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CAN COVID AND POLITICS COEXIST? (Jacob Eapen MD)

Published on 17 September, 2020
CAN COVID AND POLITICS COEXIST? (Jacob Eapen MD)
Not even the COVID-19 virus is immune from politics. Though it is the worst pandemic in our lifetime, many politicians have tried to improve their vote bank by betting on the virus. The only difference here is unlike in the derby where you bet on horses here you are placing your calls on human lives. Many political leaders in India, the leadership in Brazil, Peru and even The USA have tried to capitalize on the pandemic for their own political gains. In some countries there has been underreporting of deaths. In others there, has been self-serving decisions based on ego and not based on science. This is both for their political ego and also the concerns about overcrowding the health system. But in some countries incentives are given for Covid cases which incentivize some hospitals to take advantage of this, thereby leading to over reporting.

Historically, political decisions have affected health indices adversely. During the period of conservative governments, reduced funding for family planning has resulted in increased maternal mortality and increased incidence of AIDS cases in many parts of the globe. Low income and socioeconomic inequalities are related to worse health outcomes.

In America, in the year of a presidential election and with an administration that has down played the pandemic, the magnitude of the epidemic has become severe. Many unnecessary lives were lost. Agencies like The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is supposed to protect public health, have been drawn into the political circus. Twice in this pandemic they retracted their decisions on major issues. First was on Hydroxychloroquine, a drug that was backed by the president, but not science, for Covid treatment was approved by the FDA and finally had to withdraw its recommendation after multiple studies showed that it had no beneficial effect in the disease outcome. In fact, it was shown to cause harm in some of patients. The second was on convalescent plasma therapy, giving plasma from patients who had recovered and had antibodies in their blood. An emergency authorization for its use was given by the FDA as it was a treatment the White House believed in, but had to be retracted as all the scientific evidence was against it. This has tarnished the image of the FDA and now its credibility is in question. When political appointees are made to head these agencies and people entrust their lives with them they have to be very transparent and diligent to earn the trust of people. Agencies like the CDC, the seat of public health locally and globally, have to earn the confidence of people as public health can run only on the peoples’ trust. So when the political appointees cow tow to the Administration with no solid evidence, people tend to lose their faith.

When release of a new vaccine is connected to political events people becomes suspicious of the real validity of its clearance. Drug companies have acknowledged the importance of adherence to clinical trial protocols. Nine major companies have signed a pledge not to seek regulatory approval without completing proper trials. Currently there are about 36 vaccines in the pipeline. Three candidates have entered phase 3 clinical trials: First is a collaboration between Germany’s BioNTech, China’s Fosum Pharma and Pfizer. According to the companies the trials are on track and there are already plans to distribute 100 million doses worldwide before next year.  Moderna, another player with a vaccine in phase 3 trials, hopes to extend the trial to about 30,000 people. The third candidate, the AstraZeneca and Oxford University partnership, also hopes to do trials on 30,000 adults at 80 testing sites. They had a setback as one of their candidates developed a neurological manifestation the trial was held until it was investigated and now resumed.

