Monday, November 27, 2023

If Covid Vaccines Are as Deadly as Anti-Covid-Vaxxers Want to Believe Covid Vaccines Are ...

Why are none of my immediate family and myself - all vaccinated -not experiencing health problems from blood clots or "harmed" immune systems?

Why is my employer, with 1500-2000 employees in the SF Bay Area - not experiencing elevated employee absences from employees' blood clots or "harmed" immune systems?

Why is my church not experiencing reduced attendance from members' blood clots or "harmed" immune systems? Why, instead, has my church had to add a service to the number of services it had pre-Covid?

Why are running event organizers - companies and schools/charities - back to doing the number of events with similar participation (numbers of runners and volunteers) they did in 2019? How is that possible if runners and volunteers suffer from blood clots or "harmed" immune systems?

Why have my morning and evening commutes reverted to what was normal pre-Covid, or heavier?

Why are malls such as Valley Fair, Santana Row, and Oakridge as busy as they were pre-Covid?

Why are restaurants here in Silicon Valley as busy as they were pre-Covid, albeit with some shift towards take-out and delivery services?

Why isn't the hospital across the freeway from my home flooded with "Vaccine Injury" cases?

Why isn't the home-care hospice 15 minutes' drive from my home inundated with people dying of Vaccine Injury?

Why isn't the cemetery 10 minutes' drive from my home experiencing a constant stream of funerals for people who died of Vaccine Injury?

Some 230 million people in the US are fully vaccinated. If Covid Vaccines Are as Deadly as Anti-Covid-Vaxxers claim, where are the hundreds of thousands or millions of extra dead bodies?

Sunday, November 19, 2023

Trump Did Nothing About Ventilators?

 The primary responsibility for having necessary Personal Protective Equipment and equipment such as ventilators is with hospitals. They need to have sufficient for predictable usage, plus allowance for repairs and maintenance, plus allowance for a moderate surges in demand. For greater surges in demand, cities, then counties, then states should each have stockpiles of PPE and equipment such as ventilators. The Federal Government should be the last, not the first, resort for such supplies and equipment.

Looking at https://covidtracking.com/data/national , it was only on March 15th that the count of daily confirmed new cases in the US topped 10,000. With that as context, what has the Trump Administration done with regard to ventilators?

March 27, 2020 - Executive order delegating to the Secretaries of HHS, DHS, and Defense President Trump's authority to make or guarantee loans, purchase and commit to purchase, and other actions to obtain and facilitate the domestic manufacture of PPE, ventilators, and other medical necessities; https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/DCPD-202000198/pdf/DCPD-202000198.pdf , While this sounds like a yawner, the authority Trump delegated was used to make numerous purchase totalling 10s of millions or billions of dollars

March 27, 2020 - Trump signed a Defense Production Act order to General Motors to make ventilators; https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/27/trump-orders-general-motors-to-make-ventilators-under-defense-production-act.html, https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/memorandum-order-defense-production-act-regarding-general-motors-company/

March 27, 2020 - Under DPA order, GM and Ventec partnering to produce ventilators; GM will also produce surgical masks at its Warren, MI, ramping up to 50K a day in two weeks, with potential to produce up to 100K per day; https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/27/trump-orders-general-motors-to-make-ventilators-under-defense-production-act.html , https://www.venteclife.com/news/ventec-life-systems-and-gm-partner-to-mass-produce-critical-care-ventilators-in-response-to-covid19-pandemic

March 30, 2020 - Ford Motor Company committed to producing 50,000 ventilators in the next 100 days; https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/30/ford-ge-plan-to-produce-50000-ventilators-in-100-days.html

March 31, 2020 - In response to March 27 DPA order, GM repurposing Kokomo, IN factory to produce Ventec ventilators; https://www.kokomotribune.com/news/gm-hiring-local-workers-to-build-ventilators-in-kokomo/article_4818254c-72bb-11ea-9c48-9b461b7fcc9e.html

April 2, 2020 - Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to direct General Electric Co., Hill-Rom Holdings Inc., Medtronic Public Limited Co., ResMed Inc., Royal Philips N.V. and Vyaire Medical Inc. to produce ventilators and material for producing ventilators; https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/02/politics/defense-production-act-ventilator-supplies/index.html

April 8, 2020 - Under the DPA, HHS announced contract with Philips to produce 2,500 ventilators for Strategic National Stockpile by end of May and 43000 by the end of December 2020; https://www.fema.gov/press-release/20230510/applying-defense-production-act , https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/491812-hhs-announces-646-million-contract-with-philips-to-provide-ventilators/

April 8, 2020 - HHS announced the first contract with GM to produce 30,000 ventilators to be delivered to the National Stockpile by the end of August; https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/08/politics/general-motors-ventilators-defense-production-act-coronavirus/index.html , https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/491765-gm-to-produce-30000-ventilators-under-500m-defense-production-act/

April 13, 2020 - HHS announced new contracts for ventilator production under the DPA to General Electric, Hill-Rom, Medtronic, ResMed, and Vyaire, mentioned in Trump's April 2 DPA order, as well as contracts with Hamilton and Zoll, also under the DPA; https://www.fema.gov/press-release/20230510/applying-defense-production-act , https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IN/IN11337

