"But the pandemic isn't over, not by a long chalk. There are far too many vaccine-resistant individuals in the U.S. let alone the rest of the world for us to think we're aren't at continued risk, even those of us who are vaccinated. Every unvaccinated person at this point is an incubator for another variant which may succeed in evading our current vaccines."
"Trump as well as Trump minions and supporters may have perceived the disease as one of blue states due to the early, deep impact on locations like New York City and Detroit. Trump's familial henchman Jared Kushner didn't want COVID aid to go to blue states because it was against Trump's political interests (read: helping states with more minority voters)."
Vaccination has substantially reduced COVID-19's immediate impact but the pandemic is not over and risk persists. Large numbers of vaccine-resistant individuals in the U.S. and globally create ongoing opportunities for variant emergence that could evade current vaccines. Remaining unvaccinated people act as incubators for new variants. Public health messaging urges everyone to receive recommended vaccine doses. Political dynamics, misinformation, and right-wing amplification of anti-vaccine propaganda have increased vaccine refusal and contributed to preventable illness and death. Policy choices during the Trump administration influenced perceptions and aid distribution, and partisan beliefs about COVID-19's geography have affected mask and vaccine uptake.
Read at Emptywheel
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