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also this hour, focusing on coronavirus in the classroom. kids, parents, teachers, facing new school year hurdles. one major crisis? a shortage of teachers and staff never before seen in some districts. i'll talk to one official whose school district started the year with 50 classrooms. 50. that don't have teachers. and all hour we'll be answering your questions about keeping our kids safe in school. you can email those questions at talk@msnbc.com. or tweet using msnbcanswers. in just the last hour, president biden sounding the alarm about this pandemic. giving this urgent message. >> listen to the voices of unvaccinated americans who are lying in hospital beds, taking their final breaths saying and literally you've seen this on

television, if only i'd gotten vaccinated. if only. please don't let this become your tragedy. get vaccinated. >> president biden has a busy day. any second now he'll be meeting with india's prime minister at the white house. the big focus? the power dynamics in asia. and boosting our alliances. a few hours after that, both leaders will also be meeting with australia and japan's prime minister. it's the first ever in person meeting of this alliance that's been dubbed "the quad". a counterweight to the growing power of china. that's where we're going to start. monica alba is at the white house. i also want to bring in richard verba, the former u.s. ambassador to india during the obama administration. his resume is extensive. he's worked in the house, the senate. he's also an air force veteran as well. monica, we'll start with you. take us through the significance of this meeting with india's

prime minister. what do we know about the extended meeting happening this afternoon? it's also going to be including australia and japan's leaders. this quad. >> that's right, craig. just behind me, you could see those jokes pass. that was prime minister modi arriving for his first in person visit with president biden. the two leaders have spoken on the phone repeatedly. this is the first time they'll be meeting. we're about to see that happen at the west wing. that's that camera you're seeing here right now ahead of a very busy day of meetings. the president will be discussing many topics with prime minister modi, according to the white house. there will be discussion of many pressing issues including climate change, economic cooperation, of course, the covid-19 pandemic response. particularly in india which was hit so hard by the health crisis. the leader wills talk about that before later this afternoon. all coming together in this first in person meeting of the

quads. that's japan, australia, india, and the united states. they did have a virtual summit back in march, but this, of course, will be different and the white house hosting something they had wanted to do but couldn't because of the pandemic earlier in the year. but a big topic of discussion. according to the president with all of these leaders, will be afghanistan. the end to that 20-year war and what happens now. take a listen to how the president framed this discussion during his remarks earlier today. >> we're going to be talking about afghanistan which is a legitimate thing for people to talk about. but the truth of the matter is the end of the day is we were spending $300 million a day for 20 years. there's no easy way to end that. and we're now still getting people out, but it's really -- there's no picture book way to say okay, the war has ended. let's get everybody out and we'll go home. >> a lot to discuss there geopolitically. but something else the president

will discuss at least with his counterpart in australia is that new nuclear submarine defense initiative that was announced last week. august us. that caused a diplomatic dust up for our relationship with france. it was a key thing the president wanted to commit to in the indoe pacific region. that will be a part of why he wanted to convene the leaders and talk about their goals going forward. a lot on the agenda. in addition to that, they're going to be talking about cyber security and improving our infrastructure to exactly as you pointed out, counter the influence of china, even though that's not always as stated when the white house has these global forums, it is certainly a very key and relevant backdrop. >> monica, stand by again. we just saw the video of prime minister modi being greeted by the chief of protocol. ambassador, let's talk about this shift in focus by the

united states to asia. what would india's role be along with those other quad countries in trying to counter the growing threat in the region from china? >> yeah. craig, thank you for having me on. we have a critically important relationship with india. it's become one of our most important strategic partners in france, and it's a relationship that has grown dramatically over the last 20 years in defense and trade and clean energy. it's one of the most populous nations in the world. going to have the fastest growing economy, and so good things can happen when the world's two largest democracies can come together, and, of course, there's 4 million indian americans in the united states. we have shared values. there are a lot of touch points here. as you mentioned, this is taking place in the context of the quad which suggests that there's a lot that we can do, the u.s. and india together on climate, on pandemic response. but also in this quad context.

