“It’s going to disappear. One day — it’s like a miracle — it will disappear. And from our shores, we — you know, it could get worse before it gets better. It could maybe go away. We’ll see what happens. Nobody really knows.” This statement by President Trump sums up the confusion and mistrust surrounding the United States government’s response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak that is taking the world by storm.
From its start in Wuhan, China, to its spread to over 60 countries, this virus is causing widespread public panic and knee-jerk reactions from governments worldwide. Outside of China, the countries with the highest prevalence of COVID-19 are South Korea, Italy, and Iran. In the United States, there have been at least 62 cases and one confirmed death.
The exact scope of the epidemic and the case fatality rate for COVID-19 are unknown, since it is likely that many cases have gone undetected or untested, but the threat appears to be relatively low for the majority of the U.S. population. While the outbreak has not yet struck the United States with full force, this seems almost inevitable. And with an administration that consistently rejects science and reason, the U.S. is ill-prepared for what will likely be declared a pandemic. So, what’s the plan?
In response to fears that the mainstream media was overexaggerating the threats from COVID-19, President Trump announced on February 26 that Vice President Mike Pence is in charge of coordinating the government’s response to the outbreak. This essentially means that all messaging, statements, and public appearances from government health officials and scientists must be coordinated with the Vice President. Having a single point-person for messaging is typically a good thing to reduce confusion and misinformation in a time when people are panicking about an unknown threat, but Mike Pence is not the person that should have this role. And it doesn’t even seem like he’s the only point-person.
Mike Pence is surrounding himself with people with expertise relating to infectious diseases and global health such as Dr. Deborah L. Birx, who Pence appointed to serve as the coronavirus response coordinator for the White House. But didn’t President Trump appoint Mike Pence to do that job? Yes, he did. According to the New York Times, “Dr. Birx is now the third person to have been designated as the administration’s primary coronavirus official, along with Mr. Pence and Alex M. Azar II, the Secretary of Health and Human Services.” Secretary Azar is currently the chairman of the coronavirus task force.
If we take a step back from the utter confusion about who is actually in charge and assume that Mike Pence is the head honcho, things get worse. Mike Pence has a record of rejecting basic science. To name a few instances, the Vice President has claimed that “smoking doesn’t kill,” that “condoms are a very, very poor protection against [STIs],” and that “global warming is a myth.” And if we look at how he handled a public health crisis in the past, it becomes even more evident that Mike Pence is not at all qualified to lead any kind of coordination efforts for what is likely to become the next pandemic.
When Mr. Pence was governor of Indiana, the state faced a severe HIV/AIDS outbreak. The outbreak started among people using intravenous drugs, and the then-governor’s initial response was to “pray on it,” rather than implement a clean needle exchange program that would have slowed the spread of HIV in the community. After harsh criticism, Pence “reluctantly authorized a needle exchange program,” but the delay in a government response worsened the outbreak drastically. If his rejection of science and basic reason doesn’t disqualify him from leading the COVID-19 coordination efforts, his handling of Indiana’s HIV outbreak certainly does.
Politics aside, the American people need someone in charge who actually knows what is going on, has a background in successfully managing a public health crisis, can defer to scientists and public health professionals when necessary, and who can reassure the public about this ongoing threat to public health. We don’t need someone like Mike Pence.
