Conservative Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin lambasted the White House for not only being unprepared for a pandemic but for now being unprepared for the aftermath.
"We have become so accustomed to impulsive, irrational White House pronouncements that it is sometimes hard to remember how every modern administration up to President Trump has operated when a new problem comes along," wrote Rubin. "Identify the problem. Craft reasonable plans. Put someone in charge to implement them."
She cited a plan outlined by the conservative Independent group ThirdWay run by former Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT).
Like nearly everyone commenting on the coronavirus crisis, they advocate testing being the most important piece of the puzzle in helping keep people safe. While social distancing is working, many people who are asymptomatic don't realize they have the virus and are spreading it. About 0.5 to 1 percent of Americans have been tested thus far, which is over 1 million out of about 330 million Americans.
"The FDA would need to assemble, manufacture and distribute millions of portable test kits," wrote Rubin. If people then upload their results, it could enhance "contact tracing and allowing individuals to provide proof of immunity, determined by the presence of antibodies."
"The necessity of a full-blown, nationwide testing program is a mandatory requirement before we can return to 'normal,'" she said. "We can only reintroduce people into the workplace and society at large if we know they test negative or have antibodies that will protect them if they are exposed. Trump seems to think simply declaring the reopening of the sports season is sufficient. What he cannot grasp is that no team will take the field and no crowd will come watch so long as we do not know who has the virus."
The next step is the vaccine, which should come in a year. But Rubin doesn't want the White House anywhere near distributing the vaccine or having a program to ensure access to it.
"Judging from the administration’s current inept performance, we would do well to rely on Congress and the private sector, not the administration, to make sure politics does not influence the fair and speedy vaccination of hundreds of millions of Americans," she explained.
Third, she explained that all Americans must be given coverage and treatment. Finally, the plan would focus on healthcare workers to be taken care of in terms of health and safety, but also an effort to begin further developing the healthcare workforce for future pandemics.
"Unlike the Trump administration, this recognizes that the need to bulk up our health-care system will not end after the initial wave of cases. We need to be prepared for subsequent waves, for the treatment and vaccination stage and for future pandemics," she explained.
"None of this is rocket science, but it does remind us that the administration that failed to plan properly to meet the onslaught now lacks a plan to bring us out of it," Rubin closed. "As mind-boggling as it may seem, we have yet to see a coherent and comprehensive plan for testing, treatment, vaccination and maintenance of a more robust health-care system. In short, in place of a functional administration, we will need a proactive Congress. Ultimately, the only real solution is a new president."
