Last week I conjectured that the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) obfuscated when they recently recommended that vaccinated individuals resume indoor masking under certain circumstances. My speculation was that the policy was justified but that the CDC was not forthcoming in explaining the rationale for the policy revision.
The revised re-masking recommendation, as with every other
aspect in this pandemic, has only further polarized a nation that seems to be
trying very hard not to heal itself literally and politically. I predict that our collective political
affliction will long outlast the coronavirus plague.
I routinely ask patients if they have received the COVID-19
vaccine. Recently, a patient replied
that has not received one. I asked what
his concerns were and he firmly responded that he would never get vaccinated
against the coronavirus. Not much space
for dialogue here.
The CDC and public health experts admit that masks are not
the antidote. The shortest and surest
pathway to the other side is for the unvaccinated to vax up. The government
hasn’t yet figured out a strategy of how to get this done.
Here are 3 options.
Educate the public so they will voluntarily accept the
vaccine to protect themselves and rest of us. Highlight the rather incredible
safety and efficacy statistics. Begging,
pleading and downright bribing may be incorporated into this policy. This
has been our current policy which thus far has failed rather spectacularly.
Mandate vaccinations for every eligible person, either
immediately or when official Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for
the vaccines is granted, which is anticipated in the near term. While you might be tempted to choose this
option with zeal and enthusiasm, you may wish to consider what may follow the vaccination
edict. One of the pandemic’s lessons is
that Americans, unlike many other countries, are individualists who are not swayed
by serving the greater good. A mandate
would fuel protests and refusals to succumb to governmental tyranny. Politicians and candidates would pander to
this aggrieved group which might serve to elect and re-elect anti-vaxxer
officials. The nation might end up being
further divided and not much closer to herd immunity.
Discomfit the unvaccinated sufficiently such that the
voluntarily accept the vaccine. If concert
venues, airlines, restaurants, public transportation, hotels, employers and
retail establishments increasing required proof of vaccination for entry, it
might serve to induce vaccination compliance.
What have I left out here? What
would you suggest? Give it a shot.
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