Today on Boston Public Radio:

Art Caplan weighs in on the CDC’s messaging around Omicron, and threats to trans healthcare in Arkansas. Caplan is director of the division of medical ethics at the New York University School of Medicine.

Then, we ask listeners their thoughts on the U.S. sending citizens free at-home tests and masks. 

Juliette Kayyem talks about the unique challenges of protecting synagogues following the hostage standoff at Congregation Beth Israel in Texas. Kayyem is an analyst for CNN, former assistant secretary at the Department of Homeland Security and faculty chair of the homeland security program at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

Blair Miller and Elizabeth Bartholet discuss the state of adoption laws and child welfare amid the disappearance of Harmony Montgomery. Miller is a Boston Channel 25 reporter and the adoptive father of Harmony Montgomery’s brother. Bartholet is the Morris Wasserstein Professor of Law, Emeritus, at Harvard Law School, and Faculty Director of the Child Advocacy Program. 

Nia Grace and Gabriel O’Malley share their experiences running restaurants in one of the toughest winters for the industry, and their reactions to Mayor Michelle Wu’s vaccine mandate. Grace is owner of soul food restaurant Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen in Roxbury and the recently opened The Underground Café + Lounge, and co-founder of the Boston Black Hospitality Coalition. O’Malley is co-owner of The Plough and Stars in Cambridge.

Matt Gilbert recommends the best of TV from 2021, including “Succession” and “The White Lotus,” and what he’s looking forward to in 2022, including “All Creatures Great and Small” and “The Gilded Age.” Gilbert is the TV critic for The Boston Globe.

We end the show by asking listeners their opinions on letting hair go gray and the sexism in cultural norms around gray hair.