this is really a refresh of our 20th century architecture in asia. it's a good development. it's a historic development in u.s. foreign policy. it's a good day for the white house. i will say for president biden, he's worked on for decades. i remember when he was chairman of the senate foreign relations committee, he would talk about the promise of the u.s./india relationship and talk about the u.s. role in asia. i think what we're seeing is that role come to fruition here today that will deliver benefits for our two populations. and as you mentioned, for stability and security in asia. so i think this is a very good development. it reflects the fact that look, 60% of the world's population and 60 % of the economic activity is taking place in asia. so this strategic kind of clarity and focus, i think, is really important. >> ambassador, as you know, there is this complicated

element that the biden administration is having to balance when it comes to india. politico noting while the members of the quad are all democracies, india's was recently downgraded from free to partly freebie freedom house. that slammed modi's government for everything from harassment of journalists to attacks on nonhindus. not only have biden administration officials kept their public criticisms of modi to a minimum. they've even engaged to -- can you talk about the delicate balance the united states has to strike in trying to work with india? >> sure. look, it's -- india is a complicated, big, loud democracy. and there are many complicated parts to our relationship with india. but i will say we have to look at what's happening with democratic decline globally including in the united states

and other parts of asia, latin america, central and eastern europe. and i think we have to talk about that. and i think that will be on the agenda today. you know, good friends and partners get to talk about the things that are easy and positive and good and good friends and partners get to talk about the difficult issues as well. and this is a critically important issue, because like i said, we are the world's two largest democratic powers, and if we can get this right, and president eisenhower said the in the 50s and senator biden said it. if the u.s. and india are the closest friends and partners, the world will be a safer and more prosperous place. that is the basic premise of why this meeting is so important and why this quad meeting is so important. so i think it's an important issue, and they'll tackle it. >> the world's oldest democracy and the world's largest democracy.

ambassador, just follow up on something you just said. to what do you attribute this global struggle among democracies? it sounds like you think there are -- it's not think. the reality is you're right, there's a number of them that appear to be in decline. why? >> i think this is a big and complicated question. you can look at income inequality and the failure of western economies to deliver for their people, and you have kind of autocrats and others filling that void. i think we have to push back against that and recognize where we've come up short. we have to correct that. and ultimately, as president biden and his team have been talking about, we have to deliver not only a domestic policy that works for our people, but we have to deliver a foreign policy that works for our people. that's the best way to strengthen not only american democracy, and i think that's the same formula that you'll see

from prime minister modi and the leaders of japan and australia as well. ultimately, it's the working people of these countries that have got to buy in to the foreign policy that we're working on for them. and again, i think this meeting and this day is a historic day. and i think it's a giant step forward in that direction for delivering for ordinary people. >> monica alba, former ambassador richard verma, thank you to both of you. ambassador, i hope you'll come back. thank you for your time. also right now, we are keeping a very close eye on the house, because any minute now lawmakers are going to start voting on the women's health protection act which looks to cement a woman's right to an abortion. it's meant to counter the restrictive laws popping up in states like texas and mississippi. a live look at the house floor. among other things, the bill will protect the ability to decide to continue or end a pregnancy.

it enshrines health care provider's ability to offer abortion services prior to fetal viability. and it also prohibits restrictions on abortion after fetal viability enit causes danger to the women's and fee -- >> if it does pass the house, what are the chances in the senate? >> reporter: hey, craig. essentially this bill codifies roe v. wade into law. now, this bill has been around for eight years. but this is the first time the house of representatives is voting on it. the reason which is pretty remarkable, is because this is the first time there has been a majority of pro choice democrats who are able to pass this legislation in the house of representatives. that shows a very stark sign of the times that social issues are now very partisan as well. there used to be a lot of

anti-choice democrats in the party. that is no longer the case. yesterday speaker pelosi was very passionate yesterday, saying that no one has any business to tell a woman who to do. this morning she was a little bit less direct, but just as passionate about this legislation. let's listen. >> this is about freedom. about freedom of women to have choice about the size and timing of their families. not the business of people on the court or members of congress. about themselves. when this court embraced this shameful texas law, they brought shame to the united states supreme court. >> so this is expected to pass the house once they vote on it in just a few moments. as far as the chances in the senate, well, it is not going to get the 60 votes necessary. the only two pro choice

