Vanity Fair report: COVID-19 national testing strategy was shelved for political reasons

[outside shooter]

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/202...s-secret-testing-plan-went-poof-into-thin-air

excerpts:
Kushner’s group called on the help of several top diagnostic-testing experts. Together, they worked around the clock, and through a forest of WhatsApp messages. The effort of the White House team was “apolitical,” said the participant, and undertaken “with the nation’s best interests in mind.”

Kushner’s team hammered out a detailed plan, which Vanity Fair obtained. It stated, “Current challenges that need to be resolved include uneven testing capacity and supplies throughout the US, both between and within regions, significant delays in reporting results (4-11 days), and national supply chain constraints, such as PPE, swabs, and certain testing reagents.”

The plan called for the federal government to coordinate distribution of test kits, so they could be surged to heavily affected areas, and oversee a national contact-tracing infrastructure. It also proposed lifting contract restrictions on where doctors and hospitals send tests, allowing any laboratory with capacity to test any sample. It proposed a massive scale-up of antibody testing to facilitate a return to work. It called for mandating that all COVID-19 test results from any kind of testing, taken anywhere, be reported to a national repository as well as to state and local health departments.

And it proposed establishing “a national Sentinel Surveillance System” with “real-time intelligence capabilities to understand leading indicators where hot spots are arising and where the risks are high vs. where people can get back to work.”

But the effort ran headlong into shifting sentiment at the White House....

...because the virus had hit blue states hardest, a national plan was unnecessary and would not make sense politically. “The political folks believed that because it was going to be relegated to Democratic states, that they could blame those governors, and that would be an effective political strategy”

...It soon became clear that ceding testing responsibility to the states was a recipe for disaster, not just in Democratic-governed areas but across the country.

...Despite the Rockefeller Foundation’s round-the-clock work to guide the U.S. to a nationwide testing system essential to reopening, the foundation has not yet been able to bend the most important curve of all: the Trump administration’s determined disinterest in big federal action.

 

[Ohio Guy]

As the article states, curbing the severity of the outbreak wouldn't have been terribly hard and even Jared Kushner and his laughable “A-team of people who get sh!t done” was able to create a sensible/workable plan that would would have put the US in line with most of the rest of the world in keeping it at bay.

Instead, Trump saw an opportunity to hammer Democrats/Democratic governors. This is disheartening, but not the least bit surprising.

If door number one was a sensible plan to deal with a national emergency and save countless lives and door number two was a way to smear Democrats and give him an opportunity to smirk and be smug on stage at one of his hillbilly rallies, Trump will be walking through door number two before you can even fully spell out all the pluses and minuses.

Though it'll never happen, I hope Jared turns on him and verifies this story.

 

[The Vid]

I assumed some version of this happened and obviously not surprising. Really sad, and the historical significance will get exponentially worse with time. Expect the GOP to start distancing themselves from the circus around Labor Day.

 

[ButHerEmails]

As the article states, curbing the severity of the outbreak wouldn't have been terribly hard and even Jared Kushner and his laughable “A-team of people who get sh!t done” was able to create a sensible/workable plan that would would have put the US in line with most of the rest of the world in keeping it at bay.

Instead, Trump saw an opportunity to hammer Democrats/Democratic governors. This is disheartening, but not the least bit surprising.

If door number one was a sensible plan to deal with a national emergency and save countless lives and door number two was a way to smear Democrats and give him an opportunity to smirk and be smug on stage at one of his hillbilly rallies, Trump will be walking through door number two before you can even fully spell out all the pluses and minuses.

Though it'll never happen, I hope Jared turns on him and verifies this story.

I’m curious about what jobs Trump’s children or Jared have ever had that wasn’t handed to them by a family member?

 

[StelioKantos]

I’m curious about what jobs Trump’s children or Jared have ever had that wasn’t handed to them by a family member?

jealousy

 

[outside shooter]

I’m curious about what jobs Trump’s children or Jared have ever had that wasn’t handed to them by a family member?

I bet that many of them were hall monitors in school.

 

[CO. Hoosier]

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/202...s-secret-testing-plan-went-poof-into-thin-air

excerpts:
Kushner’s group called on the help of several top diagnostic-testing experts. Together, they worked around the clock, and through a forest of WhatsApp messages. The effort of the White House team was “apolitical,” said the participant, and undertaken “with the nation’s best interests in mind.”

Kushner’s team hammered out a detailed plan, which Vanity Fair obtained. It stated, “Current challenges that need to be resolved include uneven testing capacity and supplies throughout the US, both between and within regions, significant delays in reporting results (4-11 days), and national supply chain constraints, such as PPE, swabs, and certain testing reagents.”

