In the last lap of his Presidency, Donald Trump does not cease to astound. On Sunday, he accused the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention at Atlanta, the body that oversees the United States’ response to diseases and epidemics, of exaggerating the numbers of coronavirus afflictions and deaths by following what he called a “ridiculous method of determination compared to other countries”.
This serious charge came, as many of Mr Trump’s pronouncements do, on Twitter, which meant it was unsubstantiated. Mr Trump’s reasoning though seemed specious, for when he alleged other countries were underreporting incidence, he seemed to suggest that the US should do so as well.
The US has reported more than 20 million cases, nearly one-fourth of the global total, and more than 350,000 deaths, about a fifth of the fatalities worldwide. But what is worrying is that it is now reporting more than 200,000 afflictions a day, ten times higher than the second-worst affected country, India, and more than 2,000 deaths a day, seven times more than Brazil, the country that comes second in terms of fatalities. Suggesting that the US was following a policy of “when in doubt, call it Covid”, the President blamed the CDC for the protocol being followed in the country.
These remarks were immediately countered by public health professionals, including those who are part of his administration.
Dr Anthony Fauci, considered the top infectious diseases specialist in the country, reacted by telling a television channel, “The deaths are real deaths. All you need to do is go out into the trenches, go to the hospitals, see what the healthcare workers are dealing with, they are under very stressed situations. In many areas of the country, the hospital beds are stretched, people are running out of beds, running out of trained personnel who are exhausted right now. That’s real, that’s not fake, that’s real.”
The US Surgeon General, a member of the Trump administration, concurred, saying “I have no reason to doubt these numbers.”
Mr Trump’s prognosis is largely in tune with his response to the epidemic over the past few months, which was often dismissive ~ as exemplified by his refusal to wear a mask or to follow safety protocols. Despite having been infected himself, he was accused of not responding with the urgency that the public health emergency sought from the administration.
Many of his followers have taken a cue from the outgoing President and have refused to wear masks or restrict their social contacts.
The result is that the country now must deal with staggering numbers of infected people as more than 8 million Americans continue to be reported as active cases. Indeed, his response or the lack of it was a major issue in the November election. It is this alarming situation that President-elect Joe Biden will have to address on a war footing once he occupies the Oval Office.