As the Coronavirus Ravages the Country, Trump Putters Around

Donald Trump  headed to his golf course in West Palm Beach this weekend after saying earlier this week he's "too busy" to have his annual physical.  His weekend in Mar-a-Lago follows his visit to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where he downplayed the number of testing kits available for the coronavirus.  The head of the CDC earlier said that there would be one million test kits ready by the end of the week, but it is now obvious that was a lie.   During his visit to the CDC in Atlanta, Trump brushed off concerns about the limited number of coronavirus test kits and announced during a chaotic press conference that 'anybody who wants a test can get a test.'

Trump's blithe comments stood in stark contrast against the the statements of many people (patients, doctors, nurses, health administrators etc.) who continue to refer to "testing criteria" in order to qualify for testing-- which is clear evidence that testing is NOT available on demand as Trump promised.   Hospitals also continue to report that coronavirus tests continue to be difficult to order and obtain, with results taking days and days to come back.

60-year-old California resident Renee Schwartz developed shortness of breath and a severe cough over two weeks ago-- and she has been trying desperately to get a coronavirus test every day since. She has already been tested for the flu (negative) and other problems have been ruled out.  But while her doctor thinks a coronavirus test is warranted, she has been unable to get access to any tests for her patient.  “I feel like crap,” said Schwartz. “I want to know, why can’t I get this test?”  Stories of other people like Renee, who are sick but can’t get tested, are now getting widespread attention.

Let me say again-- as many, many people (including health experts) have said for the last two weeks-- we need to have more testing done in order to correctly assess where we're at.  How many confirmed cases do we have?  Where are they?  Who are they?  What is the actual fatality rate?  How contagious is the coronavirus?  How is it transmitted?  What is the incumbency period?    If we don't have facts, we can't fight this thing.  If we don't have facts to communicate, then people are going to panic. 

Interviews with a dozen laboratory experts and government health officials reveal a six-week-long series of glitches, missed opportunities and delays that contributed to the shortage of testing kits.

“They’ve simply lost time they can’t make up. You can’t get back six weeks of blindness,” said Jeremy Konyndyk, who oversaw the international response to Ebola during the Obama administration and is a senior policy fellow at the Center for Global Development. “To the extent that there’s someone to blame here, the blame is on poor, chaotic management from the White House and failure to acknowledge the big picture.”

A Washington Post story detailing the CDC's prolonged incompetency in developing a valid test kit reports on a  California nurse who is sick and cared for a patient confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus.  Maintaining her anonymity, the nurse said (as of Thursday) that she was still waiting for permission to be tested.  “This is not the ticket dispenser at the deli counter; it’s a public health emergency!” the nurse said in a statement shared by the California Nurses Association. “I am a registered nurse, and I need to know if I am positive before going back to caring for patients. I am appalled at the level of bureaucracy that’s preventing nurses from getting tested. That is a health care decision my doctor and my county health department agree with. Delaying this test puts the whole community at risk.”

After waiting over seven days, the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Washington only yesterday got the tests it had needed to test its residents.  Warning signs had emerged over a week ago that the nursing home could turn into a coronavirus hotbed-- and who can say how many of the 13 deaths at the home could have been saved had testing been done earlier?  Over 70 staff are showing symptoms of the virus and the CDC has not yet provided enough tests for the remaining staff or first responders who were exposed.  The CDC's lack of response and indifference to their needs should be shocking to all Americans.   As I've said before-- this is Trump's Katrina.