April 14, 2020 - GM began mass production on an order of 30,000 Ventec ventilators, 600 ventilators to be shipped this month, the full order to be completed by August; https://www.autoweek.com/news/industry-news/a32169651/gm-starts-ventilator-production-in-under-a-month/

April 16, 2020 - Under the DPA, HHS announced a $336 million contract with GE for 50,000 ventilators to be produced by July 13; https://www.medtechdive.com/news/ge-ford-get-336m-hhs-contract-for-50k-lower-cost-ventilators/576247/ , https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/16/ge-ford-sign-336-million-federal-contract-for-ventilator-production.html

April 17, 2020 - GM announced that they delivered the first GM-Ventec ventilators to Chicago hospitals; https://investor.gm.com/news-releases/news-release-details/first-general-motors-ventec-critical-care-ventilators-delivered

April 30, 2020 - FDA approved EUA for a ventilator developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which is tailored to treat patients with COVID-19; https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-includes-ventilator-developed-nasa-ventilator-emergency-use , https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-developed-ventilator-authorized-by-fda-for-emergency-use/

May 28, 2020 - Under the DPA, DOD in support of HHS signed a $2.2 million contract with Hollingsworth & Vose to increase US production of 27.5 million N95 ventilator filters and 3.1 million N95 respirators per month starting in August; https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2200654/dod-announces-defense-production-act-title-3-covid-19-ppe-project-22-million-in/

June 2, 2020 - FDA added a second ventilator developed by NASA to the list of authorized ventilators, under EUA; https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-daily-roundup-june-2-2020

June 8, 2020 - FDA added the BioMedInnovations SuppleVent Ventilator to the list of ventilators authorized under EUA; https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-daily-roundup-june-8-2020

June 29, 2020 - FDA added the Stewart & Stevenson Healthcare Technologies, LLC: Apollo ABVM and SAGICO USA, LLC: V2O SAGICO SYSTEM to the list of ventilators authorized under EUA; https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-daily-roundup-june-29-2020

July 23, 2020 - Under the DPA, DOD in coordination with HHS awarded Pall Corporation a NTE $4.9 million contract to increase domestic production capacity of ventilator filters; https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Releases/Release/Article/2286217/dod-awards-49-million-contract-to-pall-corporation-to-increase-industrial-base/

Context matters; or How the City of New York created its own 2020 ventilator shortage - https://www.propublica.org/article/how-new-york-city-emergency-ventilator-stockpile-ended-up-on-the-auction-block

Saturday, November 18, 2023

Trump Did Nothing About Masks, Gowns, and Gloves (PPE)?

 The primary responsibility for having necessary Personal Protective Equipment and equipment such as ventilators is with hospitals. They need to have sufficient for predictable usage, plus allowance for repairs and maintenance, and allowance for a moderate surges in demand. For greater surges in demand, cities, then counties, then states should each have stockpiles of PPE and equipment such as ventilators. The Federal Government should be the last, not the first, resort for such supplies and equipment.

Looking at https://covidtracking.com/data/national , it was only on March 15th that the count of daily confirmed new cases in the US topped 10,000. With that as context, what was known at the time, what did the Trump Administration do with regard to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)?

March 2, 2020 - Emergency Use Authorization given, allowing hospitals to use industrial filter N95 respirators to protect against Covid, https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-and-cdc-take-action-increase-access-respirators-including-n95s

March 4, 2020 - HHS announced intent to purchase 500 million N95 respirators over the next 18 months for the Strategic National Stockpile; https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-health-us-news-ap-top-news-politics-090600c299a8cf07f5b44d92534856bc ; AP's partisan spin is pathetic. Should Trump magically have known from very sketchy information, leaked just 2 months before this announcement, and despite the following ~3 weeks of China and WHO denying that human-to-human transmission had happened, that the Feds would need to purchase large quantities of respirators (face masks)? AP's criticism was partisan spin. AP also ignored the historical context, https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/face-masks-in-national-stockpile-have-not-been-substantially-replenished-since-2009/2020/03/10/57e57316-60c9-11ea-8baf-519cedb6ccd9_story.html , of the Strategic National Stockpile not having been replenished since 2009, a Congressional (Congress controls and passes the budget) failure and by the Presidential Administration in office when the depletion occurred. Context matters.

March 17, 2020 - Defense Department to give HHS up to 5M respirator masks, 2,000 ventilators; https://www.defense.gov/Explore/News/Article/Article/2115200/dod-poised-to-provide-masks-ventilators-labs-to-hhs-for-coronavirus-fight/

March 18, 2020 - Pernod Ricard USA began producing hand sanitizer at all of its US distilleries, in coordination with and assisted by the White House Task Force; https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pernod-ricard-usa-produces-hand-sanitizer-to-help-us-combat-covid-19-virus-301026216.html

March 23, 2020 - Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to forbid hoarding, speculating, and price-gouging of PPE and sanitizing products; https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus/combatingpricegouginghoarding , https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-will-not-tolerate-the-price-gouging-and-hoarding

March 27, 2020 - Executive order delegating to the Secretaries of HHS, DHS, and Defense President Trump's authority to make or guarantee loans, purchase and commit to purchase, and other actions to obtain and facilitate the domestic manufacture of PPE, ventilators, and other medical necessities; https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/DCPD-202000198/pdf/DCPD-202000198.pdf , While this sounds like a yawner, the authority Trump delegated was used to make numerous purchase totalling 10s of millions or billions of dollars

