Tuesday, July 20, 2021

Do the results from voluntary Covid testing reveal the actual impact of the delta variant? Probably not.

Dr. Scott Gottlieb, former FDA Commissioner and frequent commenter on "Face the Nation," observed on SquawkBox:

"We don't know what the denominator is right now," Gottlieb said in an interview on "Squawk Box." "I think we're vastly underestimating the level of delta spread right now because I think people who are vaccinated, who might develop some mild symptoms or might develop a breakthrough case, by and large are not going out and getting tested. If you've been vaccinated and you develop a mild cold right now, you don't think you have Covid."

link: https://news.google.com/articles/CAIiEPILBGsErWaXt1gDrnWmdtAqGQgEKhAIACoHCAow2Nb3CjDivdcCMMHF0wY?hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US%3Aen

Gottlieb re-enforced his observations on "Face the Nation" on Sunday, 18 July 2021:

Even as the number of coronavirus cases spikes, Gottlieb said the U.S. is likely undercounting infections, as Americans who are younger and healthier, or those who are asymptomatic or have mild cases, may not get tested for COVID-19. "We're not doing a lot of routine screening right now," he said. "Unless you work for the New York Yankees, you're not getting tested on a regular basis. So I think that this Delta wave could be far more advanced than what we're detecting right now in our ascertainment." Gottlieb estimated the U.S. is picking up roughly 1-in-10 or 1-in-20 infections, and those who get tested for COVID-19 are either sicker or have "telltale" symptoms of the coronavirus, such as loss of taste or smell.

[In the limited population of the New York Yankee organization, there were at least three "breakthrough" cases: While Loaisiga, Cortes and Peralta are all vaccinated and have breakthrough cases, per Cashman] [In the Clear Creek Texas event, Health officials in Galveston County said six of the people who tested positive were fully vaccinated.] [In the Democrat Texas legislature event, Three of the 60 Texas House Democrats tested positive for the virus while staying in Washington, D.C., according to Texas House Democratic Caucus leadership. The number later increased to five or possibly six. See https://6abc.com/house-democrats-test-positive-for-covid-texas-get-covid19-caucus-members-coronavirus/10894001/]


Yet on July 20, 2021, days after Gottlieb was sounding the alarm, the Courier News ran an uncritical "feel good" story:


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