The plan called for the federal government to coordinate distribution of test kits, so they could be surged to heavily affected areas, and oversee a national contact-tracing infrastructure. It also proposed lifting contract restrictions on where doctors and hospitals send tests, allowing any laboratory with capacity to test any sample. It proposed a massive scale-up of antibody testing to facilitate a return to work. It called for mandating that all COVID-19 test results from any kind of testing, taken anywhere, be reported to a national repository as well as to state and local health departments.

And it proposed establishing “a national Sentinel Surveillance System” with “real-time intelligence capabilities to understand leading indicators where hot spots are arising and where the risks are high vs. where people can get back to work.”

But the effort ran headlong into shifting sentiment at the White House....

...because the virus had hit blue states hardest, a national plan was unnecessary and would not make sense politically. “The political folks believed that because it was going to be relegated to Democratic states, that they could blame those governors, and that would be an effective political strategy”

...It soon became clear that ceding testing responsibility to the states was a recipe for disaster, not just in Democratic-governed areas but across the country.

...Despite the Rockefeller Foundation’s round-the-clock work to guide the U.S. to a nationwide testing system essential to reopening, the foundation has not yet been able to bend the most important curve of all: the Trump administration’s determined disinterest in big federal action.

The subtext here is that people like Governors Cuomo, Whitmer, Wolf, Murphy, and Inslee, would have yeilded any authority to Trump. We know that was never going to happen. There was never going to be a national anything so long as Trump is POTUS.

Which of the problems did the federal authorities ignore? The article doesn't say. In fact I think the feds, and particularly ADM Brett P. Giroir, were heavily involved in solving the testing bottlenecks from the beginning.

 

[mcmurtry66]

The subtext here is that people like Governors Cuomo, Whitmer, Wolf, Murphy, and Inslee, would have yeilded any authority to Trump. We know that was never going to happen. There was never going to be a national anything so long as Trump is POTUS.

Which of the problems did the federal authorities ignore? The article doesn't say. In fact I think the feds, and particularly ADM Brett P. Giroir, were heavily involved in solving the testing bottlenecks from the beginning.

You could be spot on; but with the benefit of hindsight i think not having a national plan has proven to be a disaster. i think one, nation-wide, unified approach would have worked far better than this patchwork approach of states doing their own thing, which imo continues to contribute to our greater covid problems. and again maybe we'd have run into a bunch of states saying F off (federalism etc.) but who knows. as it stands we're an unmitigated disaster whose only hope is a vaccine.

i mean damn we are worse off than we were back in march/april. and the govt is just throwing crackers to the people in the form of $1,200 checks and bailouts to kick the can. so what i envision is biden winning, no vaccine in january, the virus raging, and a democrat led massive shutdown commencing in january through april. at that point we'll have lost a year. what a shit show.

 

[outside shooter]

Cuomo was literally BEGGING for federal oversight, logistics coordination, and assistance every single day for MONTHS.

Which of the problems did the federal authorities ignore?

All of these solutions to serious problems were soundly ignored for all of February. Most were ignored for March & April. Many are still being ignored today.

1) immediate support for long-term care facilities as priority 1.
2) increased supplies of tests
3) drastically increased production of needed materials & equipment to support testing
4) procurement and widespread distribution of tests and materials
5) widespread hiring of contact tracers
6) procurement of shelters for isolating carriers
7) communicating the seriousness of the threat, rather that wishfully asserting that it will magically disappear, and that it's really mostly a political ploy, anyway
8) procurement of all available N95 masks, with prioritization for health care workers, Companies making them offered more to the government, were turned down, and then exported them instead
9) Making mask wearing and social distancing a Federally-mandated health care policy under the emergency declaration.
10) Let top scientists talk to the people, listen to them, and don't contradict what they say based upon self-proclaimed stable genius status, apparently attained through being able to recognize and name a dog, an elephant, and a giraffe.

 

[CO. Hoosier]

Cuomo was literally BEGGING for federal oversight, logistics coordination, and assistance every single day for MONTHS.

Cuomo got everything he asked for; and most of it was never used. Additionally, asking Uncle Sam for money isn't the same thing as yeilding any authority to Trump.

As for the rest, there were significant problems with testing and PPE from the beginning. Those problems were systemic and were not ignored.

