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San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

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Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#61

Post by sidibe »

I understand the sentiment, but I think it's pretty clear in retrospect hard lockdowns were the correct way to address this.

This half-assed "wear a mask and social distance if you want" stance just made the economy sputter for a whole a year. I've seen this in France twice, where they've oscillated between doing nothing and doing a lot, a couple brief lockdowns can reverse things quickly even after things have gotten worse than they ever gotten in the USA. In Asia they managed to control the whole thing by trying to squelch it.

Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#62

Post by asdf333 »

soupson wrote: post #26

I understand that Dr Morrow is a health professional and not a writing professional. For this reason, I would recommend that San Mateo county hire a public relations / social media expert to do some editing on this and future posts. It lacks the structure and coherent message that a public notice needs. I read it from start to finish and I’m not sure exactly what purpose it served beyond Dr. Morrow justifying his dec…

to each his own. but i appreciated the thoughtful, non public relations speak writing. it shows me a person doing his best, with the data that he has, and all of the various factors he has to struggle through to come to the decision.

it actually immensely increases my trust in him to understand the thought process behind his decision vs “let me lead and sound authoritative. trust me i know best”

in fact i’ve just about had enough of that style of leadership from politicians

Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#63

Post by apsec112 »

ajay-b wrote: post #13

Agreed, but what is missing from all of these explanations and defenses is a concrete plan for exiting SAH and lockdown orders. Where does it end, or is it preferable that it never ends?

The FDA should approve Pfizer's vaccine on Friday or Saturday.

Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#64

Post by heleninboodler »

sbuttgereit wrote: post #32

Reading this I was expecting the same knee-jerk, panic response that has become the "acceptable" public health response to the problem the pandemic places before us. While I detect a hint of futility in this statement, I am nonetheless deeply heartened to know some public health officials are themselves questioning some of the simplistic premises that have been driving policy to this point at all levels of government…

I agree wholeheartedly with all three of your points. I disagree strongly with one of his positions (I don't think we should be opening schools while the rest of us are locked down), but I too find it very, very encouraging to have a public official obviously using his brain and being honest about the fact that nobody really knows the right answer.

And especially in the context about the use of power, the acknowledgement that imposing a lockdown doesn't actually necessarily change people's behavior all that much is a really good point. We've definitely seen that there are some that will intentionally do the opposite if they feel their freedoms are being impinged upon, so if it's not going to actually make an improvement, the gesture could be a huge mistake.

Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#65

Post by jeffbee »

spikels wrote: post #55
sujinge9 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Probably both

Nine months into this it would be nice if we had good data on the risk factors of transmission. I know it’s a tricky virus to trace but shouldn’t we have better info on which activities demographics, etc are the most risky by now?

We do know the risk factors. It's a respiratory disease that spreads when people who are breathing are near each other. We don't need a random control trial to tell us that practicing with your brass band can spread it. The solution is to stay very far from everyone until the disease is wiped out. Only very intelligent libertarian contrary Americans think we don't have the information we need.

Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#66

Post by mehrdadn »

avalys wrote: post #17

Wow. Lest anyone think that Dr. Morrow is some kind of anti-lockdown activist - back in the spring, San Mateo county had one of the most restrictive and prescriptive lockdowns of anywhere in the US (residents were ordered to limit outdoor recreation to within 5 miles of their home). It takes a lot of guts to just look objectively at the data and do what you think is right, regardless of what pressure you’re getting f…

> I am aware of no data that some of the business activities [...] are the major drivers of transmission

This suggests he is aware of data indicating that some of the business activities being restricted drive transmission, just not all of them. (I'm guessing maybe, say, indoor dining?) So should those known to do this be restricted or not? Did restricting them previously help or not? Should we ignore them?

Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#67

Post by soupson »

leafmeal wrote: post #52
soupson wrote: post #26

I understand that Dr Morrow is a health professional and not a writing professional. For this reason, I would recommend that San Mateo county hire a public relations / social media expert to do some editing on this and future posts. It lacks the structure and coherent message that a public notice needs. I read it from start to finish and I’m not sure exactly what purpose it served beyond Dr. Morrow justifying his dec…

I appreciated all the detail he put into it. It gave me a lot of insight into everything that he considered. I think the detail proves that it's just not a simple problem. If you want to give a complete explanation, you're going to need more detail.

I do appreciate the willingness of a public official to acknowledge complexity and offer insights into why a decision was made. That’s risky, because it opens up debate on individual points that could throw the discussion off. I suppose it’s the style that I don’t appreciate, as I’d like for this information to be presented more like a medical report in layman’s terms than a heart to hear. Overall, Dr Morrow sounds exasperated. I don’t blame him for that.

Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#68

Post by tims33 »

threatofrain wrote: post #12

If the sum of regional policies are effective at maneuvering the neighboring counties toward a rate of acceptable and manageable outcomes, then San Mateo is turning the dial in the other direction for the benefit of their businesses and on the backs of surrounding counties. If the consensus of the region is net wrong, then we are irrationally sacrificing our regional economic health, and we are certainly also trading…

San Mateo was the first Bay Area county to reopen and did not have transmission rates that were higher than nearby counties. The real point of his message is that it’s possible the higher levels of restriction aren’t working.

Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#69

Post by daveFNbuck »

avalys wrote: post #17

Wow. Lest anyone think that Dr. Morrow is some kind of anti-lockdown activist - back in the spring, San Mateo county had one of the most restrictive and prescriptive lockdowns of anywhere in the US (residents were ordered to limit outdoor recreation to within 5 miles of their home). It takes a lot of guts to just look objectively at the data and do what you think is right, regardless of what pressure you’re getting f…

I live in San Mateo county, and am interested in knowing what to do to stay safe. This is the first I've heard about limiting outdoor recreation to within 5 miles of my home.

I haven't been notified about any of the details of any of the lockdowns. In the Spring, I encountered a group of people who had just been released from jail during one of my monthly shopping trips. Despite having just been in government custody, they didn't even know the basics about things like social distancing, much less any more specific restrictions.

How are these things supposed to be effective when it's so hard to learn about them?

Re: San Mateo County Health Officer Statement on Bay Area Stay-at-Home Orders

#70

Post by blackrock »

xfitm3 wrote: post #48
gnusty_gnurc wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The only trick is how you convince everyone to comply. Translate that to: how do we crush the poor, destroy livelihoods and deprive children of education? Compliance, knave!

I despise lockdowns and my state won't enforce them. I am so thankful to be in a level headed state. Forcing people into poverty is just as bad or even worse as getting a virus. In my area beyond after the initial reopening its business as normal. Everyone is having parties and celebrating, living a normal life.

Let Freedom Ring!!
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