we're trying to be as transparent as possible. >> woodruff: so, dr. collins, elizabeth bushel had a question about the effects of vaccines on people with pre-existing conditions. here's her question. >> is there a source that i can go to to find out whether pre-existing conditions can be triggered by the vaccine, be it

regardless ofñi which particular vaccine you choose? i would be interested in knowing that because, thus far, i have been unable to find a good source for that type of information. >> you can go to c.d.c.'s web site, and they have a page about vaccines and pre-existing conditions. and it's worth knowing that the trials, threes large-scale trials, at least 30,000, specifically tried to enroll people with pre-existing conditions. we wanted to see does this work with people with heart disease and diabetes and hypertension. the one area people tend to ask about is what about auto immune diseases since the vaccine works by triggering your immune to do what it needs to to fight off infection, is there a risk you activate something else, no data to suggest that is an issue but we haven't done rigorous study quite yet. as far as pre-existing condition, i would say if you're somebody who has had genuine

severe allergic reaction called anphylaxis, that is something to tell people getting vaccinate has happened before because you are somewhat higher risk for the vaccine. entirely treatable, doesn't happen but once in a blue moon but good to tell people about. >> woodruff: and chris shaffer has a question we heard from many people. >> what do we know now about how effective they are against the variants. >> we have good data which is pretty reassuring that the current vaccines work to protect tennis these, not quite as strongly as the original virus but strongly enough right now. so, at the moment, there is no reason anybody should feel like, oh, i need a different vaccine than this. the ones we've got are good. downstream if other variants appear or other immunity wears off over the months or years then boosters may be needed but now it's looking pretty good. >> woodruff: final question from a viewer from tom reichert,

speaking for people who are just opposed. >> i don't see myself getting it unless i'm absolutely forced to, which i don't feel is right, for at least probably three to four years from now. then i would feel more comfortable. >> i guess in a place, if i had a conversation with tom, pointing out that vaccines, if they're going to have unexpected adverse events, it almost always happens in the first couple of months after the injection. we now have a lot of experience with these vaccines to say that we are not seeing that. so the wait and see was i think a totally reasonable position to take, but maybe we've waited long enough to see that the risks of long-term events seem to be extremely low. and mean while, tom is still facing the chance of getting infected with a disease that we know has killed almost 600,000 people. so putting that as a benefit to avoid that seems like still a pretty good calculation.

>> woodruff: well, i am sure these people appreciate your comments on all these questions. dr. collins, i just have a couple more things i want to ask you about things that are in the news right nownd it has too with that lab in china, in wuhan. as you know, the e-mails that have been publicly released recently from dr. anthony fauci indicate conversation between the two of you. my question is do you think -- i mean, is it the case that, looking back on that time early in the pandemic -- this was early in 2020 -- that the possibility that this virus came from that lab was just not taken seriously enough? >> you know, i think it was a confusing time back then, judy. first, let me say i do think we need to get answers here. an investigation is very much needed. what was happening, though, back in february and march of 2020 were a number of different theori were being flowed, one

that was particularly prominent was the idea that this vaccine -- i'm sorry -- this virus was actually engineered intentionally, that it was a product of bioweapon manufacture. that, when you looked at the actual letters of the code of this virus, was not tenable, and there's a paper published about that in nature medicine by christian anderson and others that i got very engaged in reviewing. so, unfortunately, that particular conspiracy didn't seem supportable and, so, the idea that it was, on the other hand, a lab accident where they were studying this virus, which maybe did occur in nature, but it got loose in the lab, that theory didn't get nearly as much attention perhaps as it should have. i will tell you, it was always on my mind. i know it was on tony fauci's mind, but none of us ran to the microphone to say we need to worry about the fact that this could be a lab leak. at the present time, we have no more or less data to support