 

[CO. Hoosier]

You could be spot on; but with the benefit of hindsight i think not having a national plan has proven to be a disaster. i think one, nation-wide, unified approach would have worked far better than this patchwork approach of states doing their own thing, which imo continues to contribute to our greater covid problems. and again maybe we'd have run into a bunch of states saying F off (federalism etc.) but who knows. as it stands we're an unmitigated disaster whose only hope is a vaccine.

i mean damn we are worse off than we were back in march/april. and the govt is just throwing crackers to the people in the form of $1,200 checks and bailouts to kick the can. so what i envision is biden winning, no vaccine in january, the virus raging, and a democrat led massive shutdown commencing in january through april. at that point we'll have lost a year. what a shit show.

The problem is that a unified national approach would have had to been voluntarily agreed to. Even if the White House issued a national mask in public places order, each state would have had the full authority to overrule it or otherwise modify it.

This was the first time ever that there were 50 simultaneous state declarations of emergency. Our whole design of emergency response is for the feds to assist the state and local jurisdictions. This works well for weather events and other local calamities. The only federal alternative is some kind of marshal law. How well do you think that would have worked? Maybe we need federal emergency legislation. We don't have that. Frankly, I'd be very leery of that kind of federal authority.

 

[HillzHoozier]

You could be spot on; but with the benefit of hindsight i think not having a national plan has proven to be a disaster. i think one, nation-wide, unified approach would have worked far better than this patchwork approach of states doing their own thing, which imo continues to contribute to our greater covid problems. and again maybe we'd have run into a bunch of states saying F off (federalism etc.) but who knows. as it stands we're an unmitigated disaster whose only hope is a vaccine.

i mean damn we are worse off than we were back in march/april. and the govt is just throwing crackers to the people in the form of $1,200 checks and bailouts to kick the can. so what i envision is biden winning, no vaccine in january, the virus raging, and a democrat led massive shutdown commencing in january through april. at that point we'll have lost a year. what a shit show.

Isn't Fauci the leader everyone follows? Where is his national strategy? He said many times that local officials had better ability to handle their own issues.

I think Trump has a horrible demeanor and attitude about the covid outbreak, but seems like a lot of people (especially in the WC) are champing at the bit to do exactly the opposite of anything Trump says. If Trump loses in Nov, by January Biden and the rest of us will be on HCQ and Zinc, saddled with 5 trillion in debt our grandkids kids could never pay.

 

[UncleMark]

Cuomo was literally BEGGING for federal oversight, logistics coordination, and assistance every single day for MONTHS.

Don't confuse him with facts. He'd going to blame the Dem governors. That's what the playbook says.

 

[The Vid]

The subtext here is that people like Governors Cuomo, Whitmer, Wolf, Murphy, and Inslee, would have yeilded any authority to Trump. We know that was never going to happen. There was never going to be a national anything so long as Trump is POTUS.

Which of the problems did the federal authorities ignore? The article doesn't say. In fact I think the feds, and particularly ADM Brett P. Giroir, were heavily involved in solving the testing bottlenecks from the beginning.

More diversion, finger pointing, meaningless hypotheticals and trash from you. Not surprising

 

[hoot1]

Our federalism and our democracy have a great deal going for them.

However in dealing with a national pandemic during a presidential election year some problems appeared in our federalist/democratic system of governing.

It is only natural governors and a president will not always agree. The election year only adds to this conflict. This is especially true when they are from different parties.

 

[Thyrsis]

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/202...s-secret-testing-plan-went-poof-into-thin-air

excerpts:
Kushner’s group called on the help of several top diagnostic-testing experts. Together, they worked around the clock, and through a forest of WhatsApp messages. The effort of the White House team was “apolitical,” said the participant, and undertaken “with the nation’s best interests in mind.”

Kushner’s team hammered out a detailed plan, which Vanity Fair obtained. It stated, “Current challenges that need to be resolved include uneven testing capacity and supplies throughout the US, both between and within regions, significant delays in reporting results (4-11 days), and national supply chain constraints, such as PPE, swabs, and certain testing reagents.”

The plan called for the federal government to coordinate distribution of test kits, so they could be surged to heavily affected areas, and oversee a national contact-tracing infrastructure. It also proposed lifting contract restrictions on where doctors and hospitals send tests, allowing any laboratory with capacity to test any sample. It proposed a massive scale-up of antibody testing to facilitate a return to work. It called for mandating that all COVID-19 test results from any kind of testing, taken anywhere, be reported to a national repository as well as to state and local health departments.

And it proposed establishing “a national Sentinel Surveillance System” with “real-time intelligence capabilities to understand leading indicators where hot spots are arising and where the risks are high vs. where people can get back to work.”

