Georgia Today: State of emergency ends for COVID; Lawmakers press Kemp; New tech for blind kids

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Wednesday, May 10. I'm Peter Biello. On today's episode, tomorrow is the official end of the federal COVID-19 public health emergency. What does that mean for U.S. and Georgia? State Democratic lawmakers are pressing the governor to take action following last week's shooting in Atlanta. And we'll have the story of how modern technology is helping visually impaired students better remember their school year experience. These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Peter Biello: Tomorrow's official end of the federal COVID-19 public health emergency won't affect Georgia's offering of free tests and vaccines. State Department of Public Health Deputy Commissioner Dr. Chris Rustin told members of the agency's board yesterday that about 10 to 30 people every week are still dying from the virus. Most are elderly or have compromised immune systems.

Chris Rustin: We are providing free over-the-counter COVID test kits to — to the public. That will continue for some time because we have bought up a large number of those kits and we still receive funding grants that don't expire for another year or longer that we're able to purchase these testing supplies.

Peter Biello: He says the end of the emergency mostly will affect data collection. As of tomorrow, national reporting of COVID deaths will end, making it impossible to track such deaths in Georgia.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: Democratic lawmakers are urging Gov. Brian Kemp to convene a special legislative session to address the ongoing gun violence epidemic. GPB's Sarah Kallis has more from the Capitol.

Sarah Kallis: Georgia Democrats are calling for the special session after a shooting in an Atlanta medical facility killed one woman and wounded four others. House Minority Leader James Beverly says both parties need to come to the table to address gun safety laws.

James Beverly: It's time for us to put politics aside and lead to protect the lives of all — lives of all Georgians. I say to the Republican leadership who currently control the statehouse, the state Senate, and the governor's mansion: Lead, don't hide.

Sarah Kallis: House Minority Whip Sam Pak said the Democrats have asked for the session in a letter to Governor Kemp, who has so far not responded. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: Vice President Kamala Harris plans to return to Atlanta for the third time this year. Harris will be in town for a Democratic National Committee finance event. Harris's first two visits to metro Atlanta began at Georgia Tech in February, when she was in town to talk about the ongoing climate crisis and the country's investment and jobs. In April, the vice president visited the Kew Cells Solar Manufacturing Facility in Dalton. Atlanta finished second to Chicago in the race to host the Democratic National Convention, but remains a key battleground state and destination for Harris and President Biden.

Caption

Georgia Academy for the Blind senior Daquan Brown examines the 3D yearbook printed for him and other members of the Class of 2023 by Mercer University engineering students.

Credit: Grant Blankenship / GPB News

Story 4:

Peter Biello: Yearbooks and yearbook photos are a huge part of how we remember our school years. But for visually impaired students, capturing the physical essence of friends is a challenge. GPB's Grant Blankenship explains how modern technology is meeting the need.

Grant Blankenship: When the Daquan Brown was handed his yearbook, he could hardly believe it.

Mercer University engineering student Hannah Higgins: Your head is right here. This one's yours. You can just touch it with your hand. That's your face.

Daquan Brown: I get to keep this?

Hannah Higgins: Yeah. Oh, yeah.

Daquan Brown: Oh, factual? I'm talking about the whole thing?

Grant Blankenship: What he held was a box about two feet by two feet with 11 little heads mounted inside, one for him and each of the other seniors at the Georgia Academy for the Blind in Macon.

Daquan Brown: It's like bobbleheads, but like myself.

Grant Blankenship: And Daquan says as bobbleheads go, These are good.

Daquan Brown: It looks like me. That's crazy. Like, it's me.

Grant Blankenship: This is the sixth year Mercy University engineering students like Katie Puckett have been creating these 3-D yearbooks.

Katie Puckett: You have a handheld 3D scanner. We go around their faces to get the model.

Grant Blankenship: The model is printed in plastic that looks like a lightly ridged marble bust that could fit in your hand. Names are printed in Braille underneath.

Student: Bruh. That junk look just like you, bruh. Bruh, it look just like you!

Grant Blankenship: A graze of fingers across the forehead helps Shayla Hampton find her likeness.

Shayla Hampton: Yeah, I could tell this one's me because of my hair.

Grant Blankenship: She says she's not sure what she's going to do with this yearbook yet, but —

Shayla Hampton: Knowing my mother, she probably going to hang it up on a wall.

Grant Blankenship: Proud moms can be like that. For GPB News, I'm Grant Blankenship in Macon.

Story 5:

Peter Biello: The American dream. Does it include access to health care? The new documentary looks at that through the experience of the only doctor in a rural Georgia town. GPB's Leah Fleming spoke with the filmmaker.

Leah Fleming: Not everyone in Georgia or even the country for that matter, has the ability to go to the doctor. That is the case for many residents in Fort Gaines, Georgia, a town of about 3000 people, where 40% of residents there live below the poverty line. Dr. Karen Kinzel is the only physician in town. How did that happen? And what is it like being the only doctor? Filmmaker Matthew Hachaguchi has taken a closer look at Kinzel's experience with his new documentary. It's titled The Only Doctor. I spoke to him recently.