republicans susan collins, lisa murkowski. susan collins told me she wasn't going to vote for this. it goes too far, and two democrats. we don't know where they stand on this. joe manchin and bob casey of pennsylvania. >> lee ann caldwell on the hill. keep us posted on the vote. a lot to get to this hour. for a special look at how to keep kids safe in school, we'll go live to chicago where a testing and tracing program parents will promise still isn't up and running. a month into the school year. what parents and teachers are demanding now. also bonuses. virtual learn, even sending home now hiring fliers in lunchboxes. school districts all over the county desperate to hire teachers. i'll talk to one california official about his district specifically that has 50 classrooms right now without a teacher. and our doctors are standing by as well. they're going to be answering

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back now with our special look at the unique challenges administrators and parents and teachers are facing as children

are back in the classroom. coming up, doctors on stand by to answer the questions you tha have tested positive for covid-19. of the 530, nearly 400 are students. the district's testing and contact tracing programs have yet to be fully implemented despite assurances to parents their children would be safe. nbc's marv barrett is live at a chicago elementary school where 11 of 17 classrooms, 11 of 17, currently in quarantine. and mar, there's a parent i know, a chicago public schoolteacher. she told you she's, quote, walking in the door with trauma every day. what else are you hearing there? and how are city officials handling all of this? >> reporter: well, nearly a

month ago when i was covering the first day back at school, after the chicago public schools, parents were telling me they were cautiously optimistic, but there was a flustered back to school plan. there was a change in safety precautions. the school bus drivers didn't show up for some of their routes because they quit because of a vaccine mandate. and they had folded back or rolled back the temperature checks and health screenings that parents previously had been doing to make sure their kids were feeling healthy going into school. this was all because the district said they're putting into place this testing and tracing program. now the teacher is saying contact tracing is taking as long as 10 to 12 days. we know that's not effective. of that more than 500 people that have tested positive, that means there's been over 11,000 close contacts. it's not just this school seeing classes quarantine. the mayor expressing disappointment. teachers and parents frustrated with the mayor because she oversees cps. parents also asked the school

district for an option for remote learning. that was put into place for a virtual academy. only available for students with certain medical needs or individualized learning plans. i spoke with one parent. she made the hard decision to not send her three girls back to school. and she's feeling isolated when it comes to her concerns as a parent. i want you to hear a little bit of our conversation. >> my concerns are being ignored. they're being belittled. i'm being shamed for not having the confidence of sending my kids in. and i wish the district would acknowledge their responsibility in offering a safe public education to all our children. >> reporter: because it doesn't feel safe to you? >> no. >> reporter: now, this comes as the public school system says they will have the test and trace program up to speed by the end of this month. this also comes as they'll be getting a new superintendent brought in.

this is just the latest in what teachers and parents are calling a revolving door at cps. so, again, they're not feeling very confident about the safety of their kids now or even moving forward after the pandemic. >> mar barrett in chicago for us. mara, thank you for that. let's get to your questions. i want to bring in our doctors, an emergency medical physician, and an personal medicine physician. dr. cass, earlier this week pfizer releasing the results from a trial that says its vaccine is safe for children ages 5 to 11. this is a two-part question we received on twitter. first, will the children's vaccine be dosed according to to age or weight, and will children be able to get vaxed at pediatrician's offices right away? dr. cass? >> i can tell her the information in the press release said that the dose was based on age.

