A friend of ours in New York who was sick from COVID this weekend went to the pharmacy to get treatments and she had to check a box to identify her “race.” She was told by the attendant that because of shortages, whites are now often pushed to the back of the line.
Now this discriminatory policy has been adopted in Minnesota and Utah as well. Can Illinois, California, and New Jersey be far behind?
Will a 65 year old Asian with respiratory problems be behind the line of a black 22 year old? Will there be different points assigned for Asians, Hispanics, and Blacks? Will darker skinned minorities have preference over the lighter skinned?
We despair.
First, a little detail on these triage plans. In Utah, "Latinx ethnicity" counts for more points than "congestive heart failure" in a patient’s "COVID-19 risk score"—the state’s framework for allocating monoclonal antibodies. https://t.co/z49PMR378R pic.twitter.com/hf3ERJKc6T
— Aaron Sibarium (@aaronsibarium) January 7, 2022
This also appears to be the official guidance policy of the FDA in distribution of monoclonal antibodies and other antiviral medicines.
Of course, none of this political rationing of medical care would be necessary if, as we advised months ago, Uncle Sam hadn’t created a government monopoly purchasing and distribution for treatments. If we had let private companies produce the therapies, we’d have plenty of supply for people of all skin colors.