For hospitals, COVID surges mean staff and bed shortages yet again
![](https://www.marketplace.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/GettyImages-1297720745.jpg?w=900)
Nurses care for COVID-19 patients in a makeshift ICU at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, California, in January. Some seven months later, hospitals are once again running out of ICU beds.
Mario Tama via Getty Images
Also on today's show: how countries might do business with the Taliban, the efficacy of carbon offsets for air travel and why the number of women in the construction trades remains small.
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Music from the episode
Old Graffiti Bibio
Occasional Magic Yppah
It Starts With Bongos Kid Spatula
Airplanes (feat. Hayley Williams of Paramore) B.o.B, Hayley Williams
I Feel It Coming The Weeknd, Daft Punk
The team
Nancy Farghalli
Executive Producer
Maria Hollenhorst
Producer II
Sean McHenry
Director & Associate Producer II
Richard Cunningham
Associate Producer I
Dylan Miettinen
Associate Digital Producer