5 to 11 years old, and it was one-third of the adult dose. what we don't know is where the vaccines are going to be available. she can do the research now before this vaccine is approved to find out in her community where is the vaccine available? her pediatrician may have it, but they may not based on storage. but i'm certain that all vaccines centers that have pfizer will be available to vaccinate children 5 to 11 when it's approved. she should do the research now before it's approved. >> doctor, the delta variant. it's been a main focus but people are also getting infected with other mutations. we are a family of four, still waiting for our 11-year-old to be vaccinated. once all four of us are vaccinated, how secure can we feel that we will avoid serious illness or long-covid symptoms if another variant comes along and evades the vaccines or are we expecting future boosters will address this? >> first, it's wonderful that

everyone in your family who is able to be vaccinated has done so. we heard good news this week as we know on the pfizer vaccine. their shot worked effectively in kids 5 to 11, and they're planning to apply for fda approval by the end of the month. i suspect we'll see the vaccines for 5 to 11-year-olds in the next one or two months. we know that the current vaccines stand up quite well to the variants including delta. and at this point, we have no reason to believe the other variants that we know about can e vid our current immune protection. we have to wait and see on future boosters for new variants. i suspect this will be the case because as long as the various continues to spread, we unfortunately, will have more variants emerge. and the best way to stop this is to get the world vaccinated. >> dr. cass, this one just came in from twitter. we've got producers skouerring the internet as we have this

conversation. this viewer writes i'm going to be with my granddaughters who are under 12 this weekend. they've been wearing a mask at school. i'm vaccinated as well as their parents. do we need to wear masks when we're together? that's from someone on twitter. what can we tell her? >> for family gatherings when you have a mix of unvaccinated and vaccinated people, do a rapid test that morning. you want to make sure everyone that's eligible to be vaccinated is, but if they all took a rapid test that morning, both the children and grownups, they can consider themselves pretty safe that day and take off their masks. >> this next question is from sheila who writes my 13-year-old granddaughter took the first shot in june but never got the second shot because her mom couldn't find time to take her somewhere else to get it. what should happen now? does she have to start over or can she still get a second shot?

both the pfizer and moderna require two doses. what should sheila do now? >> that's right. so she can absolutely get her second dose now and she should as soon as possible. i think it's really important to point out that vaccine approvals don't equal vaccinations. we've done seen this play out for adults and older children in the country. we're still struggling to get 12 to 15-year-olds vaccinated. now for some, it's because their parents are ideologically against vaccines. for many, it's an access issue. it sounds like that's the case with this young person. their parents can't take unpaid time off of work to take them or they aren't able to skip work to care for their child if they have vaccine side effects. we need to do more to increase access for children which includes employers prioritizing this. and providing paid time off for vaccine clinics at work. it's really important.

>> all right. don't go far. we're going to answer some more questions in just a few minutes. also a huge warning from a top medical official in the united kingdom. the majority of unvaccinated school-aged kids between 12 and 15 there will probably contract coronavirus at some point. right now the transmission rate, highest among kids there. how that nation is handling the crisis and what we can learn here. first up, we're following breaking news in tennessee. officials just gave an update on the deadly shooting at a kroger grocery store. they updated the number of people injured to 15. one person was killed. that shooting happened about 30 miles east of memphis. police say the shooter who also died worked as a third party vendor for kroger. things diffe so you can focus on what matters most. that's how we've become the leader in 5g. #1 in customer satisfaction.

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covid-19 having a devastating impact on schools in england as well. last week alone some 122,000 students in england's state schools stayed home for covid-related reasons. that's 8 % of all students there. that includes 59,000 with confirmed cases. 45,000 with suspected cases. that's according to a guardian report citing the department of education. it comes as the top doctor warns that covid transmission is

highest in children, and that the majority of children between the ages of 12 and 15 would probably contract the virus, quote, at some point. our foreign policy molly hunter is in london for us this morning. molly, the uk started rolling out vaccines for children in that 12 to 15 age group on tuesday. the numbers are pretty astounding. what is the issue? and what perhaps can we learn from it here? >> craig, that's right. there is some good news as you said. the uk government has started rolling out a single pfizer shot to 12 and 15-year-olds. a little behind, obviously, what's happening in the states with kids. behind our eu neighbors as well. let's put those astounding numbers, and they are astounding in some context. the first is the vaccination rates above kids over 15 in the adult population here are incredibly high. so it makes a lot of sense that right now the virus is circulating most in that younger unvaccinated population.

