Raphael Stevens

Dr. Scott Gottlieb told CNBC on Friday the U.S. is unlikely to eradicate Covid like it has done with other diseases, such as polio and smallpox, unless Americans significantly change their attitudes toward vaccination.”It’s possible. We don’t seem to be prepared to do it and take the collective action that it’s going to require,” the former Food and Drug Administration chief said on “Squawk Box.””It will require people exercising some serious virtue to get vaccinated even if they individually feel they’re at low risk of the infection because even if they’re personally low risk, they can still get and transmit the infection and you can’t eradicate a disease where you have a significant contingent of people who are going to continue to catch it and transmit it,” he said.No cases of polio have originated in the U.S. since 1979, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The first vaccine for the disease — which can cause paralysis— became available in the country in 1955.It’s been more than 70 years since the last naturally occurring smallpox outbreak was recorded in the U.S., according to the CDC. In 1980, after a yearslong global public-health campaign that involved mass vaccinations, the decision-making body of the World Health Organization proclaimed smallpox eradicated.Routine vaccinations no longer occur for smallpox, according to the CDC. However, the agency still recommends children receive four polio vaccine doses at various ages growing up.”We eradicate things where we have very high vaccination rates, and where the vaccine is a one-and-done vaccine where it’s fully protective for a long duration and for life,” said Gottlieb, who sits on the board of Pfizer, which makes one of the three Covid vaccines cleared for emergency use in the U.S. Moderna makes the other two-shot vaccine. Johnson & Johnson’s one-dose vaccine has been paused by the FDA due to cases of rare but severe blood-clotting issues.”You look at measles, smallpox, polio, we vaccinate children. It affords them a level of protection that lasts in perpetuity or well into their adulthood and so we’re able to eradicate — or largely eradicate — those diseases in societies where we have vaccination levels that are very high,” Gottlieb said. That’s unlikely to be the case in the U.S. for Covid, he said. In addition, a “large enough” share of the adult population is resisting Covid vaccination and the shots are not available yet for young children, he explained.”When it becomes available for kids, there’s now a very healthy debate in this country whether it’s going to be mandated for children to go back to school and it seems that the answer is going to be ‘no’ in the vast majority of states,” Gottlieb said. “That doesn’t create the set-up for eradicating this virus. That creates a set-up where we can get this virus to low levels. But you’re still going to have pockets of spread. If we want to eradicate it, we need to make different decisions as a society.”However, many colleges and universities in the U.S. are requiring Covid vaccines for students returning for the fall semester.Gottlieb’s comments Friday came one day after comments were made public from Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, who said it’s “likely” that people will need a third Covid vaccine dose within a year of being fully vaccinated.The remarks renewed conversation around the duration of the threat from the coronavirus, which the World Health Organization declared a pandemic 13 months ago.In the U.S., roughly 24% of the population has been fully vaccinated against Covid, according to the CDC. President Joe Biden has asked states to ensure all adults are eligible to receive the shot within the coming days.However, even as millions more Americans are vaccinated, coronavirus cases in the U.S. are still rising. The seven-day average of new daily infections was 70,484, up 7% in the past week, according to a CNBC analysis of data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. That’s well off their all-time highs earlier this year but consistent with levels seen during the summer surge.Some people have suggested, including Bourla, that coronavirus vaccinations could become a yearly event, similar to seasonal influenza. In the near term, Gottlieb said he expects that to be true.”It’s hard to predict what things are going to look like seven years from now, 10 years from now with Covid and how much this infection is reduced societally, but at least for the foreseeable future, you could see this being an annualized … vaccination” he said.More than 31 million coronavirus cases in the U.S. have been recorded since the start of the pandemic, according to Hopkins data, and at least 565,293 people in the country have died from the disease. Both cumulative cases and fatalities in the U.S., the highest of any nation in the world, account for roughly 20% of global totals.Disclosure: Scott Gottlieb is a CNBC contributor and is a member of the boards of Pfizer, genetic testing start-up Tempus, health-care tech company Aetion Inc. and biotech company Illumina. He also serves as co-chair of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings′ and Royal Caribbean’s “Healthy Sail Panel.” The Associated Press contributed to this report. 