Once a reliable vaccine is available in the market what will be the response be? According to the latest CBS poll 21% of people said they will take the vaccine as soon as it is available while 58% said they would consider it and 21% reported that they will never take it. Can we make vaccinations mandatory? Will we have to implement the Jacobson Vs Massachusetts judgement where the courts upheld the authority of states to enforce compulsory vaccination laws during the time of smallpox vaccination. If the demand is more than supply how would we prioritize people? There will be lots of ethical issues and we should all hope politics do not creep into this. At the end of the day the world has lost close to a million people. You can blame the virus or the politicians, but both seemed to have coexisted well. Will another pandemic wait for another 4 years to appear and capitalize on the appetite for power of the next presidential candidate? The world may not trust the politicians, but most definitely the virus does!     
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R.Rasvu Rahim.M.S.oph 2020-09-17 05:59:59
Of course Real. Facts But no escape
Anthappan 2020-09-18 03:39:43
“A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life.” (Charles Darwin) As Trump wastes time, diminishing science and it's contribution, people are dying. (20000) He must be tried for negligent homicide.
Gop Director -ex 2020-09-18 08:57:28
tRump -BY FORMER CAMPAIGN DIRECTOR. Steve Schmidt, former Republican presidential campaign director and ex-Republican has this to say about Donald Trump: “Donald Trump has been the worst president this country has ever had. And, I don't say that hyperbolically. He is. But he is a consequential president. And, he has brought this country in three short years to a place of weakness that is simply unimaginable if you were pondering where we are today from the day where Barack Obama left office. And, there were a lot of us on that day who were deeply skeptical and very worried about what a Trump presidency would be. But this is a moment of unparalleled national humiliation, of weakness.” "When you listen to the President, these are the musings of an imbecile. An idiot. And I don't use those words to name call. I use them because they are the precise words of the English language to describe his behavior. His comportment. His actions. We've never seen a level of incompetence, a level of ineptitude so staggering on a daily basis by anybody in the history of the country whose ever been charged with substantial responsibilities.” "It's just astonishing that this man is president of the United States. The man, the con man, from New York City. Many bankruptcies, failed businesses, a reality show, that branded him as something that he never was. A successful businessman. Well, he's the President of the United States now, and the man who said he would make the country great again. And he's brought death, suffering, and economic collapse on truly an epic scale." "And, let's be clear. This isn't happening in every country around the world. This place. Our place. Our home. Our country. The United States. We are the epicenter. We are the place where you're the most likely to die from this disease. We're the ones with the most shattered economy. And we are, because of the fool that sits in the Oval Office behind the Resolute Desk."
Melvin Joseph 2020-09-18 09:01:40
What I do feel is that this man, Donald Trump, is as great a threat to our country and constitution as any other country or philosophy or movement. How can people I have liked and respected in my life speak so highly of this man whose character is so fatally flawed, and I am no sign of perfection for sure, that he threatens the existence of our country as we have known and loved it. This country needs to change in a lot of areas but the most important for these next few months is to change the leadership of this country. I have never identified myself as a Democrat or Republican and I have voted for each based on who I thought best for this country. However in this case I will not support any politician for election at any level of government who does not speak out against Donald Trump
F B I -മുന്നറിയിപ്പ് 2020-09-18 09:09:04
