OPINION:
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in recent televised press conference that the majority of COVID-19 hospitalizations in the state came from the stay-at-home set, not the out-and-about set — meaning, once again, the government’s projections, predictions, forecasts and conclusions on the coronavirus were, gasp, wrong.
Meaning: Lockdown orders from governors should be rescinded.
Meaning: It’s time for Americans to get into the fresh air and resume business as normal.
Here’s the data — and for once, it’s shaping to be actual COVID-19 data, not the fake and flimsy and best-guess kind that comes from computer modeling: Fully 66% of new COVID-19 admissions at 100 New York hospitals in recent times came from those who had been sheltering from the coronavirus storm in their homes. Another 18% of COVID-19 patients admitted to these hospitals came from nursing homes — where the elderly reside. Where the recognized most vulnerable populations reside. Where the people most likely to get sick and suffer complications from viruses and possibly die reside.
Cuomo called the findings “shocking.”
But they’re really not.
Just ask any mother — you know, the ones who incessantly tell children to go outside and get some fresh air because it’s good for them? That’s not just a mother’s way of snagging some free time; it’s also sound parenting based on long-standing medical awareness of the need for individuals to be exposed to the elements, including viruses, in order to build up immunities and stay strong. Anyone who’s opened a window to air out a sick person’s room knows this, as well.
So now come some figures to show that, hey now, sheltering in home isn’t exactly the all-protective-shield from COVID-19 that politicians have been pitching and promising. (And, in some cases, using to full partisan advantage.)
Not a shock.
Not by a long shot.
What’s more shocking is a political leader finally acknowledging that truth in public.
“If you notice,” Cuomo said, CNBC reported, “18% of the [COVID-19 hospital admissions] people came from nursing homes, less than 1% came from jail or prison, 2% came from the homeless population, 2% came from congregate facilities, but 66% of the people were at home, which is shocking to us.”
He went on: “This is a surprise. Overwhelmingly, the people were at home. We thought maybe they were taking public transportation, and we’ve taken special precautions on public transportation, but actually, no, because these people were literally at home.”
And get this, of that 84% — of the combined percentages of nursing home patients and stay-at-home patients who made up the total hospital admissions for the coronavirus in New York — most were, ba da dum dum, drumroll please, elderly.
Most were over the age of 51. Most were in their senior years. Most — 73% — were, by nature, considered the vulnerable population. No doubt, many if not most had accompanying medical conditions, too. But for this, everyone had to suffer?
For that, America came to an abrupt, devastating, destructive, damaging standstill.
For that, business owners have lost their businesses; Americans have lost their constitutional rights.
It’s not enough to just hold a press conference and announce these findings.
The data makes clear what the clear-thinking have been thinking for weeks: time to get back to a normal America. And not a “new normal” of nanny government, or executive overreach, or police state-like surveillance, either.
The old normal, the one where individual freedoms reign, worked just fine.
• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley. Listen to her podcast “Bold and Blunt” by clicking HERE. And never miss her column; subscribe to her newsletter by clicking HERE.
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