by streiff
As weâve noted from the very beginning of this pandemic, the measures taken by the federal government and some state governments have nothing to do with public health and everything to do with curtailing civil liberties using the Wuhan virus as a stalking horse. To date, there is scant evidence that lockdowns do anything beyond trashing the economy. There are no systematic trials of the efficacy of âsocial distancing,â or why 6 feet is superior to 3 feet. We donât know why the virus will attack people late at night, at liquor stores, or while walking through restaurants but not while eating. No one knows why and how unvaccinated people can infect vaccinated people if the vaccine is effective. The best mask study shows masks, paper and surgical, marginal best-case efficacy in reducing infection (paper masks could, within the studyâs confidence interval, actually increase infection) and no effect upon hospitalization. There has been a rush by pharmaceutical giants with battalions of lobbyists to produce a vaccine, and now booster and boosters of boosters of boosters might be necessary.
Moderna says COVID-19 vaccine protection wanes, makes case for booster https://t.co/BwKuvURLTJ pic.twitter.com/kumtsd3JCl
— Reuters (@Reuters) September 15, 2021
If you arenât prepared to accept weekly booster shots of ever-more experimental vaccines against a virus that targets the old and infirm, you shouldnât be allowed to work, rent housing, fly, attend church or own a bank account. Got it, pleb? pic.twitter.com/JFhriC6uSz
— Sohrab Ahmari (@SohrabAhmari) September 16, 2021
What is notable about this effort so far is that no effort is being devoted, as least so far as one can find, to developing therapeutics to help reduce the impact on hospitals. Instead, whenever anything is proposed to alleviate the symptoms of the Wuhan virus and speed recovery, the medical establishment and the public health âcommunityâ react to it very much like a vampire reacts to a crucifix and holy water. This has gone so far as state regulatory agencies forbidding pharmacies to fill prescriptions for ivermectin issued by physicians.
One area that has shown significant promise is the use of monoclonal antibody drugs like REGEN-COV made by Regeneron.
Four states, Florida, Texas, Mississippi, and Alabama use about half of the production of this drug mostly because the state governments have publicized its effects and made treatment widely available. For example, Florida has 25 free REGEN-COV sites.
One would think that having a therapeutic, that was proven safe and effective in reducing hospital stays or allowing outpatient treatment would be a good thing. One would think that a governor promoting such a treatment, and providing it for free, would be celebrated. But that would mean you wanted to actually mitigate the effects of the Wuhan virus and save lives and not try to sow panic to increase the power of government.
The Biden administration is imposing new limits on statesâ ability to access to Covid-19 antibody treatments amid rising demand from GOP governors who have relied on the drug as a primary weapon against the virus.
Federal health officials plan to allocate specific amounts to each state under the new approach, in an effort to more evenly distribute the 150,000 doses that the government makes available each week.
The approach is likely to cut into shipments to GOP-led states in the Southeast that have made the pricey antibody drug a central part of their pandemic strategy, while simultaneously spurning mask mandates and other restrictions. That threatens to heighten tensions between the Biden administration and governors like Floridaâs Ron DeSantis, who have emerged as vocal opponents of the federal Covid-19 response.
President Joe Biden has sharply criticized DeSantis and others for resisting efforts to encourage mask wearing and ramp up vaccinations, vowing in a speech last week that if âgovernors wonât help us beat the pandemic, Iâll use my power as president to get them out of the way.â
Thatâs right. Biden has intervened to restrict shipments of a drug that few other states are using, and perhaps none as aggressively as Florida, simply to punish high-use states for not kowtowing to Bidenâs personal commands.
Just a week ago, on September 9, Biden promised to increase the shipment of REGEN-COV by 50% and to provide it to states without charge.
