So Covid-19 Testing Is the Key?

So testing is the key to all of this. Dr. Fauci wants to pass out immunity cards that may be tied to your ability to go back to work, travel, etc. If we could just test everyone and determine who has it and who doesn't, we could fix this whole mess, right? And every day more people are tested followed by the breathless recitation of the case numbers by the media every hour, accompanied by words like “soared” and “skyrocketed”. But what if the test doesn't actually work? The immunity card would be worthless; you may get one and still have it or you may be denied one and not have it. And what about the numbers? We are all quaking in fear watching these numbers 'soar' every day. But what if the numbers are wrong because the test is wrong? Here's some information from the CDC on the test currently in use called the CDC 2019-Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Real-Time RT-PCR Diagnostic Panel as of March 30, 2020. (View full document at https://www.fda.gov/media/134922/download )

“Results are for the identification of 2019-nCoV RNA. The 2019-nCoV RNA is generally detectable in upper and lower respiratory specimens during infection. Positive results are indicative of active infection with 2019-nCoV but do not rule out bacterial infection or co-infection with other viruses. The agent detected may not be the definite cause of disease.”

“Negative results do not preclude 2019-nCoV infection and should not be used as the sole basis for treatment or other patient management decisions. Negative results must be combined with clinical observations, patient history, and epidemiological information.”

“Positive and negative predictive values are highly dependent on prevalence. False negative test results are more likely when prevalence of disease is high. False positive test results are more likely when prevalence is moderate to low.” 

“Test performance can be affected because the epidemiology and clinical spectrum of infection caused by 2019-nCoV is not fully known. For example, clinicians and laboratories may not know the optimum types of specimens to collect, and, during the course of infection, when these specimens are most likely to contain levels of viral RNA that can be readily detected.”

“Detection of viral RNA may not indicate the presence of infectious virus or that 2019-nCoV is the causative agent for clinical symptoms.”

“This test cannot rule out diseases caused by other bacterial or viral pathogens.”

So Covid-19 is “generally detectable....during infection.” Generally? If we are going to stake lives and policy on these tests, I would hope for something better than “generally.” Then there is the fact that even a positive result doesn't mean Covid-19 is the cause of the patient's disease. This correlates with Dr. Brix's admission that every death in which Covid-19 was present was counted as a Covid-19 death even if Covid-19 was not the cause. Next, a negative result doesn't mean the individual does not have Covid-19. What does this mean for Dr. Fauci's immunity cards? 

The accuracy of the test results depends of the prevalence of the virus, which at this point is already in doubt. In places like NY, there will be a lot more false negatives, making it seem better than it is. In areas with fewer cases, there are more false positives making it seem worse. How is a governor supposed to make decisions based on that kind of data? Next, the test itself is in question because we really don't know that much about Covid-19. Are the samples being taken from the right places, is this even the best kind of test to use for this kind of virus? Nobody knows for sure right now. And just because the test finds viral RNA does not mean an infection is present or that Covid-19 is the cause of the symptoms!

The document also details the requirements for the test and the special training required to administer and run it. In our rush to test as many people as possible, are all the people giving the test and doing the lab work qualified? According to the document, it is very easy to contaminate or otherwise mess this up. We are basing so much policy, staking our future really, on this test and in the meantime, have thrown common sense, and our constitutional rights, out the window. I don't know about you, but I have less and less confidence in the medical experts running the show. Science, for a variety of reasons, has been hijacked by politics and now we are blindly following scientists and ignoring their political agendas. We live in a representative republic for a reason. We are not a country run by unelected “experts”. I doubt Dr. Fauci has the slightest understanding of, or apparent interest in, economics or constitutional law. His focus, as a physician, is to save every person from dying (a noble goal for sure) and to be able to wave his magic wand and perform this unprecedented national experiment must be heady stuff. He doesn't care if millions are out of work and imprisoned in their homes as long as the virus stops spreading. And now that he and others have staked their reputations on this grand experiment and their methods, they need to see it through to the end, evidence to the contrary be damned. No, it is time to stop being subjects in a petri dish and reassert common sense and constitutional rights. The experiment in letting this country be run by experts has failed and failed miserably.