Lack of consistency in reporting of COVID data

This letter is regarding an article I read recently about COVID data. The Government Executive article, “America’s Entire Understanding of the Pandemic Was Shaped by Messy Data,” is authored by Kara Schechtman and Sara Simon if you want to look it up. They are part of The COVID Tracking Project.

Data were compiled from the 50 states and territories for a total of 56 systems reporting to the national database. There were no consistent methods or approaches among the 56 so data are definitely “apples and oranges” and no one knows how different any of the data are within the five metrics — tests, cases, deaths, hospitalizations, and recoveries — each state or territory had its own methods. How data were reported within each state was not identified but each agency/organization had their own approach. It took a while for any federal guidance so the early months of 2020 are even more suspect.

• Tests: Variances included the number of tests (a person could be tested several times) vs. number of persons tested. Therefore, states only reporting persons tested appeared to be testing far less than other states even if not so. Race and ethnicity data were “ … highly incomplete and unstandardized, impeding efforts to understand the pandemic’s disproportionate effect on Black, Latino, and Indigenous communities.” Even though nightly news was reporting minorities were more affected than whites, reality is no one really knows. The report says each state had different weak points in their equipment so reported differently, e.g. electronic vs. faxed (yes, some systems were that old) transmission and ignored what wasn’t easy to report. Some states reported only certain types of tests while some reported none. Some states reported only clinic authorized tests while others included all tests.

• Cases: Some states included clinic determined cases, some only if tested positive, others included probable cases (a person with symptoms), and some included all possibilities. As another variable, testing means changed over the pandemic period.

• Deaths: Reporting differences included those dying from COVID vs. those dying with COVID. Regarding timing, some reported deaths as they occurred, some reported only after death certificates were issues.

• Hospitalizations: Variances included current vs. cumulative and the same variances as listed above under cases.

• Recoveries: It was extremely difficult to define if, or when, someone was recovered. Was just not dying enough? Was someone recovered if they lived but had long-term effects? This metric was so difficult that they stopped reporting it except for the eight states that report hospital discharges.

My conclusion is that very significant state and national decisions were made that affected all our lives, our families, our activities, our mental health, our economy, and political operations. These decisions were made, and are still being made, on flawed data.

Jim Carnahan

Baker City

Bill eliminating graduation requirements is absurd

Every time I look at the news I realize just how absurd things have become. Yet I can still be surprised by our state legislature. For example, we now see a proposal that students will not be required to know anything of substance in order to graduate from school. While I admit there are many loony ideas being advanced as legislation, this one in particular is tantamount to criminal on two fronts.

First, we have child abuse and endangerment. Children are being brainwashed to believe they are the wisest segment of the population. Simultaneously, they know little of history but are pounded with corrupt ideology which they are expected to parrot on command.

Secondly, a fraud. The parents are being betrayed by an educational system for which they pay a significant amount annually. The local school board needs people who value proper education for all the children. I would hope parents across the state will raise an outcry against this particular bill and keep a closer eye on their local curriculum.

Rick Rienks

Baker City