March 27, 2020 - Under DPA order, GM and Ventec partnering to produce ventilators; GM will also produce surgical masks at its Warren, MI, ramping up to 50K a day in two weeks, with potential to produce up to 100K per day; https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/27/trump-orders-general-motors-to-make-ventilators-under-defense-production-act.html , https://www.venteclife.com/news/ventec-life-systems-and-gm-partner-to-mass-produce-critical-care-ventilators-in-response-to-covid19-pandemic

March 30, 2020 - FDA approved Battelle’s process for decontaminating tens of thousands of N95 masks per day; https://www.wtol.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/fda-approves-use-of-battelles-mask-sterilizing-technology-at-full-capacity/512-265af79c-a9b5-4833-95b1-c4da65e81a91 , https://www.einpresswire.com/article/513367958/secretary-azar-statement-on-fda-authorization-of-mask-sterilization-procedure , FDA has slow-walked this approval since 2016!

March 30, 2020 - Under DPA, Honeywell has increased production in its Rhode Island facility and begun expansion of its Phoenix, AZ which produces N95 masks; https://www.honeywell.com/en-us/newsroom/pressreleases/2020/03/honeywell-further-expands-n95-face-mask-production-by-adding-manufacturing-capabilities-in-phoenix

April 1, 2020 - White House, HHS, FDA worked with Senator Rob Portman to acquire, authorize use of two million gowns donated to the Strategic National Stockpile by Cardinal Health; 2020, https://riponadvance.com/stories/portman-coordinates-cardinal-healths-gown-donation-to-strategic-national-stockpile/

April 2, 2020 - Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to direct 3M to produce more N95 masks and not export masks produced in the US; https://www.npr.org/2020/04/03/826945445/defense-production-act-would-compel-3m-to-change-mask-production-and-export , https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/memorandum-order-defense-production-act-regarding-3m-company/ , https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/02/politics/defense-production-act-ventilator-supplies/index.html

April 2, 2020 - Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to direct General Electric Co., Hill-Rom Holdings Inc., Medtronic Public Limited Co., ResMed Inc., Royal Philips N.V. and Vyaire Medical Inc. to produce ventilators and material for producing ventilators; https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/02/politics/defense-production-act-ventilator-supplies/index.html

April 3, 2020 - Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to forbid export of PPE masks and gloves; https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/491137-trump-invokes-defense-production-act-to-prevent-export-of-surgical/

April 6, 2020 - Trump announced an agreement with 3M to produce, import 55.5 million N95 masks per month for the next three months; https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/06/coronavirus-trump-and-3m-strike-deal-to-bring-55point5-million-masks-a-month-to-us.html

April 8, 2020 - HHS announced agreement with DuPont and FedEx to manufacture, deliver 2.25M new Tyvek Protective Suits to Strategic National Stockpile; https://newsroom.fedex.com/newsroom/global/fedex-activates-project-airbridge-operation , https://globalbiodefense.com/newswire/dupont-to-produce-up-to-4-5-million-tyvek-protective-suits-for-u-s-healthcare-workers/

April 12, 2020 - FDA issued an emergency authorization for devices from Advanced Sterilization Products, which can decontaminate ~4 million N95 respirators each day; https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-issues-emergency-use-authorization-decontaminate-millions-n95 , https://medtechintelligence.com/news_article/fda-issues-emergency-use-authorization-to-asp-to-decontaminate-nearly-4-million-n95-masks/

April 13, 2020 - DoD announced it was buying 60 Battelle decontamination systems which can sanitize 80,000 N95 respirators per day; https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Releases/Release/Article/2148352/dod-contract-for-60-n95-critical-care-decontamination-units-415m-contract-each/ , https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/13/politics/pentagon-n95-mask-decontamination/index.html

April 14, 2020 - EPA announced it has temporarily waived certain approvals for manufacturers producing coronavirus disinfectants; https://www.natlawreview.com/article/epa-continues-to-expand-efforts-to-ease-production-disinfectants-approved-use

April 17, 2020 - Under DPA, Honeywell has begun production of N95 face masks in a new facility in Rhode Island; https://www.honeywell.com/en-us/newsroom/pressreleases/2020/04/honeywell-begins-production-of-n95-face-masks-in-smithfield-ri ; also see March 30, above.

April 20, 2020 - Coordinated by White House equipment czar Peter Navarro, Owens & Minor provided specialized fabric, UPS transported it to NYC, where several manufacturers will sew them into 400K surgical gowns by May 23; https://nypost.com/2020/04/20/nyc-garment-districts-to-produce-surgical-gowns-amid-coronavirus/

April 21, 2020 - Under the DPA, DOD to invest $133 million to increase US domestic N95 mask production by over 39 million over the next 90 days; three companies were awarded contracts, 3M , O&M Halyard, and Honeywell; https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2158351/dod-details-133-million-defense-production-act-title-3-covid-19-project/

May 1, 2020 - Under the DPA and CARES Act, DOD in coordination with HHS, has signed a $126 million contract award with 3M for the increased production of 26 million N95 medical-grade masks per month, starting in October 2020; https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2178152/dod-awards-126-million-contract-to-3m-increasing-production-of-n95-masks/ , https://www.congress.gov/116/meeting/house/110794/witnesses/HHRG-116-AS00-Wstate-LordE-20200610.pdf