But the effort ran headlong into shifting sentiment at the White House....

...because the virus had hit blue states hardest, a national plan was unnecessary and would not make sense politically. “The political folks believed that because it was going to be relegated to Democratic states, that they could blame those governors, and that would be an effective political strategy”

...It soon became clear that ceding testing responsibility to the states was a recipe for disaster, not just in Democratic-governed areas but across the country.

...Despite the Rockefeller Foundation’s round-the-clock work to guide the U.S. to a nationwide testing system essential to reopening, the foundation has not yet been able to bend the most important curve of all: the Trump administration’s determined disinterest in big federal action.

Unsurprising, but still disheartening.

Once again, this comment has no bearing on actual ideology, political position on the spectrum, etc., but the Republicans are divorced from an ideological position on governance. They simply no longer believe in it. That's surely why there are so many never Trumpers and former Republicans speaking out. The Republican Party is now the party of anti-governance, holding power just for the sake of power and the money that brings. There's no sense of greater good or founding ideals or functioning republic. It's just a bad faith spoils game. And the guys that tipped it over the edge (even before Trump) have largely been a bunch of incompetents. So sad, strange and horrific.

 

[Ohio Guy]

The problem is that a unified national approach would have had to been voluntarily agreed to. Even if the White House issued a national mask in public places order, each state would have had the full authority to overrule it or otherwise modify it.

This was the first time ever that there were 50 simultaneous state declarations of emergency. Our whole design of emergency response is for the feds to assist the state and local jurisdictions. This works well for weather events and other local calamities. The only federal alternative is some kind of marshal law. How well do you think that would have worked? Maybe we need federal emergency legislation. We don't have that. Frankly, I'd be very leery of that kind of federal authority.

That's not a problem at all. All 50 states would have happily jumped on board with a sensible federal/national approach. The problem was the current administration sat with their fingers up their asses while denying that COVID was going to be a big deal. As evinced by the OP, they continued to treat it as no big deal until they realized it impacted places not governed by Democratic governors and mayors.

 

[TommyCracker]

This is the kind of behavior that Bernie warned and nailed when discussing the danger with letting him off with Ukraine.

When does a man like Trump who obviously is vindictive as hell start to force states to bow in alligence for disaster relief?

When does he hold back and say 'alright Newsome, I know you just suffered a massive earthquake ten times worse than 1989, but you've said mean things about me and in my view are the enemy. I'm holding back disaster aid until after the govt election' or whatnot.

I would be more shocked if an article came out that he legitimately wanted to have non partisan action compared to one that claims he made even a national health pandemic transactional.

 

[Ohio Guy]

This is the kind of behavior that Bernie warned and nailed when discussing the danger with letting him off with Ukraine.

When does a man like Trump who obviously is vindictive as hell start to force states to bow in alligence for disaster relief?

When does he hold back and say 'alright Newsome, I know you just suffered a massive earthquake ten times worse than 1989, but you've said mean things about me and in my view are the enemy. I'm holding back disaster aid until after the govt election' or whatnot.

I would be more shocked if an article came out that he legitimately wanted to have non partisan action compared to one that claims he made even a national health pandemic transactional.

You only have to look at his initial reaction/response to providing relief to Puerto Rico last year. Whether he realized Puerto Rico is actually a part of the United States can be debated, but given that he didn't like their governor and the mayor of San Juan and he didn't see how he or his businesses could benefit from a rebuilt Puerto Rico, he didn't give two craps about them.

There is zero doubt that he'd hold federal aid over Gavin Newsome's head for as long as he could in the scenario you proposed. Even when he'd relent, he'd say something about being treated very badly, but he likes the people of California...or something like that.

 

[UncleMark]

There is zero doubt that he'd hold federal aid over Gavin Newsome's head for as long as he could in the scenario you proposed. Even when he'd relent, he'd say something about being treated very badly, but he likes the people of California...or something like that.

Didn't he actually do that with Whitmer when she asked for help when that dam broke up there?

[edit to add] Yes, he did:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...nding-Michigan-braces-devastating-floods.html

 

[glmiu11]

Didn't he actually do that with Whitmer when she asked for help when that dam broke up there?

[edit to add] Yes, he did:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...nding-Michigan-braces-devastating-floods.html

Another poster summed it up pretty well. He’s a POS.

 

[Harry Hondo]

This is the kind of behavior that Bernie warned and nailed when discussing the danger with letting him off with Ukraine.

