Unfortunately, @JeremyFarrar won the UK pandemic policy fight. Now he is trying to evade responsibility for the biggest public health mistake in history, with too many COVID deaths among the old and workers, and enormous collateral public health damage on children and adults. 2/5
Moreover, @JeremyFarrar is making false accusations against @SunetraGupta. Either he is deliberately distorting her science, or, he never bothered to read her papers and the @gbdeclaration, instead basing his slander on the inaccurate writings in e.g. the @guardian. 3/5
Scientific slander is always bad. It is extra concerning when done by @JeremyFarrar, the director of one of the world's biggest funders of medical science. It silences other scientists who depend on him for funding. Dangerous for science and public health. 4/5
One lesson from this pandemic is that heads of research funding agencies, such as Anthony Fauci and @JeremyFarrar, should not set public health policy. It stifles critically important scientific discourse, as scientists do not want to contradict the funders they depend on. 5/5
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@drjenndowd@VPrasadMDMPH@melindacmills@BillHanage Vaccines are great for focused protection if we prioritize older high-risk people and their care takers, like Florida. To minimize deaths, we must also urgently improve protection of the old through standard public health measures listed in the @gbdeclaration & FAQ. 2/8
@drjenndowd@VPrasadMDMPH@melindacmills@BillHanage@gbdeclaration Nursing home residents have highest risk, but <1% of US population. People >60 who should work from home or take short sabbaticals are fewer than those currently working from home. There are many retirees, but protecting them with e.g. grocery deliveries is relatively easy. 3/8
#3 Public health is about everyone. It should not be used to shift the burden of disease from the affluent to the less affluent, as the #COVID19#lockdowns have done. torontosun.com/opinion/column…