May 1, 2020 - Under the DPA and CARES Act, DOD in coordination with HHS, has signed a $20.1 million contract award with Moldex for increased production capacity by 5 million N95 masks per month; https://www.congress.gov/116/meeting/house/110794/witnesses/HHRG-116-AS00-Wstate-LordE-20200610.pdf

May 7, 2020 - 3M announced that it received two more U.S. Department of Defense contracts to expand US production of N95 respirator masks; https://www.massdevice.com/3m-wins-govt-contracts-to-further-expand-u-s-respirator-production/ , https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200507005711/en/3M-Awarded-Department-of-Defense-Contracts-to-Further-Expand-U.S.-Production-of-N95-Respirators

May 8, 2020 - FDA issued an EUA for the Duke Decontamination System to decontaminate compatible N95 or N95-equivalent respirators for reuse by health care personnel; https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-daily-roundup-may-8-2020

May 28, 2020 - FDA issued an Emergency Use Authorization for the Stryker Sustainability Solutions (SSS) VHP N95 Respirator Decontamination System; https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-daily-roundup-may-28-2020

May 28, 2020 - Under the DPA, DOD in support of HHS signed a $2.2 million contract with Hollingsworth & Vose to increase US production of 27.5 million N95 ventilator filters and 3.1 million N95 respirators per month starting in August; https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2200654/dod-announces-defense-production-act-title-3-covid-19-ppe-project-22-million-in/

June 19, 2020 - Under the DPA, DOD in coordination with HHS signed a $13.5 million contract with Lydall, Inc. to increase domestic capacity of meltblown filtration media, a key component in N95 masks; https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2245825/dod-awards-135-million-contract-to-lydall-inc-to-increase-domestic-production-o/

July 13, 2020 - Under the DPA, DOD in coordination with HHS awarded Renco Corp. a NTE $22.4 million contract with Lydall, Inc. to increase domestic production capacity of Nitrile beutadine rubber gloves; https://www.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract/Article/2272447/

July 23, 2020 - Under the DPA, DOD in coordination with HHS awarded Pall Corporation a NTE $4.9 million contract to increase domestic production capacity of ventilator filters; https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2286217/dod-awards-49-million-contract-to-pall-corporation-to-increase-industrial-base/

July 25, 2020 - Under the DPA, DOD in coordination with HHS signed a $2.75 million contract with NPS to increase domestic capacity of meltblown filtration media, a key component in N95 masks; https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2288304/dod-awards-275-million-contract-to-nps-to-increase-domestic-production-of-meltb/

August 25, 2020 - HHSannounced the release of 1.5 million N95 respirators from the Strategic National Stockpile distribution to approximately 3,336 US nursing home facilities; https://www.massdevice.com/hhs-to-release-1-5m-n95-respirators-to-nursing-homes/ , https://www.aha.org/news/headline/2020-08-26-nursing-homes-receive-n95-respirators-stockpile

Thursday, November 16, 2023

Did Trump Take Covid-19 Seriously in Early 2020 - Trump Actions, Democrats' Undermining

This is a parallel chronology from January through March 2020 of Trump Administration actions in the context of things Democrat officials - local and national - did and said. Included are a few items that give the context of what was known when. These news stories demonstrate that while the Trump Administration was taking serious and effective actions against Covid-19, Democrat officials were attacking Trump for those actions, undermining his actions, and minimizing the risk of Covid-19. As with other articles I wrote in summer 2020, I have checked all links, replacing and/or adding as I felt necessary.

December 31, 2019 - WHO found a translation of a Chinese news report on ProMED about the outbreak in Wuhan; WHO's China office found a Wuhan Municipal Health Commission media statement about the outbreak in Wuhan; https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/29-06-2020-covidtimeline

January 4, 2020 - CDC Director Robert Redfield offers to send technical experts to China: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/04/03/how-much-pressure-did-trump-put-china-access-concerning-coronavirus/ (behind paywall); https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisettevoytko/2020/01/28/cdc-offers-china-help-as-coronavirus-outbreak-grows-according-to-report/#5b15af734ee4 ; https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/r/r46354

January 6, 2020 - CDC issued a Level 1 travel notice for Wuhan, China; https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/r/r46354

January 8, 2020 - CDC alert to clinicians to ask patients with "severe respiratory illness" whether they had traveled to Wuhan; https://emergency.cdc.gov/han/han00424.asp (broken link)

January 11 and 12, 2020 - Covid-19 coronavirus DNA sequence communicated to WHO; https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/29-06-2020-covidtimeline

January 15, 2020 - Nancy Pelosi signed impeachment articles and doled out impeachment pens; https://apnews.com/3cd46ae3f694b21c0cf83af3f0c4f1c7

January 17, 2020 - The US started screening arriving passengers from China; JFK, SFO, LAX https://www.businessinsider.com/new-disease-virus-china-us-airports-screening-cdc-2020-1 ; O'Hare and Hartsfield-Jackson ; January 22, 2020 - https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/01/21/us-screenings-coronavirus-expanded-airports-atlanta-chicago/ (paywall), https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/ohare-screening-wuhan-coronavirus-six-die-hundreds-sickened-asia/ , https://www.cdc.gov/museum/timeline/covid19.html

January 20, 2020 - Dr. Fauci announces the National Institutes of Health working developing a vaccine for coronavirus; https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/20/health/coronavirus-nih-vaccine-development/index.html

