Tag: Trump botched COVID-19 response killed over 211000 Americans

How Much Would Trump’s Coronavirus Treatment Cost Most Americans?

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Even for those with insurance, surprise bills for things not covered can add up fast.

President Trump spent three days in the hospital. He arrived and left by helicopter. And he received multiple coronavirus tests, oxygen, steroids and an experimental antibody treatment.

For someone who isn’t president, that would cost more than $100,000 in the American health system. Patients could face significant surprise bills and medical debt even after health insurance paid its share.

The biggest financial risks would come not from the hospital stay but from the services provided elsewhere, including helicopter transit and repeated coronavirus testing. Continue reading.

Former CDC head rips Trump’s CDC chief in private letter: ‘It is a slaughter not a political dispute’

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In a scathing letter sent late last month as coronavirus cases and deaths surged across the United States, renowned epidemiologist and former CDC chief Dr. William Foege called on the agency’s current director to publicly speak out about the Trump administration’s catastrophic failure to combat the pandemic and apologize for caving to the White House’s influence—even if it means risking his job.

“You could upfront, acknowledge the tragedy of responding poorly, apologize for what has happened and your role in acquiescing, set a course for how CDC would now lead the country if there was no political interference, give them the ability to report such interference to a neutral ombudsman, and assure them that you will defend their attempts to save this country,” Foege wrote in a September 23 letter (pdf) to Dr. Robert Redfield, who was appointed by President Donald Trump.

“Don’t shy away from the fact this has been an unacceptable toll on our country,” the former CDC head added in the letter, which was published late Tuesday by USA Today. “It is a slaughter and not just a political dispute.” Continue reading.

Pentagon scrambles to retrace steps after White House COVID-19 outbreak

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The Pentagon is retracing the steps of its top brass after a positive coronavirus case among senior officials forced Defense Department heads into quarantine.

News of Coast Guard Vice Commandant Adm. Charles Ray testing positive, which came after he attended a Sept. 27 White House event, broke after Ray had met with several other senior leaders at the Pentagon last week.

The Defense Department has since raced to conduct contact tracing, highlighting the stark difference between the Pentagon and White House, where administration officials have been reluctant to reveal key timeline details after President Trump and top aides tested positive. Continue reading.

White House signals stronger coronavirus precautions, but Trump continues to resist

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The White House offered an informal nod to coronavirus best practices Tuesday, with mask-wearing prevalent after months of flouting public health recommendations and new internal guidelines for interacting with President Trump, who tested positive for the virus late last week.

But the biggest source of resistance appeared to be Trump himself, who, despite having just come home from a three-night hospitalization, was defiant — lobbying to return immediately to work in the Oval Office, discussing an address to the nation as early as Tuesday evening and clamoring to get back on the campaign trail in the coming days.

At least nine White House employees have now tested positive for the virus, including senior adviser Stephen Miller, who got his result late Tuesday, a senior administration official said. Trump’s aides, allies and advisers find themselves grappling with how to implement more safety measures and precautions without displeasing their boss, who continues to say — as he did in a tweet Monday — “Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life.” Continue reading.

Pence’s alternative pandemic world

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Vice President Mike Pence described a world in which he and President Trump led Americans’ heroic effort to defeat the coronavirus during last night’s vice presidential debate. The problem is, he described a world that doesn’t exist.

Why it matters: The coronavirus is very much not in control in the U.S., and America’s failed response begins with the individual actions of the president and the vice president themselves.

  • Instead of defending the administration’s decisions and behaviors, Pence acted as if they never happened.

What Pence said: Trump’s decision to shut down travel from China “bought us invaluable time to stand up the greatest national mobilization since World War II, and I believe it saved hundreds of thousands of American lives.”

  • Reality check: The administration botched the initial response to the pandemic, producing a faulty diagnostic test and failing to stop the virus from taking hold across the U.S.
  • Despite the travel ban, the virus clearly found its way into the country. Continue reading.

Fauci: There could be 300,000 to 400,000 Covid deaths unless precautions taken

He added that a vaccine likely won’t be widely available until next summer or fall.

Dr. Anthony Fauci offered a grim image of the coronavirus pandemic, telling students Tuesday that between 300,000 and 400,000 people could die from the disease in the United States.

Speaking at a virtual event hosted by American University, the White House coronavirus specialist said: “If we don’t do what we need to in the fall and winter, we could have 300,000-400,000 Covid-19 deaths,” according to excerpts tweeted by the school.

More than 200,000 people have died from the disease in the United States, and over 7 million have been diagnosed with it. A University of Washington study found in August that as many as 300,000 people could die of the disease by Dec. 1. Continue reading.