I know this was most likely before your time, but there was a TV show in the 1950’s called Dragnet. The protagonist was Detective Joe Friday, played by Jack Webb who was famous for saying to a potential witness, “Just the facts, Ma’am. Just the facts.”
The COVID Tracking Project states, “The public deserves the most complete data available about COVID-19 in the US. No official source is providing it, so we are.”
It can be found at, https://covidtracking.com/
Of all tests done in the USA , 8% have been positive. Of positive tests done, 4.8% been reported as fatal. Of all tests done in the USA, 0.4 deaths/test has been reported.
Going to the COVID Tracking Project blog, I notice inconsistencies in their report.1 In the blog, they state that they do not feel the spike in the Southern states (well, some of the Southern states) is due to increased testing. I disagree and this is why. Let’s use their chart labeled as follows,
Key COVID Metrics:Arizona, Texas, & Florida | Weekly New Figures Apr2- Jun 24
This chart shows that the weekly tests done has risen significantly with a positive test rate up 14% (still much less than the recommended testing rate). But the weekly reported death rate has a comparative plateau. Note the weekly test rate and the weekly positive rate are essentially the same graph pattern.
Comparing the weekly % positive graph, one should note that there is a distinct change in the pattern in the 3d week of May. If I am not mistaken, there was a new test modality introduced at that time that is not addressed.
Sometimes I’d rather just have the facts and interpret them myself.
Facing an illness that has such a wide range of symptoms that change weekly is difficult. I see reports that an Oklahoma reporter who attended the Trump Tulsa rally now tests positive for coronavirus. Oh, BTW, he is asymptomatic and feels fine. So why did he get tested? Would he have gone to the rally if he was tested before going to the rally and been positive? Was he positive before the rally?
That’s the thing with the sluggish testing rate, we aren’t keeping up with the virus. We are being told so many things about this virus and the illness it causes that are based solely on speculation. Maybe it’s good information, maybe it isn’t.
We don’t know the prevalence of the virus. We don’t know the carrier rate. We don’t know the morbidity and mortality of this virus. We don’t know all of the transmission mechanism. We don’t even know how to wear a mask or what mask to wear.
I didn’t go to the Trump rally, but I did travel to Texas for family reasons. On an airplane. During the spike. Wearing of a face mask while on the plane was required (but not in the airport or at the boarding-waiting area.). Bush International airport was busy. The waiting area had only a few open chairs for the 2 hour layover. Every 10 minutes, or so, a public service announcement would tell you that, “The CDC has determined that you must maintain 6 feet of distance to protect yourself and others…”
Hate to say this but the PSA was a joke because 6′ distance in that circumstance was impossible.
As soon as we debarked, the passenger in front of me removed her mask and placed a High Efficiency Powered Air Purifying Respirator (PAPR) System (~ $1200). It replaced the $6 cloth face mask the airline made her wear during the flight. A PAPR is a mask that seals onto the face, has a hose from a battery powered pump on a belt to force filtered air into the mask preventing any air born particle from entering.
There you go, let’s replace that N100 PAPR with an N95 face mask for a 1 hour 40 minute flight with forced social distancing of 2-3 feet. Now that’s Airline concern for your health and safety.
From your grumpy Uncle Dave.
- The COVID Tracking Project. TCTP staff. 6/25/20. Weekly COVID-19 Data Update, June 25: The US Pandemic Is Surging in the South and West. Retrieved June 27, 2020 from https://covidtracking.com/blog/weekly-covid-19-data-update-june-25-the-us-pandemic-is-surging