President Biden made some remarks about the pandemic being over although we still have much to do regarding this SARS-Cov2 virus. I will let you decide how he meant what he said.
https://www.npr.org/2022/09/19/1123767437/joe-biden-covid-19-pandemic-over
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna48266
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/biden-says-the-pandemic-is-over-even-death-toll-costs-mount-2022-09-19/
One public health professional wrote this and his sentiments are echoed by many others.
Dear Mr. Klain and colleagues--
I’ve been a Democrat all my life. I’ve traveled to other states to work on get out the vote for the party and I come from a Republican family.
And yes, I even volunteered for the President’s transition team for a few weeks at the end of 2020 as some of you will know.Nothing, nothing has made me more disgusted by our party than what the President said on 60 Minutes last night about the COVID-19 pandemic being over. You all in your bubble think it’s just politics, particularly the old-timers, and for some who are new to government service you see no way of objecting or for the deeply ambitious among you will say anything to get ahead
But what the President said, what you have all consented to, is deeply craven, cynical, and dishonors our 1M+ dead and those who have fought to keep people alive and safe. 500 people are dying per day in the US. COVID, according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation was the 2nd leading cause of death in the week of September 9.We lead in overall COVID mortality and excess deaths among the G7. Life expectancy in the US is down and has not rebounded. Hundreds of thousands of Americans are likely to suffer from long COVID. And we’re grossly under-vaccinated and under-boosted as a country.
These are the facts.
You choose to ignore them out of political expediency, seeing no “win” for the mid-terms or 2024 in any real response from the White House on this disease. You’re counting votes. Many of us are just counting bodies. Please don’t comfort yourselves by saying you are doing all you can do, the country is “tired” and you cannot do more. At least call it what it is: capitulation. It’s akin to President Bush’s Mission Accomplished moment from 2003 and will be remembered as such, but perhaps with more scorn in history as the carnage is here at home, not in Iraq.
Saying the pandemic is over gets no one vaccinated, no one boosted.
Saying the pandemic is over, gets no one access to care and treatment if they have no insurance.
Saying the pandemic is over, does not refurbish the ventilation in a single school building.
Saying the pandemic is over, puts no food on the table of someone who is out of work from long COVID or from simply a bout of the disease that sidelines them for a week from a job that pays only if you show up.
Saying the pandemic is over gets you nothing but brings suffering and death to too many.
I cheered on Election night. I cheered when you made your initial appoints in public health, medicine and science. I cheered when I read your initial plan to combat the pandemic.
Now? How has it all gone so badly? More dead under your watch than under President Trump’s.Clearly those of us in public health who still see unfinished business in a pandemic that is taking a devastating toll on this country will have to do this alone.
But we will also bear witness to a story of people who once devoted themselves to public service, to the health and happiness of all Americans, but who put their own political interests and career prospects first—there is no other way to explain.I’ve heard the excuses from some of you directly, the I’m-doing-all-I-can-do-you-just-can’t-see-it self-justifications. But I’m over it. This is what happens when some Americans become disposable people. I saw it with HIV/AIDS, I see it now.
You may say, there is no use in speaking up, doing more if we don’t win elections and you have to break a few eggs to make an omelet.But many of us see you for what you are people who lost their way on the way up.
History will not be kind to you.
Best regards
Gregg Gonsalves
Unfortunately, although I agree with everything Mr. Gonslaves wrote above, there is a political and societal reality within which we all live here in the US. That reality is reflected in the vaccination numbers cited in the articles above. Our under 5 vax rates are atrocious and our rates throughout the age spectrum is not much better. Our booster rates are far behind what is recommended and even vaxxed and boosted folks here at SAV are questioning whether to seek the new bivalent immediately as become eligible or wait and time their ‘boost’ for fall and holidays—I am not going to say that is good or bad, it just is what it is. This is sadly the societal reality we live in at present.
The political reality is that there has been a concerted effort by a very large faction of the GQP who have been very effective in politicizing this public health issue. So effective that it is not just MAGAt and GQP diehards questioning covid mitigation measures but folks of all stripes. Couple that reality with the very real efforts of that same GQP to destroy democracy in favor of a fascist authoritarianism and a citizenry too wrapped up in their own lives or too stupid to understand they are being played and the tragic reality is that our present government could try to mandate vaccines, mandate more mitigation measures, mandate more stringent workplace rules and possible save a few lives—but then lose the House and Senate because, as our vax rates demonstrate, not enough US citizens care or understand that this virus isn’t done with us.
Do we really think a GQP congress is going to do any better? Is the loss of our democracy worth it even though we have now seen that these mandates will NOT be acceptable to enough among us who will fail to understand the benefits of the same? The same people who have not been vaxxed yet but also those skipping out in boosters or getting their kids vaxxed will probably not be enamored of mandates—that is just a reality. https://erictopol.substack.com/p/to-boost-or-not-to-boost
Personally I am furious with the GQP and its taking our country hostage over the past fifty years—all culminating in the inability of majority rule to effect the good policies we need to protect our most vulnerable citizens. We are now faced with a choice of saving more folks with good public health policies or losing our democracy and also losing any public health policy protections as well. That is not an acceptable choice but it is the unpleasant reality we face today.
Didn't covid disappear like a miracle in April of 2020?
