Thread by @joshuasweitz

As Georgia deaths/day approach pandemic peaks, a grim reminder of the consequences of inaction, misinformation and policy failures.

a 🧵
ajc.com/news/coronavir…

Watching a series of failed responses (with rare exceptions) since early 2020, it is also important to place ongoing decision making in context.

In my view: there appear to be three major themes of @GovKemp's pandemic 'strategy'

(i) Aim for control
Examples: block indoor mask/vaccine requirements and stop local leaders from protecting their communities - utterly counter to public health practice.
ajc.com/politics/polit…

(ii) Emphasize late intervention as successes
Example: with cases overwhelming Georgia's hospitals use national guard to assist, even when what should be happening are vaccine campaigns that would prevent serious disease in the first place.

ajc.com/politics/kemp-…

(iii) Declare a woeful vaccination campaign a success
Here, @GovKemp and advisors made a bad miscalculation. They assumed that by vaccinating the most vulnerable that the state could move beyond #Covid19. They were wrong.

gov.georgia.gov/press-releases…

Early decisions to prioritize seniors were prudent - and targeted efforts to seniors should be applauded.

But then, mistakes were made:
(i) delaying rolling out eligibility to other age groups; (ii) blocking vaccine requirements; (iii) inefficient use of delivered doses.

The upshot is that Georgia has remained persistently near the bottom in terms of vaccination per capita (now 45 out of 51 - including DC).

This is perilous.

The vast majority of fatalities in the 4th wave of #Covid19 in Georgia are preventable given vaccines that are incredibly effective against severe illness, free, & widely available.

But, no, @GovKemp won't budge.

ajc.com/news/investiga…

More grim news is on the way.

The state may have ~3K more fatalities before the end of this wave, given hospitalization trends.

covid-hub.gio.georgia.gov/apps/georgia-h…

The average age of deaths will decrease (it already is) reinforcing both the power of vaccines as well as the failure to systematically vaccinate non-seniors at the same rates as seniors now that vaccine dose are not limiting - analysis below from @GADPH data).

And yet, what was @GovKemp worried about on Sep 16, where deaths reached near-highest levels since start of the pandemic?

He was upset about his precious executive orders.

ajc.com/education/kemp…

Stepping back, the American College Health Association (100 year+ organization) issued a starkly worded caution in early August 2021 entitled

"Joint Statement Regarding Dangerous Restrictions by States on COVID-19 Public Health Measures"

acha.org/ACHA/About/ACH…

Here's the kicker:

"Some states forbid inquiries about an array of vaccinations, including #COVID19; ban vaccination requirements; block required #COVID19 surveillance testing; and restrict the use of evidence-based mitigation strategies, including masking...

Many of these restrictions directly contradict @CDCgov guidance. State actions that prevent the use of established and effective public health tools at the same time as #COVID19 cases increase is a recipe for disaster."

This is a concise indictment of @GovKemp and his failed pandemic policy which (as noted above) is centered on issuing multiple executive orders as a means to undermine established and effective public health tools.

onlineathens.com/story/news/202…

And as much as this is about satisfying his right-wing @GOP base, his failures may also reflect a profound misunderstanding of basic science, suggesting that his cynical steps are compounded by being fundamentally ill-suited for the task at hand:

newsweek.com/fact-check-hiv…

And recall, that in Spring 2020, @GovKemp and team willfully misrepresented case trends in order to open up too soon (hence; selective misrepresentation of data seems to another latent hallmark of response).

slate.com/technology/202…

Ultimately, turning the tide may require both bottom-up pressure from local municipalities that consider all legal avenues to protect community health as well as top-down pressure from federal authorities.

This is why the Decatur system decision to actually step and lead in a time of crisis is important and a potential bellwether.

decaturish.com/2021/09/gov-ke…

Sometimes strategic confrontation is necessary, precisely because it can do more to affect change than 'accommodating' fundamentally wrong-headed policy orders that directly contravene public health practices - with grim consequences.

wsbtv.com/news/local/atl…

Georgia deserves better... now

It remains to be seen whether local leaders and/or federal pressure can enable needed vaccination and mask mandates. But, it is clear that @GovKemp is incapable of doing the right thing on his own - and we can't wait until Jan 2023 for change.

/🧵