January 20, 2020 - CDC activated its emergency operations center; https://emergency.cdc.gov/recentincidents/index.asp?cid=EPR-homepage

January 20, 2020 - First acknowledgement by China and WHO of human-human transmission of coronavirus; https://abcnews.go.com/Health/human-human-transmission-coronavirus-reported-china/story?id=68403105

January 20, 2020 - First confirmed coronavirus case in the US announced; https://www.cdc.gov/museum/timeline/covid19.html

January 22, 2020 - Pharmaceuticals company Moderna working with US government to develop vaccine; https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/22/moderna-is-working-on-a-vaccine-for-chinas-deadly-coronavirus.html , https://news.modernatx.com/news/news-details/2020/Moderna-Announces-Funding-Award-from-CEPI-to-Accelerate-Development-of-Messenger-RNA-mRNA-Vaccine-Against-Novel-Coronavirus/default.aspx

January 26, 2020 - While warning that the coronavirus would come to NYC, New York City Health Commisioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot advised people, "We are encouraging New Yorkers to go about their everyday lives and suggest practicing everyday precautions that we do through the flu season," and, "We are very clear: We wish New Yorkers a Happy Lunar New Year and we encourage people to spend time with their families and go about their celebration"; https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/27/nyregion/new-york-city-coronavirus.html (behind paywall), https://ijr.com/flashback-de-blasio-ny-commissioner-coronavirus/

January 27, 2020 - US CDC issues highest-level travel health notice, Level 3, recommending that travelers avoid all nonessential travel to China; State Department raises its own travel advisory for all of China to Level 3 of 4, urging U.S. citizens to “reconsider travel”, while retaining its Level 4 travel advisory for Hubei Province; https://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/travel-alert-level-4-do-not-travel-to-hubei/ , https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/news/2020/01/24/coronavirus-outbreak-leads-state-department-issue-level-4-advisory/4562349002/ , https://www.cdc.gov/museum/timeline/covid19.html

January 29, 2020 - White House announced the formation of the Coronavirus Task Force; https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/480627-white-house-announces-task-force-to-monitor-coronavirus , https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-launches-coronavirus-task-force

January 31, 2020 - In reference to Lunar New Year celebration activities, Barbara Ferrer, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Director, said, "There is no need to panic and there is no need for people to cancel their activities."; https://mynewsla.com/hollywood/2020/01/28/health-official-says-coronavirus-is-no-need-for-panic-in-los-angeles-county/

January 31, 2020 - HHS Secretary Azar declared a public health emergency; https://abcnews.go.com/Health/delta-suspends-us-flights-china-amid-coronavirus/story?id=68666037 , https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/r/r46354

January 31, 2020 - State Department raised the travel advisory for China to Level 4, do not travel; https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2020/01/31/coronavirus-china-flight-ban-delta-cuts-all-flights-white-house/4620989002/

January 31, 2020 - People entering the US from China forbidden; Announced January 31, effective February 2; https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/02/us/coronavirus-us-travel-restrictions/index.html , https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-donald-trump-us-news-ap-top-news-virus-outbreak-9e22f8aabe2f454593b9f9b4c67eb31f , https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/r/r46354 . This effectively ended flights from and to China, for obvious reasons.

January 31, 2020 - Biden referred to "Donald Trump’s record of hysteria and xenophobia - hysterical xenophobia - and fearmongering" while criticizing Trump's China travel restrictions; https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/481028-biden-slams-trump-for-cutting-health-programs-before-coronavirus-outbreak ; https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/01/28/biden-xenophobia-travel-bans-chronology/

February 1, 2020 - The day after Trump announced the China travel shutdown Joe Biden Tweeted, "Donald Trump’s record of hysteria, xenophobia, and fear-mongering"; https://twitter.com/JoeBiden/status/1223727977361338370?s=20

February 2, 2020 - NYC Health Commissioner Dave A. Chokshi encouraged New Yorkers, "As we gear up to celebrate the #LunarNewYear in NYC,... there is no reason for anyone to change their holiday plans, avoid the subway, or certain parts of the city because of #coronavirus; https://twitter.com/NYCHealthCommr/status/1224043155852537863

February 4, 2020 - Rep. Ami Bera claimed Trump's China travel restrictions would "create prejudices" and cause people to "harbor anxieties toward" Chinese people; https://www.politico.com/states/california/story/2020/02/04/coronavirus-quarantine-travel-ban-could-backfire-experts-fear-1258757

February 5, 2020 - First House of Representatives hearing about Covid-19; https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/05/watch-us-house-panel-holds-hearing-on-the-coronavirus-outbreak.html

February 5, 2020 - Rep. Eliot Engel claimed Trump's China travel restrictions would "stoke" "discriminatory" and "racist" responses; https://www.factcheck.org/2020/03/the-facts-on-trumps-travel-restrictions/ (Factcheck weasels what he said, but Engel said it in a committee meeting about Covid less than a week after Trump's travel ban went into effect; context matters)

February 7, 2020 - NYC Health Commisioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot advised people, "So we’re telling New Yorkers, go about your lives, take the subway, go out, enjoy life, but practice everyday precautions"; https://news.grabien.com/story-flashback-nyc-health-commissioner-urged-new-yorkers-gather-p (the link includes context of her advice and video of her comments)