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In this articleDISSEASCMCSADisneyland and Universal Theme Parks set to reopen.Paul Rovere | Getty ImagesIn March, Michael Afram’s transportation company had its best sales month since California closed down last year due to the pandemic. As the state loosened some of its coronavirus restrictions and vaccinations rates increased, Karmel Shuttle Service has started to recover.”But to give you an idea of where we stand, the revenue we booked for the entire month of March 2021 equates to one day of March 2020 prior to shutdown,” Afram said. “So I guess you can consider us one-thirtieth of where we need to get back to.”Before the pandemic, Afram’s business averaged 450 to 500 rides a day in the area between Los Angeles and San Diego. A hefty percentage of its destinations were Disneyland, Universal Studios and SeaWorld San Diego. With theme parks in California shuttered and air travel demand at a fraction of what it was in 2019, Afram’s business took a massive financial hit. With Universal Studios reopening Friday and Disneyland set to open its gates on April 30, businesses like Afram’s are starting to see a small rebound.However, a full recovery will be slow. Particularly, as these parks are forced to limit capacity and can only admit guests who already reside within the state.While bookings in April and May are strong, Afram said he doesn’t foresee his business making a full recovery until the second quarter of 2022.”We weathered the storm and are starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel,” he said. “Unfortunately, [we] witnessed and suffered so much destruction and desperation along the path to get to this point.”Around 50% of Afram’s business was in the Anaheim resort area where Disney’s two California parks and its Downtown Disney shopping center is located. His shuttle company traveled to local airports, hotels, theme parks, restaurants and other local tourist destinations in the area.The other 50% included the greater Orange County area as well as Los Angeles, where Universal Studios is located, and day trips to San Diego.”The impact of both Disneyland and Universal Studios to our local economy is significant for all of our small businesses and surrounding industries,” said Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva, a Democrat, who represents the 65th California Assembly District, which includes northern Orange County.”There will undoubtedly be a surge in economic growth throughout Orange County as they reopen,” she saidA slow and steady reboundDirect travel-related spending in Californian neared $145 billion in 2019, a 3.2% increase from the year prior, according to a report from Visit California, a nonprofit tourism group.In fact, $6 out of every $10 spent at locally was attributable to residents of other states and countries in 2019.In 2020, tourism spending in California dropped to $59 billion, only 41% of what was garnered in the previous year. The last time tourism spending in the state was below $60 billion was 1996.Los Angeles’ tourism and hospitality sector supports more than 600,000 direct and indirect jobs, said Lawren Markle, senior director of communications for the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation.”Of course, LA County’s 10 million residents support this sector and its jobs, as we frequent our local theme parks and hospitality businesses,” she said. “And LA also welcomes approximately 50 million visitors annually, and their spending is a huge driver of economic activity as well.””We are still far below pre-pandemic tourism levels, so we see theme park reopenings as a very public signal that things are getting back to normal in LA and traveling to Los Angeles is starting to look practical and enjoyable again,” she said.For Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles, a restaurant chain with seven locations in California, including one within the Disneyland Resort area, local restrictions forced it to shut its doors to indoor dining. It stayed afloat during the pandemic by offering takeout and delivery and because it owned the buildings its restaurants are located in.Diane Vara, creative director for the company, said the business was able to make around 75% of what it did 2019 during the last year, but is looking forward to the influx of business that will come as the theme parks and state open up.Vara noted that Roscoe’s Inglewood location, which is near the Los Angeles International Airport, often draws travelers, who arrive to the shop, luggage in tow, straight after their flights land.”This is great for us,” she said of the state reopening.Pandemic pressuresOf course, Disney and Universal also benefit from being able to reopen.Last year’s shutdown led Disney to lay off tens of thousands of workers and slashed an important source of revenue for the media company. The parks, experiences and consumer products segment accounted for 37% of the company’s $69.6 billion in total revenue in 2019, or around $26.2 billion.A year later, revenue shrank to $16.5 billion, or around 25% of the company’s $65.4 billion in total revenue.”That was probably one of the hardest things I have personally had to do in my career,” said Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney’s parks, experiences and consumer products division, about the layoffs in an interview with CNBC last week. “I’m very passionate about the cast members here. I think they are the real reason that people come to these parks.”D’Amaro said that when the Disneyland Resort opens at the end of April, the company will have called back more than 10,000 cast members. To start, Disney’s parks will operate at around 15% capacity, and only be open to California residents. Mask-wearing and social distancing will be required for guests visiting the park.Universal, too, saw its theme park revenue drop in 2020. The company, owned by Comcast, reported its theme park revenue had declined 68.9% to $1.8 billion last year, as the pandemic forced its California park to close and its Florida and Japan parks could only reopen with limited attendance.When its California park reopens, Universal will also require guests to wear masks and adhere to social distancing guidelines.Representatives for Universal Studios declined to comment.”During my visits to Downtown Disney … I would hear many of our constituents tell me that they felt safer at the theme parks than their own grocery store,” said