Viewpoints: New Targeted Policies Can Ease Public Health Tragedy; Hardest Months Are Still Ahead Of Us
Opinion writers weigh in on these pandemic topics.
The New York Times:
We Can’t Ignore The Human Cost Of Lockdowns
As the winter has deepened, the pandemic has surged. In the United States, case counts and hospitalizations are hitting and exceeding their highest points since the pandemic began. Countries across Europe have reinstated lockdowns and there are rumblings that states across the country could soon follow suit — some parts of California, for instance, have instituted new stay-at-home orders. Renewed lockdowns may be necessary, but they would be no panacea for public health, and we should not put them in place without carefully considering the human costs, which are broad and deep. It is imperative that we learn from and apply the lessons of the initial lockdowns. (Drew Holden, 12/8)
USA Today:
COVID-19 Vaccine: ‘Get As Many Shots In Arms As Possible, Right Away’
Q: Even as the Pfizer vaccine could be approved as early as Thursday, we're in the midst of the worst surge yet of the coronavirus. How bad is this going to get before it gets better? A: I think it's going to get a lot worse before things start to improve. The hardest four to six weeks are ahead of us. I think we're going to see daily new infections continue to increase for the next four weeks. And then we won't hit peak hospitalizations until probably six weeks, maybe mid-January. We could see upwards of 150,000 to 175,000 people hospitalized when we hit the peak and maybe upwards of 40,000 to 50,000 people in the ICU. That's going to really press the health care system. (Former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb, 12/7)
New York Post:
COVID-19 Hit The Working Class Hardest, Just As It Was Finally Doing Better
Just when it seemed some of the most disheartening trends in the US economy were finally beginning to reverse, COVID arrived to entrench them. The pandemic has been a neutron bomb targeted at the prospects of lower-income working people. They had finally begun to benefit from the recovery from the Great Recession when the virus ravaged industries that disproportionately employ them. Wars and depressions often reduce economic inequality. Not the pandemic. The Washington Post has called the resulting economic damage “the most unequal recession in modern US history.” (Rich Lowry, 12/7)
CNN:
Biden And Trump's Approaches To Pandemic To Be Starkly Contrasted In Dual Events
President-elect Joe Biden on Tuesday will introduce the scientists and doctors he says will finally defeat the pandemic -- but for now, his team can only watch as a wave of infection and death deepens the crisis he will face after January 20. (Stephen Collinson, 12/8)
CNN:
With Covid-19 Raging, Where Are America's Leaders?
As we head into the final months of the Trump administration, with President-elect Joe Biden poised to take the reins, public and private institutions appear helpless to act to limit the impact of Covid-19 during this period of transition. We're watching, like spectators, a health catastrophe of historic proportions that has already resulted in more than 280,000 deaths in the United States, economic calamity for millions and what is looking increasingly like a crippling of the nation's health infrastructure. And we're doing so with a sense of helplessness as a rudderless government and an indifferent President do little more than await the public distribution of a vaccine. (Merrill Brown, 12/7)
The Wall Street Journal:
South Dakota’s Balanced Covid Response
In the coming weeks, governors across the country will give speeches outlining their budget proposals. Following months of economic lockdowns, sheltering in place, and huge numbers of businesses being forced to close permanently, many of my peers are likely not looking forward to these addresses. Some will propose tax increases. Others will take on more debt, and a few will be forced to make significant budget cuts. In South Dakota, as we have done throughout this pandemic, we will forge a different path. (Gov. Kristi Noem, 12/7)
The Wall Street Journal:
Americans Need Help While Awaiting A Vaccine
Now is the time to act. The people who are struggling these days come from every state, every demographic, and every political party. They came out and voted in record numbers this past November—for both sides—despite all the risks that came with it. Make the deal for them. Rise above partisan differences and do something big for the people we all serve. It will save lives, jobs, businesses and homes. And when the history of this terrible time is written, your leadership won’t be forgotten. (Gov. Charlie Baker, 12/7)
The Washington Post:
What The Pandemic Can Teach Us About Treating Hunger
I am a chef, so I know about life inside kitchens and restaurants. But when I was growing up, I heard a lot about health care and the stresses of life inside hospitals — both of my parents were nurses. Kitchens and hospitals are two different worlds, but I believe that the fight to feed the hungry needs to learn from the history of the fight to heal the sick. (Jose Andres, 12/7)
Sacramento Bee:
Xavier Becerra Sued Trump But Ducked Police Reform
As California attorney general, Xavier Becerra resisted transparency, threatened legal action against journalists, ducked police reforms and declined to investigate the police killing of an unarmed Latino man. I was writing a column about why he would have been a bad pick for United States attorney general when the news hit: President-elect Joe Biden had instead nominated Becerra for secretary of Health and Human Services. Becerra and I were scheduled to talk for 20 minutes last Thursday, but we jousted for an hour. I made it clear that, given his record in California, a Biden decision to appoint him AG would essentially be a middle finger to the national movement for police reform. (Gil Duran, 12/7)
Los Angeles Times:
With Xavier Becerra Pick, Biden Goes All In On Obamacare
California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra has been one of the most visible defenders of the Affordable Care Act in recent years, repeatedly filing lawsuits against Republican efforts to dismantle it. That’s one reason President-elect Joe Biden tapped him to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, the agency that administers the ACA for the federal government. But HHS, which has the largest budget of any federal agency, does a lot more than just operate the ACA’s insurance-buying marketplaces in dozens of states. Among many other things, the department runs Medicare and Medicaid, oversees federally funded medical research through the National Institutes of Health, regulates pharmaceuticals through the Food and Drug Administration, fights infectious diseases through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and oversees federal mental health, substance abuse and child development programs. (12/7)