that. suddenly it's emerged in a lot of people's minds, oh, that's the leading explanation. i don't think that. i think the natural orange nation is likely. >> woodruff: we know that is ing investigated. the other question that's come to light has to do with funding from the n.i.h. that u.s. government mon yp that went toward that lab and the concern whether some of that research may have been toward making the virus more dangerous than it was, i mean, how do you satisfy yourself that it didn't happen, or can you? >> well, i think i can and, again, i'm glad you asked the question because there is a bit of confusion about this. as the n.i.h., the largest supporteof medical research in the world, i think it would have been irresponsible for us not to see what we could learn about coronavirus in china, given the or gin of sars 20 years ago and mers another decade after that both of which came from bats in

caves in china and clearly were a sign that there might be more trouble ahead. and, so, we did through a subcontract to thean institute of vierology to support of a study. we never authorized a support of a virus to infect a human to make it more lethal or transmissible. that would have been absolutely off limits. the amount of money that went to that particular institute was ite modest. i can't tell you, with their millions, tens of millions, how many hundreds of millions of dollars of other research were doing other things that they didn't tell us about, but i will tell you that what n.i.h. supported, what we approved was not something that would have contributed to the arrival of this very dangerous pandec. >> woodruff: dr. francis collins, director of the national institutes of health. thank you very much. >> thanks. nice to see you, judy.

>> woodruff: today the international committee of the red cross released an urgent request for money to help rehabilitate gaza. at the same time, israel is rebuilding the damage caused by rockets fired from gaza. the 1.8 million people there are in dire need of basic provisions, and the u.s. is currently negotiating on how best to rebuild without aiding hamas, which controls the strip. nickchifrin is back with that story. >> schifrin: for alaa shamally, this rubble, is deja vu. it's not the first time the independent journalist has picked through the remains of his family's home. >> ( translated ): i tried to move away from the eastern borders so that my family would be safe, but the occupation bombs everywhere and everyone. >> schifrin: in 2014, israeli airstrikestre

along the gaza-israel border. so he moved further west. but this may his neighbor got a warning call from the israeli military. three minutes later, an israeli missile destroyed their apartment building. >> ( translated ): we, the adults, couldn't withstand the shock of losing our home. you can't find words to describe the feeling in dictionaries. can you imagine how it was for the children, who were sleeping peacefully and in a moment they became homeless? >> schifrin: his children include dema, 12, obada 10, salah 7, and abed ala 5. >> ( translated ): what is the price that gaza has to pay so that the international community addresses these crimes and provides a safe environment for citizens? >> schifrin: but even before a safe environment, they need basic necessities. at this u.n. food distribution center, palestinians wait in line for food. before the 2021 war, 1.3 million of gaza's 1.8 million residents were food insecure. now, the world food program estimates an additional 160,000 people, don't know where they

will get their next meal. moyen makat works for the u.n. agency created to help palestinian refugees. he says the need is vast, but his resources are scarce. >> weare depending on the generator because we have no electricity. so you need to manage how to guarantee a source of electricity and to provide the services and assistance to such refugees who are in bad need to such assistance in such a difficult time. >> schifrin: the u.n. says more than 75,000 gazans are homeless. many seek shelter in u.n. schools, or in tents where their homes once stood. and because of electricity shortages, three desalination plants suspended operations. 800,000 lack access to clean drinking water. the u.n. says gaza needs $95 million immediately, for all basic needs. but gaza's suffering began long before this conflict. both israel and egypt maintain a blockade. unemployment is near 50%. and hamas is everywhere. its military wing uses

residential neighborhoods to witnessed.ts, so israel accuses hamas of redirecting money earmarked for reconstruction, so it can indiscriminately target israeli communities. this war, they fired an unprecedented number of rockets, and caused an unprecedented amount of damage. gilad erdan is israel's ambassador to the u.s. and u.n. >> israel makes every effort to avoid civilian casualties. hamas makes every effort to increase civilian casualties-- israelis and palestinians, by israel uses its missiles to protect its children hamas uses its children to protect its missiles. >> schifrin: last month secretary of state anthony blinken met israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu, and palestinian authority president mahmoud abbas. the u.s. vows gaza rehabilitation money, won't go to hamas' military wing. >> schifrin: and today secretary