When does a man like Trump who obviously is vindictive as hell start to force states to bow in alligence for disaster relief?

When does he hold back and say 'alright Newsome, I know you just suffered a massive earthquake ten times worse than 1989, but you've said mean things about me and in my view are the enemy. I'm holding back disaster aid until after the govt election' or whatnot.

I would be more shocked if an article came out that he legitimately wanted to have non partisan action compared to one that claims he made even a national health pandemic transactional.

Exactly. We could have the best possible national plan and because of Trump's paranoia and vindictive nature it would've gone awry quickly.

And I'll remind everyone that America was supposed to be one of the best equipped to handle a pandemic, due to our vast wealth and world-class medical doctors and facilities.

 

[Cream&Crimson]

But the effort ran headlong into shifting sentiment at the White House....

...because the virus had hit blue states hardest, a national plan was unnecessary and would not make sense politically. “The political folks believed that because it was going to be relegated to Democratic states, that they could blame those governors, and that would be an effective political strategy”

IF the veracity of this can be proven, then those "political folks" have the blood of tens of thousands of Americans personally on their hands. And if Trump was privy to and personally signed off on that political decision, he should immediately be impeached.

 

[Cream&Crimson]

Cuomo got everything he asked for; and most of it was never used.

He most certainly did not. Stop lying.

 

[IUINSB]

Another poster summed it up pretty well. He’s a POS.

IF this is true, POS would be the ceiling. And that's assuming P stands for pile rather than piece.

 

[sglowrider]

 

[82hoosier]

I bet that many of them were hall monitors in school.

None of those people ever saw a day of public school. So you can forget about any of them ever having a menial job. My understanding is that Don Jr set out on his own after college to get a job as a bartender in Colorado before going to work at Daddy's company.

 

[Courtsensetwo]

More diversion, finger pointing, meaningless hypotheticals and trash from you. Not surprising

Classic Projection on your part.

 

[sglowrider]

Is he that stupid or he thinks his supporters are that stupid? (more testing, bigger numbers)

4% of the world's population but 26% of the global COVID numbers.

Hmmm...

 

[82hoosier]

View embedded media

View embedded media

Wow! I would say this is unbelievable but unfortunately it is very believable. Jared Kushner teaming up with his college roommate! This should be front page news.

 

[TommyCracker]

View embedded media

Is he that stupid or he thinks his supporters are that stupid? (more testing, bigger numbers)

4% of the world's population but 26% of the global COVID numbers.

Hmmm...

He knows they are.

 

[Noodle]

I’m curious about what jobs Trump’s children or Jared have ever had that wasn’t handed to them by a family member?

Jared is no idiot. Far from it. But he’s a pussy.

 

[sglowrider]

Wow! I would say this is unbelievable but unfortunately it is very believable. Jared Kushner teaming up with his college roommate! This should be front page news.

 

[Spartans9312]

We have increased testing from a few thousand a week in early March to 2 million tests per week by late July.
From Time: "In many states, it now takes 10-15 days to get test results-rendering these tests useless as a tool to prevent transmission and bring the pandemic under control". (Most of the folks I know that have been tested have gotten results in 2-4 days).
From Healthline: A big part of the problem is that most asymptomatic, pre-symptomatic, and mildly afflicted people don't know that they are infected as they spread the virus to others while working, shopping, and gathering in enclosed spaces like bars and restaurants.
From medrxiv: Researchers believe that people are at their most infectious about two days before they experience any symptoms of the disease.

 

[Spartans9312]

You only have to look at his initial reaction/response to providing relief to Puerto Rico last year. Whether he realized Puerto Rico is actually a part of the United States can be debated, but given that he didn't like their governor and the mayor of San Juan and he didn't see how he or his businesses could benefit from a rebuilt Puerto Rico, he didn't give two craps about them.

There is zero doubt that he'd hold federal aid over Gavin Newsome's head for as long as he could in the scenario you proposed. Even when he'd relent, he'd say something about being treated very badly, but he likes the people of California...or something like that.

 

[hoot1]

I’m curious about what jobs Trump’s children or Jared have ever had that wasn’t handed to them by a family member?

As an avid Celebrity Apprentice watcher I found Trump's daughter and sons to be really impressive. They carried the show except for the final boardroom appearance by DJT.

They more than held their own in making the show competitive except of course for Dancing With The Stars which appeared in the opposite time slot and out drew CA big time.

 

[Ohio Guy]

View embedded media

So because their governor was corrupt we should withhold emergency assistance to American citizens? Come on man. This is just silly.