We need more than words
Friday, Apr 17, 2020 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This graph from Hannah Meisel’s story this morning says a lot about the state’s lack of testing progress…
The national average for testing is 10,417 per million people. Illinois’ is 9,561 per million. Gov. Pritzker has said time and time again that the state needs to be testing at least 10,000 people a day, but the state has never really come close to that.
Gov. Pritzker announced a breakthrough with testing several days ago, only to walk it back, claiming that a Thermo Fisher testing machine did not work as advertised. Last week, he announced increased testing for African-Americans and other vulnerable populations, but those tests were not done because the local health centers haven’t been given the supplies and Lurie Children’s Hospital, which was supposed to test the swabs, hadn’t yet set up testing protocols.
* Rep. La Shawn Ford (D-Chicago) was incensed…
Ford said the governor’s broken promise on providing testing isn’t just troubling, it’s personal. The Democratic state representative said he knows at least 15 African Americans who have died from COVID-19. They were healthy or had only minor health troubles, Ford said.
“But they weren’t going to die if it wasn’t for coronavirus. And one of the reasons they died is because they were not tested,” Ford continued. “I’m seeing long lines for drive-up testing in other areas and none here in Austin. This is an indication of how the black community at large — and not just over the coronavirus — are treated by government.” […]
“Life expectancy in Austin is 20 to 25 years less than it is nine miles to the east, downtown. Black people are already dying. Now, if you have an underlying condition and you get COVID-19, we don’t know if you have a life expectancy,” Ford said.
“How can the governor say we’re bending the curve when they’re not testing an entire segment of the population? It’s false narrative. [Pritzker] has got to step up and make sure that he’s taking care of people on the West Side and the black community at large.”
* Yesterday, the governor told reporters that the Thermo Fisher testing machine issues had been fixed. Back to Hannah’s story…
Though some reporting had suggested the machines and testing supplies had still not been delivered to health centers six days after the governor initially made that announcement, Ezike on Thursday said if any testing site didn’t have supplies “it must be en route or on its way or coming today.”
“We definitely are trying to make that available immediately so that we can get the testing up,” Ezike said.
For everyone’s sake, I hope that turns out to be true. Black people get the okeydoke far too much as it is. If the governor is going to make promises like this, he needs to make sure he keeps them.
- Anon - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 11:52 am:
A big part of the problem I think is the degree to which Rauner decimated State agencies in terms of staffing and funding. Pritzker was beginning to meke headway there and then this happened. Too much of State bureaucracy is still overwhelmed.
- Adroit Opiner - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 11:56 am:
This graph doesn’t really say anything. Rich, are you asserting that because the “completed tests per day” looks flat that it’s a problem? It looks flat because the y scale is up t 140,000 I could make the most exponential increase look flat with that type of scaling. I believe in more testing and that the Governor is doing the best that he can to increase it, but let’s not manipulate the data visualization to confirm the point desired to be made
- Fighter of Foo - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:03 pm:
“But they weren’t going to die if it wasn’t for coronavirus.”
We need better from our elected officials to tamp down fear. This is the opposite. Not sure if anyone else has lost anyone during this lock down? But, we lost my Uncle. Vietnam Vet. Special Agent for the FBI involved in some BIG cases. He was my hero. He was 75 and had health issues. He of course tested positive and that was his cause of death. But, it could have been the flu that could have gotten him. It’s the semantics. I don’t really care what the final diagnosis was, but he died alone. Locked Down in a cold hospital. His wife of 50 years away from him. 4 kids have no closure until August for a memorial? I think we need to all realize those in leadership need to be accountable for their words. I did not vote for the Governor. But, he is my Governor and like the President I default that they care about the people they serve. More kindness in these horrible times. 3% unemployment to lord knows what will be a scourge for families for a long time. Pray more. Beat up less.
- Rich Miller - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:05 pm:
===but let’s not manipulate the data visualization===
Bite me. Daily testing is flat. He’s promised for weeks that it would increase. It hasn’t.
- Busy Not 1 - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:05 pm:
A new testing site in Springfield is opening up at old Walgreen’s isn’t there, that should help…wonder what the wait time on results will be, do we want more positive tests, bet numbers will skyrocket causing longer shut down
- thunderspirit - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:08 pm:
Widespread testing is the primary foundation of any plan to pull out of this.
Pritzker appears to get this, but I agree it’s time to see some progress on this, with full acknowledgement that some of the things Pritzker was promised haven’t worked out the way they were supposed to either.
But governors own.
- Candy Dogood - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:09 pm:
I hate to think of these as broken promises because he was reporting events as they stood at that time and was upfront about it when things changed and we’re up against a horrific situation and many of the reasons why we’re unprepared are structural issues.
But those did sound a lot like promises.
