Most states across the nation have begun at least a soft reopening, producing relief in some small business owners and the unemployed while causing anxiety in the naysayers who warn we are easing restrictions too soon. There are so many contradicting expert opinions and so much misleading media coverage that it’s difficult to believe anything anyone says. On one end of the spectrum we are fervently warned that another round, or second wave, of the Coronavirus is hot on the horizon and will be even worse than the current pandemic. Then, clear on the other end, specialists argue that lockdown was the worst thing we could have done and that should there be another attack of the virus it will be because of lower immune systems, not getting back to life.
How Severe is the COVID-19 Pandemic?
The first on our big list of contradictions is the severity of the pandemic. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lists a little over 70,000 deaths caused by COVID-19 in the United States so far. However, elsewhere on its website, it lists “provisional” deaths with 47,128 Coronavirus deaths since Feb. 1, 2020. It also shows 72,455 caused by pneumonia alone, 20,819 deaths with COVID-19 and pneumonia, and 103,915 caused by at least one of COVID, pneumonia, or influenza.
As Liberty Nation reported in April, hospitals are getting paid more money to list patients’ deaths as a result of Coronavirus. Dr. Scott Jenson, a Republican senator from Minnesota, broke it down by explaining that a routine pneumonia diagnosis will provide a hospital with $4,600, but a patient with COVID-19 will get the facility a $13,000 payment. If a ventilator is used, that amount jumps to $39,000.
The inconsistent and misleading data encourages confusion and fear in the American people. As LN’s Onar Am said, “To the average reader, a number is just a number. One reads it in a newspaper and accepts it point-blank as an accurate reflection of reality. The trouble is that there are so many uncertainties and biases that the reported numbers may give a false impression.”
Second Wave Worse Than the First?
Is it a scare tactic or the truth? People are being forewarned that a second outbreak is pretty much a foregone conclusion and that it may be even worse because it will likely hit during regular flu season, straining medical facilities capabilities even further.
CDC Director Robert Redfield said “There’s a possibility that the assault of the virus on our nation next winter will even be more difficult than the one we just went through. We’re going to have the flu epidemic and the coronavirus epidemic at the same time.”
Part of the plan to keep Americans safe includes testing, of course, but also continued social distancing, vaccinations, and tracking those who have become infected or been around someone who has contracted the virus. Known as contact tracing, this could possibly give local governments the ability to track a person’s every move.
Second Wave: Made Worse Because of Lockdown?
Some experts suggest the lockdowns and social distancing will only make it worse because we are not continuing to add beneficial germs and bacteria to our immune system. By wearing masks and gloves, washing hands with sanitizer every three minutes, staying away from other people, and sterilizing our homes from top to bottom, we are actually weakening our immune systems. This, they warn, could cause a lot more illnesses to sprout up once people start returning to their lives. (Note: the video can’t be shared because it has been removed from YouTube for “violating community standards.”)
Herd immunity is the process of exposing a large portion of the population to a virus so that they become immune to it. Sweden, for example, did not lockdown its country or impose stay-at home orders. Physicists at the University of Aberdeen claim severe lockdown measures will not allow for creating heard immunity to knock out the Coronavirus. According to Science Focus magazine:
“The researchers modelled infections using data from from the early stages of the outbreak in the UK, Italy, Spain, Germany and Hubei province in China.
“In the specific outbreaks they modelled, they found that only around eight per cent of the population will have been exposed to the infection, which they said will not lead to the levels of herd immunity required to control and defeat the virus.”
Dr. Francisco Perez-Reche said, “This leaves the risk of re-emergence of the virus once suppression strategies are lifted, similar to second waves of infection observed in 1918 influenza epidemics.” The doctor continued, “We predict, however, that partial relaxation of ongoing lockdowns could keep the number of daily deaths to less than 100.”
If there is a second wave, and it ends up worse than what we’ve just experienced, will it be because of reopening the country too soon, or will the lockdown be the culprit?
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Read more from Kelli Ballard.
