Day 1,176: Trump willing to fly blind on coronavirus: mass testing ‘not necessary’
In discussing coronavirus, scientists are in virtual unanimous agreement: mass testing is paramount to slowing the spread of the disease. The proof is in the pudding: Italy saw significant slowing of the disease in towns where mass testing was implemented and a rapid response led by mass testing in Germany slowed the spread nationwide.
And yet, the U.S. has had a plodding rollout to coronavirus testing. With Donald Trump’s Thursday announcement that the U.S. has tested a total of two million people, the U.S. has tested 0.6% of its population over the entirety of the outbreak. By way of comparison, Germany can test about 500,000 people, or 0.6% of its population, every week.
Trump was asked Thursday about the need for mass testing in the U.S. before life can return to normal. In response, Trump said such testing is “not necessary.” He then, while acknowledging mass testing would be “nice,” asked and answered himself, “Do you need it? No.”
Just a month ago, Trump falsely promised that any American who needed a test could get one.
Now, Trump is saying that not only are mass tests not necessary and won’t be happening, but federal support for testing sites is ending.
Some local officials are disappointed the federal government will end funding for coronavirus testing sites this Friday. In a few places those sites will close as a result. This as criticism continues that not enough testing is available.
In the Philadelphia suburbs, Montgomery County has a drive-through site that has tested 250 people a day since March 21.
“It has been a very successful site. We are hoping by the time it closes Friday afternoon that we will have tested a little over 5,000 individuals,” says Dr. Valerie Arkoosh, who chairs the commission in the county of more than 825,000 people.
By removing social distancing guidelines and failing to mass test, people who have the virus but are asymptomatic can spread it to anyone while believing they are coronavirus-free. These are people who will be taking public transit, working alongside coworkers and sitting down in a crowded restaurant not knowing the need to self-quarantine.
Trump is continuing his war on science and medicine. This time, his decisions could not only prolong the economic downturn, but lead to the coronavirus coming back and killing even more Americans in an additional, perhaps even worse, second wave.
1,176 days in, 286 to go
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