Quirk-Silva. “With handwashing stations, temperature screening, and helpful employees enforcing safe distancing our residents have supported our efforts in reopening our theme parks.”Florida parks are thrivingIf the reopening of Florida’s theme parks is any indication, there’s plenty of pent up demand.Universal’s two parks, Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios, have consistently reached capacity limits in recent weeks and Disney’s four theme parks — Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot — are sold out of tickets days in advance.Guests in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter attraction as Universal Studios Hollywood is welcoming guests back to the Theme Park Friday, April 16 to experience the thrill rides and attractions.Al Seib | Los Angeles Times | Getty ImagesSo far, there haven’t been any public reports connecting the Orlando parks tcoronavirus outbreaks.”We continue to provide an amazing entertainment experience,” said Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast, during the company’s January earnings call. “And our guests are responding, as confirmed by our steadily increased attendance and our most recent financial results.””What we saw this fourth quarter, especially in Orlando, gives us even more conviction in the momentum that our theme parks will experience when we reach a sustainable recovery,” he said at the time.While Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis permitted theme parks to return to normal operations with limited physical distancing protocols, Disney and Universal have continued to cap attendance and enforce mask-wearing, among other guidelines.California legislators are looking to have the state reopened more fully in June, however it is unclear how that will impact theme park capacity limits. It also remains to be seen when California will allow nonresidents to purchase tickets to its parks.Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. More

World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attends a press conference organised by the Geneva Association of United Nations Correspondents (ACANU) amid the COVID-19 outbreak, caused by the novel coronavirus, on July 3, 2020 at the WHO headquarters in Geneva.FABRICE COFFRINI | AFP | Getty ImagesLONDON — The head of the World Health Organization said Friday that an alarming rise in Covid cases has pushed global infections toward their highest level in the pandemic.”Around the world, cases and deaths are continuing to increase at worrying rates,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a briefing focused on Papua New Guinea and the western Pacific.”Globally, the number of new cases per week has nearly doubled over the past two months. This is approaching the highest rate of infection that we have seen so far during the pandemic,” he continued.”Some countries that had previously avoided widespread transmission are now seeing steep increases in infections,” Tedros said, citing Papua New Guinea as one example.Tedros said the United Nations health agency will continue to assess the evolution of the coronavirus crisis and “adjust advice accordingly.”Under international health regulations, Tedros said, WHO’s emergency committee convened on Thursday, and he expects to receive their advice on Monday.”Globally, our message to all people in all countries remains the same. We all have a role to play in ending the pandemic,” he said.More than 139 million Covid cases have been reported worldwide, with 2.9 million deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.The WHO declared the coronavirus a global pandemic on March 11, 2020.’Shocking imbalance’Tedros has previously said that one of the WHO’s main priorities is to increase the ambition of COVAX, an initiative working for global equitable access to Covid vaccines, to help all countries end the pandemic.The COVAX plan was expected to deliver almost 100 million vaccines to people by the end of March, but it has distributed only some 38 million doses.The WHO has said it hopes the initiative will be able to catch up in coming months but has condemned what it describes as a “shocking imbalance” in the distribution of vaccines between high- and low-income countries.The health agency has also criticized countries that have sought their own vaccine deals outside of the COVAX initiative for political or commercial reasons.At the start of the year, Tedros warned that the world was on the brink of a “catastrophic moral failure” over vaccine inequality.He said a “me-first approach” to vaccines would leave the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people at risk, adding the approach was “self-defeating” since it would encourage hoarding and likely prolong the health crisis. More

Tetra Images | Tetra images | Getty ImagesNext year’s tax return is probably the last thing on most Americans’ minds right now. With millions of individuals and business owners still dealing with their taxes for this year, next year can wait.”The financial industry, and the whole country, has compliance fatigue,” said Ed Reitmeyer, a CPA and a regional partner-in-charge for tax services at Marcum LLP. He says that mid-season tax legislation changes have made an already difficult year extremely challenging.”A lot of folks have extended,” Reitmayer said. “Our client base is much more accepting of extensions because they understand where we are.”We’re still asking people to send information.”More from Your Money, Your Future:Here’s a look at more on how to manage, grow and protect your money.Social Security beneficiaries got bulk of latest stimulus checksBiden energy, infrastructure plans may be windfall for investorsHow to handle that big tax bill from Uncle SamHowever, it is never too early to think about future tax filings. They will not get any easier going forward. The combination