ബോട്ടെർസ് ഫോർ ട്രമ്പ് എന്ന അമേരിക്കൻ ഭീകര മിലീഷ്യ ഭീഷണി പെടുത്തുന്നു, -ട്രംപ് തൊറ്റാൽ അവരുടെ ബോട്ടുകൾ കൊണ്ട് വയിറ്റ് ഹൗസിനെ ആക്രമിക്കും എന്ന്. റഷ്യ അമേരിക്കൻ ഇലക്ഷനിൽ ഇടപെടുന്നു, വെള്ള വർണ്ണ മേധാവികളുടെ ഭീകരർ രാജ്യത്തു ആകമാനം അക്രമങ്ങൾ തുടങ്ങുന്നു എന്ന് ഫ് ബി ഐ ഡയറക്റ്റർ അറിയിക്കുന്നു. വെള്ളക്കാർ അല്ലാത്തവർ പൊതു സ്ഥലങ്ങൾ ഉപയോഗിക്കുമ്പോൾ ജാഗ്രത പാലിക്കുക.
Raja Lakshmy 2020-09-18 09:18:43
അനുയായികൾ മാസ്ക് ഇല്ലാതെ കൂട്ടം കൂടി അവരോട് ട്രംപ് കുറെ നുണകൾ പറഞ്ഞു, അനുയായികൾ ഹല്ലെലുയ്യ പാടി. ലോക് ഹിം അപ്പ് [ ഒബാമയെ] എന്ന് ട്രംപ് , അനുയായികൾ അതേറ്റുപാടി. ഇ ചാൻറ്റിങ് മുൻപ് നടത്തിയവർ എല്ലാം ഇപ്പോൾ ജെയിലിൽ ആണ്. താസിയാതെ സ്റ്റീവ് ബാനനും, പുറകെ ട്രംപും. നീതി നിർവഹണത്തിന് എപ്പോൾ ഏറ്റവും തടസം ഉണ്ടാക്കുന്നത് അറ്റോർണി ജനറൽ തന്നെ. ഇയാൾ ആണ് ട്രംപിൻ്റെ ഇപ്പോളത്തെ 'ഫിസ്റ്റ്ർ ' എന്ന് മുൻ ഫിക്സ്ർ മൈക്കിൾ കോഹൻ.
5 മാസ്ക്കുകള്‍ വീതം വീടിനു 2020-09-18 10:01:52
ഓരോ വീട്ടുകാർക്കും 5 മാസ്കുകൾ വീതം വിതരണം ചെയ്യുവാൻ പോസ്റ്റൽ സർവീസ് തീരുമാനിച്ചു, എന്നാൽ ട്രംപ് അത് വിലക്കി. ഇ മാസ്ക്കുകൾ പൊതു ജനത്തിനു ലഭിച്ചിരുന്നു എങ്കിൽ, മരണ നിരക്ക് ൧൦൦൦൦൦ ൽ താഴെ ആയിരുന്നേനെ എന്ന് വിദ്ധക്ത നിരീക്ഷണം. ഇപ്പോൾ മരണ നിരക്ക് 300000 ൽ അധികമാണ് എന്നാണ് അറിവ്. ഇ ഇലക്ഷനിൽ; ഒന്നുകിൽ നാല് വർഷംകൂടി അന്ധ്യ നാളുകൾ പോലെയുള്ള ദിവസങ്ങൾ വേണോ അതോ സത്യവും നീതിയും വെളിച്ചവും ഉള്ള പുതിയ ദിനങ്ങൾ വേണമോ എന്ന് തീരുമാനിക്കുക. വെള്ള വർണ്ണ മേധാവികൾ രാജ്യത്തു ആകമാനം ഭീകര പ്രവർത്തികൾ തുടങ്ങിയിരിക്കുന്നു എന്ന് അമേരിക്കൻ ഇൻറ്റെലിജെൻസ് മുന്നറിയിക്കുന്നു. കൂടുതൽ വിവരത്തിനു ഫ് ബി ഐ റിപ്പോർട് നോക്കുക. - Rajasekar.
Original 2020-09-18 11:59:07
If copied and pasted, the number of dead would've been correct- 200,000. Since he tried to type it himself, it became 20,000. Stick to copy and paste.
റോഷൻ തോമസ്, Connecticut 2020-09-18 13:43:49
ഒറിജിനൽ... നിങ്ങൾക്ക് നാണമാവില്ലേ ചങ്ങാതി? ആ കക്ഷിക്ക്‌ 20,000 v.s. 200,000 വായിച്ച് മനസിലാക്കാനുള്ള വിവരമൊന്നുമില്ല. ആര് എവിടെയോ തെറ്റ് എഴുതി, പുള്ളി അത് വെട്ടി ഇ-മലയാളിയിൽ ഒട്ടിച്ചു. ഇത്തിരി എങ്കിലും വിവരമുള്ളവരോട് തർക്കിക്കാൻ പോകൂ.
Vote Blue 2020-09-18 18:57:44
Anthappan You can’t win an argument with stupids. Especially Trump followers. They probably couldn’t understand your quote from Charles Darwin. They may be thinking that it is Prince Charles. So leave them alone and focus on getting Biden -Kamala elected.
Mat 2020-09-18 23:02:51
I cannot imagine we have dump people like this claiming himself a genius, know more than scientists about Corona and telling lies after lies, still even some people worship him!. I am waiting to hear a true statement from this guy. Only interest he has is to get reelected. He is a puppet of Putin. As his long-time lawyer stated he may start a war to get reelected. Watch out guys. He wants to rule another 12 years. He is the worst we ever had, no doubt.
Political Observer 2020-09-19 09:15:12
One of the biggest enemies of Mr. Trump is the media. They are very silent when President Trump does something worth mentioning. They (most of them) take pleasure in seeing and sensationalizing news against Mr. Trump. It has not worked before. It will not work now. Unfortunately, some malayalees believe everything that they see on television. One has to have an unbiased mind to see the truth. For the last few months we have seen a lot of destruction , looting, violence in the name BLM. Democrats don’t have the guts to say this is wrong. They believe that as long as the violence and destruction continue, they can blame it on Mr. Trump. Why? Because all these are happening “under Mr. Trump’s watch” . But the truth is that most of these destruction and looting are happening in states governed by democrats. Take the case of PORTLAND. How long has the unrest been going on? Obviously, the democratic governor, either cannot control it or does not want it to stop. The federal government offered to help if requested by the state. But the governor was too proud to accept help from Mr. Trump's Administration! What a waste!. He would rather the chaos and destruction continue rather than getting help to bring back some peace to his state. What this and other governors need to know is that their inaction and or incompetence will backfire. Unfortunately, they have to wait till the election. At least the lesson they need to learn from all of these is that they don’t have any ammunition left to fight with Mr. Trump .If they have not learned any lesson, all they need to do is to go and look in a mirror. If a JACKASS is staring at you, you are a true democrat..
മലയാളത്തില്‍ ടൈപ്പ് ചെയ്യാന്‍ ഇവിടെ ക്ലിക്ക് ചെയ്യുക