Coronavirus in the U.S:
The coronavirus that has ravaged the United States is increasing its intensity each day. Some governors have handled the situation well while others have failed to act. Michigan is currently ranked seventh for the most cases in the United States, and fourth for the most deaths with numbers reaching over four thousand according to the worldometer. It was one of the last states in the country to address the virus.
Where has Michigan gone wrong:
The federal government’s job is to assist and aid the states while they prepare for any circumstances possible. Each state is so unique from one another based on its needs and the people living there. The president is not able to make an edict for all states to follow; governors can only be given guidelines and suggestions for particular situations.
In my opinion, Governor Gretchen Whitmer, currently the governor of the state of Michigan; has failed to have enough supplies on hand. She tried to ban the only medicines that have been shown to be effective in treating patients that have tested positive for the coronavirus. She has also criticized the president.
The state of Michigan’s hospitals are currently hectic and overwhelmed with patients. According to mlive, 80-90% of hospitals in some areas of Michigan are filled with COVID-19 patients. For ABC news, Mary Macdonald, an emergency room nurse in Michigan reports, “There are no masks, there are no gowns. They’re running low on gloves. … We cannot stay safe and we cannot care for all these people that are coming in.” As a result, doctors may not feel safe in Michigan. They may also feel overwhelmed, being understaffed to keep up with everything.
Governor Whitmer’s mistakes:
Governor Whitmer at first banned the use of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin. These combined medicines were said to have shown significant reduction in symptoms in patients that tested positive. While there may not be much information or testing to qualify these medicines, some have said the medicines have tremendously helped patients. When doctors were leaning towards helping to treat patients with these medicines, Government Whitmer threatened administrative action.
In my opinion, this negative response is unnecessary. Doctors are risking their own health and well-being to try and help these patients when they do not even have enough protective equipment to keep themselves safe. The governor should not have threatened their jobs for trying to help patients with what could be a matter of life and death. If her objection is due to a lack of testing of the medicines, I think we should let the patients themselves decide if they want to be treated or not with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin.
After Whitmer’s initial reaction, the governor reversed the letter and asked the federal government to send these medicines immediately. The ban of these drugs was apparently a miscommunication between the state senate and the governor. This kind of miscommunication is something that should not happen during a critical time like this. This “miscommunication” made doctors feel threatened at work.
Governor Whitmer seems more focused on defending herself and trying to prove a successful response instead of focusing on the needs of the state and the people living in Michigan. I think Michigan has handled the coronavirus pandemic poorly and has squandered the state’s financial resources since the start of the quarantine. Not handling things properly and waiting too long to start raising the number of tests being done have caused me to lose trust in the governor’s direction during this pandemic.
