More than four years ago, a team of Texas scientists developed a vaccine that may have been effective against COVID-19, but without necessary funding for clinical trials in humans, the research stalled. In early 2020, as COVID-19 spread across the globe, Dr. Peter Hotez, a leading vaccine scientist, requested $3 million to start the trials and testified before Congress that the COVID-19 pandemic should prompt a change in how vaccines are funded.
In March, Dallas-based industrial supplier Hatfield and Co. tried to sell an oil company 1 million coveted N95 face masks for $6.3 million—six times the normal price. Texas’ price gouging law makes it illegal to charge exorbitant prices for necessities during a disaster.
Texas has the widest digital divide in the United States, with 1.8 million public school students lacking broadband access, making virtual learning during the pandemic especially challenging. Since March, the Texas Education Agency and Texas school districts have poured nearly $1 billion into closing the connectivity gap. Texas ranks 38th in the nation for broadband adoption.
