To the Editor:
It’s unacceptable that the U.S. might have 80,000 to 200,000 CoronaVirus-caused-deaths! It’s also unacceptable to have 20 million infected Americans, four million suffering with serious symptoms, and almost one million hospitalized. Nevertheless, these are Dr. Fauci’s and Dr. Birx’s projections with the current level of mitigation.
Obviously that mitigation level is inadequate! We Must Do Better!
Americans want to protect ourselves, our families, co-workers, neighbors, doctors, nurses, other healthcare workers, and others.
We need to know how to better protect everyone, and we need frequent reminders to change lifelong habits.
The primary exposure is breathing droplets containing the CoronaVirus into our lungs. (Droplets are primarily created by sneezing, coughing, and speaking.) Droplets can hang in the air for three hours or more. To keep these droplets out of our lungs we must wear facemasks! If you don’t have a facemask, make your own, perhaps make some for others.
Wear a facemask if you’re sick, when indoors unless at home, and when outdoors unless you maintain the recommended at least 6 feet separation from others. The use of facemasks must be added to the President’s Guidelines.
Every U.S. newspaper should highlight the President’s key guidelines plus use of a facemask on the first page of every issue until this virus has been conquered. The full guidelines should be printed inside.
Every radio and TV station should repeat the key President’s Guidelines plus use of a facemask, and identify coronavirus.gov for details in their news reports, or more frequently.
Stores should require their workers to wear facemasks, ask customers to wear facemasks, and perhaps provide paper towels for customer in-store use as facemasks. Things can be done to better protect people during checkout. (Some stores have begun, thank you!)
Faithful following of the President’s Guidelines plus facemask use will save lives! Wash your hands frequently, avoid touching your face, fully cover sneezes and coughs to reduce the spread of droplets, disinfect frequently used items and surfaces, keep at least a six foot physical distancing, and use a facemask especially when indoors except at home. See coronavirus.gov for details.
We are Americans. We defeated the Nazis, the USSR, and sent men to the moon. We can do great mitigation. If everyone (i.e., media, stores, and individuals) does their part, their hard work and sacrifice will be rewarded by saving many thousands of lives, perhaps including the lives of their own loved ones.
Don Ewing
Meredith, N.H.
Don:
Good to see that you seem to actually care about your fellow Homo sapiens. We feel for you, trying to pass along good advice while #45 is elbowing Dr. Fauci aside so he can spew nonsense.
The Editor