of past tax policy changes, sunset provisions on many of those changes, special pandemic tax rules and the guarantee of new rules from the Biden administration will make future tax preparation just as challenging as it has been this year.”After the last two years and the election, people need to think about a long-term taxable income plan and what it will look like over the next five years,” Reitmeyer said.The range of considerations is vast.One of the first things CPA Ed Zollars of Thomas Zollars & Lynch considers for non-business owner clients is whether they itemized deductions on their last return. If they didn’t, Zollars then determines how close they were to doing so.The doubling of the standard deduction in 2017 was one of the most significant tax changes for individuals in recent years.”The good news is the standard deduction for a married couple next year is $25,100,” Zollars said. “The bad news is that all the things that people learned to help lower their taxes in the past have become less helpful.”For those people close to the $25,000 threshold, Zollars suggests they consider bunching up multi-year deductions. For example, a couple who pay $20,000 in real estate taxes and mortgage interest and normally make a $5,000 annual charitable donation could contribute $10,000 every two years instead. That would allow them to itemize deductions of $30,000 one year and take the standard deduction on the second year.Wealthier Americans also have to consider the high probability that tax rates will be rising on both ordinary income and capital gains.”There’s a big fear that capital gains tax rates are going to rise,” Reitmeyer said.How high and for which taxpayers has yet to be determined. It may only affect people with more than $1 million in adjusted gross income, or it could affect a broader group.”President Biden appears to have made $400,000 a line in the sand,” Reitmeyer added.The goal is to maximize growth and wealth after taxes. You want to consider how things will affect your balance sheet after years of taxes.Ed ZollarsCPA at Thomas Zollars & LynchIf you do plan to sell assets in the future that have appreciated significantly, now may be the time to sell them and pay tax on the gains. The current maximum rate of 20% applies to single filers making more than $445,850. Paying the taxes sooner could be much better than later as legislative changes often take effect when passed.If you plan to take advantage of Qualified Opportunity Zone investments to lower your capital gains tax bill, this is the year to act. If appreciated assets are sold and invested in eligible “opportunity zone” investments in economically distressed communities across the country, you get a 10% reduction in the taxable gain — but only if you hold it for at least five years, with 2026 being the deadline year.In other words, this is the last year you can get that 10% reduction. Hold the investment for 10 years and you get a full step-up in cost basis for tax purposes (i.e., no capital gains tax).Estate taxes are also likely headed up. While a lowering of the current estate tax exemption of $11.58 million and a raising of estate tax rates won’t affect your current tax bill, it could dramatically impact your heirs. Estate-planning efforts have been ramping up.”With interest rates low and inflation expectations coming back, the more assets you can get into estates the better,” Reitmeyer said.For business owners, the tax considerations are far more complicated, in large part due to all the efforts the government has made to help them during the pandemic. “The rules change retroactively with each new piece of legislation,” Zollars said. “The benefits get better, but it makes it all harder to deal with.”Here are three major issues business owners need to consider this year for tax planning purposes.• Government loans and credits. Zollars suggests that the employee retention credit (ERC) set up under the CARES Act last year may be the single most important issue for small business owners to address.Previously, businesses that received a forgivable Payroll Protection Program loan from the government could not also claim a credit for retaining employees through difficult times. Now they can.However, a taxpayer can’t claim credits for wages that were paid with a forgiven PPP loan. Business owners need to maximize the other eligible expenses for loan forgiveness and use the wage expenses to claim the credit. “They need to look at both programs together to maximize benefits,” said Zollars.• Net operating loss carry backs. One reason so many business-owning taxpayers have filed for an extension this year is to figure out strategies for the favorable operating loss carry back rules in the CARES Act. The bill allows businesses to carry back losses incurred in the last three years to offset income earned up to five years ago.They can get cash refunds by amending prior year returns. Business owners need to determine whether they need the cash now or whether prior year losses may be more valuable to offset income in the future — when tax rates will almost certainly be higher.• Bonus depreciation rules. The same consideration on loss carry backs applies to bonus depreciation rules expanded by the CARES Act last year. They allow businesses to deduct 100% of the cost of eligible assets in the first year. If a business is still in survival mode, the rules could help them stay afloat. However, the deductions will be more valuable in the future when tax rates rise.While lowering your tax bill for next year should certainly be an objective for both individuals and business owners, it should never be the only consideration.”People should not focus solely on current taxes,” said Zollars. “The goal is to maximize growth and wealth after taxes.”You want to consider how things will affect your balance sheet after years of taxes.” More