February 9, 2020 - NYC Health Commissioner Oxiris Barbot encouraged New Yorkers, "I want to remind everyone to enjoy the (Lunar New Year) parade and not change any plans due to misinformation spreading about #coronavirus."; https://twitter.com/NYCHealthCommr/status/1226508570646269954

February 11, 2020 - HHS expands partnership with Janssen Research & Development for vaccine development; https://homelandprepnews.com/stories/44272-hhs-expands-partnership-with-janssen-research-development-for-research-share-into-covid-19-vaccine/ , https://www.jnj.com/johnson-johnson-announces-collaboration-with-u-s-department-of-health-human-services-to-accelerate-development-of-a-potential-novel-coronavirus-vaccine

February 18, 2020 - HHS to work with Sanofi Pasteur to develop coronavirus vaccine and treatment; https://www.statnews.com/2020/02/18/sanofi-announces-it-will-work-with-hhs-to-develop-coronavirus-vaccine/ , https://www.news.sanofi.us/2020-02-18-Sanofi-joins-forces-with-U-S-Department-of-Health-and-Human-Services-to-advance-a-novel-coronavirus-vaccine

February 24, 2020 - Nancy Pelosi invited Californians to "come to Chinatown"; https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2020/02/24/coronavirus-speaker-house-nancy-pelosi-tours-san-franciscos-chinatown/

February 25, 2020 - An NIH clinical trial of Remdesivir begun; at University of Nebraska Medical Center, https://www.unmc.edu/newsroom/2020/02/25/nih-clinical-trial-of-remdesivir-to-treat-covid-19-begins/ , https://www.ketv.com/article/clinical-trials-for-first-drug-to-treat-coronavirus-begin-at-university-of-nebraska-medical-center-covid/31099043

February 26, 2020 - Nancy Pelosi referred to Trump's China travel shut down as, "scare tactics about people coming back to our country"; https://twitter.com/ABCPolitics/status/1232717882020245504

February 29, 2020 - Level 4 travel advisory to Italy, South Korea; https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2020/02/29/coronavirus-trump-adds-travel-restrictions-italy-south-korea/4914822002/

February 29, 2020 - Iran travel ban announced; https://www.statnews.com/2020/02/29/trump-administration-expands-coronavirus-travel-ban-to-include-iran/

March 4, 2020 - In a press conference, NYC Health Commisioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot advised "So, there's no indication that being in a car, being in the subways with someone who's potentially sick is a risk factor ..."; https://www1.nyc.gov/office-of-the-mayor/news/118-20/transcript-mayor-de-blasio-new-yorkers-city-s-covid-19-preparedness (10 months later, a family member and I, separately, were infected during car rides; whether ignorance or political game-playing her comment endangered New Yorkers she was paid to protect)

March 5, 2020 - City of New York Mayor de Blasio encouraged residents to "get out on the town"; https://twitter.com/BilldeBlasio/status/1234648718714036229

March 5, 2020 - Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County Public Health Department, said, "The public can continue to enjoy all that L.A. County has to offer, including the Los Angeles Marathon"; http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/phcommon/public/media/mediapubhpdetail.cfm?prid=2251 (in fairness, it would eventually be realized that running events, with the corralling that was/is common, is relatively low risk; however, Ferrer's comment, "all that L.A. County has to offer" included riskier contexts)

March 11, 2020 - Trump suspended travel from Europe; https://news.yahoo.com/trump-suspends-travel-from-europe-for-30-days-as-coronavirus-cases-continue-to-grow-014314635.html

March 13, 2020 - Trump declared National Emergency; https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-51882381 ; https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/government-coronavirus-response-live-updates-trump-declares-national/story?id=69580277

March 14, 2020 - European travel ban extended to include the UK and Ireland; https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/14/white-house-adds-uk-ireland-to-travel-ban-129470

March 16, 2020 - Testing begins of Moderna's experimental coronavirus vaccine; at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, https://www.kpwashingtonresearch.org/news-and-events/recent-news/news-2020/kaiser-permanente-launches-coronavirus-vaccine-study-seattle ; https://investors.modernatx.com/news/news-details/2020/Moderna-Announces-First-Participant-Dosed-in-NIH-led-Phase-1-Study-of-mRNA-Vaccine-mRNA-1273-Against-Novel-Coronavirus/default.aspx

March 19, 2020 - State Department global level 4 health advisory, avoid all international travel; https://jm.usembassy.gov/u-s-government-issues-a-global-level-4-health-advisory/ , https://www.nafsa.org/regulatory-information/department-state-covid-19-global-health-advisory , https://www.khou.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/do-not-travel-abroad-what-the-state-departments-advisory-means-for-travelers/285-9530f93f-9869-451e-905e-6aec20f4e94f

Monday, November 13, 2023

Trump Did Nothing for Two Months? - February 2020

 I wrote what follows in summer 2020. It's not exhaustive, and I thought the its usefulness passed by early 2021. Consequently, I had not checked for broken links until recently, when I learned that a number of CDC and White House articles had been deleted or archived. Also recently, I have learned that the "Trump Did Nothing" myth is still believed and circulating. I light of this, I have checked all the links for the events I cited, replaced all but one broken link, and added a few to some events for good measure.

I'm not campaigning for Trump, just providing facts to counter a partisan myth.