the second is that there is a lot more testing in primary and secondary and private and state schools here among the asymptomatic and symptomatic kids. a lot more day that than we had six months ago. and the third point as schools return for the fall semester is that both private and state schools here in the uk really have gotten rid of mask mandates, gotten rid of social distancing requirements and have gotten rid of that bubble scheme that we saw over the summer and last spring that's like if one kid has an infection or symptoms, then everyone has to go home. and the teachers and kind of administrators are frustrated. similarly to what we heard in the report a couple minutes ago. they feel like they're dealing with infections in a case by case way and they're urging the government to put out some serious guidance and a plan now that the chief medical officer has emphasized this week that really starting to vaccinate the 12 to 15-year-olds is going to severely reduce those absences. take a listen to what else he

had to say. >> let's make an assumption to great majority of students who have not had covid are going to get it over the next period. it won't be in the next two or three months, but they will get it sooner or later. it's incredibly infectious, and we won't see it stop at a certain point. over the next years, we will see that happening. >> now, he also said they believe the estimate right now is that 50% of kids in the uk have already had covid. and he also, again, emphasized the only way out of this is to speed up that vaccination campaign with kids in primary and secondary schools. the other thing everyone is talking about is as they return to school, it's also the return of the common cold and flu, all the respiratory viruses that kids deal with every single year. >> yeah. that's true. molly hunter. in london for us. thank you. enjoy your weekend. let's bring back the

doctors. the fda now authorizing a booster, a third dose of the pfizer vaccine. right now it's only approved for people ages 65 and up as well as those 18 and older at high risk of exposure to the coronavirus, or severe illness. we've got a question asking how do they know the vaccine is waning and not just more people being exposed due to relaxed mandates with the higher transmission of the delta? what do we know about that? >> this is a good question. you know, we've had a whole lot happen in the last week on booster doses for the pfizer vaccine. it's not straightforward. the evidence presented to the fda and cdc has made it clear that the risk of infection and, therefore, potential for severe disease among fully vaccinated people, those over 65, is lower after a booster dose of pfizer's vaccine. that's unclear how long that

protection lasts. the data published in the new england journal of medicine from israel are available for the first 25 days after a booster. but the cdc announced a majority of americans will now be permitted to get boosters if they want one. but many people, especially those who are young and healthy including myself, would still like to see more data on this. >> doctor cass, i've got this one. just came in on twitter. this is from m-space. and this person writes my stepdaughter is worried about the long-term side effects of the vaccine. so she and her mother have not had them. one of her four children have had the virus. how can i get through to her to get vaccinated? >> yeah. i think we've been asking and answering this question since the pandemic started. we know for sure this virus, its infection is unexpected.

it causes all kinds of long-term effects and it's very dangerous, can be very dangerous for your body in long-term. the vaccine, on the other hand, that has been given to hundreds of millions of people is safe and effective without any of the near or even long-term effects. we've been giving this vaccine now for over a year including the trial. i think the fears about the long-term effect of the vaccine are unfounded compared to the fears that are real. about the long-term effects of the virus. and i think that's the decision people need to really look at. not vaccine or no vaccine. but vaccine or an infection and its consequences. >> all right. doctors, stay with us. we have more questions ahead. speaking of the booster shots in the last hour we heard president biden urge eligible americans to get theirs. the president talked about where the booster approval process is headed next and also fielded an interesting question about what's to stop someone who doesn't meet the criteria for a booster from getting one anyway?

>> in the near-term, we're probably going to open this up anyway. there's constant looking at both moderna and j&j. we're also looking to the time when we're going to be able to expand the booster shots basically across the board. so i would just say, it would be better to wait your turn in line. >> president biden also confirmed that he will be getting his booster shot as soon as he can. $6,000 signing bonuses, aggressive job postings. those are just some of the measures that districts are resorting to as districts across the country are facing critical shortage in teachers. coming up, i'll talk to the superintendent of a california school district who says they return to school with 50 open teaching positions, meaning 50 classrooms without a permanent teacher. and we're also keeping an eye on that breaking news on capitol hill. the house has just started

voting on the women's health protection act. it's aimed at protecting abortion access from the series of restrictive bills popping up nationwide. we're monitoring the vote. we'll bring you the latest as it happens. s.

