What's with Arizona?

Arizona (AZ) is pleased to announce we have made the New York Times and won the grand prize - for the fastest growing COVID-19 infection rate than any other “country”. That's in the face of 3 million cases and 133,000+ deaths in the U.S., with nearly 12 million cases and 500K+ deaths worldwide.

For those of us living in AZ, it may come as no surprise. For months, many have acted like petulant adolescents, thrusting out collective chins, saying “I’ll do what I want and no one’s gonna tell me what to do”. With no parent to correct the behavior, we merrily continued to go to restaurants, shun masks, and not keep social distance. Instead, while others all over the country were locked down and following guidelines, anxiously watching daily stats, it seemed Arizona carried on as if the virus was a hoax, or perhaps believing the "heat will kill the virus". 

It’s been particularly frustrating for a subset of the population who have been accused of being overly cautious, staying home most of the time, and when going out, wearing gloves and masks, having wipes and hand sanitizer at the ready, shopping early in the AM, all in hopes of avoiding infection. All that and then to walk into a sandwich shop to get take-out only to see a 60-some well-dressed woman with a mask perched jauntily under her chin, loudly directing wait staff (who by the way are appropriately masked and gloved) on what she wants in her sandwich, and finally paying and leaving, mask still askew.

Why so cavalier? Were her actions based on misplaced privilege, concern over how she looked in a mask, or an effort to show everyone she will not “live in fear”? Or, was she just uninformed (likely not, since she at least had a mask hanging on her chest), a virus denier, or just plain stupid? Did she feel that being asked to wear a mask was “trampling her inalienable rights”? Did she really think somehow she won’t be touched by the virus? 

As we slide backwards into an ever-tightening second lockdown, we realize some of our state and national leaders have led us astray, failing to take decisive action when it was required, hoping for the best rather than learning from the data. 91% of ICU beds are now full, and a 25% infection rate looms large (New York has less than 1%). Only recently did local governments begin to mandate and enforce masks and social distancing. We can only hope that it is not too little too late.

The sad part is, it didn't have to be this way. We could have paid attention, learned from other States and countries who lived through the hard lessons and wrote the survival guide, heeding the data and the guidelines, and acting with collective care. Instead, our health care system is overstressed, our front line workers are at ever-worsening risk, 3000 families have lost loved ones, and businesses are struggling to stay afloat while employees fear for their lives and livelihoods.

Now is the time for us to do two things in parallel - first, finally get serious about slowing viral spread by following the guidelines (stay home as much as your can, wear a mask, social distance, wash hands, get tested, know when to seek care, etc.); and second, identifying and voting in leaders who will follow the evolving science and who are willing and able to navigate a path focused on both keeping people safe, while finding ways to support the economy. It's not an "either-or", but rather an "and".