of defense lloyd austin told israeli defense minister benny gantz, the u.s. would provide hundreds of millions for israel's defense. >> the administration fully supports your country's right to defend itself against rocket attacks fired indiscriminately by hamas and other gaza based militants against israeli civilians. >> reporter: but those >> schifrin: but those politics, are not nesreen and zaher subah's focus. their focus, is their children's shock. >> ( translated ): after our house was destroyed, the children were traumatized. they lost their toys and collectibles, their school bags, and books. we try to give them psychological support so they do not feel afraid and stressed. >> schifrin: the u.n. says from this war, 250,000 children need mental health services. eight-year-old mohammad is old enough, to remember everything. >> ( translated ): my sister was the first person to tell me that our house was bombarded. she was crying and then i started to cry too. then the whole family started to cry. but i am telling the children all over the world, please do not be sad.

>> schifrin: mohammad hopes that wever gaza is reconstructed, it provides him the opportunity to reach for the stars, literally. >> ( translated ): i would like to work and earn money so that i can have a family and be comfortable. when i grow up i want to be an astronaut and also i would like to discover the planets. >> schifrin: for more on the rebuilding of gaza, i'm joined by ilan goldenberg, director of the middle east program at the center for a new american security. and zaha hassan, a human rights lawyer and visiting fellow at the carnegie endowment for international peace. welcome back to both of you to the "newshour". zaha hassan, let me start with you. is it possible to rehabilitate gaza without helping hamas? >> well, we have been down this road many times. 2008, 2009, 2012, 2014, and just this last month in terms of the bombardment of gaza. so this is not a new program for the international community in terms of rebuilding gaza. so there was a mechanism created

for this in 2014 called the gaza reinstruction mechanism that allows for the rebuilding of gaza following bombardments by israel without directly working with hamas, but realistically, hamas is the authority on the ground. but more important than can gaza be rebuilt is how do we stop this recurring high-intensity violence? how do we stop the reason for in high-intensity violence that we see regularly now every few years? and, really, we have to address the root cause, and the root cause is the fact that you have gad blockaded now for more than a decade where people cannot freely move in and out of gaza, you can't have normal economic activity because trade is restricted by israel, and you can't even have gazaen's trading with the west bank. even that is restricted by

israel. and, so, this needs to stop. >> ilan goldenberg, we'll get to the root causes in a second, but my question, do you believe gaza can be rehabilitated without helping hamas? >> no, i agreeith zaha that that's basically impossible because hamas ultimately controls gaza. but the real question is can you be smart about it so as to limit the benefits to hamas. and zaha talked ant the gaza reinstruction mechanism that created the intense vetting set up to prevent hamas from funneling all this aid and supplemented with israel and qatar coming to an agreement with on a monthly basis millions of dollars of cash get flown into israel and get sent over the boarder from gaza to hamas. that's not the best way to develop a mechanism flooding dark that goes directedly to hamas. electricity is one of the

biggest problems in gaza. most to have the electricity cn actually come from israel and egypt. you can do most to have the rebuilding outside gaza itself with the electricity flowing in. now you're creating huge economic benefits for the people of gaza without giving any of that money to hamas. >> reporter: i predict you start to disagree here. zaha, let me start with you on this. what do you think the root causes are? what do you think the way is to avoid having yet another war and having to have this conversation again? >> let's think about how we ended up here. this latest episode started when we saw actions taken by israel to rstrict palestinian access and residency and occupy easy jerusalem, and i don't think this issue of jerusalem is going away anytime soon, but the larger issue for hamas as well is the blockade. and, so, if you don't address

that recurring issue of palestinian displacement, particularly in sensitive areas like jerusalem, if you don't address the issue of the blockade, which a blockade is an act of war, and it's considered collective punishment to keep 2 million people confined to this very small strip of land, as ilan said, with limited electricity with actually no potable water for them, and the inability to conduct any kind of economic activity. this is a manmade disaster that we have in gaza, it's not a natural disaster that we need to remediate. >> reporter: ilan goldenberg, do you think that the root causes are israeli actions, whether in jerusalem or the blockade? >> well, i think half the root causes are israeli actions in terms of especially just focusing on gaza, on the blockade, and the other half is hamas' choice to use violence

