With coronaviurs cases AKA SARS CoV-2 or Covid-19 cases hitting the grim milestone of 3,127, 951 and 216,987 deaths worldwide, it’s time for Washington to begin opening up the country. Whatever damage the coronavirus did to the health, safety and welfare of Americans, it pales in comparison to the damage done to ordinary citizens by shutting down the economy. Infectious disease experts have had their way with 73-year-old President Donald Trump, insisting on extreme mitigation efforts around the country, especially in New York City, shutting down businesses, sending the U.S. economy into the next Great Recession. Infectious disease experts aren’t concerned on the human toll unemployment takes on ordinary citizen, only about mitigation efforts to stop the spread of the virus. If there’s anything learned in the last month of national “shelter in place” orders, it’s that the coronavirus is not that lethal.
While it’s true that a small fraction of the infected population develops life-threatenting symptoms, may even die, it’s also true that the vast majority of U.S. citizens have flu-like symptoms or no symptoms at all, the so called asymptomaic variety. National Institutes of Health Infectious Disease Chief 80-year-old Anthony Fauci estimated that up to 50%, maybe more, of the population infected with coronvirus are asymptomatic. What that should tell elected officials is that the costs of shutting down the economy far outweigh the benefits of mitigation efforts. Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates insists that the entire country must be tested before the economy can reopen. Gates can’t figure of why that’s the case other than repeating talking points from infectious disease experts, consumed with testing and contact tracing, to ascertain who’s potentially infecting others.
With at least half the population without symptoms, that speaks volumes about how low risk the virus is for the average person. Whatever vulnerable populations exist with the coronavirus, there’s nothing to stop those individuals from continuing to shelter-in-place, self-isolate, distance, wear masks, wash hands or do whatever mitigation efforts makes them feel safe. For the vast majority of people, there’s no reason to keep the country shut down anymore. When you look at the case of 49-year-old emergency room [ER] Dr. Lorne M. Breen who committed suicide yesterday. Reports that Breen was overwhelmed with stress serving the frontlines on the war against coronvirus at New York’s Columbia Presbyterian Hospital speaks volumes about what happens when you overload otherwise normal people with stress. Breen succumbed to intolerable stress by ending her life.
Coronvirus cases hit 1,029,878 with 58,640 deaths in the United Statets, a grim reminder about the toll taken by the Wuhan-based SARS CoV-2 virus that came out of nowhere, causing a spiraling epidemic, then jumping borders to 210 countries around the globe. China kept the spiraling epidemic a secret with World Health Organization’s 55-tear-old Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus who kept 66-year-old Chinese President Xi Jinping’s dirty secret for three months until declaring a global pandemic March 11. Tedros knew in December that a spiraling infectious disease crisis in Wuhan, threatened the world. But Tedros kept Xi’s secret and infected the rest of the world. Instead of quarantining China in December, Tedros let million of Chinses tourists travel to the Europe, the United States and beyond over the 2019 holidays and Chinese New Year, infecting the world with SARS CoV-2.
:Today’s epidemic in the United State has become a political football, kicked around by Democrat and the media. Blaming the White House for a lack of testing, Democrats and their friends in the press have justified the nationwide “shelter in place” orders, throwing millions of U.S. citizens into unemployment and homelessness. Poor testing “is probably the No. 1 problem in America, and has been from the beginning of this crisis,” said Democrat Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, chairman of the National Governors’ Association. Hogan repeats the same talking points as the infectious disease community knowing that the country is too big, with its 328,2 million population to test everyone—nor is it necessary. Knowing that at least 50% of SARS CoV-2 cases are asymptomatic should tell elected officials that there’s far less risk to ordinary citizens than first expected.
Testing every many, woman and child makes zero sense going forward. Only patients exhibiting severe symptoms should be tested at all. With so many asymptomatic cases, infectious disease officials should treat coronvirus no different than the seasonal flu. If the Centers of Disease Conrol {CDC] wishes to recommend people wear masks when shopping in grocery or department stores, the let them spell out the guidelines. Shelter in place orders have gone too far preventing ordinary citizens from working and earning a living. No U.S. citizen, for whatever reason, should be denied a livelihood because the infectious disease community thinks there’s risk of infection. Mitigation efforts can be continued while the economy opens up, including asking fans to wear masks at sporting or entertainment events. “No masks, no work, no service, no exception,” said Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine.
