The COVID-19 Warning
By Albert B. Kelly
Yogi Berra once that “it gets late early out there” and I’m
not sure why, but I have that same sense now when it comes to the coronavirus
or Covid-19 and what it means. If someone had asked a couple of years ago, my
money would have been on the H7N9 flu for the next global pandemic, but a
couple of mutations here and some CDC budget cuts there and we get Covid-19.
I can’t imagine what people must have thought in 1918 when
the H1N1 “Spanish Flu” pandemic (which likely originated in Kansas) killed
upwards of 600,000 in the United States and an estimated 100 million worldwide
before it was all over. Lacking our instantaneous global communications and social
media, panic and fear came at them differently then it’s coming at us.
Thinking back to the 1957 H2N2 “Asian” flu that killed
70,000 nationwide that season and the 1968 H3N2 “Hong Kong” flu pandemic that
killed 34,000 in that season, I don’t remember things unfolding as they are now
with empty shelves in the stores, closings, and cancellations of things that
were previously only cancelled for a World War, but here we are.
For all of that, what is in our power to do is what has
always been in our power to do whether covering your mouth and nose by coughing
or sneezing into your sleeve, washing your hands often and vigorously, not
touching your face, staying home if you’re sick or suspect that you might be
(self-isolate), or doing whatever you might to maintain good health like
getting enough sleep and good nutrition.
Beyond that, we will cancel as many gatherings as possible
and hope that it will slow down the spread and maybe allow testing or immunity
or science or something to catch up. Locally, the decision was made to cancel
activities and events at the Bridgeton Public Library until further notice as
well as the May 2nd KidsFest in City Park. May seems like a way from
now, but deadlines for preparations, funding commitments, and advertising
arrive weeks in advance which is why we’re seeing longer range cancellations. And
there may be many more to come.
As I write this, municipal court sessions have been
cancelled through the end of March and plans are being made on how to ensure
that children who depend on school for breakfast and lunch can still receive
meals in the face of school closures. The municipal workforce and every other
workforce is reconsidering everything from what constitutes “essential
personnel” to how to best deliver essential services while minimizing exposure
risks to themselves and the customers they serve. We have closed City offices
to the public, but will find ways to provide services. Stay tuned.
At some point, the rate of spread will peak and then slow
down so that we can all exhale. I suspect that we won’t know when that moment
comes simply because we’re far behind the curve having diddled away precious
weeks or months when testing and other measures might have dramatically altered
the trajectory of this thing. This may well be the price we pay for allowing or
permitting under-funding of those health-related agencies, organizations, and
programs charged with containment, testing, stockpiling, vaccinations, and
basically preparing for the type of health crisis we’re now experiencing.
When we come out on the other side of this mess and we will,
chances are that we’ll be living in a new normal. The only question is whether
we’ll be proactive in shaping that new normal in a constructive way or whether
we’ll shrug it off, blame the media for over-hyping the threat, and try and go
on to other things.
Whatever we choose, we should at least insist that the
federal government invest whatever it takes in order to create an early warning
system to spot potential epidemics and pandemics “over there” because
regardless of how we feel about “those people”, we want the front lines to be
Wuhan, China or some other place we can’t pronounce rather than two counties
over. And if it starts on our shores, then let’s at least contain the spread. The
marketplace and the private sector won’t do this because it’s not profitable,
so the government must.
For now though, it’s enough to get through this difficult
season, but when the smoke clears, it will be a time of accountability because
unlike SARS or MERS, this may well be our last warning.