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but when we realized she was battling sensitive skin, get your prescriptions hand delivered for free we switched to tide hygienic clean free. it's gentle on her skin, and out cleans our old free detergent. tide hygienic clean free. hypoallergenic and safe for sensitive skin. across the country right now as schools are facing a massive challenge, a major teacher shortage. some districts are resorting to offering massive signing bonuses. even more desperate measures. in one california school the associated press reports, quote, teachers are packing now hiring fliers into kids' lunchboxes with a long list of openings so families can spread the word. in the bay area, an associate superintendent says, quote, this is the most acute shortage of labor we have ever had.

tony joins me now. tony, you noted to the ap that you opened this year with 50 teaching positions open. that's 50 classrooms without a permit teacher. walk us through your reality right now. how does that affect the way schools are able to teach and keep kids safe? >> so i want to start by thank you for having us, and we really were lucky. our principals stepped up and went into the classrooms. they started teaching. we knew it was essential that we reopened, that we had a place for every student to go. we have teachers that are normally outside of the classroom, curriculum specialists in math and other areas. they went back into the classroom so every one of the 50 classes has somebody that is a permanent teacher in the district, or a qualified substitute as we continue to recruit. but we've never had this many vacancies. we normally hire 200 teachers a year. we hired over 250.

and we're still looking for more. >> what are you hearing about why there are so many openings? what's behind it? >> there's still quite a bit of anxiety as you've been talking about. people having anxiety about the vaccination. we have some students that are still waiting to see what's going to happen. many staff members chose to retire. there's a shortage in every district around us. there are not enough educators coming out of the system ready to jump back in. and it's really everyone is in this wait and see, make sure we're safe. for us, we're using every resource we have to make sure that we continue to focus on instruction and keeping kids connected. >> i mean, worth voting here that as i understand it, those 50 open teaching positions don't include other staff like teaching aides, custodians, cafeteria workers.

many of those positions are also vacant. what kind of impact does that have throughout the district? >> so we have over 100 para professionals that support our special needs students we're still trying to recruit. it means everybody is having to do two or three extra things every day. we're in the middle of september, and it feels like we're in march or april that we've been working straight through. it is one of the areas where if you are interested in connecting in education and you want to make a difference, we have a job for you. we want you and the people that are working have never seen more dedicated individuals. our teachers and our support staff come every day. they connect with kids, and i was out there on august 16th, our first day, watching students come back in person with smiles. the just joy of being together. that's what keeps us going. that's why we're going to continue to focus on that, and

ask anyone. if you ever thought about education, the time is now to come and join the teams. >> tony, before i let you go, i want to ask you about these reports. the teachers and your district have filed an osha complaint. the president of one of teacher's unions said they've heard about six students staying in schools when they have covid symptoms, classrooms not being cleaned. what's your response and do you see any correlation between those issues and the shortages we've been talking about? >> i think everything is connected. we are very much wanting to be partners with our labor. and we have some shortcomings. as you're short staffed, it takes time to get everything done. we continue to refine our protocols. we're glad to have osha working

with us. it makes sure everyone is going to stay safe. we're going to continue to build the protocols that are going to make a difference. every day we have 26,000 students coming to school, and our focus is with the shortages to continue to provide service. there's a lot of anxiety. there's a lot of frustration with all covid responses. i can say with assurance that every person that comes to work every day is doing everything we can to ensure safety. we're making sure that we clean as best as we can. we do need more kus toad yabs and teachers, but we're not going to do anything to short-change. we've changed our policies. if you're showing any symptoms, we're asking that you stay home out of the abundance of caution. we're asking that any time there is any possible exposures, you notify the principal so we can

do that contact tracing and make sure our students and staff stay safe for the long run. >> tony, thank you. enjoy your weekend. appreciate you. >> thank you. and we're going to answer more of your questions about keeping kids safe in school, next. g kids safe in school, next frequent heartburn? not anymore. the prilosec otc two-week challenge is helping people love what they love again. just one pill a day. 24 hours. zero heartburn. because life starts when heartburn stops. take the challenge at prilosecotc dot com. i'm so glad you're ok, sgt. houston. this is sam with usaa. do you see the tow truck? yes, thank you, that was fast. sgt. houston never expected this to happen. or that her grandpa's dog tags would be left behind. but that one call got her a tow and rental... ...paid her claim... ...and we even pulled a few strings. making it easy to make things right: that's what we're made for. usaa. what you're made of, we're made for.