and arm itself in response, or you could argue that the israeli blockade is in response to hamas' choice torm itself and use violence. the two things kind of go hand in hand. so i do believe that what you have here is a situation with both the problems. so what we've done in the past, everybody agrees on a cease fire and goes their separate way and nobody addresses the root causes. what i would argue instead is you need a sustainable three-way deal between israel, hamas and the palestinian authority tond this constant crisis. it's a three-way political deal, in my opinion, where hamas agrees to a long-term sustainable detailed cease fire with israel and also agrees to start taking steps to, over time, eventually disarm itself or reduce its armaments or freeze them. israel agreeso relax the blockade. it's israel and eas a result both have to agree to relax the blockade. so you get this threeway

political deal ideally mediated by egypt with support from the united states and the rest to have the international community and now you're getting at that time the root causes of why we're in this constant conflict. i'm worried this is not going to happen. the parties are going to egyp next week to begin the talks. i hope we get to a different place and the international community comes around that. there's a real danger we all get together, nothing happens, the international community throws a bunch of money at the problem, everybody forgets about it and we have the same explosion in a few years. >> to make sure we understand, palestinian in charge to have the west and hamas in charge of gaza. a fragile coalition in ills spans from an arab islamist party all the way to the far right. does that outer h the prospect of getting this right in zaha hassan, you first. >> this is not going to change the dynamics for the palestinians in the occupied

territories. it's going to be more of the same, we just have a new face at the helm. >> reporter: ilan goldenberg, just 30 seconds, sorry. do you think that the new israeli government affects the ability to get this problem in gaza right? >> yes, actually. i think that at least not on the big things because i think this government ultimately is not going to be able to do big things because of the very diverse nature of the coalition with everybody from the far right to the far left, but it also means it won't be able to do very destructive big things either like some of the things in years. you will have a government you can work with quietly on small nonpolitical issues. i will say gaza is much less ide lodgicle issues for large chunks of the population than west bank because it's not old biblical territory. there's not the same attachment to the land and history and religion associated with it. i think in gaza, (indiscernible) than in jerusalem or the west bank. >> reporter: ilan goldenberg,

hassan, thank you very much to you both. >> woodruff: for black women in america, a breast cancer diagnosis brings with it a disturbing statistic. black women are less likely to develop breast cancer but 40 percent more likely to die from it than white women, according to the centers for disease control and prevention. yamiche alcindor examines the complicated story behind the statistics. >> alcindor: michelle hawkins and her daughter mercedes had one thing on their minds: mammograms. >> no new breast issues? >> none. >> alcindor: the pandemic meant annual appointments had been delayed. for mercedes, it was her first

screening at age 41. >> i'm excited, a little anxious but okay. >> alcindor: they were at breast care for washington. it's a clinic in the heart of ward 8, an economically disadvantaged part of washington, d.c., where 93% of residents are black. >> we ready to ride now! >> alcindor: across town, bernard fuller was behind the wheel of a mobile mammography unit. it's another way breast care for washington is trying to boost the number of women getting breast exams. the big bus maneuvers around the nation's capital, a city where breast cancer death rates for black women are among the very highest in the country-- 34.3 per 100,000 people. on this day, the bus set up in the parking lot of the former providence hospital in northeast washington. black women face a triple threat. they have higher mortality rates, they get breast cancer at younger ages and have a more aggressive form of the disease. the reasons why are not totally clear.

so early diagnosis is key. mobile units like this one are a valuable tool for the medical community. they help reach women who live in mically underserved areas and in the middle of a pandemic, they're one way to catch up on the backlog of patients who missed or skipped their screenings. and as 76-year-old joyce terry knows, a year can make all the difference. >> three years ago, i lost my sister, who was my best friend, and she and i always did our tests together. my sister's exam came back okay, as mine. during the time that it was to have it done again, she had developed inflammatory breast cancer in the fourth stage. it shows up when it wants to. you know there's no timeline or no time frame that says you're safe from one year to the other.

