COVID-19 still runs rampant. Denying it only makes it worse.

Measles is making a comeback. In Kentucky the vaccination rate of kindergarteners is 90%, in some communities this rate is even lower. Measles is one of the most infectious diseases known to mankind and a community rate of immunity above 95% is required to prevent spread. Before the measles vaccine, 48,000 individuals were hospitalized and 500 died of measles in the United States each year. Recently, our state had a close call with a possible measles exposure at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.

Falling vaccination rates are being driven by antiscience, and The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention only needs to look in the mirror to discover one of the driving forces. The anti-science rhetoric governmental institutions are spewing regarding COVID-19 is causing far reaching and enduring damage to public health, fueling conspiracy theorists and anti-vaxxers. Many in the mainstream public do not truly understand the intricate details of science, but they know when they are being gaslighted.

The latest COVID-19 advice is gaslighting at its worst

On the one hand, the necessity of obtaining an updated booster is being stressed to prevent the severe outcomes of COVID-19, but at the same time the mingling of asymptomatic carriers with the public is being misleadingly greenlighted. False assurances regarding the new booster’s ironclad efficacy are also being given, despite the latest research indicating there is only a little over 50% effectiveness in the prevention of hospitalizations. Fifty percent is good enough for me to be first in line to receive the new booster, but it is not a level of protection that would have me abandon other effective precautions.

Minimizing the dangers and risks of COVID-19 and insinuating this disease is similar to the Flu and RSV is discouraging vaccinations of almost all illnesses. COVID-19 is more dangerous and lethal than the flu, but the biggest difference is its much greater infectivity. Thus, your chance of acquiring COVID-19 in a highrisk setting and enduring lasting symptoms and disability is far greater.

If we become desensitized to and minimize the over 200 deaths per week from COVID-19 how then is the public expected to be concerned about measles and other infectious disease? And if COVID-19 is not important enough to prevent infections by isolating asymptomatic carriers, why bother to be vaccinated? And if COVID-19 is not viewed by the public to be important enough to warrant a vaccination, then why bother to be vaccinated to measles, a disease with a lower rate of fatality and hospitalizations?

We are not in a ‘much better place.’ COVID-19 still runs rampant.

The COVID-19 mantra that we are in a much better place, has spread throughout the federal government. The uniformity of messaging suggests this is more of a political than scientific message, possibly having its roots in a February 24, 2022 Impact Research Document which stated “…we are nowhere near where we were two years, or even one year ago.” and concluded “if Democrats continue to hold a posture that prioritizes COVID precautions over learning how to live in a world where COVID exists, but does not dominate, they risk paying dearly for it in November.” This advice was supported with polling data that found twice as many Americans are concerned about COVID’s effects on the economy (49%) than a friend or loved one becoming sick with the coronavirus (24%).

Although the exact wording of this mantra may be true, it is creating a false impression, which according to my Roman Catholic teachings is still considered a lie. It’s hard to say we are in a “much better place” when that place is still very dangerous, and becoming more so as vaccinations for other dangerous diseases are shunned.

We need clear and consistent messaging around COVID

We need to stop believing we live in a world of rainbows and unicorns. COVID-19 is currently filling over 22,000 hospital beds and resulting in more than 200 deaths each week. In addition, long COVID is ravaging our entire adult population with 6.8% afflicted with the disease, a number which appears to be increasing. Society must know the true downside and risks of spreading this virus and determine the number of chronic disability and premature deaths that we can tolerate.

Presently, our society is unlikely to support widespread mandatory masking, but there might be agreement on improving indoor ventilation. After all, one of the unhealthiest and most risky activities is sitting on a plane for hours as it is parked on the tarmac waiting for takeoff. Who would not like to see the CDC ban this practice?

Kevin Kavanagh is a retired physician from Somerset, Kentucky, and chairman of Health Watch USA.