This
is very good! But I don't want to be so arrogant as to say that even
as scientist I have never fallen into any of these traps ... I can only
say that I always try not to, and I welcome being called on it if I do!
One person was found positive for the COVID-19 in a town south of Milan. Extensive testing was done immediately of all contacts, and the whole town was put in quarantine. Milan to the north remained "open" but all public events and schools were closed. Italy has universal health care. They had thousands of tests kits available, and affected people were put in the best specialized hospitals. Medical authorities have been regularly speaking to the media. Politics has been out o f the picture. Let's compare with what's happening here... We have a first case in Solano county that appears to be "community" spread. We appear to have no large scale testing (any testing?). The Bay Area seems oblivious to the potential seriousness of the problem. How many "insured" folks will go to less capable hospitals because of the restrictions of their insurance companies. How many uninsured folks will not seek care or testing (when finally available) beca...
Italy was viewed for a while as an example NOT to follow... quite the contrary! Yes, I’m biased, as that’s my native country, but the facts of Italy’s behavior, both at the level of government and people, during this pandemic cannot be denied. This article explains very well what has been happening as Italy is starting its own (deliberately slow) path to opening up. As Italians move toward a less stringent regimen to minimize their exposure to the coronavirus, they can take pride in an unusual collective effort. nytimes.com Opinion | How Italy Coped, and Will Keep Coping As Italians move toward a less stringent regimen to minimize their… As Italians move toward a less stringent regimen to minimize their exposure to the coronavirus, they can take pride in an unusual collective effort.
My previous post on the virus epidemic was "hijacked" by considerations on whether or not to "panic". That was not my intent. I wanted instead to bring up a point that, until now, has been absent from discussions on whether to have a "universal" health care system, or retain some form of the present volunteer, or employer based, system that still leaves some millions of people uninsured. I made the point by comparing the actions taken by Italy, that has universal care, to t hose taken and forthcoming in our country. The problem (regardless of how prevalent and dangerous the epidemic will be) is that we are not safe until EVERYBODY is safe. If even a small number of people will be unable to get immediate care and testing because of money or insurance restriction issues, we are ALL endangered, whether or not we have insurance. All democratic candidates want to get there, the differences are in how, and how quickly, and in what they view as ...
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