Posting a link here to the 94% comorbidities story, because I dream of a future in which a reader might say “What? What 94% thing?” in a distant-history kind of way, and not in a distracted-by-even-worse-news-tomorrow way. Still not gonna link to any of the very stable geniuses insisting that means only 6% of covid deaths are from covid.
First, even if that 6% of covid deaths thing really was what’s being implied, that 94% of deaths were among very sick and very old people, what an absolutely garbage take. If a disease actually killed only the elderly, in the tens of thousands, it would still be a pandemic, and we should all be wearing masks and staying home and everything to protect other people! What a garbage take, to act like those deaths are just fine because elders and chronically sick people don’t matter.
But, nope, that’s not even accurate. Those other conditions are things like diabetes, hypertension, also catching the flu.
For some reason we Americans act like diabetes, obesity and general poor nutrition are personal failings, and not really obvious side effects of poverty. The same with lung cancer, while many kinds of low-wage work involve long, difficult working hours with short smoke breaks. Yes, obviously we should take care of our health, but it’s deliberately obtuse to act like it’s equally difficult for everyone, and as a country, we’re not going to have solid solution to healthcare as long as we act like the only people worthy of healthcare are those in peak physical health who broke an arm skiing.
Also, “preexisting condition” is a made-up category so insurance companies can avoid paying for care.
Anyway, if being overweight is such a tragic and debilitating health condition that it would cancel out covid deaths, I want to be able to call in sick from work for it. Sorry, boss, still chubby, can’t come in today either.
