Real victims are health care workers

In response to David White’s letter regarding mine that pointed out how anti-vaxxers have made a choice that forces overwhelmed hospitals to ration care. That if they get COVID, they deal with the consequences of what they’ve created: a catastrophic health care crisis.

White said I was “blaming the victim” as was done to AIDS patients in the past. I don’t think he thought through this ridiculous comparison. Rather than waste my time on that point, I will tell you who the real victims are. They are the people on the front lines in hospitals who are living day in and day out with this COVID nightmare that leaves them frustrated, exhausted and demoralized. They have nothing left to give their own families when they get home. Many are leaving a career they loved because of burnout and watching people die needlessly. And now? Now they get to pick and choose which patients should receive care. It’s like being in a war zone, with no end in sight as long as politics trumps science.

If having compassion for health care workers isn’t enough, maybe anti-vaxxers will decide their politics aren’t worth the hit to their pocketbook. Employers like Delta Airlines are increasing monthly health insurance premiums by $200 for anti-vax employees. Health insurance companies are increasing premiums and no longer waiving out-of-pocket costs since vaccines are readily available.

Recently, I took my mother to the Enloe Medical Center emergency room, and they needed proof of vaccination to admit her. Bravo!

— Lynne Bussey, Chico