Though I still find myself convinced that things would be different if he’d pink slipped more merit comp folks and focused on hiring people that believed in him as a head if state rather than keeping the chafe along with the wheat.
- Precinct Captain - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:11 pm:
Is there some kind of union of states that could help with developing and deploying accurate, quick tests?
- Nagidam - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:12 pm:
===A big part of the problem I think is the degree to which Rauner decimated State agencies in terms of staffing and funding.===
I said it the other day, Rauner certainly can be blamed for many things in his hollowing out of State Government. But he cannot be blamed for every little shortcoming in Illinois government a couple full budgets after he was set aside in the budget process and then removed via the election. This is on Governor Pritzker. I believe the Governor has done an exemplary job in this crisis. But this issue of testing is on him. This issue of promising minority communities help is on him.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:15 pm:
The testing issue is a shortcoming of the governor and the administration.
The governor and his crew needs to meet and exceed the testing benchmarks and the promises he made, not solely to keep his word, but first and lastly because this crisis needs this testing to meet and exceed for Illinoisans.
Remember the three T’s… isn’t one testing?
- Lake LaSalle - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:17 pm:
Dr. Birx also stated that some states aren’t fully using the high throughput, large Abbott m2000 testing systems already available in hospitals and universities’ academic medical center laboratories
- Chambanalyst - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:19 pm:
Actually, that graph says a lot. You’re seeing a linear increase in the cumulative number of tests because the daily tests administered is relatively fixed or flat. What our graph SHOULD look like is this: https://covid19tracker.health.ny.gov/views/NYS-COVID19-Tracker/NYSDOHCOVID-19Tracker-DailyTracker?%3Aembed=yes&%3Atoolbar=no&%3Atabs=n
Where you see an exponential rise in the number of persons tested, rather than a linear increase. A linear increase in anything is not going to cut it at this stage of the game, we’re way behind that pace. ESPECIALLY if people are talking about “re-opening” things. 3 T’s: Testing, Tracing, and Treatment. Gotta get the tracing aspect figured out better before things can safely open on a widespread basis, and you can’t achieve successful tracing if your testing capacity is fixed. .
- Lost Highway - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:25 pm:
Read the recommended amendments to HB 2480 before reaching conclusions.
- illinifan - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:30 pm:
Pritzker is trying to increase testing separate from the Feds but it is still a challenge due to poor equipment/supplies/lack of staff. The Feds say states are on their own to get testing. Dr. Birx then says Fed testing not fully using systems offered by the Feds. The Prez says there are enough tests for everyone, but the states need to take care of it. I have official whiplash. I wonder who is coordinating all of these different statements.
- Birds on the Bat - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:35 pm:
What Nagidam said.
- Moe Berg - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 12:57 pm:
I’ll stipulate that Pritzker made a major mistake in promising testing that has not been delivered.
And, Rep. Ford’s anguish is justified. We need more testing everywhere, but especially in minority communities.
But, this whole incident obscures a larger truth: the states should not be left to figure this all out on their own.
Forty-two days ago the Vice President of the United States promised within a week that we would have 4 million tests available. As of this date, we still haven’t tested 4 million people.
It’s delusional to think a nationwide crisis is going to be solved on a state or regional basis.
No country has done it that way. Not China. Not South Korea. Not Germany.
- Practical Politics - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 2:07 pm:
More sad news: The American Legion Department of Illinois has followed the lead of the national organization and canceled its annual convention at the Bank of Springfield Center in July. The national American Legion convention which was to have been held in Louisville was canceled a few weeks ago.
The age of the Legionnaires who usually attend these events was probably a factor as well as the uncertainty about COVID-19 pandemic.
- Pundent - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 2:10 pm:
Pritzker made the compelling case for the three Ts as our way out of this. He’s not delivering on the first and most critical of these. He’s either got to set realistic expectations or figure out why his administration is continuing to miss the mark. This issue can quickly overcome any good will he’s banked in the last few weeks. Success or failure of this entire effort hinges on testing in the short term.
And I would agree with Moe Berg’s assessment, but Pritzker’s the one putting targets up and missing them.
- Simply anon - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 3:15 pm:
I’d love to see that chart on testing with comparison to other states, like New York. Even aside from federal assistance, New York and others seemed to have scaled up testing much more quickly than Illinois.
- Mr Smith - Friday, Apr 17, 20 @ 3:35 pm:
One factor to take into account here is this: tests are only part of the problem. The chemicals, including the wonderful story about the work that SIUC has been doing, that are necessary to process the COVID test have been in short supply. Without those chemicals and enzymes, you can’t test effectively. Google “COVID test reagent shortage”, and brush up on your biology…
So yes, Governors own. But most of them don’t have genies on staff to produce everything they need. Even with all the good will (and money) in the world, you can’t snap your fingers and make it happen.