Charles Gallagher: Most of us unlikely to made seriously ill by Covid-19

To The Daily Sun,

On March 13, Governor Sununu issued an Executive Order, now a series of orders, shutting down the "nonessential" components of our N.H. economy. As the Covid-19 virus was in the process of spreading around the U.S. and "hot spots were developing, the governor's order was understandable given the dire forecasts contained in a number of models regarding the impact of the virus on the country's population.

As of May 4, we know a great many facts we did not know in mid March. We know now that the models relied upon by experts were wildly incorrect by a factor of several multipliers. For instance, we were told that 2.2 million Americans could die from the virus and that our ICU and health care capacity could be overwhelmed. Now we know that the number of deaths is likely to come in on either side of 100,000. We also now know that the disease seriously threatens a select group that includes the elderly, obese, and immune compromised individuals. Most of the rest of us are unlikely to be made seriously ill by Covid-19. The disease's progression has proven who it targets and that the models used to shutter our economy were just plain wrong.

An agile executive would factor this evolving and updating information into tailoring orders previously issued. Unfortunately, many governors, including our own, are apparently incapable of making rational adjustments based on facts. The governor's May 1 order created a molasses slow phase in back towards normalcy. Many businesses deemed nonessential must remain closed for several more weeks at a minimum. Schools are shut for the remainder of the school year. Liquor stores are open, as are the big-box stores, but most smaller closely held shops are shut, along with restaurants and many other businesses. There is often no logical nexus as to what is open and closed.

The governor seems to have trouble accounting for facts and adjusting accordingly, which interestingly, countries like Sweden and South Korea have done. Those countries have notified the vulnerable to isolate, encouraged or ordered social distancing, and emphasized hygienic measures. Otherwise, the South Koreans and Swedes are going about their business. Their economies have not been plunged towards depression.

In our federal system where responsibilities are spread between the states and national governments, the governors are largely responsible for orders in response to the virus. Given what some of us common folk have learned about Covid-19, it's tragic that our governor is unable to process facts and adjust his executive orders to the realities of the disease.

Charles Gallagher

Gilford