The COVID-19 Virus Should Send a Thank-You Note

Sure, we have vaccines that seem as if they will be released imminently, and that is a very good thing. But for most of us, we will not have the ubiquitous access we might like for a while, even assuming a willingness to accept the two-stage inoculation process. Even as essential workers, particularly healthcare workers and super-vulnerable people, might have early access in the next month or two, most of us will not see that vaccine availability until at least the spring.  

We still have issues getting the vaccine to the people, and federal government is not helping states with depleted budgets fund the efforts (which are mostly state driven). Both the Pfizer and the Moderna vaccines require refrigeration (Pfizer literally at 70 degrees below zero Celsius)… and estimates from governmental sources suggest that by March, we may face well over four hundred thousand total deaths from the virus. With no exception, every qualified physician – knowledgeable about epidemiology – tells us that wearing masks and social distancing are essential. Even some red state governors who were vehemently opposed to mask mandates have relented (e.g., Iowa, Utah, North Dakota, Ohio, etc.) as their states face a lack of hospital (particularly ICU) beds to address their skyrocketing infection rates.

But for so many Republicans, they actually believe that mandating the wearing of mask anywhere is a political and not a medical statement. Too many red state legislators, embracing what is uniformly viewed as Donald Trump’s view of masks as always a matter of individual choice, despite the impact of infected individuals on those around them, cannot bring themselves to protect… even themselves. For the record, there is absolutely no constitutional right for individuals to ignore properly issued mask regulations any more than there is a right randomly to discharge firearms in public.

These individual state houses, where legislators gather in close proximity, are potential hotbeds for spreading the virus. Yet in many red state houses, legislators believe that passing a mask mandate for the legislature itself sends the wrong message to the Trump supporters who elected them. “Nearly 200 legislators nationwide have tested positive for the virus, and four have died from COVID-19 since the pandemic began, according to figures compiled by the Associated Press. At least four dozen Mississippi lawmakers tested positive in the largest outbreak in a legislature, where masks were encouraged but not required [pictured above].

“The Missouri Legislature postponed a special session focused on virus relief after a coronavirus outbreak among lawmakers, and a Tennessee lawmaker said she won’t be able to spend Thanksgiving with her mother after attending a hearing where legislators weren’t wearing masks.

“Health experts warn that the public is taking its cue from elected officials at a time those officials are trying to restrict or discourage indoor gatherings that are fueling a rapid rise in cases… ‘We know it works, but if political leaders don’t stand behind their public health officials and say we need to do this, a significant portion of the public may not follow,’ said Dr. Jeffrey Levi, professor of health policy at George Washington University.

“[Some l]egislatures have taken steps to try to limit the virus, with some allowing remote voting and others meeting in larger venues to allow more spacing. Arkansas’ House, for example, met in a basketball arena for two sessions last spring but will return to the Capitol next year.

“Twelve Arkansas lawmakers have tested positive for the virus over the last month, the second-largest known outbreak in a state legislature… The latest outbreak began after lawmakers convened at the Capitol for budget hearings last month. The budget panel had adopted a mask rule that didn’t require lawmakers to wear them when speaking into a microphone, drinking or if they were at least six feet away from other people…

“House and Senate leaders in Oklahoma announced plans to impose a mask mandate for employees who work inside the Capitol after two lawmakers recently tested positive. But legislative leaders acknowledged that individual legislators couldn’t be forced to wear masks.

“An outbreak among Missouri state senators that postponed a special session focused on federal coronavirus aid hasn’t spurred a requirement for lawmakers there to wear masks either… Republican senators were photographed not wearing masks during a caucus retreat with GOP Gov. Mike Parson… [State] Senators have been encouraged to wear masks, and many have done so as they move around through public spaces,’ Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz said. ‘It is, however, ultimately up to each individual to make that decision.’” Associated Press, November 22nd.

The problem is literally getting from “here to there,” when vaccines have inoculated enough people to trigger that cherished but elusive herd immunity. As Sweden has discovered the hard way, there is no herd immunity without a vaccine. It would seem to be a very harsh reality to face that, even with a vaccine on the immediate horizon, people are so impatient, so driven either by mythology or believing that medical advice is a political statement, that they are willing to face death or inflict death or severe suffering on family members, friends and fellow workers to prove their right-wing political choices. We could easily see another million plus infections and hundreds of thousands of deaths, most avoidable and unnecessary. “Thank you so much, Republican legislators.” Mister Covid.

I’m Peter Dekom, and I wonder what gives other people the right to force me to stay at home to avoid a preventable virus that they are only helping to spread.