Editorial Roundup:

South Bend Tribune. May 3, 2020.

It was clear even before pandemic that Indiana should spend more on public health

It may not have been the headline from one of Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb's virtual news conferences last month, but it was something worth noting.

The question: 'œDoes Indiana need to increase its public health funding?'ť

'œThe answer is yes,'ť Holcomb replied. 'œClearly, the answer was yes before this ...'ť

Obviously, the 'œthis'ť the governor was referring to is the COVID-19 pandemic, which, as of this writing, has claimed more than 1,000 Hoosier lives, with 17,835 total cases.

And at that April 8 news conference, Holcomb acknowledged that COVID-19 outbreak and the demands it has placed on health resources across the state highlight the need for more spending on public health.

People with underlying health issues are especially vulnerable to COVID-19. Those include respiratory ailments, heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Indiana consistently ranks among the bottom 10 states in the annual United Health Foundation America's Health Rankings. In last year's study, Indiana is ranked 41 for the second year in a row, with some of its lowest rankings including obesity (39th place) and smoking (44th).

Another study, from the Trust for America's Health, ranked Indiana next to last in spending on public health.

Dr. Kristina Box, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Health, agreed with Holcomb, saying she wishes Indiana could direct more dollars to public health and better support local health departments across the state.

For years, health advocates have been urging the state to invest more in public health initiatives. For example, Indiana could and should be spending more to change its status as a state with one of the highest smoking rates in the nation. While once a leader in tobacco prevention funding, Indiana has repeatedly slashed money specifically intended for such purposes. Today, the state spends around one-tenth of what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends.

In the midst of a public health crisis he called 'œthe toughest thing that, dare I say, any of us in our lifetimes have dealt with or probably ever will again,'ť Holcomb has conceded that Indiana should be putting more resources toward Hoosier health and well-being. Lawmakers in the Republican-led legislature should follow suit - and together they should work to make those necessary and long-needed investments.

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(Terre Haute) Tribune-Star. April 29, 2020.

Quick response to '~rapid testing'

Public confidence greatly matters in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Activities that weaken citizens' trust are extraordinarily problematic right now.

Vigo County health officials and law enforcement responded wisely in shutting down a purported 'œCOVID-19 Rapid Antibody testing'ť tent set up in Terre Haute near Interstate 70 on Saturday.

A small group of people erected the pop-up facility near Third Street and Margaret Avenue. Social media posts promised test results in 15 minutes. Local officials reacted with equal swiftness.

Vigo County Health Department's Facebook page alerted followers of the testing site, emphasizing the limited nature of FDA approved rapid testing and that 'œit isn't being sold out of a tent in Terre Haute.'ť A team of Vigo health officials and law enforcement visited the site, and informed the doctor at the tent of laws being violated. The operation, with tests for sale at $75 each, shut down that day.

The Crawfordsville-based doctor running the site near I-70 told the Tribune-Star later Saturday that the tests offered were not diagnostic for COVID-19, but rather for the presence of an antibody. The presence of that particular antibody, the doctor said, indicates an antigen is present, though that antigen itself is not a specific indicator of COVID-19.

Those who tested positive, the doctor said, should self-quarantine and seek medical attention if they become symptomatic. He said those tested received accurate information, nothing improper occurred, and that he voluntarily shut down the tent.

County health officials disagreed. The tests had no diagnostic or therapeutic value for COVID-19, but are for research only. The tent's tests also are not reliable enough to prompt people to visit a hospital emergency room, the local health professionals said. Plus, mass surveillance of COVID's spread is being handled through a network of local, state and federal health authorities.

The Vigo prosecutor's office was investigating the situation through the weekend.

Coronavirus has claimed hundreds of lives in Indiana and Illinois since the pandemic reached the Midwest this winter. The death toll topped 50,000 nationally last weekend. Researchers are working relentlessly to unlock mysteries of this 'œnovel'ť virus, meaning it has not been encountered before and has no cure. Everyday people across the bi-state, nation and globe are looking for answers and the latest discoveries of testing, possible treatments and the quest for a vaccine.

Public health leaders at the county, state and federal levels are serving as the go-to sources of breakthroughs, behavioral guidelines and good practices during the pandemic. Information about resources for coronavirus testing continue to be relayed to the public through news media, medical organizations and health departments. Citizens can count on those outlets for reliable updates on the availability of appropriate testing.

More extensive testing is a necessary step for Indiana, Illinois and the nation to reopen businesses and services shut down by COVID. That said, the public should expect any testing program to be fully explained and vetted in advance by the health officials that serve them.

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Kokomo Tribune. May 1, 2020.

'~Dangerous health threat'

Starting in 1996, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention self-imposed a ban on researching firearms deaths in the United States. The federal agency had been cowed by the National Rifle Association and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, among others, who accused it of being a fellow traveler of those pushing for gun control.

Fast forward to December 2012. The world was shocked by the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in which 28 people, including 20 first-graders, were shot to death. The following month, then-President Obama issued a direct order to then-Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius to lift this prohibition and 'œconduct or sponsor research into the causes of gun violence and the ways to prevent it.'ť

Since then, the CDC has done little to nothing on this issue, even as a 19-year-old in Parkland, Florida, shot and killed 14 former classmates and three staff members two years ago; and closer to home, a 13-year-old boy wounded a classmate and teacher at Noblesville West Middle School.

That's why we were so impressed with the Howard County Board of Health's decision in September 2018 to urge the federal government to begin studying gun violence.

And it's why we are hopeful the CDC will do so. President Trump signed an omnibus budget bill in March 2018 that allows the agency to study gun violence, but no additional funding for such research was authorized.

Cold, hard facts should always be welcome in a debate as serious as gun violence. No one is saying either side can't have their intractable positions. What we are saying is that without the needed data in hand, we can't have an intelligent discussion on this issue. The CDC is uniquely qualified to do this research.

'œCDC increases the health security of our nation,'ť reads its mission statement. 'œAs the nation's health protection agency, CDC saves lives and protects people from health threats. To accomplish our mission, CDC conducts critical science and provides health information that protects our nation against expensive and dangerous health threats, and responds when these arise.'ť

Do those words mean anything in the worst viral pandemic in 100 years? Isn't gun violence a 'œdangerous health threat'ť?

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