Thread by @MonicaGandhi9

RED vs BLUE STATES in US: When @DLeonhardt wrote this important article about the vaccine divide in red vs blue states, I think something got missed, which is the part that blue states had more cases than red prior to the vaccine (& yes, blue states mask)
nytimes.com/2021/09/27/bri…

As an ID doctor who thinks about #harmreduction and the differences between poor/rich in the bluest city in the bluest state in the country, I see this as related to over-restrictions that didn't make sense like closing outdoors, didn't protect working class, favored wealthy

California was 50 out of 50 in opening schools in US & San Francisco (of all the Bay Area counties) kept public schools closed the longest (but private schools open here so wealthy allowed schooling). Think will be important to acknowledge in our after-conversations of COVID

And now -since immunity is the only way to get through a pandemic- during the delta surge, hospitalizations were so much higher in places with low vaccine (and low natural immunity- CA had both), which is a very sad aspect of our politicization
salon.com/2021/10/14/the…

And it is the blue states without clear off ramps for children (college students) to go back to normal school even with vaccines coming (here in colleges). Metrics to lift mandates are not cavalier; they provide populations with hope as immunity getting us through a pandemic

In my opinion, the lack of off-ramps in blue places is reflecting a lack of confidence among health officers/administrators/CDC etc. in the vaccines but I tweet pretty much continuously about how important immunity is in getting through a pandemic!

https://twitter.com/j_g_allen/status/1449485076505505793