Maine Democratic Party Executive Director Lisa Roberts claimed: "Trump wasted more than two months of precious time downplaying the threat of this crisis ...", https://www.mainedems.org/media/new-trump-wasted-two-months-coronavirus-response-does-senator-collins-still-think-he-did-lot . While some of the criticism claiming two months wasted focuses on masks, other PPE, and ventilators - items hospitals should have, and of which city, county, and state health commissions should have emergency supplies stockpiled, Roberts' claim is far more broad. She claimed that two months - January and February - were "wasted". The specific issue of masks, other PPE, and ventilators will be addressed elsewhere. The proper focus at first was on things that are the immediate responsibilities of the US government: dealings with foreign nations and matters handled by various Federal agencies such as the FDA, CDC, and NIH. So, what of the general, "Trump wasted two months," claim? What did Trump do in January with regard to what came to be called Covid-19?

First, the context in which Trump and his Administration were acting in January, 2020:

* Until January 20, 2020, China and the "scientists" at the World Health Organization assured the world that there was no evidence of human-to-human transmission of Covid-19, https://www.who.int/csr/don/14-january-2020-novel-coronavirus-thailand-ex-china/en/ , http://wjw.wuhan.gov.cn/front/web/showDetail/2020012009077 (Chinese language), https://abcnews.go.com/Health/human-human-transmission-coronavirus-reported-china/story?id=68403105 ;

* The first US case of Covid-19 was confirmed on January 20, 2020, and by February 29th a total of 68 cases had been confirmed in the US, https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/ , "Total Coronavirus Cases in the United States" graph.

Here are some of the actions of the Trump Administration in February:

February 3, 2020 - CDC had a team ready to travel to China; https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-health-who-mission-idUSKBN1ZX2BV

February 4, 2020 - HHS, Regeneron Collaborate to Develop 2019-nCoV Treatment; https://investor.regeneron.com/news-releases/news-release-details/regeneron-announces-expanded-collaboration-hhs-develop-antibody

February 6, 2020 - Shipping of CDC 2019 coronavirus test kits begins; https://www.cdc.gov/museum/timeline/covid19.html

February 11, 2020 - HHS expands partnership with Janssen Research & Development for vaccine development; https://homelandprepnews.com/stories/44272-hhs-expands-partnership-with-janssen-research-development-for-research-share-into-covid-19-vaccine/ , https://www.jnj.com/johnson-johnson-announces-collaboration-with-u-s-department-of-health-human-services-to-accelerate-development-of-a-potential-novel-coronavirus-vaccine

February 18, 2020 - HHS to work with Sanofi Pasteur to develop coronavirus vaccine and treatment; https://www.statnews.com/2020/02/18/sanofi-announces-it-will-work-with-hhs-to-develop-coronavirus-vaccine/ , https://www.news.sanofi.us/2020-02-18-Sanofi-joins-forces-with-U-S-Department-of-Health-and-Human-Services-to-advance-a-novel-coronavirus-vaccine

February 25, 2020 - An NIH clinical trial of Remdesivir begun; at University of Nebraska Medical Center, https://www.unmc.edu/newsroom/2020/02/25/nih-clinical-trial-of-remdesivir-to-treat-covid-19-begins/ , https://www.ketv.com/article/clinical-trials-for-first-drug-to-treat-coronavirus-begin-at-university-of-nebraska-medical-center-covid/31099043

February 29, 2020 - Testing labs allowed to use tests whose FDA Emergency Use Authorization requests are still pending; https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-issues-new-policy-help-expedite-availability-diagnostics

February 29, 2020 - Level 4 travel advisory to Italy, South Korea; https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2020/02/29/coronavirus-trump-adds-travel-restrictions-italy-south-korea/4914822002/

February 29, 2020 - Iran travel ban announced; https://www.statnews.com/2020/02/29/trump-administration-expands-coronavirus-travel-ban-to-include-iran/

Among other things, these actions in January and February 2020 led to two of the vaccines that received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), two monoclonal antibody treatments that received EUA, and an antiviral drug being approved for treating Covid.

During these two months Trump and his administration also set up the organizational structure and legal groundwork for all that was done in the 11 months following February 2020. As other posts in this blog show, "all that was done" was a lot.

Trump Did Nothing for Two Months? - January 2020

 I wrote what follows in summer 2020. It's not exhaustive, and I thought the its usefulness passed by early 2021. Consequently, I had not checked for broken links until recently, when I learned that a number of CDC and White House articles had been deleted or archived. Also recently, I have learned that the "Trump Did Nothing" myth is still believed and circulating. I light of this, I have checked all the links for the events I cited, replaced all but one broken link, and added a few to some events for good measure.

I'm not campaigning for Trump, just providing facts to counter a partisan myth.

Maine Democratic Party Executive Director Lisa Roberts claimed: "Trump wasted more than two months of precious time downplaying the threat of this crisis ...", https://www.mainedems.org/media/new-trump-wasted-two-months-coronavirus-response-does-senator-collins-still-think-he-did-lot . While some of the criticism claiming two months wasted focuses on masks, other PPE, and ventilators - items hospitals should have, and of which city, county, and state health commissions should have emergency supplies stockpiled, Roberts' claim is far more broad. She claimed that two months - January and February - were "wasted". The specific issue of masks, other PPE, and ventilators will be addressed elsewhere. The proper focus at first was on things that are the immediate responsibilities of the US government: dealings with foreign nations and matters handled by various Federal agencies such as the FDA, CDC, and NIH. So, what of the general, "Trump wasted two months," claim? What did Trump do in January with regard to what came to be called Covid-19?

