Governors dispute Trump's claim that there's enough coronavirus testing
By: Maeve Reston - CNN
President Donald Trump never said that all states are ready. Trump's prognosis is that 29 states are or are near ready to start lifting restrictions and begin the process of reopening their economies. That means 21 states are not ready. Whining about that reality isn't going to change the facts.
There really is a national strategy but that strategy is not going to guarantee an equal outcome. The states unready to begin the process are going to be left behind. That's the harsh reality. Whining about that reality changes nothing.
As states begin the process of reopening that means available resources can be targeted towards states that are not ready. There will be less competition for testing, PPE, ventilators, and anything else that is needed. The hotspots need more attention and resources. The national strategy is to free up resources from where there is less need.
The response to the pandemic doesn't need to be national because the hotspots have not been uniform across the country. And the national strategy has been to focus attention on the hotspots where resources are needed most.
The test result doesn't indicate if an individual will need hospitalization or not. The number of infections does not predict the quantity of hospital beds, ICU beds, or ventilators that will be needed. Planning based on currently available test results leads to demanding excess resources that will not be needed because the available test is inappropriate for planning purposes. Testing for active infections is not as informative or as predictive as the politicians sitting in governor's chairs claim. Yes, the tests provide data but it's not necessarily the data that is needed. So, common sense is more important than the data being collected.
Social distancing has not accomplished what is being claimed. Even with social distancing restrictions in place, New York has experienced continued need for hospitalization. And the currently available approved test won't indicate if declines in hospitalization are the result of social distancing or increased herd immunity. The important metrics are declines in hospitalization and declines in fatalities. Increasing the number of negative test results isn't going to provide useful information. And those not needing hospitalization aren't going to need resources.
Governors in the states that are clearly not ready to begin the process of reopening are politicizing the issue with the apparent expectation of achieving an equal outcome. But that simply cannot happen. Some states are going to be left behind. That's the harsh reality. That's caused by the virus, not by President Trump.
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Governors from both sides of the aisle on Sunday disputed President Donald Trump's claims about the availability of coronavirus testing, escalating the erupting tension over the key challenge in reopening the nation.
On CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday, the Republican governor of Maryland and the Democratic governors of Virginia and Michigan disputed Trump's assertions that their states have enough testing to move toward reopening their states.
Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam called the administration's declarations that the states have ample testing capacity "just delusional."
"We've been fighting every day for PPE. We have supplies now coming in. We've been fighting for testing," Northam told CNN's Jake Tapper. "It's not a straightforward test. We don't even have enough swabs."
On the same program, Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said the lack of testing is the number one problem in America and "has been since the beginning of the crisis."
"The administration, I think, is trying to ramp up testing. They are doing some things with respect to private labs," Hogan said. "But to try and push this off to say that the governors have plenty of testing and they should just get to work on testing -- somehow we aren't doing our job -- is just absolutely false."
Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, a potential running mate for former Vice President Joe Biden, said the Trump administration needs to coordinate and set guidelines for the states.
"It would be nice if we had a national strategy that was working with every state, so every state knew what was coming," she said.
A governor, who requested anonymity, told Tapper that they were frustrated with the statements coming from the White House about the availability of testing capacity.
"Just wanted you to know how frustrating the doublespeak is that's coming from the White House," the governor told Tapper.
"When the White House says there's plenty of 'testing capacity' in the states they are referring to the number of tests that could be run on machines that exist in hospitals, commercial labs and doctor's offices," the governor said. "So, why aren't states using all the capacity? There's a worldwide shortage of swabs, VTM and reagent. Can't do tests without all of those. And they don't come in a package - you have to buy each of those from multiple suppliers."
For the past week, the nation's governors and the Trump administration have tangled over whether the much-needed expansion of testing capacity is the responsibility of the states or the federal government.
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There has been a national strategy all along. Focus attention on hotspots and allocate resources according to immediate need. It's too late to build stockpiles based on test data that won't predict need.
The national strategy has been to use common sense rather than hair-on-fire over reaction. The test results have not predicted how many hospital beds are needed. Adding capacity based on test results only increases competition, encourages profiteering, and wastes resources. Hoarding ventilators in the midst of the pandemic is no different than hoarding toilet paper.
People have died in ICU beds while on ventilators. More ventilators won't improve those outcomes.
The harsh reality is that many states are not ready and are going to be left behind. Whining about it won't provide an equal outcome.
Governors in the states that are clearly not ready to begin the process of reopening are politicizing the issue with the apparent expectation of achieving an equal outcome. But that simply cannot happen. Some states are going to be left behind. That's the harsh reality. That's caused by the virus, not by President Trump.
Life is hard and not fair. Outcomes are not guaranteed. The thought that this could have been happening under president Hillary Clinton is horrifying.
And the reality that this is actually happening under Trump is even more than horrifying.
The governors have to whine because this is all being driving by politics. Divisive politics at that. It makes it so much easier to whine and bitch when you get people to believe there should be a one-size-fits-all approach to the entire country.
My governor is not only not "whining" but he is getting it done despite the efforts of the two year old in the oval office to derail him.
Ain't that the truth. He is not relying on others to do the job he was elected to do, he is doing it in spite of those who would love to see him fail, and are doing all they can to help that happen. Especially, the immense mental failure in the Oval office, who thinks that he, and he alone, has all the answers, and demands all the praise for all others successes, and blames everyone else for his own immense failures.