@thatalicewu @rachel_elisse .@prof_goldberg has been sharing these stories w/ the intro “Meanwhile, in non-failed societies...” The fatalism & acceptance of federal failures here in the US is hard to see. Taiwan & others did social distancing the way it was supposed to be done....
@thatalicewu @rachel_elisse @prof_goldberg Close down places where people spend significant time indoors. Do it for a few weeks to stop exponential spread while you massively ramp up resources & public health infrastructure for easy-access testing, impeccable contact tracing & strong supports for isolation (TTSI)
@thatalicewu @rachel_elisse @prof_goldberg Public health experts knew *knew* massive resources for #TestTraceIsolate were needed to suppress transmission. We knew it was the *only* way to return to some sense of normalcy without 100s of 1000s of deaths. We knew *how* to make it happen... but...
@thatalicewu @rachel_elisse @prof_goldberg The federal government was (still is) the sole actor in the US with authority to coordinate international & interstate supply chains & ability to deficit-spend needed to make #TestTraceIsolateSupport work....
@thatalicewu @rachel_elisse @prof_goldberg The US President failed to lead. Congress failed to prioritize #TestTraceIsolateSupport in the response bills it passed in March. The Senate majority refused to fix the problem later in the year when congressional Democrats had finally gotten the message about what was needed.
@thatalicewu @rachel_elisse @prof_goldberg Meanwhile, states hold the reins on social distancing (which means closing bars, restaurants & other gathering places where groups of strangers spend a long time together in poorly ventilated indoor spaces - not just staying 6 feet apart & going about your day), but...
@thatalicewu @rachel_elisse @prof_goldberg The most social distancing can achieve on its own, without easy-access testing, impeccable contact tracing & strongly supported isolation, is short-term suppression (but it comes roaring back when restrictions are lifted) or #FlattenTheCurve to blunt peak impacts on hospitals.
@thatalicewu @rachel_elisse @prof_goldberg And now, most governors in the US, aren’t even willing to close indoor gathering places to protect hospital capacity, right now when it’s needed most.
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