First, the context in which Trump and his Administration were acting in January, 2020:

* Until January 20, 2020, China and the "scientists" at the World Health Organization assured the world that there was no evidence of human-to-human transmission of Covid-19, https://www.who.int/csr/don/14-january-2020-novel-coronavirus-thailand-ex-china/en/ , http://wjw.wuhan.gov.cn/front/web/showDetail/2020012009077 (Chinese language), https://abcnews.go.com/Health/human-human-transmission-coronavirus-reported-china/story?id=68403105 ;

* The first US case of Covid-19 was confirmed on January 20, 2020, and by February 15th a total of 15 cases had been confirmed in the US, https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/ , "Total Coronavirus Cases in the United States" graph.

Here are some of the actions of the Trump Administration in January:

January 4, 6, 28, 2020 - CDC Director Robert Redfield offers to send technical experts to China: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/04/03/how-much-pressure-did-trump-put-china-access-concerning-coronavirus/ (behind paywall); https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisettevoytko/2020/01/28/cdc-offers-china-help-as-coronavirus-outbreak-grows-according-to-report/#5b15af734ee4 ; https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/r/r46354

January 6, 2020 - CDC issued a Level 1 travel notice for Wuhan, China; https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/r/r46354

January 7, 2020 - CDC established a coronavirus incident management system; https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6905e1.htm

January 8, 2020 - CDC alert to clinicians to ask patients with "severe respiratory illness" whether they had traveled to Wuhan; https://emergency.cdc.gov/han/han00424.asp (broken)

January 17, 2020 - The US started screening arriving passengers from China; JFK, SFO, LAX https://www.businessinsider.com/new-disease-virus-china-us-airports-screening-cdc-2020-1 ; O'Hare and Hartsfield-Jackson ; January 22, 2020 - https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/01/21/us-screenings-coronavirus-expanded-airports-atlanta-chicago/ (paywall), https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/ohare-screening-wuhan-coronavirus-six-die-hundreds-sickened-asia/ , https://www.cdc.gov/museum/timeline/covid19.html

January 20, 2020 - CDC activated its emergency operations center; https://emergency.cdc.gov/recentincidents/recentincidents_2020.asp

January 22, 2020 - Pharmaceuticals company Moderna working with US government to develop vaccine; https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/22/moderna-is-working-on-a-vaccine-for-chinas-deadly-coronavirus.html , https://news.modernatx.com/news/news-details/2020/Moderna-Announces-Funding-Award-from-CEPI-to-Accelerate-Development-of-Messenger-RNA-mRNA-Vaccine-Against-Novel-Coronavirus/default.aspx

January 23, 2020 - CDC sought “special emergency authorization” from FDA to allow states to use its coronavirus test; https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-health-cdc-idUSKBN1ZM2XS

January 27, 2020 - US CDC issues highest-level travel health notice, Level 3, recommending that travelers avoid all nonessential travel to China; State Department raises its own travel advisory for all of China to Level 3 of 4, urging U.S. citizens to “reconsider travel”, while retaining its Level 4 travel advisory for Hubei Province; https://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/travel-alert-level-4-do-not-travel-to-hubei/ , https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/news/2020/01/24/coronavirus-outbreak-leads-state-department-issue-level-4-advisory/4562349002/ , https://www.cdc.gov/museum/timeline/covid19.html

January 28, 2020 - AbCellera is mobilizing its pandemic response platform against the outbreak of Covid-19; Since 2018, under the DARPA Pandemic Prevention Platform (P3) program, AbCellera has been leading a team of partners to establish a platform for pandemic response capable of developing field-ready medical countermeasures within 60 days of isolation of an unknown viral pathogen; https://www.abcellera.com/news/2020-01-abcellera-mobilizing-a-response-to-novel-coronavirus

January 29, 2020 - White House announced the formation of the Coronavirus Task Force; https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/480627-white-house-announces-task-force-to-monitor-coronavirus , https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-launches-coronavirus-task-force

January 30, 2020 - Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the Center for the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said, "We are preparing as if this was the next pandemic"; https://abcnews.go.com/Health/delta-suspends-us-flights-china-amid-coronavirus/story?id=68666037 , https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/84739

January 31, 2020 - HHS Secretary Azar declared a public health emergency; https://abcnews.go.com/Health/delta-suspends-us-flights-china-amid-coronavirus/story?id=68666037 , https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/r/r46354

January 31, 2020 - State Department raised the travel advisory for China to Level 4, do not travel; https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2020/01/31/coronavirus-china-flight-ban-delta-cuts-all-flights-white-house/4620989002/

January 31, 2020 - People entering the US from China forbidden; Announced January 31, effective February 2; https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/02/us/coronavirus-us-travel-restrictions/index.html , https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-donald-trump-us-news-ap-top-news-virus-outbreak-9e22f8aabe2f454593b9f9b4c67eb31f , https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/r/r46354

Among other things, these actions in January and February 2020 led to two of the vaccines that received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), two monoclonal antibody treatments that received EUA, and an antiviral drug being approved for treating Covid.

During these two months Trump and his administration also set up the organizational structure and legal groundwork for all that was done in the 11 months following February 2020. As other posts in this blog show, "all that was done" was a lot.