It wouldn’t be out of line to expect those setting public health policy and making life-changing medical recommendations to have some awareness of the outcomes of their views and predictions.
For example, it would be reasonable to believe that Anthony Fauci, one of the most important figures in US public health and the head of an organization dedicated to investigating infectious disease response, would be aware of the results of policies he recommended.
But Anthony Fauci is a near-perfect example of the modern public health profession, someone who believes fanatically in his own infallibility.
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Which is how we arrive at some new remarks he made about his disappointment with the United States and our acceptance of COVID vaccines. Remarks that once again demonstrate why he did such poor work during the pandemic: all too often, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci testifies before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee about the COVID-19 response in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 4, 2021. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Fauci, in a new discussion called "Why HIV still has no vaccine: Dr. Fauci & Dr. Corey explain the science," held by the "SubSpace at the Museum of Science," explained why he was so upset about the US’ COVID vaccination rate.
"If the vaccine was accepted by society, if we didn't have an anti-vax problem, we would have a much much more effective vaccine distribution in this country," Fauci said. "I mean, if everybody universally accepted that this was a safe and effective vaccine, we were trying to get 72% of the population vaccinated and we never really got there. Whereas other countries got 85-90% vaccinated. So I think it depends on the country."
Fauci then said he believed it was unacceptable for people in the US to be getting a "second and third booster" before people in the developing world got their first dose.
"That's different than the inequity that you have globally, which I think is more of a problem," he said. "We had people getting their second and third booster before people in the developing world were getting their first shot. That's just unconscionable."
That’s an odd thing for him to say, considering he was instrumental in pushing for the second and third booster doses. Though that was a seamless shift from his previous claim that the two-dose series would provide plenty of protection against severe outcomes. Regardless, much of the developing world is made up of much younger countries, with populations in Africa, for example, at much lower risk of serious outcomes from COVID-19 than elderly individuals with comorbidities in the United States or Western Europe. But that’s how "equity" works in the minds of people like Anthony Fauci; we must force equal distribution instead of making rational, common-sense decisions.
Which is also why the CDC initially recommended that COVID vaccines be given to teachers and transit workers before people aged 65-74, because they wanted to mitigate racial and ethnic "health inequities." Sanity takes a back seat to equity.
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Dr. Anthony Fauci testifies before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C., on June 3, 2024. The hearing covers findings from a 15-month Republican-led probe into Fauci and the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Then there’s the other side of his argument, and the more important one: that getting higher vaccination rates would have fixed our COVID outbreak in the United States. This is where Fauci’s lack of analysis, intellectual curiosity, and humility becomes more obvious and infuriating.
He enviously mentions that other countries achieved much higher vaccination rates because they have less of an "anti-vax" culture. So how much did that matter? Well, we can look at a few prominent examples to get an answer.
Australia achieved one of the highest vaccination rates in the world by late 2021. By late September, early October, more than 90% of everyone over 16 had received at least one vaccination dose. By December 2021, COVID-related hospitalizations in Australia had exploded to record highs.
Australia COVID hospitalization and vaccination rates (Ian Miller)
In early February 2021, Australia reportedly had a mere nine individuals hospitalized with COVID. By early January 2022, that figure had surged to 3,101. In fact, one story in an Australian media outlet in January 2022 described a "Tsunami of COVID," with "grave warnings" about the situation in Australia hospitals.
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Then there’s Denmark. Denmark was lauded in the media, particularly by Slate for their vaccine passport system that was credited with ending the spread of COVID in the country. "In Denmark, which rolled out the first EU-based app in April, officials made the ‘Coronapass’ a mandatory requirement for basic societal participation," Slate explained. "Access to hairdressers, tattoo parlors, cinemas, theaters, and gyms was strictly gated, with the threat of fines looming for anyone who dared to ignore the mandate... These results were championed as the country’s official victory over the virus and a decisive win for those advocating for digital vaccination credential systems."
Denmark was even more successful at vaccinations than Australia, getting over 90% of the adult population fully vaccinated by early September 2021. A few short months later, cases in Denmark obliterated previous records. They were praised for the "official victory over the virus" and a "decisive win" for vaccine passports. And a few months later had one of the highest COVID case rates on earth.
Denmark COVID case rates and vaccination rates (Ian Miller)
How about an example closer to home? After all, the United States is a gigantic country with wildly different policies and populations. Countrywide, the vaccination rate wasn’t nearly as high as some other countries, but plenty of individual locations far exceeded the target Fauci set out.
Dr. Anthony Fauci is sworn in before testifying at a House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing on the coronavirus pandemic's origins in Washington, D.C., on June 3, 2024. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
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In fact, one of those locations was Montgomery County, Maryland. Fauci’s own backyard, just outside Washington, D.C. By late 2021, Montgomery County had nearly 85% of the population fully vaccinated, with over 90% getting at least one dose. They even had another one of Fauci’s favorite policies, a mask mandate. How well did that work for them?
Montgomery County, MD COVID vaccination and case rates (Ian Miller)
Not well! These are just a handful of examples, and there are plenty more. In Hawaii, COVID deaths hit their highest rate, by far, after more than 90% of seniors in the state had been vaccinated. The group at highest risk of severe outcomes, and the most vaccinated. Maine, too, saw its COVID numbers increase dramatically despite extremely high vaccination uptake. Same with Vermont.
And what makes this all worse is that Fauci made these comments this week. Over six years after the start of the pandemic, five and a half years after the vaccines hit the market, and nearly five years after near-universal vaccination coverage in some states and countries. Yet he either doesn’t know the actual data of what the results of his recommendations were, or is too dishonest to talk publicly about it.
That is why trust in public health is at an all-time low. The data is there, the outcomes are there. And one of the most important voices and figures in public health doesn’t know or doesn’t care about it, because it would prove him wrong.
Ian Miller is a writer at OutKick.