Behind the scenes, HHS had assured Floridaâs Department of Health that no changes were coming to Floridaâs allocation. Then the hammer came down. This is the timeline as provided to American Commitmentâs Phil Kerpen by Florida:
August 29: The state was informed that if we agreed to switch to the âdose packâ distribution Florida could receive 25,000 dose packs (50,000 doses) weekly for 3 weeks, through September 19. FDOH agreed to receive the dose packs and vendors accepted delivery the following week. To date, Florida has yet to receive 50,000 doses per week.
September 3: HHS released the update on the mAb ordering process indicating that orders would be reviewed to ensure 70% utilization rates. All state sites in Florida meet that threshold. Therefore, had no reason to believe that our stateâs supply would be cut, and no indication of that from HHS.
September 9 â President Biden announced his Path Out of the Pandemic: six-pronged, comprehensive national strategy to combat COVID-19.
âThe Administration will increasethe average weekly pace of shipments of free monoclonal antibody treatment to states by a further 50% in September, continuing to accelerate the federal governmentâs efforts to deliver lifesaving COVID-19 treatment.â
September 13: HHS announces theyâre taking complete control and doing weekly distributions for all states and territories
September 13 PM: FDOH communicated to HHS the weekly need for just the 25 state-run sites of about 36,000 doses. When HHS mentioned the state receiving the order for all state sites and distributing, FDOH specifically asked if such a shift would apply to all facilities in the state providing treatment. HHS stated this was not the case and did not provide any indication of any upcoming limitation to supply, just that they were monitoring more closely.
September 14: HHS sent an email to all stakeholders nationwide indicating that a shift to an allocation strategy had occurred on September 13. HHS informed that Floridaâs allocation for the week of September 13 would be 3,100 doses of BAM/ETE and 27,850 doses of REGN-COV. Clearly contradicting recent and previous guidance from HHS, this was the first and only indication that Florida would receive a decreased supply and would be responsible for allocating among all facilities.
Just like that, Florida loses some 6,000 daily doses from its previous usage.
Now hospitalization rates are down 50% in Florida, thanks to @GovRonDeSantis promoting & expanding access to monoclonals, but Alabama is getting hit harder. They do not have ANY state supported sites like we do. And theyâd planned to open some to relieve burden on hospitals!
— Christina Pushaw (@ChristinaPushaw) September 16, 2021
There is literally no problem with âequityâ because Regeneron says it can produce enough drugs to cover the demand.
HHS has seized control of distribution of monoclonal antibodies and is restricting supply into southern states, despite ramped up production by Regeneron and GSK and Fauci himself sayin they are *under*utilized. GSK's is not even federally purchased but HHS is limiting shipments. https://t.co/Drp8pDyPXn
— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) September 15, 2021
Not only has HHS taken control but they have thrashed Floridaâs distribution system. The state was only acquiring drugs for the 25 state-managed sites. Hospitals and clinics bought their own. Now HHS demands that the state health department ration doses to all providers, cutting them off from their suppliers, while, at the same time cutting the state-wide allocation.
It is impossible to interpret this move as anything but what it is. It is a brutal and shameless exercise at mass punishment, including capital punishment, of citizens of states governed by people opposed to Joey SoftServeâs policies. The 72,000 weekly doses Florida (they are now getting 30,950) needs have been shorted will result in thousands of unnecessary hospitalizations and hundreds of deliberately caused deaths. The only purpose is to try to damage Governor DeSantis politically and to prolong the Wuhan panic. This is not government. This is the worst sort of totalitarian oppression. As Iâve said for years, the left is literally willing to kill you to prove a point.
3 weeks ago, the BlueAnon community, Democrat politicians, and mainstream media (but I repeat myself) were spreading disinformation that Regeneron is a scam thatâs being pushed in Florida to enrich a GOP donorâs hedge fund.
NOW theyâre mad itâs saving too many Floridians? ?
— Christina Pushaw (@ChristinaPushaw) September 16, 2021
Biden wants Red Voters to die. https://t.co/7oPHyePkiX
— Rick Shaftan (@Shaftan) September 16, 2021