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prescription drugs do not work if you cannot afford them. aarp is fighting for americans like larry, and we won't stop. that's why we're calling on congress to let medicare negotiate lower prescription drug prices. we're following more breaking news on this friday. it's a story involving vice president kamala harris. the vice president is appearing on abc's "the view" this hour. but moments before she was set to appear, we learned that two of the co-hosts of "the view" tested positive for covid-19. >> i need the two of you to step off for a second. >> okay. >> what happened is sunny and anna both apparently tested positive for covid. no matter how hard we try, these things happen. they probably have a

breakthrough case and they'll be okay, i'm sure, because they're both vaccinated. a lot of vaccines. >> all right. that just went down on "the view." according to a white house official vice president harris had no contact with the hosts prior to the show. also told the vice president did appear on "the view." she just did it remotely from another room. to another round with our experts. dr. dara k eye ss and dr. shoshana ungerleider. flu season is right around the corner. mary has a 10-year-old. she's asking once a vaccine is approved for kids ages 5 to 11 will they be able to get the covid vaccine and the flu shot at the same time, or will they need to space them out? dr. kass, what say you? >> well, you can actually get the flu shot and covid vaccine at the same time. but, more importantly, you don't have to. you can go get the flu shot now. my children have already been

vaccinated earlier this month and hopefully will get vaccinated for covid at halloween and me being a nice mom not wanting them to get two shots in one day if i can avoid it. >> dr. ungerleider, i want to ask you a question here. right now nearly 183 million americans, fully vaccinated, but there are rising concerns about the breakthrough cases -- breakthrough cases like we talked about apparently at "the view." this is michael asking how often does a person who has a breakthrough covid infection have long-term symptoms? >> we've seen the infection in unvaccinated individuals is 30% of those individuals continuing to have long haul covid symptoms. a small israeli study recently showed evidence that breakthrough infections could lead to long covid symptoms although this was a small study and a larger british one found

5% of people who had breakthrough infection had symptoms. it's a very good idea to get fully vaccinated even if you are young and healthy because we know long covid can lead to months of disabling symptoms even with a mild case. >> all right this will have to be the last one, dr. kass. school districts like new york city are requiring random weekly tests for unvaccinated students. linda is asking when will we see cheap at-home covid tests so it's economical to test at home? >> i'm hoping the answer is very soon. we know the president invoked the defense production act to increase the production of at-home rapid tests exactly for this reason. i do look forward to a time hopefully very soon where every

home in america is stocked with rapid tests for parents and people going to work can test at home if they have any suspicion of exposure or infection and can test kids at school if they're exposed under these programs so we can keep kids in school and avoid unnecessary quarantine. >> dr. kass, dr. ungerleider, a big thanks to both of you for sticking around for the hour and taking so many questions. thank you. and thank you as well for watching or listening. "andrea mitchell reports" starts next. um, she's eating the rocket. ♪♪ lunchables! built to be eaten. (vo) unconventional thinking means we see things differently, so you can focus on what matters most. that's how we've become the leader in 5g. #1 in customer satisfaction. and a partner who includes 5g in every plan,

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good day. this is "andrea mitchell reports" in washington with the house january 6 investigating committee is ramping up firing off subpoenas to four white house officials including the form earp chief of staffording them to give sworn depositions next month. trump chief of staff mark meadows, dan scavino, steve bannon and kash patel expected to fight the subpoenas with the former president already claiming executive privilege in a statement released overnight. on the coronavirus cdc director rochelle walensky will make her first public comments this hour about her decision overnight to allow doctors, nurses and teachers to receive pfizer boosters along with senior citizens and other high-risk individuals. in a rare reversal of an