Students across the country are going back to school this week as the Omicron COVID variant surges. But many districts -- like Atlanta, DC and Cleveland -- have already delayed their in-person returns, as districts ramp up testing requirements.

• Plus, many surprise out-of-network medical bills are now illegal.
• And, how the extended freeze on federal student loan payments is affecting borrowers.

Guests: Dr. Celine Gounder, clinical assistant professor of medicine and infectious diseases at New York University’s School of Medicine and the host of the Epidemic podcast, and Axios' Bob Herman.

Credits: Axios Today is produced in partnership with Pushkin Industries. The team includes Niala Boodhoo, Sara Kehaulani Goo, Julia Redpath, Alexandra Botti, Nuria Marquez Martinez, Lydia McMullen-Laird, Sabeena Singhani and Alex Sugiura. Music is composed by Evan Viola. You can reach us at podcasts@axios.com. You can text questions, comments and story ideas to Niala as a text or voice memo to 202-918-4893.