By skyforbes 
A daily Covid-19 update from Andy Slavitt, former head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
Pulled from my daily COVID-19 updates on Twitter
It is hard to prepare for what the next several weeks will look like. We will see things on TV we have only seen in other countries and hear death tolls that are hard to comprehend. Right now it is in the public’s hands.
We can control this! If it doesn’t feel like it’s working because you’re not seeing a lot of cases, understand this, you are responsible for any good news. Take a look at San Francisco on lockdown vs. Miami-Dade’s idle approach:
I don’t swamp this thread with graphs, so sorry for that one, but maybe a few others. If you like graphs and interpretations, this is pretty good analysis. My wife liked it and she’s really discerning about sources and analysis:
Let us stop messing around. Equivocating. Not being clear. “Maybe we will manufacture? Don’t gather in crowds?” I’m going to say it. #StayTheFHome socially. I know it’s hard but it’s all we have to prevent our front line workforce from an onslaught.
There is a wonderful acronym being clinically tossed around — CFR. It stands for Case Fatality Rate. It could be 1%. Or it could be 4%, 5%, or 8%. And the experts tell me why. The Italians beg us to understand. Seattle is ringing the bell.
It’s simple. Someone shows up at the hospital and has trouble breathing. They are put on a ventilator in an ICU with a caring nurse, and they’re probably fine. If some experiences those symptoms without those things, they’re not fine. In the next two months, those things and the PPE (personal protective equipment) to protect frontline healthcare workers will not appear.
When frontline workers ask for PPE/masks, the best thing you can do is help them not need it. Closing bars and restaurants and staying home, look what they do. Now hospitals have a two week lag. That’s when it will get bad, but if you #StayHome now, two weeks from now will look better.
Way too many graphs today. But we have way too little data and we are getting it wherever we can. If you can help with masks, we have a website. (We will also be announcing one for other equipment and vents.) I just heard that @projectn95 has matched 376,000 masks to people who need them and has 3.5 million matches on deck:
In the last 24 hours, we’ve fielded requests for 10 million+ masks from over 400 health care organizations. Over 50 suppliers ave been added. 19 volunteers are running this. So I called the White House, they told me they have “200 million masks coming.” I said when? They said “2 weeks.”
I don’t report this to make you mad, but to do math: we have to stall. Stall. Stall until we get masks. Stall until we can create tests. Stall until we can build ventilators and therapies.
On this website you will see what happens in your state if you and others #StayHome and if you don’t:
I’m beating a dead horse. I know that. Speaking of dead horses, let’s talk about Congress. Shame on McConnell for trying to get a bill passed that ships money to corporations with no strings attached and doesn’t protect people whose incomes are dropping while we need to stay home.
Here is a 5 point plan for Congress we released Friday.
I do hope Senator Rand Paul heals. I worry for him. And I worry for other Senators who have high risk factors. But Rand Paul got tested today and no Senator is more important than anyone else. Congress will get there if you push them. The Administration is behind. Governors are calling a fair amount — they have no answers but they are focused. The grass roots efforts move me to tears.
Going forward, because of the wonderful
, you will see something different in my Sunday daily Covid-19 updates. Not a day off. But better; #thebestofus is going to show you what can be done & what good people are doing. This is important to my mom & I listen to her.
I’m backed up on calls but for everyone making sacrifices, I know this is hard. I know things are anxious. I know there are no answers. I try not to be a platitude guy but I appreciate the support I get and hope to give it back.