The Road goes ever on and on ... Day 242 (742)

In a survey by the Partnership for New York City, a business advocacy group, the biggest concerns expressed about returning to the office were personal safety and exposure to covid. The personal safety aspect may be more unique to New York City as there have been some well-publicized incidents there. As for exposure to covid, Hawaii yesterday became the last state to remove indoor masking requirements. They will also allow travelers from the continental US to enter without vaccination or negative test proof. Hawaii has one of the largest fully-vaccinated rates, 78 percent. 

The Idaho state legislature has passed what has come to be known as the "Coronavirus Pause Act." The bill states that the decision to be vaccinated is "a very personal and individual one" and prohibits business from requiring vaccination for employment or service. 

Experts are worried about the lack of new federal funding for covid issues and programs. Funds for testing and treating uninsured patients expired last week. Money for booster shots and treatments may be gone by the end of the month. Finally, widespread domestic testing could end by June. Meanwhile, it is not known if the current covid wave in Europe is due to relaxed precautions, waning immunity, or the transmissibility of the BA.2 variant. It may not matter in terms of any coming wave here. The vaccination rates in Europe are somewhat higher than here, and feature especially higher booster rates in older adults. It boils down to the fact that even endemic viruses need to be managed which requires funding. The US currently spends billions to keep assorted viruses even modestly monitored and covid will only add to that toll.

Finally, the war in Ukraine has the potential for a public health disaster even apart from the coronavirus. The country has very high numbers of people with HIV and hepatitis C in addition to low vaccination rates for measles and polio. Overcrowded and unsanitary conditions are also breeding grounds for diseases such as cholera, other diarrheal diseases, pneumonia, and tuberculosis. Add the coronavirus to all those, and the picture gets even murkier.