The Commonwealth Fund and the Yale School of Public Health have released a report by researchers that indicates President Biden's accelerated COVID-19 vaccination program has saved thousands of lives and reduced hospitalizations dramatically. Highlights from the study:
- Without a vaccination program, by the end of June 2021 there would have been approximately 279,000 additional deaths and up to 1.25 million additional hospitalizations.
- If the U.S. had achieved only half the actual pace of vaccination, there would have been nearly 121,000 additional deaths and more than 450,000 additional hospitalizations.
- If there had been no vaccination program, daily deaths from COVID-19 potentially would have jumped to nearly 4,500 deaths per day during a second “2021 spring surge” — eclipsing the observed daily peak of 4,000 during the first 2021 winter surge. (our emphasis)
Near the end of the Trump regime, there was little motivation to boost vaccine production and vaccinations, with the attention focused on trying to overturn the 2020 election and Trump's golf game. Leading up to the election, he continually downplayed the breadth and seriousness of the pandemic to his cult followers, mocking mask wearing and pushing quack cures. We're seeing the results of that anti-science campaign in areas that voted overwhelmingly for Trump. In contrast, the Biden Administration invoked the Defense Production Act to increase vaccine supplies particularly the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
The report concludes with this:
"The swift early rollout of the vaccine program, which ramped up during February and March and exceeded 3.3 million doses administered per day in April 2021, played a critical role in curtailing the pandemic.
Our results demonstrate the extraordinary impact of rapidly vaccinating a large share of the population to prevent hospitalizations and deaths."
A competent, Democratic administration focused on saving lives, not downplaying the pandemic for political gain. What a concept.