>> alcindor: even without delaying a mammogram appointment, there can be dire consequences especially if a cancer is fast-growing. >> we also, as african-american women, get a different type of breast cancer. it's known as a triple negative breast cancer. >> alcdor: regina hampton is a surgeon and a co-founder of breast care for washington. >> it's not a hormone responsive breast cancer. those who have a hormone responsive cancer can get a hormone type of treatment that they'll be on for five years. that helps to decrease their sk of developing another breast cancer. when you have a triple negative breast cancer, you're going get your treatment. could be surgery with chemotherapy, could be radiation, but then there's no type of triple negative pill that we can put people on to help keep that cancer away. >> how you doing, good to see you. >> alcindor: there was no pill for donna hayes. she was diagnosed with triple netive breast cancer last may when she was just 32 years old.

black women are also more likely to develop breast cancer at a younger age. >> i started off with a lump in my chest, i ignored it. like anybody else, i didn't think i'm like, i'm 32. there's no way that this is cancer. my doctor told me you're too young for it to be cancer, so more likely it's a cyst. so i'll refer you to ultrasounds. so we got the ultrasound. the technician didn't like what they saw, so they referred me to get a biopsy. the biopsy confirmed that it was cancerous. when i got the first diagnosis, i was scared. i didn't want to die and leave my kids and my husband and like, i was just scared. >> alcindor: her slight delay in seeking treatment was in part because of the pandemic, and in part because of fear and responsibility. >> as the black culture and a whole, we're scared of doctors. you're scared of bad news. you don't want bad news because you don't know how to handle bad news. so you tend to not go to the doctor. you tend to not go to the dentist. you tend to put things on the back burner, especially black mothers, because they're

carrying more so for their kids or the household. so it's like, i can't afford to be sick. i got to make sure everything is straight. so you tend to forget about yourself. >> alcindor: hampton says those feelings are common among black women. >> many of them are single head of household primary caregivers. you may be working a couple of different jobs. and so their health is just not at the top of the list. they'll put their children first, their parents first. they'll put everyone else first. but as women, and probably you and i are testament to, we put everybody first. >> alcindor: over the past year, hayes juggled raising four kids with courses of chemo, a double mastectomy and radiation. tell me a little bit about the initial doctor saying you're too young for cancer, it's probably a cyst when you think about that now? >> if you tell your doctor something's wrong, they should automatically just assume you know your body. so they should just help you out. i mean, they shouldn't tell you like you're too young, this

can't happen to you because clearly it can happen to you. >> alcindor: depending on a woman's family history and risk, current guidelines say all women should start mammograms between the ages of 40 and 50. but hampton thinks for black women exams should begin earlier. >> black women are just at the bottom of the chain when we really need to have guidelines that really allow those of us who work in disparat communities to be able to make the decision that meets the need of our community, which may be dierent in my community than it is and, you know, in des moines, iowa. >> so you're going to take this hand and put it here. >> alcindor: mother and daughter michelle and mercedes hawkins showed us just how easy a mammogram is. this is the only 3-d mammogram technology in this part of the city. >> painless pam, that's what i hear. >> alcindor: and as insured patients, mercedes and her m can helpund screenings for women who don't have insurance. >> bringing my daughter here today i thought was a good thing for us to do this together.

>> i didn't have any pain. it was painless, actually. i've heard nightmare stories about being lifted off the ground and being pressed so hard and, you know, the lack of empathy from the person providing the service. and i mean, she was great. she was very informative while i got it. and she made me super comfortable. >> i'm a survivor. >> alcindor: donna hayes recently celebrated her last radiation treatment. what got her through the last year? her supportive partner who shaved his head in solidarity, her dog cynnamon who kept her moving, her kids, and a social media following she built up. >> i felt like especially being young and black and a female, that it makes it easier to see someone else that looks like you go through and gives you hope, like, okay, well, this is going to happen to me than i can too beat it. people don't believe it, but like, it makes me smile to see that little me can motivate you to care about yourself more.

