The economic bad news seems to just keep piling up. Encore Boston Harbor casino says it's furloughing 3,000 employees, starting Wednesday. Boston University announced Monday it will furlough or lay off as many as 250 people to fill a $100 million budget hole.

Statewide, the unemployment rate stands above 16 percent -- a new record.

So just how bad is all this, and what does it mean for the long term health of the economy? We discuss with Evan Horowitz, Executive Director of the Center for State Policy Analysis at Tufts University and former Boston Globe economics reporter.