[ExI] brits on covid

[Stuart LaForge]

Quoting spike jones via extropy-chat <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org>:

> The Lancet has produced a study comparing covid results as a function of
> state:
> https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)00461-0/f
> ulltext
>> This is one I have long been looking for.  I trust the Brits with this sorta
> thing because they have no political dog in the fight and the Lancet is
> careful about what it publishes.
> In the map below, they corrected for age demographics, as this is a
> well-known factor, the dominant factor in the outcome of covid cases.
> Do feel free to comment, but one of the things I find striking is that the
> states with high infection rates are not necessarily the ones with the high
> death rates.  I have people I care about the most on a personal level in
> California, Florida, Washington, Kentucky and West Virginia, in that order.
> For reasons I cannot even theorize adequately, California did pretty well in
> infection rate but poorly in death rate.  Florida was the opposite.
> The two states which had few if any restrictions are South Dakota and
> Florida.  Both did poorly in infection rates but better than average in
> survival rates.  The states with the most restrictions (most severe
> lockdowns, longest school closures, most sincere mask mandates etc) are
> California and New York.  The results of all that just puzzle me.

It makes sense to me, but it wasn't a single reason. States that  
imposed lockdowns only allowed "essential workers" to operate, but  
essential workers were self-selected to be mostly low-wage retail and  
service sector employees. High-level service employees and technicians  
like pharmacists, who could afford not to work, didn't and it became  
harder to get prescriptions filled. Medical services were so hobbled  
by fear and safety precautions that people who had health issues other  
than COVID had to wait months for appointments and were less-inclined  
to leave the home even for medical issues. With shopping malls closed  
elderly with mobility issues like those with walkers had fewer large  
indoor climate-controlled venues to get their morning exercise in.  
Lack of visiting and social outlets caused many people to become  
lonely, depressed, and turn to alcohol and drugs.

The list could go on for much longer, but all are just the unintended  
consequences of lockdowns. Which just goes to show that lockdowns  
should be reserved for infections with high transmissibility AND  
pathogenicity. Sometimes the cure can be worse than the disease.

Stuart LaForge