Matthew Hashiguchi: She is a full-time volunteer. She is working full time without getting paid. And there are times when she has had to pay the bills out of her own pocket. And I think that's something that really, really sets her apart from others. She thinks everyone should be able to receive medical care and should be able to live a healthy lifestyle. And Mercer University kind of comes into the story a bit. And I think what we see in the story is that there's kind of a competing ideology when it comes to health care. Mercer is setting up rural hospitals throughout the state of Georgia. And they're doing wonderful things, but they're really set up to treat people that have insurance and can pay for health care. Whereas Dr. Kinsell sees people that can't — can't afford it. What I really admire about Dr. Kinsell is her morals and her belief in serving and doing whatever is right for the patient, the person.

Leah Fleming: So what is happening in Clay County these days? Certainly, Dr. Kinsell is getting near retirement age and she's the only one. I mean, are there any efforts to get another doctor in there?

Matthew Hashiguchi: Yes. And I don't really want to give away the conclusion of the film, but there — when I was filming, Mercer University had approached her to sort of take over her clinic and her practice would then become part of Mercer University's rural clinic, and she would then work for them. So that's sort of a development that occurred while we were filming, and we followed that storyline. And I don't want to give away what happens, but there's sort of a competing interest that comes in to play who has sway over who receives health care and what type of health care is able to exist in a place like Clay County.

Leah Fleming: So you have certainly done your share of documentary work. You've even looked into your own life personally. And I'm wondering if you could talk a little bit about the power of documentary work.

Matthew Hashiguchi: There is a big push to create documentaries that sort of provide answers, solution-based documentary filmmaking, and I think that's important to do. I think with my documentaries, I don't pretend to know the answer to the problem. And I think with a problem like health care, there really is no one clear solution to this. And if someone had the answer to this, I think that more problems would be solved. But there's competing political interests and ideological differences in how you sort of fix this. My goal is to understand people's lives. And with this film, I really wanted to understand what it is like trying to not only provide health care but obtain health care when you don't have access to it. I mean, it really comes down to the American dream, you know, like is health care and living a healthy life part of the American dream? And is everyone able to obtain that?

Leah Fleming: Matthew Hashiguchi is a documentary filmmaker and educator. His latest work is called The Only Doctor.

Caption

Radko Jonas jumps into the water to retrieve a life vest that blew away as rain clouds approach at Lake Lanier on July 19, 2016, in Gainesville, Ga. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Friday, March 10, 2023, it is pausing a plan to rename the lake and the associated Buford Dam, both named after former Confederate soldiers, after local residents objected.

Credit: AP Photo/David Goldman, File

Story 6:

Peter Biello: A popular water park on Georgia's Lake Lanier won't allow beachgoers to enter the water this year. Margaritaville at Lanier Islands announced this week that their lakefront beach will be open for lounging and relaxing but not swimming. In a statement, park officials say they're making the move for safety reasons, but don't elaborate. Last year, four people died in separate drowning incidents on the lake, including one at Margaritaville. The announcement comes days before the park's summer opening on Saturday.

Story 7:

Peter Biello: Georgia's national championship football team is declining an invitation to visit the White House to celebrate the national championship win. According to a statement released by the Georgia Athletic Association, the Bulldogs will not be able to attend the June 12 event with other college teams. The statement blames a scheduling conflict. Georgia says it is appreciative of the invitation and looks forward to other opportunities to visit the White House. Some professional championship teams, including the 2021 Atlanta Braves, have made White House visits during the Biden administration. This year's NCAA men's and women's championship basketball teams from Connecticut and Louisiana State, respectively, are scheduled to visit the White House on May 26.

Story 8:

Peter Biello: Dylan Lee is expected to make the start tonight for the Braves as they close out the two-game series with the Boston Red Sox at Truist Park. The Braves beat the Sox last night 9 to 3. Starting pitcher Charlie Morton got the win last night, throwing six innings with two earned runs on five hits. At the postgame press conference, Morton gave a lot of credit to his teammates, including catcher Sean Murphy.

Charlie Morton: Coming to the park on a start day, knowing I'm going to get to throw to a really good catcher. Even when somebody gets hurt, man, there's no better feeling.

Peter Biello: Murphy drove in four runs on a pair of singles and a double and is batting cleanup as tonight as Braves catcher Travis Darno is back in the lineup. Darno had been out after suffering a concussion about a month ago.

Peter Biello: And that is it for this edition of Georgia Today. Make sure you subscribe to this podcast, though, because we've got more amazing content coming your way. I'll be speaking with Evey Wilson Weatherbee and Jessica Szilagyi, hosts of the podcast Prison Town, which is all about problems inside the Georgia Department of Corrections. I highly recommend checking that out. Also coming up on Georgia Today, GPB's Sofi Gratas will be reporting on rural trauma hospitals and how it's so difficult to get people in rural areas with critical injuries to adequate trauma centers. If you want to learn more about these stories, visit GPB.org/news. And if you've got feedback, we'd love to hear from you. Send an email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

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