>> alcindor: for the pbs newshour in washington, i'm yamiche alcindor. >> woodruff: unemployment claims dropped again today, and tomorrow we're expecting a clearer picture of what's happening with the job market. as more americans get vaccinated, workers and companies are figuring out what post-pandemic work life will look like, and how it may change permanently. our business and economics correspondent paul solman has the story. it's part of his regular reporting, "making sense." >> reporter: working from home, molly carlson is more productive in more ways than one. >> i found it's been easier to work really hard all day in a focused way.

i've also like occasionally being able to, like, throw in a load of laundry in the morning and turn it over at lunchtime. >> reporter: modibor fulluh likes being home too. >> we've got a 10 month old. you know, helping out with diapers, and help out at the house. >> reporter: brad duckett found a mate. >> she was from eugene, oregon, and i was from knoxville, tennessee. that wouldn't have necessarily worked had i been tied to an office. >> reporter: duckett and his now wife will travel the world while he works. >> we head to portugal on august 1st, then another month in valencia, spain, in split croatia, and then we'll be going down to south africa, and i'll just be working my normal job. >> reporter: covid 19 forced millions of americans to temporarily alter their worklife. now, with vaccines available and the economy reopening, their employers are considering permanent shifts, says economist nicholas bloom. >> it's taken basically a global pandemic to generate what's really a revolution in the way we work.

and i think 20, 30 years from now, we'll be looking back at this and saying, well, there was one small silver lining in the pandemic, which is it completely changed working patterns for, you know, roughly half of all americans. >> reporter: half of americans are still working from home, almost three quarters of all white collar workers. what do they want long term? desmond dickerson, who's worked remotely for years, does research for microsoft. >> there's a lot of people that are saying both. they want the flexibility, but they also want in person. so that's why the hybrid is emerging as an essential way of doing business going forward. >> reporter: sure enough, a survey by law firm littler mendelson found more than half of employers planning to offer a mix: remote and in-person. because work-at-home has been more productive, says lawyer devjani mishra. >> we've really had this extended experiment, this proof of concept to see, well, does this work? and many employers who never would have considered it before

finding that it does. >> reporter: and so ford motor company, for instance, where maybe a few hundred worked from home before, will let 32,000 of its 86,000 employees choose to work in-person or remotely with flexible hours, permanently. why not before? >> the cultural belief was, by and large, if i can't see you, you're not working. >> reporter: jennifer kolstad oversees the design of ford's physical spaces. >> in a moment that vanished. we realized, if i can't see you, you are working. in fact, you're working very hard. >> reporter: ...while taking care of tasks that make you a happier employee. >> so picking up our kids from school, which is something that i've done for the first time ever in my career, and that's become a priority that i don't want to give up now. so i've adjusted my days so that i'll keep doing that, i hope forever. but that doesn't mean that i'm any less productive. it just means that my workday is different. >> reporter: another perk for those working remotely: comfort. as i revealed, inadvertently,

when i stood to show kolstad something in my backdrop. >> this is the best part of covid! >> repter: well, not for those caught in their tennis shorts. but work-from-home has become populaenough that, in a tight bor market, firms are now using it to entice workers, says dickerson. >> startups are competing for the top talent all over the untry now and at times even outside of the country. so if you have an archaic way of working where everyone has to be face to face in the office, nine, 10 hours or more per day, there might be folks that say i'd rather work from home or rather not be fighting commutes and traffic five times a week. >> reporter: and as a result, companies like twitter, which offered a permanent remote option last year, are telling nick bloom they can now hire more diversely. >> we can have employees right across the country and in fact, some of them international, and we can reach groups of folks that would never, you know, in large numbers be in silicon valley. >> reporter: like workers in minority communities outside of