It's over where I live. We are required to wear masks in medical, dental and pharmacy settings. Some people still mask and no one bothers them. We saw Hamilton this weekend and very few were masked. I test at least once a week. For those in a higher risk area, immune compromised and battling long Covid, Biden's words must have been devastating. I thought all the Covid funds had been distributed in the US? For my last vax and this one, I had to provide insurance information.
Interesting data. Using WaPo as NYT is firewalled.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/national/coronavirus-us-cases-deaths/
I see why Mr. Gonzales erases his diatribes. They are gut rendered and inflammatory.
"History will not be kind to you." What a ridiculous statement. And which "you" is he referring to. The first you was Biden and the last you was a huge range of people he dare not name, it seems. His colleagues perhaps? I would like to read what he had to say about the former POS president, but after reading that line I think he is more than likely a tRUMP voter. If not, he sounds as though he is going to be the next time round...
During tRUMP's reign of terror, the US was responsible for 20% and even up to 25% of the deaths in the world in 2020, with only 4% of the world population. I could fill hundreds of pages of how badly tRUMP handled the pandemic. Oh wait... I have a 200 page file and kept track of the daily numbers locally, in the USA, Canada and world in another file. It was a nightmare. (I already had 60 years of hobbies, my new COVID one was keeping daily data to keep informed and sane... I know weird) Did Gregg say anything or write to the WH then every time tRUMP misspoke? I really need to see those letters if they exist.
I absolutely agree with the body of the letter, even though Biden DID say that COVID was not over... "we still have a Covid problem" to be exact, but if this is whom people who work in public health are glomming onto as a spokesperson... I am very afraid.
He is a shit poster, not a spokesperson. He began by saying he volunteered for the transition team. That may be why he sounds to me, so embittered. Most of those who give a great deal of time to a campaign or transition are rewarded with a spot on a WH team. That is what I read into that letter. YVMV.
If this is the fellow, he does not actually work in public health with the public. He works in a Public Health Modeling Unit at Yale as an assoc. professor, and is a lawyer ... which is likely why he also erases posts. (He is an Aids advocate and activist turned infectious disease specialist) https://ysph.yale.edu/profile/gregg_gonsalves/
BIO: Associate Professor of Epidemiology (Microbial Diseases); Affiliated Faculty, Program in Addiction Medicine; Affiliated Faculty, Yale Institute for Global Health; Associate (Adjunct) Professor of Law, Yale Law School; Co-Director, Global Health Justice Partnership; Co-Director, Collaboration for Research Integrity and Transparency.
It is he and I found his thread on Twitter. https://twitter.com/gregggonsalves/status/1571806416939220993 and the equally inflammatory and misleading replies are expected when you shit post. Here is a shit poster from Germany... trolling. https://twitter.com/johahof/status/1571816974836973568
Even here, where he calls tRUMP bumbling, does he not become as inflammatory or as damning. https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/3/30/21196856/coronavirus-covid-19-trump-reagan-hiv-aids
Here he is damning... but where is it directed? Where is the anger? Where is the diatribe? Where is the long thread? Where is the angry letter to the administration? Seriously... look at the difference ... https://twitter.com/gregggonsalves/status/1257978332567801864?s=20&t=GkcoXrTwXzCMBBnJSnc7wA
And here, he lets someone else say how he feels, by retweeting. Ummmm... as an expert he seems to have missed the boat when it could have made a difference. https://twitter.com/gregggonsalves/status/1304357386019315712
Maybe Joe is trying reverse psychology, like you do with unruly toddlers.
Joe: What pandemic? It's all over.
Trumper: WHAT?! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL US? Hmmmph! I'm getting my shots!
The government and other sane people have done what they can do to mitigate this disaster. There are no more persuadable yokels. I have a couple of family members who say they are "still working through" the decision to vaccinate, but they are not. If they haven't gotten the shots already, they have decided.
Anti-vaxxers refusal to vaccinate has already ensured that the virus won't be stopped. It's too late to think we can end it, so we have to call it a day and call it 'endemic'. Protect ourselves and let the chips fall where they may.
Look at the bright side: There will be thousands more dead Trumpers by November. And the long game: Next census in 2030, citizen counts in red areas will be way down, so redistricting will go well for us sane people. Let's go, Darwin!
Covid maybe endemic and we still have much to do regarding public health and the next plague that will come along.
I want to read that wall of text but cannot.
Edited: THANKS!
Even the NY Times is noting that Biden is getting slammed for it by everyone.
The pandemic is NOT over, and it won't be over for a very long time.
I'm not a doctor or scientist, but when there's still thousands of people dying from the same thing in one month, that's what I call a pandemic:
Gifted article, free to read:
Well written and well thought out. I tend to think the truth is in the middle of what he said versus what the GQP say (I'd say think, but let's be honest on that point). I wonder how to keep the momentum up surrounding this. Fatigue is a real thing and I imagine at some point, even those that started out robustly masking, maintaining vaxxing and so forth will eventually grow lax. I think we need to stay vigilant, but not at the sort of fervor that, say, Faux News reports on there being a new "war on"... every few days.
I'm just not sure how to maintain the focus and drive while not lulling everyone into a point of pure fatigue so it all sounds meaningless.
Pandemics end when a disease becomes endemic. I think we've reached that point.
I’m really glad you wrote about this. (I’m at work, so will read in depth later.)
Right when Biden said it on 60 Minutes, I absolutely panicked, lost it and came right here to look for support. No one had yet written about it. So glad that you did.
Thank you!!