This summer was supposed to be, in the words of President Biden, the “summer of freedom” from the coronavirus. What we saw instead was the summer of the Delta variant.

The surge driven by Delta — which has seen rises in cases, hospitalizations and deaths across the United States — has underlined that we are far from being done with the pandemic.

Guest: Apoorva Mandavilli, a science and global health reporter for The New York Times.

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Background reading: 

• The Delta variant retreated unexpectedly in Britain and India but has begun to rebound. The United States may take an even bumpier path, according to scientists.
• Here’s what we know about booster shots — why Americans may need them and when they should get them.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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