traditional tech hubs, says microsoft's dickerson. >> these are places that over index in white populations, whereas the south has a lot more of a diverse population. >> reporter: shaoin choo's virtual events startup took off during the pandemic. >> so we got a lot of traction almost immediately. and that also means we had to hire remotely, almost immediately. >> reporter: qu now has 20 plus employees all over the world helping her create online meetings. >> you used to know who is the boss's favorite. it's not super obvious because they don't grab drinks together! it's not obvious. so to some degree is better because the employees are having like an even playing ground. >> reporter: on the other hand, virtual work amplifies some differences. >> the introverts seem to have sometimes somewhat of a challenge because they don't really do the small talk in the meeting. they don't necessarily have the one on one in a casual way >> reporter: for workers, there are also the familiar frustrations of working from home: burnout. >> there's no real clear line of when to take a break and.

>> oh, you froze again. >> reporter: spotty connections and other technical glitches... >> i believe you have a filter turned on in the video settings... >> reporter: folks in rural areas are at a particular disadvantage, says dickerson. >> oftentimes, they don't have an adequate connection. they don't have adequate broadband. and about half of folks are saying they're not even getting support from their company to build out their workstations at home, which is particularly unfortunate because companies save money when they switch to remote working environments. >> reporter: and what about those like joseph walden, who lives alone? >> a lot of it's just sitting there, just me, the chair, the computer. it did get a little bit lonely. >> reporter: joelle kanyana misses her coworkers. >> the conversations that we have among each other, sharing our projects casually and i've missed out on also getting to know them as people. >> reporter: and as more firms offer the hybrid choice, bloom warns, there will be more

unintended consequences. >> if you look at people with a college degree, that have kids 12 and under, women have almost 50% higher rate of preference to work from home five days a week than men. but that collides with the fact we see over years of data that if you're in the office, you're much more likely to get promoted than if you're working from home. you can see choice could easily lead to a situation whereby five years from now, let's say, single young men come into the office every day get promoted up there in management. women with young children choose not to come into the office nearly as many days and they're held bk. >> reporter: and how do the 50% of americans who don't have the option to work remotely feel? >> so i don't wanna say a little t envious, but we kinda are! >> reporter: electrician tonya hicks owns her own business. >> it's like you wish that was you working from home, but it's not you. so, you do what ya gotta do. >> reporter: homecare provider and union member hillary

rothrock agrees. >> those who have to leave their homes, who are not able to stay home and work should be compensated as such. and i do believe that it's something we should look at, such as a shift differential, hazard pay. >> reporter: and they should feel empowered as never before, gues dickerson. >> i think right now, they do have leverage after everything that's happened in the past year to really push back on the way that they are compensated, the way they're treated in the workplace, the benefits they're looking for and everything related to their workers is up for negotiation. >> reporter: one more way that covid 19 is transforming work. for the pbs newshour, i'm paul solman. >> woodruff: and tonight on the pbs newshour online, some people are thinking about antibody tests as a way to check how effective their vaccines are. but doctors say they don't paint

a full picture. read why they say you shouldn't get an antibody test after a vaccine on our website, that's: pbs.org/newshour. and that's the newshour for tonight. i'm judy woodruff. join us online and again here tomorrow evening. for all of us at the pbs newshour, thank you and see you soon. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> architect. bee-keeper. mentor. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life, well-planned. our u.s.-based customer service reps can help you choose a plan based on how much you use your phone, nothing more, nothing less. to learn more, go to consumercellular.tv

>> the ford foundation. working with visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide. >> and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions and friends of the newshour. >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc

captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org

hello, everyone. welcome to "amanpour & co." here's what's coming up. >> translator: if this government is formed, the key word will be responsibility. >> scramble to replace benjamin netanyahu after 12 years in power. bibi biographer anshel pfeffer breaks it down. >> then support for tennis star naomi osaka continues to pour in. i'll discuss her stand on mental health with the tennis hall of famer pam shriver. plus, walter isaacson speaks to lifelong republican and former congressmanickey edwards about the party he called a cult.