Thread by @VPrasadMDMPH

The two biggest failures in COVID19 policy were
1. Hubris to think humans were all powerful & could entirely change mother nature
2. Not subjecting our interventions to empirical testing, creating bitter tribal disputes, based on no credible data & never learning the answer 🧵🧵

Zero randomized trials on masking in school
Zero randomized trials on masking kids
Zero randomized trials on masking adults in high income nations
Zero randomized trials on masking anyone in cities
Zero randomized trials of school closure
Zero randomized trials business closures

Zero randomized trials of 3 vs 6 ft
Zero randomized trials of cohorting
Zero randomized trials of installing HEPA filters
Zero randomized trials of masking, post vaccine
Zero randomized trials testing alternative dosing strategies of vax (post phase 3)

Zero randomized trials of whatever foolishness we are doing on college campuses
Zero randomized trials of asymptomatic testing
Zero randomized trials of quarantine duration
Zero randomized trials of testing for preschool/ school
Zero randomized trials of plexiglass

Zero randomized trials of wearing your mask from the door to table, and table to bathroom, but at no other points during your restaurant experience

And lesser errors of evidence generation:
Randomized trials of boosters that were severely underpowered to assess clinical endpoints
& underpowered to assess effect modification by age

Randomized trials of kids (5-11) that were severely underpowered to assess clinical endpoints